Coffee Beans, Blue Harvest, El Salvador – Catholic Relief Services
Photo Credit: Maren Barbee
Coffee Plants Growing on a Hillside, Blue Harvest, Honduras – Catholic Relief Services
Photo Credit: Maren Barbee
Coffee Crop Irrigation, Blue Harvest, Honduras – Catholic Relief Services
Photo Credit: Maren Barbee
Coffee Berries, Blue Harvest, Honduras – Catholic Relief Services
Photo Credit: Maren Barbee
Coffee Producer and Program Supporter, Blue Harvest, Honduras – Catholic Relief Services
Photo credit: Maren Barbee

Location:
Central America

Clients:
Catholic Relief Services, Inter-American Development Bank (IDB)

Partners:
Keurig Green Mountain

Service Areas:

Our Expert:

LimnoTech developed the Blue Harvest Water Benefits Calculator (WBC) for Catholic Relief Services to support its Water Smart Agriculture Initiative in Central America. The WBC is a web-based tool and the first of its kind for the coffee community to support farm management decision-making. Based on the widely-applied HSPF hydrologic framework, the WBC quantifies the hydrologic impacts of specific land management interventions.

The Challenge

The reliability of water supply is decreasing across Central America due to land degradation, overexploitation, pollution, and a changing climate. Poor agricultural practices in coffee cultivation can drive deforestation and negatively impact water resources by contributing to erosion and declining water quantity and quality. Blue Harvest is a program coordinated by CRS as part of CRS’ Water Smart Agriculture initiative in Central America. The program focuses on protecting and restoring drinking water sources in the coffee lands of Central America by promoting sustainable coffee production and processing practices. The Blue Harvest WBC was developed to support this initiative.

The Outcome

The WBC provides valuable information for coffee farmers and institutions regarding the hydrologic benefits of existing and planned management interventions. The tool can be applied to identify the most impactful practices for controlling erosion and increasing recharge.

Projects

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