Académique Documents
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Proceedings of the International Symposium Held on 23 to 25 June 2008 at the Tamil Nadu Agricultural University
Editors
Dr. Arumugam Kandiah Visiting Professor, TNAU Dr. K. Ramaswamy Professor, TNAU Regional Programme Specialist, UNESCO and A. Sampathrajan Dean, Agricultural Engineering College and Research Institute, TNAU
Volume I
Published Jointly by Tamil Nadu Agricultural University, Coimbatore and United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, New Delhi Office, New Delhi July 2008
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UNESCO
Tamil Nadu Agricultural University, Coimbatore
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978-81-89218-41-6 2011 UNESCO, New Delhi Bal Vikas Prakashan Pvt. Ltd.
PREFACE
With a global withdrawal rate of 600 700 km3/year, groundwater is the worlds most extracted raw material. Particularly in rural areas of developing countries, in arid and semi arid regions and in the inlands, groundwater is the most important source of drinking water. Irrigation systems in many parts of the world strongly depend on groundwater resources. Groundwater is also a reliable resource for industry. However, managerial control over groundwater resources development and protection is often lacking and that has led to uncontrolled aquifer exploitation and pollution. Intensive aquifer use affects springs, stream base-flow, groundwater table, piezometric level, groundwater storage, surface water - groundwater interface, wetlands and land subsidence. Groundwater vulnerability to the human impacts is therefore recognized as a serious worldwide social, economic and environmental problem. It has been estimated that about 80 countries, constituting 40% of the worlds population, are suffering from serious water shortages and that within 25 years two thirds of the worlds population will be living in water-stressed countries. Although long been seen as the only option to improve crop productivity and thus the quality of life of millions of people, development of irrigation is not always possible because of the inherent climatic constraints in the arid and semi-arid regions of the world. It is now a well understood fact that expansion of irrigation, although technically possible, is not always cost-effective or environmentally friendly. Thus development of rainfed agriculture is not only necessary to improve the food security but also is a necessary prerequisite for the sustainable development of the world. UNESCO is working to create the conditions for genuine dialogue based upon respect for shared values and the dignity of each civilization and culture. The world urgently requires global visions of sustainable development based upon observance of human rights, mutual respect and the alleviation of poverty, all of which lie at the heart of UNESCOs mission and activities. UNESCO has a mandate to advance hydrological sciences and their application for improving water security. UNESCO is therefore uniquely placed to work with other concerned partners to popularize and better study water harvesting technologies. Through its International Hydrological Programme (IHP), and especially through its Water and Development Information for Arid and Semi-Arid Areas (GWADI) initiative, UNESCO remains committed to sharing its know-how, cooperating with others and building new partnerships. In its VIIth Phase, IHP is extensively working in the field of rainwater harvesting, not only to consolidate existing knowledge, but also to develop cheaper and more appropriate technologies for water harvesting. I am confident that this set of proceedings of the International Symposium on Water Harvesting - bringing green revolution to rainfed areas will serve as good reference to those who are genuinely committed to bring green revolution to rainfed areas. Parsuramen
Armoogum Parsuramen Director and UNESCO Representative to Bhutan, India, Maldives and Sri Lanka
List of Contributors
1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. A. Balakrishnan, Department of Agronomy, Tamil Nadu Agriculture University, Coimbatore, India A. Sarangi, Senior Scientist, Water Technology Centre, IARI, New Delhi, India A. Subba Rao, Indian Institute of Soil Science, Nabibagh, Berasia Road, Bhopal-462038, Mathia Pradesh, India A.K. Misra, Indian Institute of Soil Science, Nabibagh, Berasia Road, Bhopal-462038, Mathia Pradesh, India A.K. Tripathi, Indian Institute of Soil Science, Nabibagh, Berasia Road, Bhopal-462038, Mathia Pradesh, India A.K.Sinha, Professor, Department of Geology, University of Rajasthan, Jaipur, India Arun Balamatti, AME Foundation, No. 204, 100 Feet Ring Road, Banashankari 3rd Stage, 3rd Phase, 2nd Block, Bangalore 560 085 B.K. Gavit, Associate Scientist, Maharashtra Remote Sensing Applications Centre- Nagpur, Maharashtra, India Bharat R Sharma, International Water Management Institute, New Delhi Office, New Delhi, India
10. C S Kallimani, AME Foundation, No. 204, 100 Feet Ring Road, Banashankari 3rd Stage, 3rd Phase, 2nd Block, Bangalore 560 085 11. C.A. Madramootoo, Dean of Faculty, Agricultural and Environmental Sciences, McGill University, SteAnne-De-Bellevue, Montreal, Canada 12. C.Jayanthi, Department of Agronomy, Tamil Nadu Agriculture University, Coimbatore, India 13. C.R. Shanmugham, Programme Advisor, DHAN Foundation, Madurai, India 14. C.Vennila, Department of Agronomy, Tamil Nadu Agriculture University, Coimbatore, India 15. C.Vijayalakshmi, Department of Crop Physiology, Tamil Nadu Agricultural University, Coimbatore, India 16. D. Manohar Jesudas, Professor and Head, Department of Farm Machinery, Agriculture Engineering College &Research Institute , Tamil Nadu Agriculture University, Coimbatore, India 17. G. Sujata, Scientist/ Engr-SD, National Remote Sensing Agency-Hydrabad, Andhra Pradesh, India 18. Gunnar Jacks, Department of Land and Water Resources Engineering, KTH, Stockholm, Sweden 19. Harnath Jagawat, NM Sadguru Water and Development Foundation (NMSWDF), Dahod, Gujarat, India 20. I.Muthusamy, Professor, Department of Soil and Water Conservation Engineering, Tamil Nadu Agriculture University, Coimbatore, India 21. Ian Gale, British Geological Survey, Wallingford, Oxon, UK 22. Indra, Lecturer, E.S.College of Engineering & Technology Villupuram, India 23. J.Diraviam, AME Foundation, No. 204, 100 Feet Ring Road, Banashankari 3rd Stage, 3rd Phase, 2nd Block, Bangalore 560 085 24. J. Venkitapirabhu, Associate Professor (Agrl.Extn.), ODL, Tamil Nadu Agriculture University, Coimbatore, India 25. K.V. Rao, Central Research Institute for Dryland Agriculture, Hyderabad, India 26. K. Arulmozhiselvan, Professor of Soil Science and Agricultural Chemistry, Tamil Nadu Agricultural University, Coimbatore, India 27. K. Ramaswamy, Professor, Department of Soil and Water Conservation Engineering, Agriculture Engineering College and Research Institute , Tamil Nadu Agriculture University, Coimbatore, India 28. K.G. Mandal, Indian Institute of Soil Science, Nabibagh, Berasia Road, Bhopal-462038, Mathia Pradesh, India
29. K.Kathirvel, Professor, Department of Farm Machinery, Agriculture Engineering College & Research Institute, Tamil Nadu Agriculture University, Coimbatore, India 30. K.M. Hati, Indian Institute of Soil Science, Nabibagh, Berasia Road, Bhopal-462038, Madhya Pradesh, India 31. K.Palanisami, Centre for Agricultural and Rural Development Studies (CARDS), Tamil Nadu Agricultural University, Coimbatore, India 32. K.Palanisami, Director, CARDS, Tamil Nadu Agriculture University, Coimbatore, India, 33. K.R. Koundal, Joint Director, IARI and Project Director, Water Technology Centre, IARI, New Delhi, India 34. Koichi Fujita, Professor, CSEAS, Kyoto University, Japan 35. K.P.R. Vittal, Central Arid zone Research Institute, Jodhpur, India 36. Lakshmi Devi, Lecturer, E.S.College of Engineering & Technology Villupuram, India 37. M. Karthikeyan, Team Leader, DHAN Foundation, Madurai, India 38. M. Madhu, Central Soil and Water Conservation Research and Training Institute and Research Centre, Udhagamandalam 640 004, The Nilgiris, Tamil Nadu, India 39. M. Palanisamy, Programme Leader, DHAN Foundation, Madurai, India 40. M. R. Rajagopalan, Secretary, Gandhigram Trust, Gandhigram, Dindigul, India 41. M.A. Fyzee, Scientist/ Engr-SE, National Remote Sensing Agency-Hydrabad, Andhra Pradesh, India 42. M.Jegadeesan, Visiting project Researcher, CSEAS, Kyoto University, Japan 43. M.Raghu Babu, Assitant Professor, APAU, Bapatla, India 44. Madar Samad, International Water Management Institute, South Asia Regional Office, Hyderabad, India 45. N.Sritharan, Department of Crop Physiology, Tamil Nadu Agricultural University, Coimbatore India 46. N.Varadaraj, Regional Director, Central Ground Water Board, Chennai, India 47. O.P.S. Khola, Central Soil and Water Conservation Research and Training Institute and Research Centre, Udhagamandalam 640 004, The Nilgiris, Tamil Nadu, India 48. P. Balasubramaniam, Associate Professor (Agrl.Extn.), ODL, Tamil Nadu Agriculture University, Coimbatore, India 49. P. Pathak, International Crop Research Institute for Semi-Arid Tropics, Pathancheru, Andra Pradesh, India 50. P. Singh, International Crop Research Institute for Semi-Arid Tropics, Pathancheru, Andra Pradesh, India 51. P G.Lavanya, Head of Division, Agricultural Policy and Planning Division, State. Planning Commission, Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India 52. P.K. Mishra, Central Soil and Water Conservation Research & Training Institute, Research Centre, Bellary, Karnataka India 53. P.K.Singh, Associate Professor, Department of Soil and Water Engineering,CTAE, MPUAT, Udaipur, Rajasthan, India 54. P.K.Selvaraj, Professor (SWC), Agricultural Research Station, TNAU, Bhavanisagar, India 55. R. Vengatesan, M.Sc.(Ag) Scholar (2005-2007) in Soil Science and Agricultural Chemistry, Department of Soil and Environment, Agricultural College, Madurai, India 56. R. Vijayaraghavan, Professor and Head, KVK, Tamil Nadu Agriculture University, Coimbatore, India 57. R.K. Singh, Indian Institute of Soil Science, Nabibagh, Berasia Road, Bhopal-462038, Mathia Pradesh, India 58. R.K.Haroon, Planning Officer, Agricultural Policy and Planning Division, State Planning Commission, Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India
59. R.Sakthivadivel, IWMI Senior Fellow & Visiting Professor, Anna University, Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India 60. R.Thangamani, Executive Engineer, Hydrology Division, Central Water Commission, Chennai, India 61. S. Gunasekaran, Team Leader, Holistic Water Development Project, Gandhigram Trust, Gandhigram, Dindigul, India 62. S. K. Gupta, Scientist - D, Central Ground Water Board, Western Region, Jaipur; India 63. S. Mohan, Professor, Environmental and Water Resources Engineering Division, Department of Civil Engineering, IIT Madras, Chennai, India 64. S.L. Patil, Central Soil and Water Conservation Research & Training Institute, Research Centre, Bellary, Karnataka India 65. S.Manivannan, Senior Scientist (SWCE), ICAR Research Complex for Goa, Ela,Old Goa, Goa, India 66. S.Mohamed Ghouse, Principal, E.S.College of Engineering & Technology,Villupuram and Former Chief Engineer, Agricultural Engineering Department, Nandanam Chennai, India 67. S.P. Wani, International Crop Research Institute for Semi-Arid Tropics, Pathancheru, Andra Pradesh, India 68. S.Senthilvel, Centre for Agricultural and Rural Development Studies (CARDS), Tamil Nadu Agricultural University, Coimbatore, India 69. Sayyed Ahang Kowsar, Emeritus Senior Research Scientist, Fars Research Center for Agriculture and Natural Resources, Iran 70. Subshree, Lecturer, E.S.College of Engineering & Technology Villupuram, India 71. T. Selvakumar, Department of Agronomy, Tamil Nadu Agriculture University, Coimbatore, India 72. T.P.Natesan, Senior Hydrogeologist, TWAD Board, Chennai 73. T.Ramesh, Centre for Agricultural and Rural Development Studies (CARDS), Tamil Nadu Agricultural University, Coimbatore, India 74. T.Ramesh, Department of Agronomy, Tamil Nadu Agriculture University, Coimbatore, India
CONTENTS
S.No. Chapter Name Page No. Parallel Session Theme 1: Water Harvesting at the Farm level 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. Management of Aquifer Recharge supply? Ian Gale The key to sustainable rural groundwater 3-11 12-33 34-41 42-49 1-67
In situ Rainwater Harvesting and Related Soil & Water Conservation Technologies at the Farm Level, P.K.Mishra Low Cost On-Farm Indigenous and Innovative Technologies of Rainwater Harvesting, R.K.Singh Integrating In-situ Soil Moisuture Conservation Techniques and Supplementary Irrigation for Sustainable Farming in Dryland Areas, K.Ramaswamy Conservation of Rainwater and Sustainaility of Productivity through Imporved Land Management and Cropping System in a Vertisol of Central India, K.M. Hati, A.K. Misra, K.G. Mandal, A.K. Tripathi, A. Subba Rao, R.K. Singh, S.P. Wani, P. Singh and P. Pathak Implements for Water Harvesting and In-stiu Mositure conservation, D.Manohar Jesudas and K.Kathirvel Effect of In-situ Conservations practices on runoff, soil loss and yield performances of chshew in Goa, S.Manivanan
6. 7.
Parallel Session
Theme 2: Water Harvesting at Micro-watershed Level - continuation 8. 9. 10. 11. 12. Drought Mitigation through Floodwater Harvesting for the Artificial Recharge of Groundwater: Prudence vs Large Dms, Sayyed Ahang Kowsar Tank Systems for Water Harvesting, R.Sakthivadivel Water Harvesting and Ground Water Recharge, N.Varadaraj Potential of Water Harvesting as a Tool for Drought Mitigation, S.Mohan Impact of cost effective water harvesting techniques on artificial groundwater recharege through open wells and recharge from natural streams, K.Ramaswamy Rain water harvesting, recharging and skimming techniques suitable for saline ground water tracts of South India Case study, I.Muthusamy and M.Raghu Babu 68-108 69-72 73-78 79-87 88-94
95-103
13.
Parallel Session
Theme 3: Enhancing Water Productivity in Rainfed Areas 14. 15. Crop Management Options to Enhance Water Productivity of Rainfed Area, S.Natarajan, C.Sudhalakshmi, R.Jagadeeswaran and R.Venkitaswamy Opportunity for Enhancing Crop Water Produtivity in Rainfed Areas:: An Assessement for Rainfed Areas of India, Bharat R Sharma, K V Rao and KPR Vittal Improving Productivity in Dryland Groundnut Framing LEISA Otucomes from South India, Arun Balamatti, J Diraviam and C S Kallimani
113-118 119-128
16.
Water Productivity at Different Scales Under Canal, Tank and Well Irrigation Systems, K.Palanisami, T.Ramesh and S.Senthilvel Integrated Farming System for Increasing Agricultural Wter Productivity, C.Jayanthi, T.Ramesh and C.Vennila Generation of regional water harvesting potential scenarios using CLIMGEN model, A. Sarangi, C.A. Madramootoo and K.R. Koundal Improving Water Productivity in Maize by Nutriseed Holder Techinque under Micro Sprinkler and Drip Irrigation, K. Arulmozhiselvan and R. Vengatesan Aerobic Rice for mitigating water scarity: Physilogical approaches, C.Vijayalakshmi, N.Sritharan and P.K.Selvaraj
Parallel Session Theme 4: Policies, Institutions and Socio-Economic Aspects 22. 23. 24. 25. 26. 27. Socio-Economic Issues in Watershed Development Programs, Madar Samad Community Resource Management: Much needed strategy in Tank Irrigation system in India, M. Jegadeesan and K. Fujita Indigenous Knowledge use in Dryland, P. Balasubramaniam, R. Vijayaraghavan and J. Venkitapirabhu Priciples and Policty Perspective of Rain Water Harvesting, P.G.Lavanya and R.K.Haroon Impact of National Watershed Programmed for Rainfed Agriculture. A case study in Tamilnadu, A.Balakrishnan and T.Selvakumar Holistic Watershed Development A practical Approach for Creating an Enabling Environment to Promote Waer Harvesting, M.R.Rajagopalan, S.Gunasekaran 154-188 155-159 160-168 169-173 174-182 183-185
186-188
Parallel Session Theme 5: Role of Research, Extension and Education 28. 29. 30. 31. 32. 33. Natures own water harvesting- Groundwater recharge in some different environments, Gunnar Jacks Water Harvesting A look at the past and vision for the future, R.Thangamani Water Resources Management and Sustainability of Drinking Water Resources TAWD Experience, T.P.Natesan Artificial Recharge and Aquifer storage in Lower kantli River Basin Rajasthan, India A Case Study, S. K. Gupta Capacity building Human resources and institutional development in support of soil and water conservation in India, O.P.S. Khola and M. Madhu Otureach programmes on water harvesting and land development for sustainable agricultural dryland watersheds, C.R. Shanmugham, M. Palanisamy and M. Karthikeyan Role of Research, Extension and Education in Water Harvesting A case study - Groundwater recharge in hard rock regions of Coimbatore district, 189-236 191-194 195-196 197-202 203-212 213-222
223-231
34.
232-236
1
MANAGEMENT OF AQUIFER RECHARGE THE KEY TO SUSTAINABLE RURAL GROUNDWATER SUPPLY?
Ian Gale
Objectives of MAR
MAR describes intentional storage and treatment of water in aquifers. The term artificial recharge is also commonly used, but adverse connotations of artificial suggest that it is time for a new name. Managed Aquifer Recharge is also intentional as opposed to the incidental impacts of land clearance, irrigation and leakage from water mains and sewerage systems. Managed Aquifer Recharge is carried out all over the world for all kinds of reasons and, in its simplest form involves constraining surface runoff and encouraging infiltration to aquifers through the construction of earthen field bunds. A large percentage of schemes are developed to store water for future use, for drinking water supplies and agriculture. Other reasons to manage aquifer recharge include the control of saltwater ingress, the augmentation of low river flows, reduction of runoff and soil erosion,
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absorption of floodwaters to reduce their destructive capacity and the control of subsidence. Managed Aquifer Recharge should be regarded as one method to manage water resources in conjunction with a wide range of others, including surface storage, exploitation of groundwater, demand management, wastewater reuse etc.
erosion. Here the focus is on intentional recharge, the methodologies applied being broadly grouped into the following categories: Spreading methods In-channel modifications Well, shaft and borehole recharge Induced bank infiltration, Rainwater harvesting Many schemes require low levels of technology and can be (and have been for centuries) implemented with little engineering knowledge. Although simple in principle the efficient operation of spreading basins and infiltration schemes needs a good knowledge of the physical, hydraulic, geochemical and microbiological processes in operation and how to mange them for optimum performance. Similar issues need to be addressed in roof top rainwater harvesting. For further details on these types of schemes, e.g. construction, restoration, operation etc. the reader is referred to (Central Ground Water Board, 2000), (CGWB/ UNESCO, 2000), (National Institute of Hydrology, 1998), (American Society of Civil Engineers, 2001), (OHare et al., 1982), (Huisman and Olsthoorn, 1983), (Pacey and Cullis, 1986) and (United Nations, 1975).
Spreading Methods
Water spreading is applied in cases where the aquifer to be recharged is at or near to the ground surface. Recharge is achieved by infiltration through permeable material at the surface, which is managed to maintain infiltration rates. In situations where there is a reliable source of good-quality input water, and spreading infiltration can be operated throughout the year, then hydraulic loadings of typically 30 m/yr can be achieved for fine texture soils like sandy loams, 100 m/ yr for loamy soils and 300 m/yr for medium clean sands and 500 m/yr for coarse clean sands (Bouwer, 2002). Evaporation rates from open water surfaces range from about 0.4 m/yr for cool wet climates to 2.4 m/yr for warm dry climates so form a minor component of the water balance. Where the source of water is sporadic from seasonal flow containing high loads of suspended solids, management of the recharge structure becomes increasingly important in order to minimize clogging to maintain infiltration rates and keep evaporation from open water to a minimum.
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results in wastewater becoming regarded as an asset rather than a disposal problem. Practical research undertaken over the last few decades, notably in Phoenix, Arizona, Bouwer, (2002), has investigated hydraulic, operational and bio-geochemical processes involved in wastewater recharge and recovery. Water quality improvement is often the primary objective to remove all suspended solids and micro-organisms. Removal of nitrogen species through denitrification is also a key benefit as is the reduction in concentration of dissolved organic carbon through biological processes. Phosphates and metals can also be removed but are retained in the soil.
Controlled Flooding
In areas of relatively flat topography water may be diverted, with the help of canals, from a river and spread evenly over a large surface area. A thin sheet of water forms which moves at a minimum velocity to avoid disturbance of the soil cover. Highest infiltration rates are observed on areas with undisturbed vegetation and soil cover (Todd, 1959).
close to ground surface. The wastewater contains industrial pollutants of many types; in Leon the effluent from the tanning industry is a significant component. The main impact on the groundwater quality in the irrigated area is the presence of poor-quality water to depths of 50 to 100 m with chloride concentrations of 800 to 1000 mg/l in the upper portions. Many of the other pollutants in the wastewater are removed or attenuated in the distribution system and the soil zone. This helps to prevent pollutants such as organic carbon, nutrients, heavy metals and pathogens form reaching the groundwater body. The main threat to groundwater is increasing concentrations of chloride being drawn to the municipal supply wells in the area (Chilton et al., 1998).
Incidental Recharge
It is important to take incidental recharge into account as it can form a significant component of the water balance of a catchment. Leakage from water, wastewater and storm-water systems in urban areas can contribute significantly to groundwater recharge, in some cases resulting in rising groundwater levels and flooding. Irrigation excess water from irrigation canals and fields have historically caused water logging and salinization problems. However, where managed beneficially this incidental recharge can become an asset. For example, in the Indo-Gangetic Plain groundwater levels rose by about 6 m over a ten-year period and the water has been increasingly scavenged for irrigation water outside the surface water irrigation season. IWMI, 2002 estimate that about 60% of the water applied to rice paddy is utilised, the balance percolating to groundwater. Recent studies demonstrated that large canal irrigation systems can be modified to augment groundwater recharge. The use of urban wastewater for irrigation can have additional problems and benefits. Use of municipal wastewater for agricultural irrigation is widely established in Mexico. Around cities such as Leon and Mexico City itself, groundwater levels are falling rapidly where abstraction to meet demand from a rapidly expanding population, exceeds recharge. However, where the wastewater is used for irrigation, the water tables are
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In order to quantify the impacts of check dam recharge structures on the hydrology of a catchment and the hydrogeology in the immediate vicinity, three research sites were instrumented and monitored. These sites were selected to be representative of a range of hydrological as well as socio-economic environments. Satlasana, Gujarat (VIKSAT). The Aravalli Hills which surround the villages studied form a well-defined catchment of approximately 20 km2. The area is semi-arid; the average annual rainfall is around 650 mm, with rainfall occurring from late June until the end of September. There are typically 30 to 35 days of rainfall in a year. The main aquifer in the catchment is formed by shallow weathered and fractured granitic rocks. These are overlain in the upper regions of the valley floor by thick layers of sediment (15-20 m) weathered from the hillsides. The main part of the valley floor is moderately undulating.
Kolwan Valley, Maharashtra (ACWADAM). The Kolwan Valley is located on the eastern slopes of the Western Ghats and, as a result, rainfall is 1800 mm/a on average, although highly variable. The rain occurs mainly during a single monsoon season, generally from June to October. The detailed local geology comprises a series of eight basalt units (lava flows). Each unit has a compact, less weathered lower section and a fractured/jointed, more weathered upper section; the latter having the capacity to store more groundwater, being more permeable and therefore a much better aquifer. The check dams at Chikhalgaon are all located on the upper section of one of the basalt units. Kodangipalayam, Tamil Nadu (TNAUWTC). The Kodangipalayam watershed consists of two micro-watershed with a total area of 5.0 km2. Rainfall occurs in two seasons as a result of the southwest monsoon (June to September) and the northeast monsoon (October to December). The regional average total annual rainfall is 650 mm, measured at Sulur (7 km from Kodangipalayam). The area is underlain by shallow weathered crystalline hard-rocks (charnockites, migmatites and banded gneisses) which have relatively low groundwater storage capacity.
The findings
Subsurface Dams
Subsurface dams may be used to detain water in alluvial aquifers. In ephemeral streams where basement highs constrict flow, a trench is constructed across the streambed keyed into the basement rocks and backfilled with low permeability material to constrain groundwater flow. The groundwater is recovered from wells or boreholes.
Recharge Releases
Where flow is very flashy and contains large amounts of suspended solids, the water may be lost to the catchment or to the sea before it can be given the opportunity to infiltrate to replenish the aquifer. Constructing of larger dams on ephemeral streams to capture and store this flow to reduce the sediment load followed by controlled release of the water into the downstream reaches where groundwater recharge occurs. A good example of this practice is the OMDEL scheme in Namibia.
The additional water that the recharge structures are contributing to the aquifer was quantified and an indication of the distance to which the impacts can be seen were estimated. A measure of the effectiveness of the recharge structures is how this additional recharge compares with the natural groundwater recharge across the whole of the study areas. The studies show remarkably similar results despite the considerable differences in catchment area, rainfall (both quantity and distribution), geology and useage. The equivalent depth (4.8 to 12 mm) of additional rainfall recharged represents only a small percentage (0.6 to 1.4%) of the available rainfall but is calculated to be a significant percentage increase to that recharged naturally, 13 to 23 %. Check dams therefore can make significant contributions to recharge but need to be distributed so there is sufficient rainfall to be captured, i.e. some dams never appear to fill except in exceptional circumstances. Account also needs to be taken of the redistribution of recharge at the catchment scale as larger tanks, down stream may be deprived of water.
6
reduce the potential for clogging of pores, particularly if the source is storm water. Subsequent abstraction may flush fines out of pores and go some way towards recovering the recharge capacity. The significance of the contribution made by this method needs to be compared to the quantity of recharge occurring naturally, but it could be valuable where shallow, low-permeability layers constrain infiltration from the surface. Use of wells has the potential to introduce not only suspended solids directly into the aquifer but also chemical (nitrates, pesticides, etc.) and bacterial (including faecal) contaminants. The spreading structures described earlier have the advantage that the water infiltrating from the surface passes through soil and alluvial deposits which can act as extremely effective filter/treatment mechanisms.
adjacent to the surface water body (OHare et al., 1982). Provided that the permeability of the stream or lakebed and aquifer are high and the aquifer is sufficiently thick, large amounts of groundwater may be abstracted from a well or a gallery without serious adverse effects on the groundwater table further inland (Huisman and Olsthoorn, 1983). A particular variant of this method is used in coastal zones and is known as inter-dune filtration. Here the valleys between coastal sand dunes are flooded with water from rivers to infiltrate into the underlying sediments and create a recharge mound. The mound can play an important role in preventing saline intrusion as well as providing a source of water that is abstracted further inland. This technique has been used for centuries and is highly developed along the coast of The Netherlands where rivers are the source of water for the recharge. In other schemes, storm and urban wastewater (e.g. S.Africa) and treated wastewater (Factory 21, Los Angeles) are the sources of water. A key objective of these types of schemes is to improve the quality of the often poor-quality source water and much research has been undertaken to understand and optimise the management of suspended solids, clogging and the attenuation of dissolved solids, including organic compounds, using physical, chemical as well as biological processes.
Rainwater Harvesting
Rainwater harvesting, in its broadest sense is the collection of runoff for productive use and usually involves the concentration of rainfall from a larger area for use of storage in a smaller area as soil moisture or groundwater. Roof-top rainwater harvesting is a special case being increasingly used in urban areas for tank storage, urban irrigation and groundwater recharge.
unintentionally,
enhance
can be used to improve the quality of water as it recharges, through physical and biochemical processes.
Storm-Water Runoff
Urban areas generate significant quantities of storm-water runoff. The runoff is highly variable in quantity with peak discharges occurring after heavy rainfalls. In order to obtain a more consistent supply, infiltration and storm-water retention ponds, grassed areas, porous pavements and wetlands are recommended for watershed areas (Murray and Tredoux, 1998). The best quality runoff water in urban areas is from roof-tops and increasingly initiatives (e.g. all government buildings in India) are being made to direct this water immediately to groundwater recharge through infiltration galleries wells and boreholes. This not only replenishes urban aquifers that are often over-exploited, but also, introduces good quality water into often-polluted groundwater. In rural areas, intense rainfall can generate surface runoff from agricultural fields. In some areas (e.g. Saurashtra, India) this runoff is channeled into large diameter hand dug wells to directly recharge the aquifer. Holding bunds are sometimes constructed to reduce the suspended sediment load, but not the dissolved contaminant load. For this reason direct recharge to open wells is to be discouraged in preference to infiltration through a soil or sand layer which can be managed to remove some dissolved constituents.
Wastewater
Wastewater as a source is of predictable volume with a fairly uniform rate of flow over time and of constant, but inferior quality (Murray and Tredoux, 1998). Wastewater requires significant treatment before being considered to be of acceptable quality for aquifer recharge and to minimise the extent of any degradation of groundwater quality (Bouwer, 1996). The compounds of concern depend on the wastewater source, i.e. industrial or domestic wastewater. Wastewater as a source offers a significant potential for all non-potable uses. However, with proper pre- and post-treatment or dilution with native groundwater, potable use also can be a viable option (Bouwer, 1996).
Surface Water
Surface water can be a consistent source of recharge water depending on the climatic situation. Under humid conditions moderate variability in river flows can be expected, and perennial rivers are predominant. Under arid or semi-arid conditions ephemeral rivers prevail. In lakes, water is not flowing significantly and is clear with little or no suspended material. In the absence of pollution by waste discharges or agricultural runoff, and with little algal growth, lake water may be used for spreading directly without any pre-treatment (Huisman and Olsthoorn, 1983). Water from polluted rivers or lakes, in particular those with industrial-waste discharges, should go through pre-treatment processes prior to recharge. In some situations infiltration basins
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Potable Water
Potable water is a major source of recharge water used in Aquifer Storage and Recovery (ASR) schemes. High-quality treated water is injected through wells, usually into confined aquifers to create a bubble
of potable water in the aquifer. These bubbles can be created in non-potable aquifers by displacing the native water and have proved to be a cost-effective and environmentally sustainable method for resolving a wide variety of problems (Pyne, 1995 and 2005). The schemes are usually constructed near treatment works, the source of the recharge water, to save cost and to utilise surplus treatment capacity. In arid areas, such as the Gulf region of the Middle East, were water demand exceeds the availability of water from renewable resources, freshwater from desalination plants is used to bridge this gap. To ensure water availability during emergencies, for example, when desalination plants are out of commission, large freshwater storage capacities are required. Field trials have been undertaken to evaluate the feasibility of introducing desalinated water into aquifers to build up this freshwater reservoir (Mukhopadhyay and Al-Sulaimi, 1998). Due to the high quality of the desalinated water, no major geochemical compatibility problems are expected as the water can be treated to minimise any potential reactions with the aquifer material; for example the pH can be adjusted to be non-aggressive.
enjoying de facto rights of access only. In some countries steps have been taken to codify customary rights, though (more typically) the state is reluctant to transfer access rights to local communities or individuals. Public administration, increasingly in collaboration with local communities. Moves towards forming natural resource management partnerships with communities or user groups for particular resources are found in many countries. In India, for example, this is now the preferred model for watershed development - in which artificial recharge of groundwater plays an important part. Local government, operating independently of government departments, but drawing on services from them. In many African countries (e.g. Ghana; Malawi; South Africa), local government is now taking on responsibilities in water supply and sanitation provision, not as a provider but as a facilitator in a demand driven process. In India, where administrative decentralisation is now a core feature of watershed development (under the partnership model described above), growing attention is focusing on the interface with political decentralisation through the Panchayati Raj local government reforms. Why the emphasis on decentralisation? In many countries, state led approaches to natural resource management have been monolithically blamed for the degradation of natural resources. As a consequence, the state is advised to adopt a facilitative rather than a leadership role. Decentralisation and participatory management are clearly linked. Participatory management can be defined as a process whereby those with legitimate interests in a project both influence decisions which affect them, and receive a proportion of any benefits which may accrue (ODA, 1995). It is now generally accepted that to enhance and sustain the productivity of natural resources, those engaged in and affected by managing the resource must participate in planning its rehabilitation and management.
Institutional Issues
In order for aquifer recharge schemes to be successfully implemented and managed as a component of wider watershed management strategies, the institutional, regulatory, economic and livelihoods structures need to be taken into account. A variety of approaches has been employed for implementing natural resource management activities such as artificial recharge, with responsibilities resting (to varying degrees) with the state, local government, development agencies, NGOs and local people. A dominant institutional theme emerging over the last two decades in natural resource management has been decentralisation, in tandem with efforts to promote a more bottom-up, participatory planning process (Carney and Farrington, 1998). As the poor are disproportionately dependent on common pool resources, improvements in decentralised management - whether in equity of rights and responsibilities, in resource productivity, or in its sustainability can contribute substantially to their livelihoods. Three distinct institutional approaches have varying legitimacy and potential capacity to contribute to such improvements (Farrington et al., 1999). Informal, often traditional user groups, generally
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equity where shallow groundwater levels mean access for everyone. Maintaining water resources and shallow groundwater levels through augmentation by Managed Aquifer Recharge contributes to, and maintains the above benefits when used as one mechanism in a broader watershed management strategy. Where water table aquifers have been overexploited for irrigation and rural or urban use, decline in water levels are eventually accompanied by a deterioration of water quality. Managed Aquifer Recharge with surplus runoff through surface infiltration structures will usually provide high quality water that will not only replenish resources but can also improve groundwater quality through dilution. Where low-permeability layers are at the surface water needs to recharged through wells or boreholes. The beneficial effects of filtration through soil are lost with these methods and additional pretreatment is required. Techniques for applying Managed Aquifer Recharge range from simple field bunds, to capture storm water, to deep injection of highly treated water into confined brackish aquifers. Understanding the hydrogeological, chemical and microbiological processes that apply, combined with the institutional and socio-
economic implications is important for sustainable implementation and management of schemes. Managed Aquifer Recharge is becoming a vital component of watershed management strategies by optimising the use of water resources (often available only sporadically) through storage of water in depleted aquifers for subsequent recovery and use. Managed Aquifer Recharge often provides the cheapest form of new safe water supply for towns and villages. Uptake has been constrained by lack of understanding of hydrogeology and/or knowledge of MAR but it has the potential to be a major contributor to UN Millennium Goals for Water Supply, especially for village supplies in semi-arid and arid areas. MAR is part of the groundwater managers toolkit, which may be useful for replenishing depleted aquifers, controlling saline intrusion or land subsidence as well as improving water quality through filtration and chemical and biological processes. On its own it is not a cure for over-exploited aquifers, and can merely enhance volumes of groundwater abstracted. However it may play an important role as part of a package of measures to control abstraction and restore the groundwater balance.
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References
American Society of Civil Engineers, 2001. Standard Guidelines for Artificial Recharge of Ground Water. EWRI/ ASCE 34-01, American Society of Civil Engineers, ASCE, Reston, Virginia, USA. Bouwer, H., 1996. Issues in artificial recharge. Water Science and Technology, 33(10-Nov): 381-390. Bouwer, H., 2002. Artificial recharge of groundwater: hydrogeology and engineering. Hydrogeology Journal, 10: 121-142. Carney, D. and Farrington, J., 1998. Natural Resource Management and Institutional Change. Routledge Research/ ODI Development Policy Studies. Central Ground Water Board, 2000. Guide on artificial recharge to ground water, Central Ground Water Board , Ministry of Water Resources, New Delhi. CGWB/UNESCO, 2000. Rainwater harvesting and Artificial Recharge to groundwater - A guide to follow, Central Ground Water Board, India. UNESCO, IHP Programme. Chilton, P.J. et al., 1998. Groundwater recharge and pollutant transport beneath wastewater irrigation: the case study of Leon, Mexico. In: N.S. Robins (Editor), Groundwater pollution, aquifer recharge and vulnerability. Geological Society, London, pp. 153-168. Farrington, J., Turton, C. and James, A.J., 1999. Participatory Watershed Development: Challenges for the TwentyFirst Century. OUP, New Delhi. Gale et al., 2006. Managed Aquifer Recharge: an assessment of its role and effectiveness in watershed management. British Geological Survey Commissioned Report CR/06/107N. Available at http://www.iah.org/recharge/ projects.html#AGRAR Huisman, L. and Olsthoorn, T.N., 1983. Artificial Groundwater Recharge. Pitman, Boston. Mukhopadhyay, A. and Al-Sulaimi, J., 1998. Creation of potable water reserve in Kuwait through artificial recharge. In: Peters, J H et al. (Editor), Artificial Recharge of Ground Water. Balkema, Rotterdam, Netherlands, Amsterdam, pp. 175-180. Murray, E.C. and Tredoux, G., 1998. Artificial Recharge - A Technology for Sustainable Water ResourcesDevelopment. 842/1/98, Water Research Commission, Pretoria. National Institute of Hydrology, 1998. Review of Artificial Recharge Practices. SR-5/97-98, National Institute of Hydrology, Jal Vigyan Bhawan, Roorkee, India. ODA, 1995. A Guide to Social Analysis for Projects in Developing Countries, Overseas Development Administration. HMSO, London. OHare, M.P., Fairchild, D.M., Hajali, P.A. and Canter, L.W., 1982. Artificial Recharge of Ground Water. Status and Potential in theContiguous United States. Norman, Oklahoma. Pacey, A. and Cullis, A., 1986. Rainwater Harvesting - The collection of rainfall and runoff in ruralareas. IT Publications. Pyne, R.D.G., 1995. Groundwater recharge and wells: a guide to aquifer storage recovery. Lewis Publishers. Pyne, R.D.G., 2005. Aquifer Storage Recovery. A guide to groundwater recharge through wells. Second edition. ASR Systems Press, Gainsville, Florida 32602 USA. Todd, D.K., 1959. Annotated Bibliography on Artificial Recharge of Ground Water Through1954. 1477, U.S. Geological Survey. United Nations, 1975. Ground-Water Storage and Artificial Recharge. 2, United Nations, New York.
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2
In situ Rainwater Harvesting and related Soil & Water Conservation Technologies at the Farm Level
P.K. Mishra and S.L. Patil
Introduction
Almost 6.1 billion ha (40%) of the earths total land surface is dry. Out of this, nearly 5.2 billion hectares are Arid, Semi Arid and dry Sub humid lands that are collectively referred to as drylands. It is estimated that 70% of partially productive drylands are threatened by various forms of degradation, impacting the well being and future of one-sixth of the world population (Harahsheh, 2002). Lack of food security poses a particular burden on people and nations in the dryland regions of the world, particularly in tropical areas of Africa and Asia that are experiencing rapid population growth and/or high population density. Global food demand is expected to be more than double by 2050 because of population growth and increased per capita consumption. While the challenge cannot be met through increased agricultural production alone, increased production is essential as part of the solution. However, in many cases including India, production capacities of dryland countries are deteriorating in the face of rapid population growth, misdirected agricultural practices, and widespread of land degradation (Rao, et al., 2007). The environmental conditions of the worlds/Indias drylands and unpredictability of rainfall
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make these areas marginal for intensive agriculture. Land degradation in drylands due to water erosion, loss of soil fertility, ground water depletion and loss of vegetation, results in the decline of both economic and environmental potential in these regions. The demand for fresh water is increasing globally at an accelerated rate especially for agriculture and various other sectors including domestic, energy and industrial uses. The accelerated demand for rainwater can be met through the efficient rainwater conservation. In the world about 73% of the cropland is rainfed. In India, about 60% of the cultivated area is rainfed and contributes nearly 40% of the total production (mainly coarse cereals, oilseeds, pulses and fruits etc.). In addition to major livestocks production systems, about 93% of cultivated area under sorghum, 94% under pearlmillet, 79% under corn, 87% under pulses, 76% under oilseeds, 64% under cotton and 59% under tobacco in India predominates drylands (Singh et al., 2007). The rainfed/dryland eco-system in India is characterized by erratic rainfall and frequent droughts. In such situations, in situ rainwater conservation plays a greater role for maintaining/ increasing crop productivity. In the rainfed areas,
the rainwater harvesting and management assumes greater priority. It is therefore essential to conserve the rainwater in situ. Therefore the excess runoff is to be stored in farm ponds/tanks/water storage structures constructed along the water courses for reusing the surface water or recharging the ground water depending on the geological formations. The stored runoff is to be recycled as a protective irrigation or continuous irrigation to meet the optimum water requirements of the crops. This results in increased crop productivity in the region/State/Country and meets the demands of the increasing human/bovine food requirements (Mishra et al., 1994). In India, low yields and crop failures in these drylands often lead to food and fodder scarcity resulting in a near famine situation that further accelerate the process of land degradation. Alfisols, Entisols, Vertisols and associated soils dominate the SAT areas (Virmani, et al., 1991). These soils are generally highly degraded with low water retentive capacity, and have multiple nutrient deficiencies. In the drylands of Indian human population is likely to reach 600 millions by 2025 from the present 410 millions. Similarly, the livestock population is likely to exceed 650 million by 2025 from the present 509 million. On the other hand, the area under dryland crop production may decrease to 85 million ha by 2025 from the present 97 million ha. Thus, from such a significantly reduced cultivated area, crop production must increase from the present 0.8 to 1.0 t ha 1 to 2.0 t ha 1 by 2025. Furthermore, the quality of the produce must improve the meet the global market standards. Also, the cost of production needs to be reduced in order not only to improve the farmers net income but also remain globally competitive. This would help in maintaining the food security in the years ahead. Rapid increase in human and bovine population in India has resulted in greater pressure on the natural resources especially rainwater and top fertile soil. It means that conservation of these resources, especially water, is the top priority of the day. In other words, the water resources of our country have to be put for better beneficial use with available technologies at our command. The excess surface water that flows to the sea should be stored and used efficiently for drinking, irrigation, industrial use, navigation etc. without affecting the hydrological cycle. Water conservation basically aims at matching demand and supply of water. The strategies for water conservation may be either
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demand-oriented or supply-oriented. Strategies such as creation of storage, long distance transfer and control of water loss through evaporation are the common loss of water in its efficient use before it reaches the sea. Water and soil conservation practices for agricultural lands includes, in situ or inter terrace rainwater conservation practices, conservation of rainwater at terrace level through bunds and guiding the excess runoff for safe disposal through grassed waterways to the farm ponds/tanks/dams for its storage and recycling to the agricultural lands. These are called hard ware measures, which are of permanent type provided for improvement of relief, physiography and drainage features. These are executed with major Government support with the purpose to check soil erosion, regulate overland flow and reduce peak flow. The present approach to reduce runoff by adopting suitable in situ management practices includes, tillage practices comprising primary tillage operations i.e. summer or deep ploughing either every year or once in three years depending upon the soil type, land smoothening to avoid local depressions, frequent harrowing and secondary tillage practices with frequent intercultivations. The other rainwater conservation practices include, adoption of small section bunds or vegetative barriers on contour, contour sowing, opening ridges and furrows across the slope, tied ridging, zing terracing, scooping, compartmental bunding, broad bed and furrows, broad bed and ridge, vertical mulching and dead furrow formation in every row or at 3 m interval on contour depending upon the rainfall situations in black and red soils. In addition, evaporation control/ in situ rainwater conservation measures using mulches i.e. soil, sand and vegetative mulches have resulted in greater benefits especially in winter (rabi) crops in deep black soils. Apart from these management practices, increasing the infiltration rate and moisture retention capacity of soil by improving their physical conditions with application of amendments and organic materials is of greater importance in the integrated approach for rainwater conservation in rainfed/dryland areas. Adoption of these options depending upon the rainfall, soil type, and land topography/slope would reduce runoff and increase in situ rainwater conservation in rainfed and dryland areas and reduce the ill effects of occasional dry spells (Mishra et al, 1999). All these measures are software measures which are mostly responsible for initiation rainwater conservation and management and are easily and voluntarily adopted by
the farmers as they can be made integral part of the agronomic measures/package of practices. In situ rainwater conservation is a vital component of dryland crop management practices. Earlier efforts were mainly concentrated on strengthing and formation of bunds across the slope. This resulted in reducing soil erosion rather than achieving uniform rainwater distribution in the soil profile. Present emphasis is mainly concentrated in increasing the opportunity time of water penetration to soil through land configurations, and applications of amendments and organic materials. With appropriate demonstration and action learning exercise the in situ rainwater conservation measures can be easily popularized. Several indigenous technical knowledge (ITKs) relating to in situ rainwater conservation measures are in practice, befitting the agro-ecological settings. These ITKs can be converted to medium technical knowledge (MTK) by addressing the researchable and extension issues. The Semi Arid tracts are mostly characterized with red and black soils. The problems associated with different soil types are different in physical, chemical and hydrologic terms. The red soils have low water holding capacity, higher infiltration and crusting tendency. In black soils even though the water holding capacity is high, low infiltration rate results in greater loss of soil and rainwater. In medium to deep black soils the crack formation results in wetting of subsoil with first showers. In the years of low rainfall, the soil profile wetting is not uniform and results in a dry layer in the profile. This ultimately results in lower crop yields. Major part of the countrys rainfed agriculture is fed by the Southwest monsoon in addition to the Northeast monsoon especially for the black soils region of Deccan pleatau of Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu. Hence, its onset, continuity, intensity, volume and withdrawal patterns have a tremendous influence on the agricultural production. High intensity rains produce volumes of water beyond the intake capacity of the soil and may leave the soil dry at lower depths. With intermittent long dry spells this situation affects rainfed crops adversely, even in areas with moderate to high rainfall. Thus improving soil surface conditions to increase infiltration and improving water-holding capacity are two basic requirements in drylands. The inter-terrace management practices for in situ conservation of rainwater and ensuring its uniform distribution within the field and throughout the crop growth period assume paramount importance in dryland crop production.
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The research efforts on rainwater management have resulted in identification of several useful technologies for in situ rainwater conservation. However, the choice of the most appropriate practices is a function of the soil type, rainfall characteristics, and topographic features. Hence, in situ rainwater conservation plays a greater role for stabilized/sustained crop yields in the Semi Arid Tropics of India. This can be achieved with appropriate tillage and in situ rainwater conservation practices at the individual farm level. In this paper the in situ moisture conservation measures including ITKs are discussed. Tillage Practices Vegetative Barriers Mulching Land Configuration Crop Residue Management Soil Amendments
Tillage Practices
Cultivation of soil helps to increase pore space and also keeps the soil loose so as to maintain higher level of infiltration. Musgarve and Free (1936) found that cultivation of the surface greatly enhanced water intake of soil particularly in the beginning of storms. In the absence of cultivation, the highly crusting red soils produce as much or even more runoff than the low permeable Vertisols under similar rainfall situations. Larson (1962) stated that pulling a tillage implement through soil results in the total porosity and thickness of the tilled area being greatly increased temporarily. Surface roughness and micro depressions thus created play greater role in higher retention of water (Unger and Stewart, 1983). Different tillage operations are carried out to incorporate crop residues, conserve the rainwater in situ, recharge soil profile, prepare smooth seed bed for greater seeds to germinate with better root system, to reduce conserved soil water loss (secondary tillage) and its efficient utilization and control weeds/pest or diseases and increase the crop yields (Patil, 1998, Thyagaraj, 1999 and Vittal et al., 1983). Generally the primary tillage operations are carried prior to sowing to prepare the smooth seedbed and secondary tillage are carried out to control weeds, reduce evaporation and support the plants through earthening up. In general tillage operations make the soil receptive to rainfall through increased infiltration
rate. Deep tillage with plough followed by chiselling (Channappa, 1994) opens the hard layers and increase the infiltration rate and water storage capacity and finally results in better crop growth with higher yields in the red soils at Bangalore, Karnataka, India (Tables 1 and 2). Similarly, in the red soils in the farmers fields at Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu, India, the deep ploughing with chisel plough + disc plough + cultivator increased the soil water in the profile at different stages of sorghum growth as compared to soil cultivation with cultivator once or twice i.e. reduced tillage operations (Manian et al., 1999). Primary tillage carried out in the Alfisols at Hyderabad, ICRISAT, India, (Pathak and Laryea, 1995) improved the soil physical properties with better root development (Table 3). In the Alfisols in SAT of India, the residue management represents only a minor part of the cropping system; reduced/minimum tillage concepts are at a disadvantage in dryland cropping. It was also observed that deep tillage reduced the runoff, soil loss and increased the soil water in the red soil profile with increased sorghum yield by 26% over Table 1:
Depth (cm) 0-15 15-30 30-60 60-90 Source: Channappa, 1994
normal tillage in the Alfisols at ICRISAT, Hyderabad, India (Table 4). The positive effect of deep tillage on rainwater conservation, better root development and increased crop yields were observed for 2 to 5 years after tillage depending upon the soil texture and rainfall. The beneficial effects of off season tillage (Sanghi and Korwar, 1987) are much pronounced (Table 5) during the low rainfall/drought year (43% increase in yield) as compared to mild drought year (31% increase in yield) and near to the normal rainfall year (24% increase in yield).
Soil water storage in the profile as influenced by deep tillage in red soils
Soil water percentage (%) (after 81 mm rainfall) Ploughed area 10.74 13.22 12.27 13.33 Unploughed area 3.59 7.13 8.59 Dry
Table 3: Effect of subsoiling on root density (cm cm 3) 89 days after emergence of maize (Deccan Hybrid
103) on an Alfisol, ICRISAT Centre, rainy season 1984 Soil depth (cm) Subsoiling 00-10 10-20 20-30 30-40 40-50 50-60 Source: Pathak and Laryea, (1995) 0.55 0.29 0.20 0.15 0.12 0.14 Root density (cm cm3) Normal tillage 0.42 0.21 0.09 0.10 0.06 0.05 S.E.+ 0.072 0.022 0.034 0.028 0.016 0.039
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Table 4: Effect of normal and deep primary tillage on sorghum yield, runoff and soil loss on Alfisols at ICRISAT Centre (1983)
Tillage practices Normal tillage (mould board plowing 12 cm deep) Deep tillage (cross chiseling 25 cm deep ) LSD (P=0.05) Source: ICRISAT, (1983) Sorghum yield (kg ha1) 2160 2720 386 Runoff (mm) 285 195 44.0 Soil loss ( t ha1) 3.27 2.86 0.702
Table 5:
Tillage practices
No off season tillage Off season tillage Percent increase due to off season tillage Rainfall in growing season (mm) Source: Sanghi and Korwar, (1987)
the surface soil. This indicates that for Alfisols non turning tillage system is better than tillage with turning plows (inversion brings soil from argillic horizon which contains much higher clay and silt). In Alfisols crust formation is a major problem from sowing up to the crop canopy formation. During this period higher runoff was observed even when soils were dry. The shallow tillage imposed as additional intercultivations were effective in breaking the crust and increasing infiltration rate in addition to the reduced runoff and soil loss. The significant increase in crop yields due to additional shallow intercultivations was observed only in normal and low rainfall years (Pathak and Laryea, 1995).
onset of the rainy season, which does not permit timely sowing and management of crops. There is common threat of flooding when intense rains are received, and the possibility that rainy season cropping may reduce soil moisture available in profile for growing postrainy season crops are also some of the reasons for fallowing Vertisol during the rainy season (Pathak, 2004). In the Vertisols the effect of tillage was more pronounced in terms of rainwater conservation and recharge of soil profile especially during drought years as compared to normal and above normal rainfall situations. In the deep black soils of Bijapur, Karnataka, India, deep tillage conserved higher amount of soil water in top 0.60 m soil depth as compared to medium and shallow tillage from sowing up to harvest in winter sorghum. Higher soil water with deep tillage was attributed to increased infiltration rate and decreased bulk density. This results in better development of root and shoot in winter sorghum with deep tillage. Deep tillage recorded higher sorghum yield over medium and shallow tillage (Table 6). The increase in sorghum yield with deep tillage was 27% over medium and 57% over shallow tillage during drought year (1994 95) as compared to increase in yield by 17 and 34% over medium and shallow tillage during normal year (1995 96). These results clearly indicate that the effect of deep tillage is more pronounced in conservation of rainwater, better plant growth and increased yield during drought year as compared to normal year (Patil and Sheelavantar, 2006).
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Tillage in Vertisols
The most important physical constraints to rainfed crop production on Vertisols includes (i) narrow range of soil water content for tillage, (ii) high erodibility, (iii) tendency to become water-logged and (iv) poor trafficability (Kampen and Burford, 1980). Vertisols are hard when dry and have very plastic consistency when wet. Tillage at an inappropriate soil moisture content leads to compaction of the sub-soil. Traditionally, rainy season fallowing is quite common on these soils. Reasons for rainy season fallowing of Vertisols are the difficulties that the farmers encounter in preparing the hard dry soil prior to the onset of the rainy season and/or the sticky nature of the wet soil after
Even in the deep black soils of Bellary, Karnataka, India, the conventional tillage conserved greater rainwater and increased the soil water in the profile and winter sorghum yields by 13 and 8% over reduced and low tillage, respectively (Patil, 2007 and Patil and Mishra, 2008). Similar results were also observed in the Vertisols of Solapur with conventional tillage recording higher yields of winter sorghum over reduced and low tillage (AICRPDA, 2006). The water use efficiency (WUE) of winter sorghum in the conventional tillage increased from 8 to 10% over low tillage. The sunflower yield increased by 21 and 33% in conventional tillage over reduced and low tillage in the deep black soils of Bellary during winter season of a dry year (2007 08). Due to higher rainwater conservation, conventional tillage resulted in increased WUE by 16% over reduced tillage and 25% over low tillage (Patil and Mishra, 2008).
soil erosion; reduce the overall cost of gully control, to protect the banks against damage caused by waves and animals. In combination with earthen bunds or loose boulder structures, vegetative barriers are more effective in conservation of natural resources and increasing the crop productivity.
Vegetative barriers include rows of perennial grasses, hedges, wind brakes and shelterbelts etc. on contours. Barriers across the gully in rows with different species: consisting of close growing grasses, shrubs and fast growing trees that may have some value as fuel, fodder, etc. are preferred. Locally existing vegetative species are more useful as their establishment is easy and local people are well versed with their management. It was observed that growing hedge rows (creating a vegetative barrier) along the contour or on a grade, reduced the runoff and soil loss; at the same time provided additional fodder during off seasons. The effectiveness Table 6: Effect of tillage practices on infiltration rate, bulk density, root growth and grain yield of winter sorghum in the Vertisols of Bijapur, Karnataka, India.
Infiltration rate (mm h )
1
Tillage practices Deep tillage Medium tillage Shallow tillage S.Em+ LSD (P=0.05)
Grain yield (kg ha1) 1994-95 1919 1509 1223 42 164 1996-96 Pooled 1835 1562 1368 47 186 1877 1635 1296 32 103
Vegetative Barriers
Traditional mechanical bunds i.e. contour and graded bunds are effective in reducing runoff and soil loss. At some places due to poor maintenance these bunds have flattened over the years and became ineffective in conserving rainwater. Hence, research efforts have, therefore, been directed to develop vegetative measures to supplement mechanical measures. Biological measures of conservation have drawn greater attention in recent years because of their long life, low cost and low maintenance needs. Vegetation established on contours obstructs the flow of surface water, as a result soil particles settle on the upstream side and filtered clear water oozes through the barrier more uniformly at a reduced velocity. This results in higher infiltration and more uniform distribution of water. Vegetative barriers would act as a barrier and reduce velocity of the water flow, filter and retain some silt, arrest the
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of vegetative barriers in conserving rainwater depends upon rainfall, soil type and the growth of vegetative barriers. In the shallow red soils of Anantapur (mean annual rainfall 570 mm), Vetiver alone increased the groundnut yield by 11% and with contour cultivation the yield increased up to 39% with greater conservation of rainwater. While at Bangalore, in deep red soils (mean annual rainfall 890 mm), combination of graded bund and Vetiver performed better and conserved soil and water resource. In the shallow red soils of Hyderabad (mean annual rainfall 750 mm), Cenchrus or Vetiver barriers along with a small section bund recorded higher yields over conventional mechanical measures. In the black soils of Deccan Pleateau at Bellary, the vegetative barrier proved effective in conserving soil and rainwater and increasing the soil water availability in the profile. The increased water availability (Average of 3 land slopes) has resulted in the better plant growth
with increased grain yield of winter sorghum by 35% over control (Table 7). The vegetative barrier reduced the runoff by 36% and soil loss by 41% over control (Av. of 8 years for 100 mm rainfall). The vegetative barrier was more effective (Rama Mohan Rao et al., 1999
and potash from soil. More importantly, mulching improves the burrowing activities of earthworms and improves air moisture balance in the soil. Besides improving the physical properties of the soil, like better drainage in clayey soil, mulch returns to the soil the
Table 7: Effect of vegetative barrier on resource conservation and sorghum grain yield in black soils at Bellary, India (1988 89 to 1996 97, Av. of 8 years for 100 mm rainfall)
Treatments 0.5% Runoff (mm) Up and down cultivation (control) Vegetative barrier Soil loss (kg ha 1) Up and down cultivation (control) Vegetative barrier Grain yield (kg ha ) Up and down cultivation (control) Vegetative barrier Source: Rama Mohan Rao et al. (1999 and 2000) 911 1149 685 848 475 787 690 928 (35%)
1
Slope 1.0% 54.81 39.86 2167 1372 1.5% 59.14 44.10 1712 1027
Average
and 2000) at higher slope (1.5%) and increased winter sorghum grain yield by 66% at 1.5% slope, 25% at 1.0% slope and 26% at 0.5% slope (Table 7). At Bellary with 500 mm mean annual rainfall the exotic Vetiver was less effective than the native grass (Cymbopogan martinii). The Vetiver requires higher rainfall (>650 mm) and can perform better in well drained red soils with neutral pH as compared to low rainfall with higher pH (>8.5) at Bellary. The native grass (C. martinii) is also not grazed by animals and can be used for thatching, in addition to its medicinal use.
micro nutrients taken from it. Thick mulch spread over the field conserves moisture in the soil, reduces the evaporation loss and improves the water holding capacity of the soil. As a result supplemental water demand of the crops is reduced.
Mulching
Mulching is the covering of the cultivated field with unused organic matter (grown in situ or Ex situ) with a little additional investment. Mulches are the important organic materials that not only dissipate the kinetic energy of the rain drops and prevent soil erosion (splash erosion) but also facilitate infiltration and reduce runoff and evaporation losses. Besides, this has the major advantages of (i) suppressing weed growth by preventing penetration of sunlight to the ground and (ii) conserving soil and rainwater in situ. By mulching and residue incorporation the biomass is returned to the soil to feed the microbes which help the plants to draw nitrogen and carbon from air and phosphorous
Vertisols at Solapur, India, (Av. of 3 years) crop residue incorporation increased sorghum yield by 50 to 70% (Table 9).
with a bullock-drawn harrow (Table 10). Creating dust mulch up to a depth of 10 cm resulted in 8% more grain yield (1833 kg ha 1) over organic mulch and 96% increase in yield over control in winter sorghum (Table
Table 10: Influence of dust mulch on water use efficiency and grain yield of pearl millet at Bellary
Treatment Dust mulch through harrowing No mulch Source: Rama Mohan Rao et al. (1985) Moisture used (cm) Water use efficiency (kg ha1 cm1) Grain yield (t ha1) 27.8 22.4 67.4 30.7 1.74 0.81
Table 11: Winter sorghum yields as influenced by dust and surface mulches
Treatment Control Organic mulch Intercultivation up to 5 cm depth Intercultivation up to 10 cm depth Intercultivation up to 15 cm depth Source: Rama Mohan Rao et al. (1985) Grain yield (kg ha1) 934 1760 1243 1833 1510 Straw yield (kg ha1) 2.43 2.95 2.95 2.95 2.78
Dust mulch
Due to the scarcity of organic materials, low cost method of frequent intercultivation between crop rows are adopted to create dust mulch or soil mulch through tillage during crop growth. The dust mulch is a useful operation that helps in breaking soil crust (especially in red soils). It augments high infiltration and breaks the capillary movement of water to the top layer and minimizes evaporation losses from the soil surface. Research studies at Bellary have indicated the possibility of doubling the water use efficiency and crop yields by providing dust mulch through repeated harrowing
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11). Mulches (organic and soil) increased the sorghum grain and straw yields by 63 and 20% over control and proving their applicability especially during below normal/scarce rainfall situations in the black soil region during post rainy season for the crops cultivated on residual soil water (Rama Mohan Rao et al., 1985).
Vertical mulch
Soil water is the main limiting factor for successful crop production in the rainfed agriculture with inadequate rainfall and/or poor distribution. The problems become much more severe when soils are also
Table 12: Sorghum grain (kg ha 1) and straw yields (t ha 1) as affected by spacing of mulches
Treatments 2m 4m 8m Cracks filled with straw Control LSD(P=0.05) Rainfall situations 1972-73 Grain 523 412 236 198 017 Straw 2.19 2.02 1.48 1.46 0.95 1973-74 Grain 1641 1692 1614 1310 1120 459 Straw 3.03 3.25 2.86 2.70 2.65 0.39 1974-75 Grain 1495 1775 1770 1240 1123 N.S. Straw 2.94 3.02 3.73 2.08 1.89 0.99 1975-76 Grain 1027 1246 1122 982 1085 N.S. Straw 3.68 3.85 3.64 3.51 3.15 N.S. Grain 1172(40) 1381(53) 1186(42) 929(11) 836(-) Mean Straw 2.96(37) 3.04(41) 2.93(36) 2.44(13) 2.16(-) -
Drought year
Normal year
Normal year
problematic. The crop productivity in Vertisols can be increased with increased intake rates as nearly 25% of rainfall during crop growth goes as runoff. Adoption of vertical mulch in black soils conserved soil water and increased the winter sorghum yields to the greater extent in the dry/drought years as compared to wet/ normal or above normal rainfall years (Rama Mohan Rao et al., 1978 and Ranga Rao et al., 1978). Compared with low yields in control plots (grain: 20 kg ha 1 ; straw: 0.95 t ha 1), mulches spaced at 2, 4 and 8 m produced 390 kg ha 1 of grain and 1.90 t ha 1 of straw in the extremely dry conditions of 1972 1973 (Table 12). However, the increase in grain and straw yields in wet conditions in 1973 1974 was 47 and 15%, respectively. Average over dry and wet years, vertical mulch resulted in 45 and 38% higher grain and straw yields. Higher sorghum yields were attributed to higher soil water content near the mulch and the favorable effects of mulch extended to 1.5 m on either side of the mulch row.
Sand mulching
Sand mulching has been practiced by the farmers in some pockets of Northern Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh. Experiments conducted at Dryland Centre Bijapur and Main Research Station Dharwad (Karnataka State) indicated distinct advantages with sand mulching (Anon. 2000 and Sudha, 1999). The benefits were directly proportional to the quantity of sand applied or mulch thickness (Table 13). Benefits of sand mulching were attributed to the reduction in runoff and increased wetting front. Hagman (1984) attributed improved crop yields in sand mulch compared to non-mulched soil to the increased soil temperature, conservation of rainwater in situ, reduced evaporation and controlled wind and water erosion which in turn increased water content at different stages of crop growth. In the Koppal, Gadag and Bagalkot districts of Karnataka State, sand mulching increased the cropping intensity to 200% especially in the years of drought in this low rainfall region (around 600 mm) with bi-modal
Table 13: Effect of sand mulch on soil water (cm) and pod yield of groundnut
Soil depth (cm) No mulch 0-15 16-30 31-60 0-15 16-30 31-60 0-15 16-30 31-60 0-15 16-30 31-60 30 DAS 3.56 3.60 7.56 4.87 5.38 11.13 4.95 5.42 11.72 0.87 1.48 2.75 90 DAS 4.99 5.14 11.29 5.66 5.80 12.74 5.67 5.86 12.83 0.29 0.62 NS Pod yield (kg ha1) 960
1376
1276
CD 0.05
219
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distribution. In this region in the medium to deep black soils, farmers who practiced sand mulching could cultivate a short duration greengram compared to non mulched areas. In addition, winter sorghum yields in the postrainy season increased by 60 to 70% with sand mulching as compared to non-mulched areas. The utility of sand mulch therefore needs intensive study.
The simple technology of contour cultivation at Bellary, India was more beneficial (92% increase in yield) over up and down cultivation (Farmers practice) during drought year.
Scooping
Scooping out soil to form small basins with basin listers or with similar implements, helps in retaining water on the surface that recharges the soil profile. At Hagari in Bellary district, inter-cultivation by hoes (with ropes tied around the prongs) was practiced successfully for scooping purpose in a cost effective manner. Scooping helped in reducing the runoff by 50% and soil loss by 65%. The winter sorghum grain yield increased by about 11 to 12% at Bijapur. This method has been found to be effective with compartment formations in the fields. A study conducted at ICRISAT (Pathak and Laryea, 1995) revealed that the scoops reduced seasonal runoff by 69% and soil loss by 53% when compared to the flat land surface. There was a significant increase in pearl millet grain yield by scooping practice (2.42 t ha 1) over flat seed bed (1.79 t ha 1).
Land Configuration
Soon after the execution of soil conservation structures (terrace level) in the field, it is essential to take up land smoothing in the inter bund area as inter terrace land treatment. This facilitates filling up of depressions and to remove the humps so as to enable the rainwater to spread uniformly in the field. Land configuration of the inter bund area can be modified for temporary inter plot harvesting of water and facilitate higher infiltration. These modified configurations could be implemented prior to or after the onset of monsoon and continued till sowing or even adopted after sowing and maintained till harvest.
Contour Cultivation
Carrying out all the field operations and sowing the crops across the slope following the contours (contour cultivation) provide a series of miniature barriers to water when it moves along the slope and also reduces runoff and soil loss and increases soil water and nutrient storage in the soil profile. The simple contour cultivation in the farmers fields in red soils of Kabbalanala watershed near Bangalore revealed the increased soil water in the profile during cropping season from 35th week up to 43rd week over farmers practice of up and down cultivation (Fig 1). Contour cultivation conserved the rainwater and reduced the runoff and soil loss and increased the yields of sesamum, fingermillet and groundnut in the red soils of Bangalore. The moisture conservation effect of contour cultivation was more felt when crops were supplemented with NPK fertilizers (Krishnappa et al., 1994and 1999) (Table 14). The conservation of rainwater is more beneficial during drought years especially at the reproductive stages of the crop growth. The effectiveness of this practice was compared with up and down cultivation in the farmers fields over a period to 4 years (Table 15). Contour cultivation resulted in 35 and 22% increase in grain yields in sorghum and setaria, respectively in black soils and 66% increase in sorghum grain yields in red soils over up and down cultivation (Rama Mohan Rao et al., 1985).
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Bedding System
This is a system having furrow at every few rows of crops across the slope on a grade of 0.2 to 0.4%. The bed width could be 3 to 6 m depending on the crops, soil type, and rainfall. This is suitable for narrow spaced row crops. Even if a few rows are lost due to the furrow, the yields are made up due to better in situ rainwater conservation. There is no water stagnation in the bedding system. Hence, this system acts both as disposal system during high intensity rains and as a conservation measure during low rainfall situations. The bedding system of land management (Channappa, 1994) with a furrow opened at the time of sowing the crop at 1.5 to 3 m intervals was found to increase/stabilize yield levels over years by 8 to 10%, apart from better rainwater management at times of low as well as high intensity rains. Modified technique known as paired row pigeonpea fingermillet intercrop with a furrow in between the pigeonpea rows and 8 to 10 rows of finger millet was found to be the best intercrop as well as inter-terrace management practice for the red soil regions of Karnataka State, India. The relative performance of different bedding systems, i.e. flat bed (FB), broad bed and furrows (BBF), narrow bed and furrow (NBF) and raised-sunken bed (RSB), was studied in black soils at Indore. The results indicated
Fig. 1. Soil water in profile as influenced by farmers practice and contour cultivation.
Table 14:
Crop/cultivation practice Sesame Cultivation along slope Contour cultivation Finger millet Cultivation along slope Contour cultivation Groudnut Cultivation along slope Contour cultivation
Recommended NPK 0.33 (49)b 0.46 (61)b (38) a (107)c 0.79(44)b 1.24 (89)b (58) a (126)c 0.87(53)b (55) a (137)c 1.35(85)b
Source: Krishnappa et al., (1994); Figures in parentheses denote: a = % change over cultivation along the slope: b = % change over no NPK; and c = % change over cultivation along the slope and no NPK.
% increase
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that the maximum maize yields (2.01 t ha 1 and water use efficiency of 8.81 kg ha 1 mm 1) were observed in BBF system followed by RSB and FB systems. The BBF can be more intensively adopted using tropicultor developed at ICRISAT. This system of bedding is also getting more adoption in the farmers fields in the Indore region of Madhya Pradesh, India, for soybean cultivation in the Vertisols as it is useful in draining excess rainwater during high rainfall years and conserving and mitigating drought during drought years. In the black soils of Bellary also bedding system proved effective in conserving the rainwater, increasing the soil water in the profile and increased the winter sorghum grain yield by 23.7% and safflower yield by 7.7 % as compared to flat sowing (Average of 8 years).
greater during 1992 2000 (drought year) as compared to normal year of 2000 01. The effect of border strip was more pronounced during drought year in better conservation of rainwater than normal year (Table 16). When border strips were supplemented with terrace level measures i.e. graded bunds, the yields of sunflower and sorghum increased further up to 38 and 42%, respectively. These results clearly indicate the benefit of border strips in the Vertisols of Deccan Plateau in South India (Patil et al., 2004).
Zingg Terracing
Zingg terracing is adopted in low to medium rainfall areas in black soil with contour/graded bunds. The lower one third portion of inter bunded area is leveled to spread the runoff water in a large area. Usually water intensive crops are cultivated in the leveled portion (receiving area) while dry crops are cultivated in the unleveled (donor) area. This practice is more useful during drought years. In the leveled one third portions, normal crop can be harvested even during severe drought year and it is possible to cultivate two crops during normal year. This will not only increase the cropping intensity and also increase the crop yields in the region. In the Vertisols of Bijapur, lay out of field with Zingg terrace increased the winter sorghum and safflower yields by 4 and 30%, respectively over control (Anon., 1989 and 1990). The effect of Zingg terrace was more felt in the leveled portion than the unleveled portion. In the leveled portion the yields of winter sorghum and safflower increased by 25 and 44%, respectively over control (Table 17) .
In the black soils of P.C. Pyapili Watershed (Anantapur district, Andhra Pradesh) lay out of farmers Table 16: Impact of rainwater conservation practices on crop yields (kg ha 1) in the watershed
Treatment Control Graded bund alone Border strips + graded bund 19992000 Sunflower 626 702 (12%) 888 (42%) (26%) Sorghum 910 1012 (11%) 1274 (40%) (26%) 20002001 Sunflower 474 529 (12%) 631 (33%) (19%) Sorghum 450 530 (18%) 655 (45%) (24%) Pooled Sunflower 550 616 (12%) 760 (38%) (23%)
Source: Patil et al., 2004; Figures in the parenthesis indicate % increase over control.
fields with graded border strips conserved the rainwater, recharged the soil profile and reduced the runoff and soil loss and increased the yields of sunflower and winter sorghum by 23 and 25% respectively (Mean of 2 years). The increase in yield with border strips was
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Compartmental Bunding
Compartmental bunding is usually adopted in deep black soil areas for in situ harvesting of rainwater. The field is laid out into compartments of 6 m 6 m to 10 m 10 m using bund former. The harvested
Table 17:
Treatments Zingg terrace Levelled portion Unlevelled portion Entire plot
Effect of Zingg terrace on winter sorghum and safflower yields during winter season
Winter sorghum (kg ha1) (198889) 1190 949 989 950 4 % increase Safflower (kg ha1) (198990) 720 635 650 500 % increase
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44 27 30
water in these compartments facilitates high infiltration rate resulting in more soil water retention in the profile. This system is adopted in deep black soils to harvest rainwater received during the rainy season. It helps in better crop production during the postrainy season.
In a field study on Vertisols at Bellary from 2000 to 2003 indicated that the moisture conservation through in situ moisture conservation practices i.e. compartmental bunding and ridges and furrows increased the soil water in the profile and grain and straw yield of winter sorghum (Patil, 2005). The magnitude of increase in grain yield was 28% in compartmental bunding during 2000 01 was attributed to efficient utilization of water, especially conserved water to Ridges and furrows produce grain yield even though it was moderate Cultivation of crops under ridge and furrow drought year. Water use efficiency (WUE) was higher Table 18: Water use efficiency of sorghum as influenced by moisture conservation practices
Treatments 20002001 In situ moisture conservation practices 8.57 Flat bed Compartmental bunding Ridges and furrows S.Em.+ C.D. at 5% Source: Patil (2003). 9.86 10.77 0.54 NS (15) (26) 8.20 7.86 0.14 0.53 (13) (9) 6.71 6.82 0.20 NS (8) (10) 7.24 6.20 7.34 8.26 8.48 (13) (16) Water use efficiency (kg ha1mm1) 20012002 20022003 Pooled
during 2000 01 (moderate drought year) as compared to 2001 02 (above normal rainfall year) and 2002 03 (severe drought year) indicating that every unit of water was more efficiently utilized to produce grain yield (Table 18). The results (Patil, 2003) of three years mean indicated that the WUE increased by 13% (8.26 kg ha 1 mm 1) over flat bed (7.34 kg ha 1 mm 1). In the Vertisols of Bijapur, lay out of field with compartmental bunding conserved more rainwater and increased the winter sorghum yield by 23% over flat sowing (Patil and Sheelavantar, 2004). The water use efficiency was greater by % with compartmental bunding over flat sowing (Patil, 1998).
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system across the major land slope with a gradient of 0.2 to 0.4% in land having 1 to 3% slope will conserve more rainwater in situ. This is suitable for widely spaced crops with 60 cm or more row spacing. A field length of 60 to 90 m is optimum for cultivation of crops with ridges and furrows. In the Vertisols of Bellary, ridges and furrows were more effective in conservation of rainwater and increased more winter sorghum grain yield during drought year (2000 2001) as compared to normal years of 2001 2002 and 2002 03 (Table 17). The mean WUE increased by 16% (8.48 kg ha 1 mm 1) with ridges and furrows over flat sowing. Studies conducted on moisture conservation for cowpea ragi double cropping system in the red soils at Bangalore revealed that ridging up after flat on a grade sowing Table 20:
Treatments
is more advantageous (Table 19). Formation of ridges and furrows in the Vertisols of Bijapur, India, conserved more water and increased the grain yields of winter sorghum by 26% and water use efficiency by 25% (Patil and Sheelvantar, 2004). An evaluation of furrows for managing soil and water loss in an Alfisol under simulated rainfall (Mishra et. al, 2008) shows that across slope treatments with row spacing of 60 cm is as effective as 30 cm spacing in containing runoff and soil loss. The interaction of row spacing and rainfall intensity has no significant effect on resource conservation. Opening of furrows down the slope is an inefficient method for conserving water and soil. Cultivators need to be educated to plow and sow across slope following contours.
Runoff, soil loss and soil properties as influenced by crop residue incrporation
Average of 4 years MWD (1998-99 to 2001-02) (Microns) Runoff (mm) Soil loss (kg ha1) 4940 3934 582 688 3.7 3.9 Organic C (g kg1) N 165 199 Available nutrients 0-15 cm (kg ha1) P 12 16 K 427 448
T-1-Sorghum without disturbance (control) T-2-Sorghum + Dolichos (Dolichos cultivated for grain and residue incorporation at harvest) T-3-Sorghum + Dolichos (Dolichos cultivation and residue used as mulch at 45 DAS) T-4- Sorghum + Dolichos (Dolichos incorporated into the soil at 45 DAS ) T-5-Sorghum with intercultivation (Twice soil disturbance) LSD (P=0.05)
142 127
129
4339
685
3.8
198
15
442
122
3751
696
4.0
202
16
483
132
4491
589 35
3.6 0.03
183 26
13 NS
499 NS
Table 21: Grain yield and sorghum grain equivalent as influenced by residue management (Mean of 4 years1998-99 to 2001-02)
Treatments T-1-Sorghum without disturbance (control) T-2-Sorghum + Dolichos (Dolichos cultivated for grain and residue incorporation at harvest) T-3-Sorghum + Dolichos (Dolichos cultivation and residue used as mulch at 45 DAS) T-4-Sorghum + Dolichos (Dolichos incorporated into the soil at 45 DAS ) T-5Sorghum with intercultivation(Twice soil disturbance) LSD (P=0.05) Source: Nalatwadmath et al. (2006) Grass yield (kg ha1) 1469 167+495 2121 2301 1916 Straw yield (t ha1) 2.64 3.01 3.27 3.61 3.05 Sorghum grain equivalent 1807 4248 2535 2756 2303 397
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along with Dolichos for grain purpose as compared to the rest of the treatments. The results of 4 years study indicated that it is better to cultivate Dolichos along with sorghum for seed purpose and incorporate the residues of Dolichos at harvest for better resource conservation and greater returns (Nalatwadmath et al., 2006).
Soil Amendments
A soil amendment is any material added to a soil to improve its physical properties, such as water retention, permeability, water infiltration, drainage, aeration and structure. The goal is to provide a better environment for roots.
Gypsum Application
Unless the infiltration rate is improved through improvement of structure, moisture conservation continues to be a problem in the deep black soils with higher clay content (>50%) especially in the Bellary soils of Deccan Plateau. Studies in this direction have indicated a severe water intake problem in soil having Exchangeable Sodium percentage greater than 7.0. This problem could be overcome by reducing ESP to less than 7 through gypsum application at Bellary, India (Anon.,1981) (Table 22).
incorporation of Dolichos at 45 DAS in the Sorghum + Dolichos cultivated for grain purpose as compared to Dolichos used as mulch or sorghum cultivated without Dolichos. The soil physical properties i.e. mean weight diameter and organic carbon and nutrient availability (N, P and K) was higher in plots with Dolichos incorporation or cultivated for grain or used as mulch along with sorghum as compared to cultivation of sorghum alone (Table 20). Even though sorghum grain yield was higher with Dolichos incorporation at 45 DAS (T4) the treatment with Dolichos cultivated for grain purpose recorded 495 kg ha 1 additional Dolichos grain yield in addition to 1674 kg ha 1 of grain sorghum (Table 21). Sorghum grain equivalent was significantly higher (3248) in sorghum cultivated
26
silt as an organic amendment for improving soil quality and its resilience to moisture stress during dry spells in rainfed areas. However, the quality of silt varies with each tank, which is primarily, a function of soil type and land use of the catchment. In general, tank silt application supplies all the nutrients to the crops unlike fertilizers that supply one, two or three at most. By the application of tank silt it reduces the demand for the straight fertilizers. Application of tank silt improves the crop yields on sustainable basis and brings the dynamic changes in the land use pattern in the region (CRIDA, 2006; Dhan, 2004 and Osman et al., 2001 and 2007). Application of tank silt to cotton increased the benefit-cost ratio (BCR) from 1.43 to 1.86 and in chillies with silt BCR was higher by 11% (2.54) over control (2.28). In a study of ICRISAT, Padmaja et al. (2003) have registered 1.17 as average benefit-cost ratio (for removing tank sediment and estimating value of sediment containing different nutrients) indicating that desilting operations are not only economically viable but also, have additional benefits like environmental protection, increased soil microbial bio-diversity, improved soil quality and increased water storage leading to self-sustained land use planning. In Andhra Pradesh nearly 40% of the total cultivated area is light textured red sandy loam to loamy sand. Clay content is low (< 15%) with low water holding capacity (5 to 10 cm m 1 depth) and are susceptible to leaching losses. Nearly 80% of the soils are under
rainfed cultivation; their low water storage capacity is a major constraint in crop production. Application of available tank silt or heavy textured soil in the top 50 cm depth resulted in decrease bulk density and increased soil water content by 6.5 to 23.5%. The improved soil water and nutrient status with application of tank silt/clay increased the tomato and ladys finger yields by 10.8 and 10.5%, respectively in the Ranga Reddy District of Andhra Pradesh (Singa Rao, 2004). Mishra, et al., (2001) studied the changes in physical, chemical and hydraulic properties of bentonite and soil (Alfisol) mixtures in different proportions and reported interesting results which may be considered while deciding the proportions of soil amendments. Addition of bentonite to soil (i.e. 1:10 mixture and higher by volume) would seal the entry of water through the mixture, hence not suitable for crop growth. Bulk density increases up to 1:5 (bentonite: soil) mixture and decreases with decrease in bentonite preparation till 1:50 mixture. Dispersion ratio and surface cracking increased with the addition of bentonite to the native soil.
Table 23: Data of the experiments/demonstrations in the farmers fields at different Dryland Centres/locations on in situ moisture conservation practices
Location Bijapur Crop Safflower Chickpea Rabi Sorghum Pigeonpea Rabi Sorghum Chickpea Safflower Rabi Sorghum Chickpea Pigeonpea Groundnut Suitable inter-terrace land treatments Compartmental bunding Compartmental bunding, Ridges and furrows Tied ridging Opening furrow at 30 DAS after every two weeks Compartmental bunding, Ridges and furrows Compartmental bunding Bedding system Compartmental bunding Compartmental bunding Ridges and furrows Furrow at 3 m interval Dead furrow at 3 m interval Contour cultivation
Akola Bellary
27
yields of different crops especially during drought years. The suitable in situ moisture conservation practices for different crops at different dryland Centres of India are mentioned in table 23.
Researchable Issues
The potential ITKs on in situ water conservation reviewed by Mishra, et. al. (2002) are presented in table 24. The specific researchable issues pertaining to different ITKs adopted in different rainfed regions of India are presented in table 25. A systematic scientific study may change the Indigenous Technical Knowledge to Modern Technical Knowledge (MTK). The research results will benefit both farming community as well as the extension agencies i.e. the Government or non-Government organizations in up scaling the technology.
Up-scaling of ITKs
Prevailing ITKs should invariably be given priority. All the projects on resource conservation and management should focus on the viable and appropriate ITKs relating to soil and water conservation. Exposure visit and farmer-to-farmer interaction results in refinement and greater adoption of these technologies. The stakeholders such as farmers, NGOs, extension officials, scientists, administrators, policy makers and peoples representatives may popularize the ITKs through different programmes for improving soil and crop productivity on sustainable basis. There is also a need for scientist-farmer interaction for largescale adoption of the ITKs. The ITKs on in situ soil and moisture conservation are not up scaled and are attributed to the constraints in adoption and unawareness of the effectiveness of such practices in different agroecological settings. The present documentation process has definite bearing on the future course of action in framing new projects.
Table 24: Some simple ITKs on in situ soil moisture conservation followed in India
Indigenous in situ soil moisture conservation measures Deep ploughing in summer for harvesting early shower in situ Pre monsoon harrowing (blade harrow) for breaking soil surface crust for capturing early showers Short term fallowing during mid May and June to conserve early rains Across slope furrowing as a part of seeding operation in sorghum and castor crop rotation Shallow interculture in rabi sorghum to minimize soil cracking Regions of adoption/practice Black soil region of Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, and Tamil Nadu Red soil region of Andhra Pradesh Red soils of Anantapur District in Andhra Pradesh Red soils in Ranga Reddy District of Andhra Pradesh Deep black soil in Bellary, Karnataka
28
The documentation exercise should be in-built in extension and research especially in natural resource management. The suitable ITKs may be adopted and validated other Agro-ecological regions. The documented ITKs should be translated in all regional languages and published for the benefit of farming communities. Suitable modifications of the ITKs through onfarm research would help developing appropriate and acceptable technologies for different Agro-ecological environments.
2. Validation of appropriate indigenous technologies across diverse agro-ecological settings to qualify as modern technical knowledge through vigorous onfarm research/testing with farmers participation and involving NGOs. 3. Limited energy efficient farm mechanization for timely operations of in situ conservation measures at farm level. 4. Water and nutrient balance studies to quantify water use efficiency and validate hydrological and crop models. 5. Role of in situ moisture conservation through better understanding of Soil-Water-Nutrient-Plant relationships for greater crop and water productivity. 6. Creation of enabling environment through appropriate Government policies and subsidies to the farming communities adopting in situ rainwater conservation and better crop residue management that reduces land degradation and decreases the fertilizer and energy requirements. 7. Economics of different in situ conservation measures for selecting eco-friendly, economical advantageous and socially acceptable technologies.
Conclusions
This is a brief review of different in situ moisture conservation measures followed particularly in Indian semi-arid regions predominated with red and black soils. Many other location specific moisture conservation measures are followed in other parts of India and the world. However the principles of moisture conservation remain the same. In the context of in situ rainwater conservation and management the following emerging issues need to be addressed for sustaining the agricultural productive environment. 1. In situ rainwater management as influenced by the temporal climate shift scenario and popularization of weather advisories.
29
Table 25: Researchable issues in potential ITKs on in situ moisture conservation measures
Indigenous in situ water conservation measures Furrow opening in standing crops for rainwater conservation Wider row spacing in pearl millet for rainwater conservation and weed control Crop residue management for improving soil organic matter and water holding capacity Researchable issues 1. Modification of implement with different serrated blades and introducing additional tines 2. Effectiveness in conserving soil moisture 1. Plant geometry and population research in different rainfall situations 1. Quantification soil and water conservation and yield advantage 2. Better or improved implements for crop residue incorporation 3. Alternate ways of composting and application 1. Quantification of soil loss, improvement of soil quality and water availability 2. Use of alternative organic material to Sal leaves as mulch 1. Width of broad bed needs to be evaluated for different crops and rainfall situations 2. Identification of suitable low cost tractor/bullock drawn implement for layout of BBF 1. Quantification of rainwater conservation and water use efficiency (WUE) of the crops 2. Improvement in soil health and crop yield over years 1. Identification of appropriate tillage implements for soil and water conservation 2. Evaluation of root:shoot ratio and quantification of WUE of crops 1. Effect of bullock and tractor drawn Gurr on runoff reduction, soil water conservation and crop productivity 1. Growing of green manure crop and its management in soil health improvement improving soil health and crop productivity 2. Economic evaluation of the system by addressing issues of sustainability 1. Method and quantity of tank silt application in different soils 2. Improvement in soil water and fertility with tank silt application and its effect on crop productivity 3. Cost effect ivene ss of si lt applicat ion e special ly w it h Governments programme of tank desiltation.
Mulching in turmeric cultivation for rainwater conservation Broad bed and furrow practice for rainwater conservation and runoff disposal
Set-row cultivation for soil and rainwater conservation and improvement of soil properties Summer/pre monsoon tillage for harvesting early rainfall, weed control and initiate timely seeding
Formation of Gurr for rainwater and soil conservation Green manuring practice for water conservation and
Tank silt application to improve soil fertility and water holding capacity
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References
Agarwal A. and Narain S. 1999. Introduction, Dying Wisdom, Centre for Science and Environment, New Delhi, pp. 4 24. Anonymous. 1981. 25 years Research on soil and water conservation in Semi-Arid deep black soils, Monograph No.1 of CSWCR&TI, Dehra Dun, Research Centre, Bellary, Karnataka, India, p.189. Anonymous. 1989. Annual Progress Report, 1988 1989. All India Co-ordinated Research Project on Dryland Agriculture, Annual Progress Report 1988 1989, Agricultural Research Station, Bijapur, Karnataka, India, pp. 97 100. Anonymous. 1990. Annual Progress Report, 1988 1989. All India Co-ordinated Research Project on Dryland Agriculture, Annual Progress Report 1988 1989, Agricultural Research Station, Bijapur, Karnataka, India, pp. 41 43. Anonymous. 2000. Annual Progress Report, 1999 2000. AICRPDLA. Bijapur, Karnataka, India, Annual Report 1999 2000 Central Research Institute for Dryland Agriculture, Hyderabad, India, pp. 46 47. Annual Report, 2006. All India Co-ordinated Research Project for Dryland Agriculture. Nutritions cereal based production system pp. 55 66. Channappa. T.C. 1994. In situ moisture conservation in Arid and Semi-Arid Tropics, Indian J. Soil Conservation, 22 (1&2): 26 41. CRIDA. 2006. Enabling rural poor for better livelihoods through improved natural resource management in SAT India. Final Technical Report 2002-2005, DFID-NRSP (UK) Project R8192. Central Research Institute for Dryland Agriculture, Hyderabad, pp. 105. Dhan. 2004. Vision for village tanks of Tamil Nadu, Development of Human Action (DHAN) Foundation, Madurai, Tamil Nadu, pp. 34. Hagman, G. 1984. Prevention better than cure: Report on Human and Natural Disasters in the Third World, Stockholm: Swedish Red Cross. Harahsheh, H. 2002. GIS development (Online). www.gisdevelopment.net/interview/previous/ev029.htm (verified 23 June 2003). Kampen, J. and Burford, J.R. 1980. Production systems, soil related constraints and potential in the Semi_Arid tropics with special reference to India. In Priorities in deviating soil related constraints to food production in the tropics. (Eds. N.C. Brady, L.D. Swindle and R. Dudal), pp. 141 165, IRRI, Los Banos, Philippines. Krishnappa, A.M., Y.S. Arun Kumar, Munikappa and B.R. Hegde. 1999. Improved in situ moisture conservation practices for stabilized crop yields in Drylands. In Fifty Years of Dryland Agriculture Research in India. (Ed. H.P. Singh et al). pp. 291 300 Krishnappa, A.M., Y.S. Arun Kumar, T. Gopal Reddy, T. and Nagarajan. 1994. Watershed Approach A boon for dryland agriculture. The experience of Operational Research Project in Kabbalanala, University of Agriculture Sciences, Bangalore, India. Larson, W.E. 1962. Tillage requirements for corn. J. Soil and Water Cons., 17: 3 7. Manian, R., G. Baby Meenakshi, K. Rangaswamy and K. Kathirvel. 1999. Effect of tillage operations in improving moisture conservation practices for stable sorghum yield. Indian J. Dryland Agric. Res. & Dev. 14 (2): 64 67. Mishra, P.K. 2002. Indigeneous technical knowledge on Soil and Water Conservation in semi-arid India (Eds: P.K. Mishra, G. Sastry, M. Osman, G.R. Maruthi Sankar and N. Babjee Rao). NATP, CRIDA, Hyderabd. p. 151. Mishra, P.K., Padmanabhan, M.V. and Shiva Prasad, S. 1994. Effectiveness of different lining materials in farm pond. Journal of Water Management, 2 (1&2): 55 58. Mishra, P. K., Reddy, C. V. and Satish Kumar, U. 2008. An evaluation of furrows for managing soil and water loss from a shallow Alfisol under simulated rainfall. Soil Use and Management, 24, 171-180.
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Mishra, P.K., Sharma, S., Rao, K.V. and Singh, H.P. 1999. Potentiality of water harvesting and use at micro level in Semi-Arid Alfisols-A case study. Proceedings of National Seminar on Water resource development and management sustainable crop production, Hyderabad, 12-13, February, pp.212 215. Mishra, P.K., Siva Prasad, S., Babu, B.M. and Varalakshmi, L.R. 2001. Bentonite as an ameliorant in an Alfisol A laboratory study. J. Irrigation and Drainage Engineering, 127 (2): 118 122. Musgrave, G.W. and G.R. Free. 1936. Some factors which modify the rate and total amount of infiltration of field soils. J. American Soc. Agron., 28, 727 739. Nalatwadmath, S.K. S.L. Patil, R.N. Adhikari and S. Mana Mohan, 2006. Effect of crop residue management on oil erosion, moisture conservation, soil properties and sorghum yield on Vertisols undr Dryland conditions of Semi-Arid Tropics in India. Indian J. Dryland Agric. Res. & Dev. 21(2): 99 104. Osman, M., P.K. Mishra., A.K. Mishra., S. Dixit., R. Kausalya., H.P. Singh., C.A. Rama Rao and G.R. Korwar. 2001. Common Pool Resources in Semi-arid India: A review of dynamic, management and livelihood contributions, Study funded by DFID (UK), NRI Report No. 2649, pp 102. Osman, M., Ramakrishna, Y. S.and Haffis, S. 2007. Rejuvenating Tanks for Self-Sustainable Rainfed Agriculture in India. Agricultural Situation in India, LXIV (5): 67 70. Padmaja, K.V., S.P. Wani., Agarwal Lav and K.L. Sahrawat. 2003. Economic Assessment of Desilted Silt in Terms of Plant Nutrients Equipment: A Case Study in the Medak District of Andhra Pradesh, Global Theme 3: Water, Soil and Agrodiversity Management for Ecosystem Resilience, Report no. 4, Patancheru 502324, Andhra Pradesh, India, pp. 24 Patil, S.L. 1998. Response of rabi sorghum (Sorghum bicolor (L.) Moench) to tillage, moisture conservation practices, organics and nitrogen in Vertisols of Semi-Arid Tropics. Ph.D. Thesis submitted to University of Agricultural Sciences, Dharwad, Karnataka, India. Patil, S.L. 2003. Effect of moisture conservation practices and nitrogen application on growth and yield of winter sorghum in Vertisols of Semi Arid Tropics of South India. Special International Symposium on Transactions in Agriculture for Enhancing Water Productivity, 23 25 September, 2003, TNAU, Tamil Nadu, India, pp.70 71. Patil, S.L. 2005. Response of winter sorghum to in situ moisture conservation practices and nitrogen application in Vertisols of Northern Dry Zone of Karnataka, India. Natural Resource Management for Eco Development and Livelihood Security in Southern India, 24 25 November 2005, Udhagamandalam, Tamil Nadu, India, pp.43 Patil, S.L. 2007. Reduced tillage practices and integrated nutrient management of sorghum grown in vertisols of SAT-India. In: Abstract proceedings of South Asian Conference on Water in Agriculture: Management Options for Increasing Crop Productivity per Drop of Water held at College of Agriculture, Indira Gandhi Krishi Vishwavidyalaya, Raipur (CG) during November 15-17, 2007, pp. 78. Patil, S.L. and M.N. Sheelavantar. 2004. Effect of cultural practices on soil properties, moisture conservation and grain yield of winter sorghum (Sorghum bicolar L. Moench) in Semi Arid Tropics of India. Agricultural Water Management. 64 (1): 49 67. The Netherland. Patil, S.L. and M.N. Sheelavantar. 2006. Soil water conservation and yield of winter sorghum (Sorghum bicolor L. Moench) as influenced by tillage, organic materials and nitrogen fertilizer in Semi-Arid tropical India. Soil & Tillage Res. 89: 246 257. Patil, S.L. and P.K. Mishra. 2008. Low/reduced till farming strategies for resource conservation and improving soil quality and crop productivity on sustainable basis. Annual Report, 2007 08, CSWCR&TI, research Centre, Bellary, Karnataka, India, pp. 16 19. Patil, S.L., M.S. Rama Mohan Rao, K.K. Reddy and R.N. Adhikari. 2004. Impact of agronomic practices for enhancing crop productivity in a Semi Arid Tropical Watershed of Andhra Pradesh. In National Conference on Resource Conservation Technologies for Social Upliftment, Extended Abstracts, 7th December, 2004, pp. 174 176. Pathak, P. 2004. Improved land and water management for achieving food security in the rainfed areas. In Rainfed agriculture technologies for different agro eco regions of Andhra Pradesh (Ed. Mishra et al.,), CRIDA, Hyderabad, India, pp. 29 37.
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Pathak, P. and K.B. Laryea. 1995. Soil and water conservation in the Indian SAT: Principles and improved practices. p. 83 94. In Sustainable Development of Dryland Agriculture in India, (Editor, R.P. Singh), Scientific Publishers, Jodhpur. India. Rama Mohan Rao, M.S., S.L. Patil and S.K.N. Math, 1999. Effect of different agronomic and mechanical measures in reducing soil and water losses in black soils. Annual Report, 1998 99, CSWCRTI, Research Centre, Bellary, Karnataka, India, pp. 41 46. Rama Mohan Rao, M.S., S.L. Patil, S.K.N. Math, S.S. Shrimali and A.K. Srivastva. 2000. Effect of different agronomic and mechanical measures in reducing soil and water losses in the Vertisols of Semi Arid Tropics of South India. International Conference on Managing natural resources for sustainable agricultural production in the 21st century. Extended summary, vol.3: voluntary papers. Resource Management. 14 18 February 2000, New Delhi, India, 1227 1228. Rama Mohan Rao, M.S., V. Ranga Rao and S, Chitteranjan. 1985. Importance of moisture conservation in stabilizing yields from Vertisols of low rainfall region. Indian J. Soil Cons., 13, 131 138. Rama Mohan Rao, M.S., V. Ranga Rao, M. Ramachandram and R.C. Agnihothri. 1978. Effect of Vertical mulch on moisture conservation and yield of sorghum in Vertisols. Agricultural Water Management, 1: 333 342. Ranga Rao, V., M. Ramachandram and M.S. Rama Mohan Rao. 1978. Some simple crop production practices for efficient exploitation of seasonal aberrations in rainfall in rainfed rabi belt of Bellary. II. Mid seasonal corrections in plant population as a life saving practice. Mysore. J. agric. Sci., 12: 425 433. Rao, C.S., J.L. Steiner. and H.S. Mayeux. 2007. The Role of Worlds Agricultural Lands for Future Food Security in India, In Book on Challenges and Strategies for Dryland Agriculture (Ed. Barbarick, K.A. and Co-Ed. Rao, C.S. and John Ryan), pp. 1 10. Sanghi, N.K. and Korwar, G.R. 1987. Integrated pest management. In: Technological Advances in Dryland Agriculture, (Ed.) S.P. Singh et al., Central Research Institute for Dryland Agriculture, Hyderabad, India, pp. 101 119. Singa Rao, M. 2004. Improved rainwater conservation and management practices for drought mitigation in Andhra Pradesh. In Rainfed agriculture technologies for different agro eco regions of Andhra Pradesh (Ed. Mishra et al.,), CRIDA, Hyderabad, India, pp. 38 44. Singh, H.P., K.D. Sharma, G. Subba Reddy and K.L. Sharma. 2007. Dryland Agriculture in India, In Book on Challenges and Strategies for Dryland Agriculture (Ed. Barbarick, K.A. and Co-Ed. Rao, C.S. and John Ryan), pp. 67 92. Srinivas C. Rao, Jean L. Steiner and Hermon S. Mayeux. 2007. The role of worlds agricultural lands for future food security. pp.1 10. In Challenges and strategies of dryland agriculture. CSSA special publications Number 32. Scientific publishers (India) Jodhpur Srinivas C. Rao and John Rayon (Co-Editors). First published in India in 2007. Sudha, K.N. 1999. Resource of rainfed groundnut (Arachis hypogaea L.) to sand mulching and organics in Vertic inceptisols. M.Sc. (Agri.) Thesis submitted to University of Agricultural Sciences Dharwad, Karnataka, India. Thyagaraj, C.R. K.P.R. Vittal, V.M. Mayande and K.L. Sharma. 1999. Tillage and soil management for higher productivity in drylands pp.329 344. In Fifty years of dryland agricultural research in India. Central Res. Inst. for Dryland Agric., Hyderabad, India. Unger, P.W. and B.A. Stewart. 1983. Soil management for efficient water use: An overview. In: Limitations of Efficient Water use on Crop Production (Eds.) Taylor et al., Madison Wisconsin American Society of Agronomy, pp. 419 460. Virmani, S.M. P. Pathak and R. Singh. 1991. Soil related constraints in dryland crop production in Vertisols, Alfisols and Entisols of India. In Soil Related Constraints in Crop Production, Bulletin No.15, Indian Society of Soil Science, New Delhi, pp. 80 95. Vittal, K.P.R., K. Vijayalaxmi and U.M.B.Rao. 1983. Effect of deep tillage on dryland crop production in red soils of India, Soil & Tillage Res. 3: 377 384.
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3
Low Cost On-Farm Indigenous and Innovative Technologies of Rainwater Harvesting
R.K. Singh
Introduction
India has been one of the few countries of the world which showed awareness of the need to conserve and care for the watershed resources of land, water, plants and animals in an integrated manner and the government has invested heavily on soil and water conservation (SWC) measures on watershed basis and many big projects are currently in operation. The results to date of government SWC programmes have been disappointing (Vaidyanathan, 1991). SWC measures installed under special programmes have rarely been maintained; on the contrary, there are many instances where farmers have destroyed these works soon after the departure of the implementing agency. Recent studies have shown, however that in many regions farmers lack of interest in SWC programmes has not been due to their lack of concern about erosion, but because the design of recommended technologies has not been suitable for their small farms (Kerr and Sanghi, 1992 and Reij, 1991). It is now becoming clear that
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there are significant difference between farmers and scientists perceptions regarding soil erosion control (Chamber, 1991; Kerr and Sanghi, 1992). Many SWC interventions are not successful because they are not sufficiently rooted in the priorities and perceptions of local farmers (Gupta, 1991; Reij, 1991 and Fujisaka, 1989). In this context, it is also not out of place to mention that programme planners have time to time introduced number of SWC measures/ rainwater harvesting technologies which are not being tested in the specific areas under particular soil, slope, rainfall, socio-economic conditions and need of the people. Similarly, some of the most adoptable and effective technologies are not being given due importance and left aside because they are slightly costlier, though for such effective technologies farmers could easily be motivated for their reasonable contribution. Studies have revealed that over the generations, farmers themselves have developed numerous indigenous SWC methods specific
to particular soil, slope, rainfall and socio-economic conditions (Kerr, 1991). It has also been observed in the area that farmers prefer to pay part of the cost of these indigenous practices even in villages where recommended SWC practices are offered with heavy subsidies. Low cost indigenous technologies of rainwater harvesting have potential to increase the productivity of arable lands by enhancing crop yields and by reducing the risk of crop failure in arid and semi arid regions, where water shortage are common because of scanty of rainfall and its uneven distribution. In arid and semi arid regions, the occurrence and distribution of rainfall are not only uneven but also erratic, marked by prolong rainless days. The rainfall fails especially at the time when it is required most for agriculture during the year. Under these circumstances, the concept of low cost community oriented indigenous rainwater harvesting technologies both long term and short terms seem to be the only alternative by which water scarcity problem can be mitigated and agricultural production can be increased substantially. The solution therefore, lies is harvesting rainwater through capturing, storing and recycling it and later using it during prolong perched period.
2. Stone Bunds Stone bunds; are most commonly used indigenous practice in highly sloping lands of limited depth of soil for the purpose of increasing crop productivity in rainfed areas. Simple stone bunds of varying sizes are constructed across the slope. In such type of terraces bunds are formed gradually by allowing erosion on the upper parts of sloping fields and arresting the soil by creating vegetative/ stone barrier on field boundary. By adopting this practice, land with limited depth of soil can safely be put under cultivation without further degradation in sloping areas. In this case the cost of construction is reduced and the decrease in yield in the regular bench terracing is minimized. Downward movement of soil is induced by up and down slope cultivation during first 2-3 years. Presently, such terraces are known as Peurto Rican Terraces. 3. Stone wall terraces (SWT) In some of the highly sloping areas where soil depth is a limiting factor and also in the cultivable Valleys; stone wall terraces are very common particularly in those areas where stones are readily available in the area. Like stone bunds the stone wall barriers are also put across the slope for developing terraces on down hill slopes and particularly in valleys. Downward movement of soil is induced in similar fashion as stated above. Cross section of SWT is decided by the farmers taking into account the slope of the land, rainfall etc. This practice is also adopted in order to create additional cultivable lands by cutting the hill slopes and to concentrate the soil eroded from the adjoining lands at an appropriate site. 4. Rough Stone Slab Bunds It is found to be very effective, adoptable and low cost indigenous technology in moderately sloping (0-5%) arable lands where the small stone slabs are easily available at or near the site. In this system 30-45 cm high bunds of rough stone slabs (5-10 cm) thick and 45-60 cm long are put across the slope, uniformly all along the field boundaries. Stone slabs are thoroughly embedded in soil one after the other in dug out furrows of 15-30 cm depth. 5. Rough Stone Bunds In the absence of the slabs simple stone pieces
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of 10-20 cm thick, 45-60 cm long and of varying widths are also used. In due course of time the small gaps in between two slabs/ stones are being covered by naturally occurring grasses; also acting as filter strip. Some of the farmers prefer to have such bunds against smaller cross sectional earthen bunds because in this system only a narrow strip of land goes out of cultivation and maintenance is almost nil. 6. Vegetative Peripheral Bunds/ Barriers Peripheral or boundary bunds/ barriers of Agave sislana locally known as Ram bans/ Gul bans is a commonly used indigenous SWC technology in arid and semi-arid regions and the established bunds are found to be very effective. Barriers of Agave are also very commonly used technique in many of the areas to stabilize the periphery of fields situated on the banks of big nalla or rivers. 7. Smaller Cross-Sectional Earthen Bunds Covered with Flat Stones or Pieces of Stone Slabs In some of the hilly areas in moderately sloping lands; smaller cross-section earthen bunds of about 3045 cm height are constructed across the slope almost on contours for enhancing in-situ moisture conservation and also for checking soil erosion from arable lands. The top level is strictly maintained at uniform level throughout the bund length and the top is covered with flat stones or pieces of rough stone slabs to keep the bunds safe from raindrop impact and also from occasional damages caused by over topping. Sometimes all the three sides of the bund are covered/ pitched with stones. As per the requirements of the area, a provision for safe disposal of excess runoff is also kept. The farmers used to maintain these bunds very carefully. In some of the areas these bunds are also established for controlling/ stabilizing gullies. 8. Temporary Sediment Detention Dams (TSDD) On of the ways adopted in hilly areas of southern Rajasthan to concentrate eroded soil at appropriate location is the construction of temporary sediment detention dams. In such areas most of the badly eroded lands are found in deep and narrow valleys, where due to high concentration of runoff the rate of soil erosion is very high. Under these situations construction of TSDD is adopted by the farmers. Suitable locations are those where the possibilities of sediment trapping is
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more. Initially a low height broad based losse rock dam is constructed. The base width is decided keeping in view the rainfall pattern and expected runoff. Over the years the height of these barriers is being increased and new patch of cultivable land is crated within the gullies/ eroded valleys. The height of the dam is increased till the nallah/ valley section reaches to the extent where the gradient remains stable. In some of the areas such bunds have 3-5m or more height. TSDD is also being act as a temporary drop structure. 9. Diversion Ditches Diersion ditches are small channels with bank on the down slope side having desired grade towards an outlet for safe disposal of runoff from upper reaches in the natural nallah, to prevent runoff from entering lands of lower reaches which are already protected by some kind of soil conservation measures and to separate arable lands from non-arable lands. It is also one of the commonly used indigenous SWC technology, in hilly terrain of southern and also in other parts of Rajasthan state where a good amount of cultivated land exists in the lower reaches. To protect these lands from the damages caused by runoff water and channeling along gradient towards nallah, such diversion drains are being constructed. The cross-section and type of ditches are mainly based on experiences. There are different types of drains considering amount of runoff and other factors. These are as follows: Excavated ditches with required gradient in the base. Excavated ditches supported by a suitable sized losses stone bund on down slope side. Required gradient is provided in the excavated ditch. Only loose stone bunds are installed and desired gradient is provided by scraping land after leaving 1530 cm berm in the base on upper side of slope. 10. Stone Wall for Nallah Bank Protection This practice is adopted in those conditions where bank erosion is a problem particularly in arable lands. this technique is primarily used only in those areas where stones are available at sites or very near to sites . suitable cross sectional wall of loose stone is constructed all along the bank or only at vulnerable sites. Erection of such protection wall is done starting from the bed of nallah keeping appropriate foundation .Height of such walls depends on the depth of flow of water in nallah. Some times these are also reinforsed
by planting suitable vegetative material such as Agave, Jatropha, Mahadi etc. 11. Dhora Pali Field bunding is one of the common practices of SWC locally known as Dhora pali bund of about 0.5 sq.m. or even of more crosss-section is constructed on field boundaries in arid zone . Some times waste weirs are also provided at suitable site. These areas are mainly put under kharif crops. In due course of time these bunds get stabilized by naturally occurring local grasses. Some times seed of Dhaman grass are also sown during rainy season for stabilization. Venkateswarlu (1991) also reported that existing SWC practices in arid Rajasthan include large peripheral bunds about 1 m height and 7075 cm wide at base .In some of the area these bunds are strengthened with munj grass / agave. 12. Kana Bandi (Mulching) In desert areas to keep the arable land productive, efforts are being made to protect the area from wind erosion. Kana bandi is done in the fields after kharif crops are harvested particularly in those fields, which are prone to erosion. The local material like sania, khinp, prunnings of ker, ber, khejri and phog and also local grasses such as sewan/munj are embedded in soil leaving about 30-40 cm length of the material vertically on the ground in line 2-5 m apart. This practice checks the soil erosion to a great extent. Some times kana bandi is done in square or rectangular manner (checker board fashion, 2 to 3 m2) particularly for stabilization of sand dunes after rainy season, the grass seeds are sown on the leeward side of the mulch. The grass grows and gradually replaces the mulch and control the movement of sand. During kharif this organic material is incorporated in the soil, thereby also in help increasing organic matter content. 13. Village Pond/ Talab A common rural rainwater harvesting technology through the semi-arid region of Rajasthan is the construction of pond/ nadis/ tank etc. Pond is constructed at suitable sites mainly for domestic use and also for recharge of groundwater. Suitable site for an economic viewpoint is selected by the villagers where the largest storage volume is obtained with the least amount of earth fill. Such conditions are generally found where the valley is narrow, side slopes are relatively steep and the slope of the valley floor will permit a large deep basin. Such sites tend to minimize the area of shallow 37
waters. Surface runoff is the major source of feeding the ponds/ talabs. Villagers also adopt some design criteria viz., determination of capacity, size and shape of embankments, provision of emergency spillways and provision for controlling seepage. 14. Talai - A Small Water Harvesting Structure Talai is an indigenous water harvesting technique in semi arid regions of India particularly for creating water point for cattle. In this system an earthen embankment of very low height may be of 1-2 m is made at suitable location in a nallah/ natural drainage line, where natural depression exists. The earth required in making embankment is also taken out from the existing depression for increasing storage capacity. Presently this system is advocated and recommended in name of SUNKEN PONDS particularly in NWDPRA projects. 15. Dry Stone Masonry Pond Dry stone masonry pond, between 1.5 and 2.5 m high, are constructed to collect and store water. In this type of structure the upstream and downstream walls are constructed 3-4 m apart by dry stone masonry after excavating a foundation of appropriate depth. The space in between these two walls is filled with locally available murrum or soil with proper compaction. The filling is done in layers of 20-30 cm. height along with wetting and compaction. The earth fill is kept 10-20 cm above the top of the wall to provide an extra provision for natural settling over a period of time. Proper compaction is one of the important considerations to check seepage through the embankment and to ensure the stability of the structure. The length of the head wall extension depends on the specific site conditions. The height of such structures is restricted up to 2.5 m to avoid overturning due to water pressure. The width of the wall at the bottom is kept 1.5 m and at the top it is only 0.5 - 0.6 m. The reduction in width is maintained uniformly from bottom to top in the inner edge of the wall. The upper portion of the wall (0.30 - 0.5 m high) is constructed with cement mortar to avoid damage to the walls by stray cattle or human activities. 16. Ponds (Nada) These large ponds are of two categories denoting both ownership and use. The nadas belonging to the Panchayat is for the specific purpose of proving drinking water for animals while the private ones which have been constructed on kabile kasth lands are used for irrigation.
These farm ponds are generally constructed by a group of farmers, whose land remain temporarily submerged and after monsoon, i.e. in rabi season crops are sown as tank bed cultivation, when the water has evaporated or percolated. Stored water is some times drained through some indigenously developed surplussing arrangements for sowing of rabi crops. 17. Nadi (Semi-arid/ Aravali Region) Nadi is a small traditional water harvesting structure constructed at appropriate site to harvest the runoff water of relatively impervious non arable uplands for the purpose of drinking water for animals and ground water recharge of open dug wells situated in the lower reaches. These are also constructed to store water in the monsoonal nallahs in the upper reaches for various purposes and primarily for recharge of groundwater. The depth of such nadis generally do not exceed 3 meters. These structure are constructed in two ways depending upon the available funds. In the first system both side of earthen embankment of appropriate width is supported by dry stone masonry walls. In the second system the upside wall is pakka or masonry using lime or cement mortar. Masonry wall and earth fill is done in arc shape having curvature in the raised by the locally available soil/ murmur. Layer wise wetting and compaction of soil is practiced. The width of earthen embankment and stone walls are decided by the villagers considering the size, topography and other conditions of the catchment areas. A properly designed waste weir of surplussing arrangement is also provided at suitable site. 18. Nadi (Arid Regions) In arid zone construction of Nadi is an age-old practice of water harvesting. These are small excavated or embankment village ponds, harvesting the meager precipitations to mitigate the scarcity of drinking water. These nadis hold water from two months to a full year after rains depending on the catchment characteristics, the amount of rainfall received, its intensity and distribution. Each village has one or more of such structures, depending on the demand of water and availability of suitable sites. Capacity of such nadis are reduced in due course of time due to sediment deposition. 19. Tanka Tanka, the most prevailing rainwater harvesting structure in the Indian desert, is a local term for the underground system. The traditional tanks are made
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by digging a hole of 3.0 to 4.25 m diameter in the ground and plastering it with lime mortar to a thickness of about 6 mm followed by a cement plaster of 3 mm thick. The top is covered with ber thoms. The useful life of such structure is about 3 years. The catchments are made in variety of ways using locally available sealing materials like pond silt, murrum, coal ash, gravel, etc. Traditional tankas are temporary and are subjected to leakage. Moreover the catchment areas are not in accordance with the amount of rainfall received and runoff generated. The thorn cover does not prevent the water pollution and evaporation losses, capacity of such tankas are also not sufficient to fulfill the demands of a family for water throughout the year. The CAZRI has designed an improved tanka, of 21000 liters capacity, which gets filled up with annual rainfall of 125 mm. The water is sufficient for a family of 6 persons throughout the year for drinking. It has an useful life of 25 years as it is constructed using cement masonry. The catchment area needed for this capacity is 778 m2. 20. Khadin From a study of farmers water conservation practices it is evident that they are acutely conscious of the value of rainwater and try to use it to grow at least one good crop during the year. Khadin is one such system, which is extensively used in arid and semi-arid regions of Rajasthan. It is an indigenous water harvesting cum run off farming structure. Khadin system is site specific needing a large natural, high runoff potential catchment in proximity of plain valley land with deep soils. The ratio of khadin catchment area, depending on type of catchment is 1:12 to 1:15. These are constructed on low lying lands where crops are raised by conserving rainwater from the rocky catchments. Cultivation in khadin is done by rationing runoff water over low lying areas through construction of bund across the slope on the lower boundary line of khadin land. Cross-section of the bund depends upon the soil type, area of khadins and discharge form catchments. The water thus collected is allowed to percolate after which an assured post rainy season crop is grown. Sometimes crops are grown in kharif or rabi depending upon the rainfall and runoff received in the khadins. For areas that will always be dependent on rainwater, this water harvesting practice has great relevance. Now the SWC scientists/ engineers have also considered this indigenous techniques as an important and usefull water harvesting practice and
developed design criteria. Kolarkar et al. (1983) also reported that khadins or submergence tanks are the indigenous form of inundation farming in arid regions.
been actively involved in developing village gauchar (common pasture lands), using ideas technical and socially oriented generated by the local people themselves. Importantly, this NGO has developed an innovative concept the Chauka system for reducing runoff and preventing soil erosion to augment in-situ moisture conservation, with gratifying success. 4. Double Wall Cement Masonry Structure This type of structure looks like an anicut. Both the upstream and downstream walls of the structure are constructed with cement masonry. The height of the structure and catchment area is usually restricted upto 2.5 - 3.0 m and 100-150 hectares, respectively. The base width of upstream and downstream walls is generally taken as 1.0 m and 0.8 m, respectively, whereas the top width of upstream and downstream walls is restricted to 0.60 m and 0.45 m, respectively. The width of walls may be increased depending on the site conditions and volume of water to be stored. For low-height structures (1.0 to 1.5 m) the base width of both the walls may be reduced by 20 cm. The width of the concrete bed is generally taken as 20 cm more than the base width of the masonry walls. The downstream wall or the falling side is tapered. The space in between these two walls is filled with locally available murrum or soil with proper compaction. The filling is done in layers of 20-30 cm height alongwith wetting and compaction. Proper compaction is an important consideration to ensure the stability of the structure. 5. Plastic Lined Farm Pond Plastic lined farm ponds are particularly suitable for those areas where large quantity of water is lost through seepage, especially where the soil is gravelly and porous. In earthen dams there is also a common problem of seepage through the embankment. Under such circumstances, to check the seepage from all such types of farm ponds/ earthen dams, plastic lining is a feasible solution. Polythene sheets of 200 micron may be used as lining material for seepage control in the ponds. The sheets are spread at the bottom and on the upstream side, upto the top width of the pond. An average 10 cm thick soil layer is also kept above the sheet to keep the sheet in proper place, to check external damage and to protect it from exposure to the sun. A permanent and most effective lining material is brick and cement masonry, but it is costlier than other lining materials.
6. Subsurface barriers Subsurface barriers are used to retain or arrest the seasonal subsurface flows and facilitate the abstraction of water through lined shallow wells, especially during periods of water scarcity. The objective is to place an impermeable barrier - either of clay or masonry across the river-bed, from the surface down to the bedrock or other solid impervious layer. A trench of the required width is dug across the flow direction of the ground water. The earthwork
involved may be carried out by manual labour since the excavation depths are generally not more than 3-6 m. Subsurface dams are generally constructed at the end of the dry season, when there is little water in the aquifer. There is usually some flow, however, and this must be pumped out during the construction work. After the construction of dam, the trench is refilled with the excavated material. It is important that the refill is properly compacted by mechanical means and watering.
40
References
Chambers, R. (1991). Farmers Practices, Professionals, and Participation. In Kerr, J.M. (ed.) Farmers practices and soil water conservation programmes. Summary proceedings of a workshop. 19-21 June. ICRISAT, Patancheru, India. Fujisaka, S. (1989). A method for Farmer-Participatory Research and Technology Transfer, Upland Soil Conservation in Philippines. Experimental Agriculture 25 : 423-433. Gupta, A. (1991). Reconceptualising development and diffusion of technologies for dry regions. In Prasad C. and P. Das (ed.) Extension strategies for rainfed agriculture. Indian Society of Extension Education, New Delhi. Kerr, J.M. (1991) Farmers Practices and Soil and Water Conservation Programmes : Summary proceedings of workshop. 19-21 June, 1991. ICRISAT, Patancheru, India. Kerr, John and Sanghi, N.K., (1992) Indigenous soil and water conservation in Indias semi-arid tropics. Gatekeepr Series 34, IIED, London, U.K. Kolarkar, A.S., Murthy, K.N.K. and Singh, N., (1983) Khadin A method for harvesting water. Journal of Arid Environment, 6:5966. Nag, K.N., Chandra, A., Mahnot, S.C., (1989) Mechanization Techniques for accelerating afforestation programme on denuded hillocks. Agricultural Mechanization in Asia, Africa and Latin America 20(3) : 78-80. Reij, C. (1991) Indigenous soil and water conservation in Africa. Gatekeeper Series No. 27, IIED, London, U.K. Singh and Mahnot, (2004) Mechanical Soil Working Techniques for Soil and Water Conservation on Moderately Sloping Wasteland, Small Farm Mechanization published by ISAE, Rajasthan, pp 98-101. Singh, P.K. and Mahnot, S.C. (1995) Feasibility and cost effectiveness of mechanical soil working techniques for soil and water conservation measures on moderately sloping wastelands. Ind. J. of Power and River Valley Development July-August : 106-109. Vaidyanathan, A. (1991) Integrated Watershed Development : Some major issues. Founders Day Lecture. Society for Promotion of Wasteland Development, New Delhi.
41
4
Integrating in-situ soil moisture conservation techniques and supplementary irrigation for the dry land farming-a modeling study from Tamil Nadu
K. Ramaswamy
Introduction
Drylands in India constitute 68.4 per cent of the cropped area out of the total cultivated extent of 162.03 million hectares. In Tamil Nadu, 55.0 per cent of the cropped area is left under drylands which accounts for 3.1 million hectares. Due to the higher attention given to irrigated agriculture during green revolution, the care for rainfed agriculture has been considered to be minimum. To meet the growing demands for food, the scope for further addition to area under agriculture is possible only through the exploitation of drylands. Bringing the vast stretch of drylands under green cover particularly with hardy tree crops is the immediate need for the ecological restoration. Drought hardy crops especially perennial fruits with deep root systems are capable of surviving extreme radiation and temperatures and provides income security, nutritional and food security. Amla, Jamun, Ber, Karonda, Wood apple, etc., are the fruit crops suitable for drylands. At present, under dry land conditions, fruit orchards have been developed with crops that stand water stress. However, effective micro water harvesting practices and utilization of interspaces have not been 42
adopted. If, an effective water harvesting measure with suitable intercrop of medicinal plants or any other competitive crops is arrived at, the technology could be adopted by the farmers for obtaining additional remuneration. By taking considering of the above points in mind, a study has been undertaken to evaluate the effectiveness of various in-situ micro water conservation techniques for various dryland fruit trees by developing and testing a suitable root zone water balance model for dryland crops.
calculated based on FAO guidelines of water harvesting as given in the following equation (2.0).
Micro-Catchment size
Based upon the design procedure of FAO guidelines on water harvesting (Critchley and Siegert, 1991), the ratio of the microcatchment area to cultivated area is given by the following relationship. (2.0) Where, C= Total size of microcatchment (m2) CA = Area exploited by the root system (m2) CWR = Annual water requirement (mm) DR = Design rainfall (cm) RO = Runoff Co-efficient EF = Efficiency factor The values of each parameter in the above equation for all the fields were calculated. For Thondamuthur (Mango) field, the area exploited by the root system , CA was taken as 12.57 m2 , considering a radius of 2m. The annual crop water requirement was calculated based on the ET of the crop. ET crop (Mango) = ETo (Reference ET) where Kc- Crop coefficient = 4.24 mm/day Kc
AET = D.PET/(1-p) ASW.D, D < ( 1 - p ) ASW.D where, D = depth of root zone (cm) based on the crop, = Average moisture content per unit depth (mm/cm), AET = Actual evapotransporation, PET = Potential evapotransporation p = Soil moisture depletion factor, ASW = Maximum available soil water per unit depth Based on the assumptions listed above, the water balance in the effective root zone on the ith day of any month is given by: iD = i-1D AETi, i = 2, 3, . (2.2) where, i-1D is the soil moisture depth of i-1th day, and AETi is the actual evapotranspiration of ith day. For continuous days, i+1D = iD + Ri+1 + Ii+1 Pi+1 AETi+1 (2.3) Ri+1 represents the infiltrated volume of rain water on i+1th day, Ii+1 represents the supplemental irrigation applications on i+1th day, and Pi+1 is the excess water percolated out of the root zone on i+1th day. where, Pi = Ri + Ii (FC i-1D), if Ri + Ii (FC i-1D) P = 0, otherwise. (2.4) Here the rainfall was assumed to have the values of infiltrated volume found out from the infiltration rates for the given rainfall time. As the present model was to compute the root zone water balance in bunded field plots under dryland conditions, the infiltrated volume of rain Ri in the equation (2.4) adopted under the following conditions is as follows: Condition I: Intensity < Average infiltration rate of soil
Ri = R1 = Basic infiltration rate of soil if SMC > FC (i) (ii) Ri = R2 = Average infiltration rate of soil if FC =SMC= PWP and Ri = R3 = Maximum infiltration rate of soil if SMC < PWP (iii) (2.5)
Based upon the design rainfall at 50% probability as 615 mm with ET crop as 4.24 mm/day RO = 0.8, EF = 0.65, the microcatchment size was arrived as 36m2 including the planted area. The bunding was done in the staggered arrangement. Similarly, all other selected crops, the design sizes of catchments were arrived. Soil moisture content was periodically monitored month-wise at 15 and 45 cm depth and statistically analyzed to understand effectiveness of various conservation treatments. Yield data was monitored after one year of imposing treatments.
where, SMC = Soil Moisture Content, FC = Field Capacity, and PWP = Permanent Wilting Point of the soil. The infiltration time was taken as the duration of the storm and the infiltrated volume of rain water R was calculated as the product of the duration of the storm and the basic, average or maximum infiltration rate based on the existing soil moisture conditions (i), (ii) or (iii) of equation (2.5).
Condition II: Intensity > Average infiltration rate of soil The water balance in this situation was given by: iD = CIi-1 - AETi, i = 2,3,. (2.6)
where, CIi-1 = cumulative infiltration on the i-1th day, given by modified Kostiakovs (Kostiakov-Lewis type) equation: CI = Btep + q (2.7) where, te = sum of duration of rainfall and average time of infiltration of ponding water after rainfall ceases, B, p and q are constants. In the above equation 2.7, the time te is considered as follows: te = Duration of rainfall + average time of infiltration of ponding water after rainfall ceases The average time of infiltration of ponding water after rainfall ceases in the above equation was calculated by quantifying the volume of water ponded to the height of the bunds provided for the field plot or the micro catchment of the treated plot divided by the average infiltration rate.
Fig.4. 44
Runoff The runoff was obtained as output on the days when the rainfall intensity exceeded the average infiltration rate of the soil. The runoff was predicted from the model for the Thondamuthur field on two dates and the predicted runoff volumes for the 45cm and the entire depth of the root zone were the same. Then those predicted values were compared with the observed field values of runoff as given in table 1. Scarcity Moisture Days Computation Table 1: Runoff volumes for Thondamuthur (Mango) field
Treatment Control V Catchments Crescent bunds Compartmental bunds Scattered trenches Predicted runoff (m3) Observed runoff (m3) 14.30 11.21 11.29 11.30 13.19 12.35 11.13 11.21 11.12 11.56
in the Thondamuthur field, for both 45cm and the entire Fig.5. Sandy Clay loam (Thondamuthur)
Fig.6. Sandy loam (Chettipalayam) root zone depth, the control had more number of scarcity soil moisture days than the micro-catchments like V-catchments, crescent bunds and compartmental bunds irrespective of the depth considered in the root zone. This might be due to the fact that the bunded microcatchments were able to conserve more moisture than the other treatments. The supplemental watering given for successful growth of the crop was also accounted and the total depth of water utilized including effective rainfall was incorporated.
Scarcity moisture days were defined as those days having soil moisture below permanent wilting point at 45cm depth applied to normal field crops. From the root zone soil moisture balance computation, the soil moisture content below permanent point for two different locations at 45 cm depth in various treatments are given below ( Table.2) The percentage of scarcity moisture days of two locations (Thondamuthur and Chettipalayem field) is Table 2: Scarcity moisture days in different moisture conservation treatments (days)
The sites selected for the research study were located at Thondamuthur and Chettipalayam, in CoimTreatments Thondamuthr Chettipalayam Sandy clay loam (days) Sandy loam (days) batore district of Tamil Nadu, India. Thondamuthur lies to the western part of Coimbatore near to the Western Control 54 100 Ghats. It has a sandy clay loam soil type. The area V- catchments 32 76 has a mean monthly minimum temperature of 21oC Crescent bund 33 83 and a maximum of 31oC. The mean annual rainfall is Compartmental bund 33 83 628.15mm (Appendix I). The water table was very deep (70-90m) (Ground Water Status Report, 1994). Here, a farmer field with dryland Mango plantation was selected for the study. The root zone depth of the Mango shown in the following Fig.5 and 6. crop was 120cm. The area of the field was 2.2 hectares, bunded from all sides. The crop grown here was Out of the total operational period of 150 days 11 years old. The field was left dry and it depended on 45
Table 3:
S. No. 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. Location of the village Kembanur (Thondamuthur block) Ajjanur (Coimbatore west) Chettipalayam Chettipalayam Kethanur (Palladam block)
rainfall for water. In-situ moisture conservation treatments with microcatchments given in the field were V-catchments, semi-circular bunds, compartmental bunds, scattered trenches and one as a control plot under a State Land Use Board (SLUB) Scheme on maximizing land and water use efficiency in dryland horticultural systems operating at the Department of Soil and Water Conservation Engineering, Tamil Nadu Agricultural University. There was a problem of moisture inadequacy; periodical plant withering and no intercrops were able to be grown in between the large amount of interspace available for intercrops. Any attempt to improve the moisture status in the field through microcatchment techniques will likely yield a possibility of taking intercrops like pulses/medicinal plants thereby enhancing the income per unit area. Effects of moisture status with root zone water balance modeling will give the possibility or otherwise of this idea. Medicinal inter crops attempted in all five locations were Senna - Cassia angustifolia, Periwinkle - Catheranthus roseus, Thulsi - Ocimum sanctum, Keelanelli-Phyllanthus amara Another field at Chettipalayam was also selected which lies to the eastern part of Coimbatore. It had a sandy loam soil, with medium depth of 0.7 to 1.2m. The area had a mean monthly minimum temperature of 25oC and maximum of 34.5oC. The mean annual rainfall of the region is 450.12mm. The area lies in the dryland region and the crops are mainly rainfed. A farmer field with dryland Guava plantation was selected for the study. The root zone depth of the crop was 100cm. The field was having an areal extent of one hectare, bunded from all sides. In this region, the water table was very deep in the range of 90-100m falling in the hard rock terrain (Ground Water Status Report, 1994). The Guava plantation was 4 years old, initially provided with drip irrigation facility for one year for establishment and left with 46
rainfed condition thereafter. The crop was in withering condition, when the moisture conservation treatments were established. Then it showed improvements in its growth after the receipt of monsoon rains (NovemberDecember) during the year. This experimental facility has also been utilized for the present field investigation with reference to testing the root zone water balance model. This field was also laid with the same moisture conservation treatments under the SLUB Scheme operating in the Department of Soil and Water Conservation Engineering.
Periwinkle Thulsi
to 60% of the total storage for 2 months was accounted. Hence, filling of the dug- out ponds once in two months during summer months is sufficient to cater the water needs of the plant. This Water application during first two years of establishment given below. Table 7:
Water application / plant/ week Water applied / month /ha ( 400 plants) Water application / plant / 8 months in a year
During monsoon/rainy periods the dug-out ponds serve as water harvesting / collection structures. In this experiment, three filling with transported tank water was applied in the dug-out ponds and there was a filling with rainy water for one time. The dug-out ponds
Water was not applied for 4 months monsoon period Water application / ha for 8 months Area of water application at each plant Annual depth of application Effective rainfall Total depth of water utilized
47
are so arranged in such away that the surplus water from one pond will go to other through interlinked channels. The cost of dug-out pond with low cost lining works out to Rs.80 per m3. The expenditure of water storage dugout tank per ha is Rs.16, 000/. Total water storage for 400 plants per ha worked out as 62.5 to 100m2 depending upon the location specific factors, by assuming reasonable 2 m depth. These pits are located in moderate to low lying points of the area as for as possible. Experience of these dug-out ponds with various locations reveal that water lost for 30-45 days only depending up on the type of soil and its stabilization with compaction at bottom and cementing material plastering on sides. The performance under black-cotton soil with soil-cement lining is extremely poor which was done in one of the nearby locations of the project area. The soil lime mixture was working well with clay soils.
of the dry periods. Number of supplemental watering could be reduced depending up on the soil conditions.(by 50-65%). This results in reduction of recurring cost to about 50% in conventional watering. Quick growth and better viguor of plants have been observed without any mortality of plants. This would facilitate a few low tier crops like water melons, gourds could be grown for initial periods which would meet part of (50-75%) maintenance system (water cost) at least for a 2-3years. The labour cost of watering works out to Rs 5000/= per ha per annum excluding the transport cost from source.This transport cost of water works out upto Rs 8000/- @ Rs 40/m3 for entire summer period excluding in situ rain water utilization.
Pitcher Irrigation
The plastic pot pitchers with a hole and 70 cm length 6mm HDPE pipe with a micro pin hole outlet has been used for this technique by marking locations near the plant and making 50 cm deep pit with a diameter of 45cm.Initial observations on two soils with Periyanaikanpalayam and Somayampalayam series were taken and the data obtained is as follows. The water filled once in each pot having a capacity of 18 lit lost for 30-36 hours. The cost of pitchers at the rate of 400 Nos/ha including laying cost workout
Table 9: Soil moisture depletion (50 %) under manual and Pitcher irrigation (days from watering)
Soil type Periyanakayan palayam Somayampalayam Manual 10 7 Pitcher 15 11
Rs.10, 000/-. The following advantages have been noticed in this approach. Better soil moisture regime without stress for most 48
Cost of storage @ Rs.100 per 1000 Lit : Rs.2.5 lakhs Cost of portable sprinkler system : Rs.0.5 lakhs Total cost : Rs.3.0 lakhs Plastic lining (LDPE) 250 micron (<2m depth)
consistent in all multi location trials laid at five different locations. The model predicted soil moisture relatively better during dry times compared to moist periods prevailing as soon as the receipt of the rainfall. This might be due to the moisture redistribution process in the soil after the receipt of the infiltrated rain water, which was not considered in the model. The moisture conservation and establishment of plants in dry lands is crucial for which additional watering mechanisms like pitcher irrigation combined with a net work of dug-out ponds provided its worthiness when these techniques are tried on with micro catchments like V-Shaped bunds or Crescent bunds around trees or compartmental bunding on field plot boundaries. Though the integration of these three techniques cost
Table 11: Average size of catchments and irrigated area of farm ponds under Coimbatore conditions
Catchments area (ha) 5 5 Irrigated area (ha) 1 2-2.5 Technology Clay lining of the pond + surface irrigation of stored water Plastic lining of pond + portable sprinkler irrigation
25
ments would meet the proposed moisture status along with enhancement in yield attributes. The root zone soil moisture budget analysis showed that there is an inevitable need of supplemental watering which could be done by proper size of dug-out ponds located at the technically feasible points. The results obtained are almost
about Rs 35,000 / per ha, this enables productive and remunerative results with high value horticulture and forestry plantations. There is a potential scope to introduce the above dryland horticulture based model integrating in- situ soil moisture conservation techniques and supplementary irrigation in many semi-arid regions.
Reference
Critchley, K.N., and C.N.Siegert .1991. FAO guidelines on water harvesting, FAO, Rome, Italy. Doorenbos , J. and A.H.Kassam, 1979. Yield response to water. Irrg. And Drainage paper No:33, FAO, Rome , Italy. Ramaswamy, K and Thangaraj, T. 2002. Water harvesting Technologies for Dryland Horticulture Technology Bulletin, Horticulture College & Research Institute, Periyakulam, Tamil Nadu Agricultural University.
49
Conservation of Rainwater and Sustenance of Productivity Through Improved Land Management and Cropping System in a Vertisol of Central India
K.M. Hati, A.K. Misra, K.G. Mandal, A.K. Tripathi, A. Subba Rao, R.K. Singh, S.P. Wani, P. Singh and P. Pathak
Introduction
For sustainable crop production system under rainfed condition, the conservation of rainwater and its efficient recycling are imperative. The rainwater can be conserved either in-situ i.e. in the soil itself or ex-situ in natural or man made structures wherefrom it can be used for supplemental irrigation. In-situ rainwater conservation can be carried out either though tillage or landform management (Singh et al., 2000). Among the various landform management practices like raised and sunken bed, ridges and furrow etc. developed for Vertisols, broad-bed and furrow (BBF) system is very promising in controlling surface runoff, reducing the soil loss through erosion and increasing infiltration (Pathak et al. 1985; Singh et al. 1999). The BBF landform management system reduces the velocity of runoff water and thus increases opportunity time for water to infiltrate and reduces sediment losses. Further, during the period of heavy rainfall the furrows allow excess water to drain safely from the plots and thus avoid water congestion to the crop (Kampen, 1982). There is an urgent need to manage the water resources of Vertisols of Central India to control soil erosion and to improve use efficiency of 50
the rainfall for sustaining crop production. This is possible through adoption of improved land management practices, which will decrease runoff and soil erosion and concomitantly improve crop yield in deep Vertisols. Stagnation of productivity of soybean based production systems due to erratic distribution of monsoonal rain and incidence of new insect-pests and diseases is leading to under-utilization of land, water, nutrient and climatic resources. Under this situation the crop diversification in the rainy season can be a viable option for stabilizing and enhancing productivity of the system. In winter season, it has been found that chickpea performs better than high water and nutrient requiring wheat crop. In addition, harvesting of run off water in storage pond and its efficient utilization through supplemental irrigation to the rainy season crop in case of early withdrawal of monsoon and pre-sowing irrigation to the winter crop holds the promise for increasing the total system productivity and stability. In fact, insufficient attention on rain water harvesting and its recycling hampers efficient utilization of nutrients by crops. In order to ensure a pay-off from nutrients, all round augmentation of water resource with watershed as a unit of development is imperative. In
this back drop, an experiment was conducted with the following objectives, (i) to assess the effect of landform treatments on loss of rain water through runoff and loss of soil through erosion, (ii) to study soil water dynamics, and (iii) to evaluate the productivity of five soybean and maize based sole and intercropping systems in a vertisol.
rainfall event (Pathak, 1999). Automatic pumping sediment sampler fabricated at International Crop Research Institute for Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT), Hyderabad, India was used to monitor the temporal changes in sediment losses from each runoff events. The samplers collected runoff water with suspended sediments passing through the H-flume and stored in plastic collection bottles at 20 minutes interval. The sediment was flocculated by adding 10 N HCl. Then these were dried in oven to estimate the suspended particle content. The sediment concentration obtained from each bottle was used for the calculation of total sediment losses associated with each runoff events. Soil water content up to a depth of 90 cm at 15 cm interval was determined thermo-gravimetrically at regular interval during the crop growth period in 2003 and 2004. The water content of individual soil depth determined on weight basis was multiplied with corresponding bulk density and depth of the soil layer to obtain the profile water storage. Analysis of variance (ANOVA) was carried out using split plot design (Gomez and Gomez, 1984) for comparing means of main and interaction effect using least significant difference with 5% significant level.
Runoff and soil losses from the field area under broad-bed and furrow (BBF) and flat on grade (FOG) landform treatments were monitored during the kharif seasons. In all the every year, seasonal runoff from the BBF plot was less than that from the FOG (Table 1). This might be attributed to the reduced speed of runoff from BBF plot due to uniform slope, which have resulted in higher opportunity time for water to infiltrate in BBF than FOG treatment. The runoff was 15.4-33.2% and 20.357.7% of seasonal rainfall from BBF and FOG landform treatments. The run off under both BBF and FOG was much higher during the rainy season of 2006 because of unusually high rainfall. The soil losses through runoff from BBF and FOG were higher in high rainfall years; the extent of soil loss was to the tune of 1956 and 2837 kg ha-1 from BBF and FOG, respectively in 2003 and 3503 and 6365 kg ha-1 in the corresponding treatments in 2006. However, the soil losses were relatively less, 657 and 1466 kg ha-1 from BBF and FOG, respectively in 2004. BBF landform treatment reduced soil loss to a greater extent (31 to 55%) than its reduction in runoff volume (24 to 32%) as compared with that of FOG over the years. This can be ascribed to lower concentration of sediments in runoff water coming from the BBF than from FOG as velocity of flow of the runoff water was generally lower in BBF. Pathak et al. (1985) and Srivastava and Jangwad (1988) have also shown that runoff and soil loss were remarkably reduced in BBF land surface management treatment in a long-term watershed study in Vertisol.
period was considerably higher in the sole pigeon pea and soybean/pigeon pea intercropping treatment compared to sole soybean, sole maize and soybean/maize intercropping treatments (Table 2). Depletion of moisture was maximum (60.4 mm) from the sole pigeon pea treatment on BBF. Similar results were recorded under both BBF and FOG landform treatments. This might be due to higher extraction of moisture by pigeon pea, which was approaching maximum vegetative stage during that period, compared to the other two crops, which were near maturity at that time. In 2004 water storage in the profile decreased slightly during the first week after sowing and thereafter it increased in all the plots in the month of July with the increase in rainfall. Up to the middle of August, soil water contents remained near field capacity. During this period, treatment effects on water storage were not clear and it followed the rainfall distribution pattern. Among the two land surface management treatments, BBF often retained slightly higher water in the profile than the FOG treatment. This might be due to higher infiltration and better retention of water in BBF than FOG treatment. Singh et al. (1999) also reported higher water storage in BBF during rainy season in soybean-chickpea rotation on a Vertic Inceptisols. After withdrawal of monsoon, from second week of September in 2004, monitoring of profile water at weekly interval was carried out to study the moisture extraction pattern by different cropping systems during this drying period. Like the earlier year the depletion of water during this period was considerably higher in soybean/pigeonpea and maize/pigeonpea intercropping systems compared with sole maize, sole soybean and soybean/maize intercropping systems in both BBF and FOG land management treatments (Table 3). This was due to higher extraction of water from the profile by pigeonpea crop which was near full vegetative stage during that period, while the other two crops viz. maize and soybean were near maturity at that time. Besides this, the deep root system of pigeonpea extracted more water from deeper soil layers than the other crops.
revealed that the grain yield of soybean in sole soybean, soybean/maize intercropping and soybean/pigeon pea intercropping systems under BBF was greater than that under FOG for every year of the experimentation. On an average over four years, BBF registered 12.7-18.0% greater grain yield of soybean than FOG under sole soybean. The soybean yield in sole soybean and soybean/ pigeon pea intercropping was similar, but it reduced in soybean/ maize intercropping. This was mainly due to competition between the crops for light and nutrients in soybean-maize cropping system. But soybean/pigeonpea intercropping the yield of soybean was not affected, as pigeonpea was a slow growing crop compared to maize and soybean and its growth peaked up after harvest of soybean and maize. Thus competition between the intercrops was less. Similar trend was observed in total biomass production of crops for sole and intercropping systems under BBF and FOG land treatments. Grain yield of maize in sole maize treatment under BBF was 11.8-16.0% greater than the same treatment under FOG land configuration. In soybean/maize and maize/pigeon pea intercropping systems, grain yield of maize was also greater in BBF than FOG. Similar trend was observed in total biomass production of maize for different sole and intercropping systems. In 2003-04, though maize population in soybean/maize intercropping was similar to the sole maize, maize yield was reduced in intercropping by 203 and 244 kg ha-1 in BBF and FOG, respectively. For other years, maize yield in soybean/ maize intercropping was lower than the sole maize because of reduced plant population, almost half of the sole maize population. In maize/ pigeonpea intercropping, maize population was imilar to the sole maize, as pigeonpea was intercropped with maize as in the additive series; thus maize yield was not reduced. This trend was observed in every year since 2004-05. Soybean equivalent yield (SEY) of rainy season crops was higher in BBF than FOG (Table 4). Higher yield of crops in BBF might be ascribed to higher retention of moisture in the grain filling stage, less water congestion, better aeration in the rooting zone. Selvaraju et al. (1999) and Wani et al. (2003) also reported a higher crop yield under BBF land treatment in Vertisols. In 2003-04, SEY of systems were in the order: soybean/pigeon pea intercropping > sole pigeonpea > sole soybean > soybean/maize intercropping > sole maize both in the BBF and FOG. In the year 2004-05, the order was: maize/pigeon pea intercropping > soybean/ pigeonpea intercropping > sole maize > soybean/ 53
maize intercropping > sole soybean, while in 2005-06 and 2006-07, SEY showed the following order maize/ pigeon pea intercropping > soybean/ pigeon pea intercropping > sole maize = soybean/maize intercropping > sole soybean.
gation). Among the 5 cropping systems, there was significant difference in the total productivity of systems (Table 7). Soybean-chickpea system was found to be the least productive except in the first year (2003-04). After 2003-04, system productivity was not favourable for the soybean-chickpea system, because of constantly lower yield of soybean over years, and at the same time maize yield was considerably higher. Consequently, the systems involving maize crop, either as sole or intercrop (as in maize-chickpea, soybean/ maize intercroppingchickpea and maize/ pigeonpea intercropping systems) gave higher productivity than other systems under both BBF and FOG land treatments. Even the TSP was higher in maize/ pigeonpea intercropping systems where there was no subsequent chickpea crop. In the event of non-availability of irrigation water to chickpea, maize/ pigeonpea intercropping is better system than sole soybean. Thus, these three cropping systems viz. maizechickpea, soybean/ maize intercropping-chickpea and maize/ pigeonpea intercropping i.e., diversification from
the sole soybean, hold the promise for increasing productivity in the on-station watershed.
Conclusions
The runoff and soil loss from broad-bed and furrow (BBF) are less than that from flat land treatment. Besides this, BBF also helps in safe drainage of excess rainfall and reduces chance of water congestion to the rainy season crops while it retains higher moisture during the later phase of crop growth after withdrawal of monsoon and produced higher crop yield than the traditional flat land sowing system. Farmers may adopt BBF land configuration for growing of crops like soybean, maize, pigeonpea and chickpea. The study provides an option for crop diversification from the present predominant soybean based cropping systems to cropping systems where maize is a component, either as sole or intercrop for this region. Water lost as surface run-off could be conserved in watershed ponds and used as supplemental or life-saving irrigation.
References
Gomez, K.A. and Gomez, A.A., 1984. Statistical Procedures for Agricultural Research. 2nd ed. Wiley Interscience. New York. Kampen, J., 1982. An approach to improved productivity on deep Vertisols. Information Bulletin No. 11, International Crop Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics, Patancheru, A.P., India. Pathak, P., 1999. Runoff and soil loss measurement. In: Wani, S.P., Singh, P., Pathak, P. (Eds.), Methods and Management of Data for Watershed Research, Technical Manual No. 5, International Crop Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics, Patancheru, A.P., India, pp. 15-40. Pathak, P., Miranda, S.M., El-Swaify, S.A., 1985. Improved rainfed farming for semi-arid tropics Implications for soil and water conservation. In: El-Swaify, S.A., Moldenhauer, W.C., Andrew, L. (Eds.), Soil Erosion and Conservation. Soil Conservation Society of America, pp. 338-354. Selvaraju, R., Subbian, P., Balasubramanian, A., Lal, R., 1999. Land configuration and soil nutrient management options for sustainable crop production on Alfisols and Vertisols of southern peninsular India. Soil Tillage Res. 52, 203-216. Singh, H.P., Venkateswarlu, B., Vittal, K.P.R., Ramachandran, K., 2000. Management of rainfed agro-ecosystem. In: Yadav, J.S.P., Singh, G.B. (Eds.), Natural Resource Management for Agricultural Production in India. International Conference on Managing Natural Resources for Sustainable Agricultural Production in the 21st Century, New Delhi, February 14-18, 2000, pp. 669-774. Singh, P., Algarswamy, G., Pathak. P., Wani, S.P., Hoogenboom., G., Viramani, S.M., 1999. Soybean- chickpea rotation on Vertic Inceptisols I. Effect of soil depth and landform on light interception, water balance and crop yields. Field Crops Res. 63, 211-224. Srivastava, K.L., Jangwad, L.S., 1988. Water balance and erosion rates of Vertisol watersheds under different management. Indian J. Dryland Agric. Res. Develop. 3, 137-144. Wani, S.P., Pathak, P., Jangawad, L.S., Eswaran, H., Singh, P., 2003. Improved management of Vertisols in the semi-arid tropics for increased productivity and soil carbon sequestration. Soil Use Manage. 19, 217-222. 54
Table 1: Seasonal rainfall, runoff, and soil loss from different land configuration, broad-bed and furrow (BBF) and flat on grade (FOG)
Year Rainfall (mm) BBF 2003 2004 2005 2006 1058.0 798.2 946.0 1513.0 163.0 (15.4%) 124.0 (15.5%) 177 (18.7%) 502 (33.2%) Runoff (mm) FOG 214.9 (20.3%) 183.3 (23.0%) 246 (26.1%) 873 (57.7%) BBF 1956.0 657.0 1402.0 3503.0 Soil loss (kg ha-1) FOG 2836.9 1466.0 3123.0 6365.0
Table 2: Depletion of soil moisture during a drying cycle after the withdrawal of monsoon in 2003 as affected by land surface management treatment and cropping system
Cropping systems Moisture depletion from 0-90 cm depth (mm) BBF Sole soybean Soybean/maize intercropping Sole maize Sole pigeon pea Soybean/pigeon pea intercropping LSD (P=0.05) 40.8 37.7 33.3 60.4 51.2 11.3 FOG 42.4 35.6 35.0 57.3 55.8 10.5
Table 3: Depletion of soil moisture during a 28 days drying cycle after the withdrawal of monsoon in 2004 as affected by cropping system under BBF and FOG land treatment
Cropping systems Moisture depletion from 0-90 cm depth (mm) BBF Sole soybean Soybean/maize intercropping Sole maize Maize/pigeon pea intercropping Soybean/pigeon pea intercropping LSD (P=0.05) 62.3 59.0 55.6 70.3 74.5 6.2 FOG 59.3 56.0 52.6 76.6 71.5 7.5
55
Table 5:
Cropping system
Grain yield of chickpea (kg/ha) BBF 2003-04 2004-05 1297b 1557a 1468a 1385a 1429a 2005-06 795b 1203a 1076a 969a 952a 2006-07 1087b 1500a 1326a 1254a 1301a FOG 2003-04 1259b 1588a 1340a 1453a 1478a 2004-05 1202b 1397a 1349a 1258a 1292a 2005-06 715b 980a 920a 797a 824a 2006-07 936b 1423a 1181a 1162a 1195a
56
6
Implements for Water Harvesting and Insitu Moisture Conservation
D.Manohar Jesudas and K.Kathirvel
Introduction Land is a major important non-renewable natural resource. The availability of land area per person in Tamil Nadu is only about 60 per cent of the national average. Tamil Nadus population is about 7 per cent of the countrys population but the net sown area in Tamil Nadu is only 4 per cent of that for the country. The density of population in Tamil Nadu is 572 as against the national average of 221 per sq.km. All these are pointers to indicate that the land resources should be utilized to the optimum extent possible. Since the available land area is limited and finite, the necessity to improve the productivity of the land and to increase the income of the farmer have become important. While considerable importance has been given to increase the productivity of the irrigated lands under green revolution, adequate attention has not been given to increase the productivity of the rainfed areas. In Tamil Nadu the rainfed / dryland is about 3.2 - 3.5 mHa. i.e. about 60 per cent of the sown area. The rainfed agriculture water / moisture is the limiting factor. Rainfall is the only source of water for these lands and hence it is
necessary to maximize its retention. Further the following are the problems in these lands. Inadequate soil moisture is the chief constraint in drylands, where the annual rainfall is 500 mm to 700 mm. It is not evenly distributed and highly variable and erratic. The soils are light / medium textured. Their water holding capacity are low. The lands are often rolling topography. Rainwater runs off quickly, carrying during among soil and fertilizers. Subsoil hard pan is formed due to continuous cultivation of crops using implements upto certain depths constantly and due to the precipitation of clay in the subsoil horizon. All put together lowered the infiltration and percolation rates, nutrients, movement and free air transport within the soil profile. It prevents the root proliferation and limits the volume of soil available for nutrients uptake resulting in depleted less fertile surface soil. Due to this, the contribution of subsoil fertility to crop growth is hampered. 57
The first step in land-use planning is to provide for the maximum retention of water / rain that falls on the land. This means as much percolation of rainfall as possible in soil where it falls, controlled removal of excess rainfall and protection of the soil. It is to be emphasized that conservation and optimization of the use of rain water so that it stays in the soil profile for long periods and is released slowly for the use of crops, become important steps for improved dryland farming. Such utilization of rainfall is accomplished through the correct cultural practices and certain engineering structures. Moisture conservation techniques at micro-level. a. vegetative barriers, b. forming ridges and furrows, c. broad bed and furrows, d. forming basins, e. the ridging / random tie ridges, f. forming ponds and. water spreading are advocated. Due to the labour scarcity and cost of labour, these practices are not being adopted and hence development and use of implements becomes necessary. In addition, the subsoil hard pan is to be removed. To over come these problems and to conserve soil moisture the following implements were developed and evaluation trials were conducted in problem soils and in different parts of dry farming areas The first step in land-use planning is to provide for the maximum retention of water / rain that falls on the land. This means as much percolation of rainfall as possible in soil where it falls, controlled removal of excess rainfall and protection of the soil. It is to be emphasized that conservation and optimization of the use of rain water so that it stays in the soil profile for long periods and is released slowly for the use of crops, become important steps for improved dryland farming. Such utilization of rainfall is accomplished through the correct cultural practices and certain engineering structures. The Department of Agriculture is recommending the following land shaping techniques for moisture conservation at micro-level. a. forming ridges and furrows, b. broad bed and furrows, c. forming basins, d. the ridging / random tie ridges, e. forming ponds and f. water spreading. But due to the labour scarcity and cost of labour, development and use of implements becomes necessary. In addition, the subsoil hard pan is to be removed. To over come these problems and to conserve soil moisture the following implements were developed at TNAU for using them in dry farming areas. WATER HARVESTING IMPLEMENTS 1. Chisel Plough Deep tillage using chisel plough is essential for improving the yield of crop especially under dry farming. Deep tillage shatters compacted sub soil layers and aids in
better infiltration and storage of rainwater in the crop root zone. The improved soil structure also results in better development of root system and the yield of crops and their drought tolerance is also improved. Deep tillage is not practiced in India due to the unsuitability of the existing deep tillage tools for operation with 35-45 hp tractors. The developed implement has a sturdy but light structure made of 3 mm thick hollow rectangular tubular mild steel sections. The frame has been designed based on computer analysis of the structure to ensure its strength. The implement is simple in construction and has only three components viz. frame, standard and share. The share has a lift angle of 20 degree, width of 25 mm and a length of 150 mm. The implement is protected by a shear pin which prevents damage from over loading. Salient Features of The Unit The implement could be used for deep tillage upto a depth of 40 cm for bursting of the sub-soil hard pan, improving the drainage and aerating the soil. Reduces the bulk density of soil (0.20 to 0.4 Mg / m3) Two fold increase in hydraulic conductivity of sub-soil Conserves around 30 to 40% more soil moisture Roots proliferation is improved by 40 to 45% Nutrient mobility especially N and K increased by 20 to 30% and 30 to 40% respectively Enhances the crop yield by 15 to 20% Residual effect can be realized for three seasons Easily operated by any 35 to 45 hp tractor 2. Influence of Deep Tillage on In-situ Moisture Conservation in Dry Farming The subsoil hard pan is formed due to the illuviation of clay to the sub soil horizon in red soil, due to the higher exchangeable sodium content of clay complex in black soil, and due to continuous cultivation of crops using heavy implements into certain depth constantly. All put together lowered the infiltration and percolation rates, nutrients movement and free air transport within the soil profile which effects crop growth and yield. An attempt was made to over come this problem by conducting experiments with different tillage implement combinations at different places. The result showed that there was significant differences between the treatments in plant height, leaf area , root length and yield. Chisel plough plus coirpith application showed its superiority over the other treatments. The in-situ moisture conservation was more in the chisel plough plus coirpith treatment. There was 50 per cent increase in the permeability of the soil due to the vertical storage of moisture. The moisture pattern in the case of Chisel plough + Disc Plough + Cultivator showed drastic improvement in soil moisture storage. The 58
root length in this treatment reached a maximum depth of 25 cm. In Chisel plough + Disc plough + Cultivator, 50 per cent yield increase was obtained, leaf area index increased by 44 per cent and root length increased by 13 per cent. Chisel plough played an important role in root growth and hence increased yield. 3. Basin Lister as an Attachment to Power Tiller Generally, yield levels are determined by the amount of precipitation above the basic minimum required to enable the crops to achieve maturity. It is therefore, important in dry land farming to have even a relatively small amount of water stored in soils prior to sowing of crops. Listing is the process of formation of alternate furrows and ridges on land to conserve soil and moisture. Hence a basin lister has been developed for use of power tillers in dry farming. The principle of operation of the equipment is that the basin listing is done by lifting the ridger through a cam and follower arrangement. The cam is mounted to the wheel axle and oscillates the U shaped follower frame hinged at the front of the power tiller chassis on both sides. The ridger tyne is pivoted near the hitch pin of the power tiller and provided with a slider in the transverse direction. The cylindrical slider accommodates itself inside the corresponding slot on each side of the follower frame. When the follower is lifted, the ridger tyne is also lifted along with it by allowing the slider to move longitudinally in the slot. A dead weight box is also attached to the cam follower frame and additional dead weights are added for perfect balancing and uniform penetration. A spiked wheel with castor action provided with support arms from the power tiller handle ensures uniform basin formation by controlling the depth of operation and also removes the drudgery of the operator. The unit is rear mounted and fitted to the hitch bracket assembly of the power tiller. The draft requirement is 75 kg which is within drawbar capacity of the power tiller. Salient Features By basin listing, increased moisture retention of 10 per cent is achieved Significant increase in yield of 10 per cent is observed in both main and inter crop The basins formed prior to the sowing of crop in dry farming at regular intervals conserve adequate soil moisture for the utilization of crop at its critical stages Net benefit by way of increased yield due to power tiller basin listing An area of 0.6 ha can be covered per day The cost of the unit is Rs. 5000.
4. Basinlister / Broadbed Former Cum Seeder Attachment to Cultivator The basin lister consists of three trenchers of width 30 cm, cams, cam shaft, cam follower, ground wheels and frame. The penetrating portion of the trencher bottoms are provided with a replaceable share point. Each trencher fitted with a cam follower gets lifted up by the cams at equal intervals. The cams are mounted on a common axle at 120 degree difference and supported by ground wheels. The power to rotate the cam is transmitted from one of the ground wheels. To reduce wheel slippage, spring tension has been provided. The basin lister unit is attached to the standard nine tyned cultivator. The seed box along with cup feed type seed metering mechanism is mounted on the cultivator frame and the seeds are dropped in between the basins. Seeds are sown in 4 rows at 45 cm apart. Power to operate the seed metering discs is taken from the ground wheel through a clutch. The seed to seed distance can be changed by changing the sprockets provided in the metering shaft. The operator can stop the dropping of the seeds by disengaging the clutch provided. The same implement can be used to form broad beds separated by furrows by removing he basin lister attachment from the cultivator. The unit consists of two sheet metal floats fixed on both sides of the cultivator tynes to form the broad beds separated by furrows at intervals of 180 cm. Salient Features The basins/ broad beds and furrows formed prior to the sowing of crop in dry farming at regular intervals conserve adequate soil moisture for the utilization of crop at its critical stages Increased moisture retention of 10 per cent is achieved Significant increase in yield is observed in both main and inter crop An area of 3.5 ha can be covered per day The cost of the unit is Rs. 15000 (without cultivator). 5. Tractor Drawn Channel Former In drylands irrigation channel former can be used for forming compartmental bunding at regular intervals for conserving rain water. This is done by human labour which consumes more time and cost. To over come this problem a tractor drawn channel former to form irrigation channels was developed. The main frame of size 22 cm x 65 cm is made of 5.0 cm x 2.5 cm M.S. channels. The channel forming portion consists of two inner blades of size 100 cm x 25 cm and two outer blades of size 130 cm x 25 cm. The front portion of the two inner blades are joint together such that they forms an angle of 30 in 59
between them. At the junction of these two inner blades a cultivator shovel is fixed to penetrate into the soil. The inner blades can be mounted 5 to 10 cm lower than the outer blades so that they forms a furrow at a lower depth than the surface of the bed for the flow of irrigation water. The two outer blades are placed one on each side of the inner blades and at an angle of 60 to the direction of the travel. The soil collected in 105 cm width is formed as bund of size 35 cm on both the sides of the irrigation furrow formed by the inner blades. The unit was evaluated for its performance in forming irrigation channels at 5 m intervals. When the tractor is operated at 3 to 4 km forward speed, the area covered varies from 1.2 ha to 1.5 ha/hr. The field efficiency varies from 70% to 80% depending on the condition of the soil and field size. Salient Features of The Unit Cost of the Unit : Rs.6,000/ Coverage : 9.0 ha/day of 8 hrs Cost of forming irrigation channel at 5 m interval by (i) channel former : Rs.150/ha (ii) manual labour : Rs.350/ha Saving in cost : Rs.200/ha Saving in time : 11 man days/ha. The necessity to improve the productivity of the land and to increase the income of the farmer have become important since the available land area is limited and finite. While considerable importance has been given to increase the productivity of the irrigated lands under green revolution, adequate attention has not been given to increase the productivity of the rainfed areas. The development of in -situ moisture conservation implements will help in a long way in increasing the productivity in rainfed agriculture. 6. Coir Pith Applicator Deep loosening of soil and placement of coir pith in the subsoil layers improves the root zone, which will not re compact during subsequent years. The unique property of coir pith to hold 7 to 8 times its weight of moisture helps to improve upon the moisture status of the root zone. The coir pith also acts as an amendment, which helps to build up a biologically active root zone comprising the subsurface layers. Hence, a coir pith mulching applicator was developed as an attachment to the tractor drawn chisel plough to place the coir pith at a depth of 15-25 cm below the ground level which ensures that the coir pith filled trenches are not disturbed by subsequent ploughing thereby preventing the dispersion and disintegration of coir pith. The cost of the unit is Rs.9,000. The salient features of the unit are: uniformity of application is 90%; higher moisture storage (41%) is observed in subsoil-
mulched plots as compared to the control; and yield of crop grown under subsoil-mulched plots are significantly higher. LAND LEVELLING IMPLEMENTS 1. Terracer Cum Leveller Land levelling is expected to bring permanent improvement in the value of land. Levelling work is carried out to modify the existing contours of land so as to achieve certain objectives desired for efficient agricultural production system. These objectives include (i) efficient application of irrigation water, (ii) improved surface drainage, (iii) minimum soil erosion (iv) increased conservation of rain water specially on dry lands and (v) provision of an adequate field size and even topography for efficient mechanization. The unit consists of 1.0 m wide curved mild steel blade with a steel cutting edge at the bottom. The unit is attached to the front of the power tiller with the help of a mounting plate. Two solid side support arms made of 25 x 12.5 mm mild steel flat holds the unit rigidly during the operation. The position of the blade with reference to the power tiller chassis can be varied by adjusting the screw provided between the mounting plate and the centre of the leveller. The lifting of the blade can be made by tail wheel adjustment of the rotary tiller while keeping the tilt angle constant. Two side guards are provided to avoid spilling of soil on both sides of the blade. Bottom skids made of 2 mm mild steel sheet are provided below the blade for maintaining uniform load. The width of the blade is 1000 mm with a height of 320 mm. The leveller unit was field evaluated for contour bunding and land levelling works and the salient features of the unit include Simple in design and construction Ease of operation and transport Increases the versatility of power tiller Efficient performance in land levelling with transportation efficiency of 86.6% and field performance index of 0.87. Cost of the unit is Rs.3,000/-. Cost of moving 1 m 3 of soil to 1 m distance is Rs.3.30. 2. Tractor Drawn Blade Terracer Blade terracer is an implement used for operations like earth levelling, bunding, filling pits, making wide drain and roads, back filling, etc. For application of scientific water management technique, levelling is being increasingly adopted along with the accelerated growth of farm mechanization. Blade terracer is commonly used for this urpose. The unit consists of a frame, blade, mould board, mould board frame, blade tilt, scarifier, side plates, 60
stabilizer kit and a pitch adjusting screw. Size of the terracer may be between 1.5 to 3.5 m, determined by the length of the blade and the length of extension blade. 3. Dozer Blade Commercially available tractor front mounted dozer blades and bulldozer with front mounted blades are used for heavy earth moving purposes. Conclusion The present situation of migration of labour to various scholastic jobs and thrust for more production to feed the increasing population makes dryland cultivation a
tiresome one. This situation necessitates the introduction of a suitable machines for dryland farming. In the dynamic and fast changing agricultural scenario of the country, particularly diversification in the cropping pattern and commercialization of agriculture more efficient and simple implement / equipment are required by the farmers. The potential of dry farming lands can be increased in the near future by adopting a suitable package of practices aimed at optimizing utilization of available moisture through improved soil and water management by utilizing the improved designs of moisture conservation implements.
References Anonymous. 1987. Annual Report. All India Coordinated Research Project on Farm Implements and Machinery, Coimbatore Centre, Tamil Nadu Agricultural University. Anonymous. 1988. Annual Report of All India Coordinated Research Project on Farm Implements and Machinery, Coimbatore Centre, Tamil Nadu Agricultural University. Channappa, T.C. 1994. In-situ moisture conservation in arid and semi arid tropics. Indian Journal of Soil Conservation, 22(1-2) : 26 - 41. Durairaj, C.D., K.Kathirvel, R.Karunanithi and K.R.Swaminathan. 1992. Development of a basin lister actuated by tractors hydraulic system.
61
7
Effect of in-situ moisture conservation practices on runoff, soil loss and yield performance of Cashew (Anacardium occidentale) in Goa
S. Manivannan
Introduction
The State of Goa covers an area of 3702 sq. km and accounts for about one per cent of the total geographical area of the country. The slope gradients range from 5 to 20 percent and occasionally go up to 40 per cent. Majority of the soil series are coarse to medium textured and well - drained with poor water holding capacity. Plantation crops like cashew, mango, arecanut, coconut etc. are predominantly occupying the steep slopes of lower coastal ghats and central undulating uplands of Goa. Many of the hilly areas in Goa are practically denuded and are still being denuded. With the result of erosion a large quantity of the fertile soil is transported from the fields. Most of the hilly areas in Goa are under perennial horticultural crops with cashew as predominant crop, which is occupying an area of 54,858 ha (Anonymous, 2005). India is the second largest producer of raw cashew in the world but conquers the 1st place among the largest producing countries of cashew kernels and also in the maximum area covered that figures to be 7.70 lakh hectares currently. The country provides with around 55 % supply of cashew kernels 62
in the world. The Indian production of cashews contributes to around 4.6 lakhs tons per annum. The present level of productivity in Goa is only about 466 kg ha -1, which is very less as compared to national average (810 kg ha-1). Experience shows that the major factors for low productivity are loss of fertile soil due to erosion and inadequate moisture in root zones of trees due to excess runoff. Several workers have reported runoff, soil and nutrient losses under different agro-ecological situations in India (Rai and Singh, 1986; Kale et al. 1993). Runoff and soil losses increased with increase in land slope and varied with agronomic cover crops in North Konkan region (Kale, et al. 1993). Badhe and Magar (2004) reported that trapezoidal shaped staggered trenches were more effective in reducing surface runoff, soil and nutrient losses under hilly terrain in lateritic soils of Konkan region of Maharashtra. On gentle slopes, vegetative barriers in different forms can sufficiently reduce runoff and soil loss (Bhardwaj, 1994). Similarly, the surface runoff and soil loss was reduced by vegetative barriers in sloppy land (Subudhi and Senapati, 1996; Subudhi et al.,1998). However, studies on combination of mechanical measures with vegetative barriers for reducing soil
and water losses in cashew plantations are very limited. Hence, an attempt was made to evaluate the effect of different in-situ moisture conservation measures on runoff, soil loss reduction and impact on yield performance of cashew trees.
was recorded for three years period from 2005 to 2007. Economic viability of different conservation measures was also analyzed.
Data on nutrient losses revealed that all the conservation measures reduced nutrient losses as compared to control plot. The mean values indicate that minimum nitrogen loss was 11.7 kg ha -1 in the treatment of continuous contour trenches with vegetative barrier of S. scabra + G. maculata followed by 15.8 kg ha-1 in the plot with staggered contour trenches and S. scabra + G. maculata while the maximum nitrogen loss (29.1 kg ha -1) was recorded in control plot. Similarly, potassium losses were minimum (17.9 kg ha-1) in the treatment of continuous contour trenches with S. scabra + G. maculata followed by 21.7 kg ha-1 in the treatment of staggered contour trenches with S. scabra + G. maculata as against the maximum potassium loss of 42.2 kg ha -1 recorded in control plot. Phosphorus loss varied from 0.1 to 0.2 kg ha-1 in all the treatments, which may be due to low availability of phosphorus in the experimental site as well as the nature of phosphorus which does not move in runoff as fast as other nutrients. The soil and nutrient loss data shows that the continuous contour trenches with vegetative barrier of S. scabra + G. maculata was the best conservation practice to reduce the soil and nutrient loss among all the conservation treatments. Soil, Water and Soil & Water Conservation Efficiencies Soil conservation efficiency, water conservation efficiency and soil and water conservation efficiency were worked out during each year and the values are given in Table 3. The mean values of water conservation efficiency of continuous contour trenches with S. scabra + G. maculata, staggered contour trenches with S. scabra + G. maculata and crescent shape trenches with S. scabra + G. maculata were 46.2, 35.2 and 29.4 percent, respectively. Maximum mean SCE of continuous contour trenches with S. scabra + G. maculata, was 79.6 per cent. By and large the highest soil and water conservation efficiency was observed in continuous contour trenches with S. scabra + G. maculata (62.9 per cent). Yield Performance of Cashew The cashew plants commended yielding from fourth year of plantation. Cashew yield was recorded from fourth to sixth years of plantation (2004-05, 200506 and 2006-07). Average nut yield per tree and total yield per hectare area were recorded and the effect of conservation measures on these parameters was analyzed. Cashew nut yield per tree and the total yield per 64
hectare obtained during the three years period under all the conservation measures are furnished in Table 4. All the in- situ moisture conservation measures significantly increased the nut yield per tree as well as total yield when compared to control plot. The data were statistically analyzed and the treatments were found significant. Maximum cashew nut yield of 6.80, 3.50 and 5.20 q ha-1 were recorded in treatment comprising of continuous contour trenches with S. scabra + G. maculata during fourth, fifth and sixth years, respectively. This was followed by 5.60 q ha-1 (fourth year), 2.80 q ha-1 (fifth year) and 3.90 q ha-1 (sixth year) in SCT with S. scabra + G. maculata treatment. The increased cashew nut yield of 3.2, 1.9, and 1.2 q ha-1, respectively were recorded during sixth year in the treatments of CCT, SCT and CST with vegetative barriers. Live barrier of S. scabra + G. maculata alone could increase the yield of 0.5 q ha-1 during sixth year. The lowest cashew nut yields of 3.0, 1.6 and 2.0 q ha-1 during fouth, fifth and sixth years, respectively was observed in control plot where no conservation measure was adapted. This showed that the soil and water conservation measures helped to reduce surface runoff, soil and nutrient losses and increased the yield of crop under lateritic hilly terrain of the region. Economic Feasibility of Conservation Measures Net present worth (NPW), Benefit-cost ratio (BCR) and Internal rate of return (IRR) were also worked out by accounting for the cost and benefits for a period of 10 years and are given in Table 5. Maximum NPW of Rs. 1, 64, 900 / ha was obtained under cashew cultivation with continuous contour trenches with S. scabra + G. maculata followed by Rs. 1,27,190 / ha under cashew cultivation with staggered contour trenches S. scabra + G. maculata. The lowest NPW (Rs. 43,410 / ha) was obtained from the cashew field cultivated without adapting any soil and water conservation measure. BCR was maximum (5.07) in continuous contour trenches with S. scabra + G. maculata followed by the treatment comprising of staggered contour trenches with S. scabra + G. maculata (4.64) and crescent shape trenches with S. scabra + G. maculata (4.46). Similarly, maximum IRR of 13 per cent was obtained in the treatment of continuous contour trenches followed by 12.5 per cent of IRR in the treatments comprising of staggered contour trenches with S. scabra + G. maculate. The least BCR (2.79) and IRR (10 per cent) were
obtained from the cashew field cultivated without soil and water conservation measure.
Conclusions
Results revealed that in-situ moisture conservation measures with vegetative barriers are effective in reducing the runoff, soil water and nutrient losses in new cashew plantations. Continuous contour trenches with vegetative barrier of S. scabra + G. maculata reduced runoff by 46 % over all the practices. This treatment led to the retention of 6500 kg of soil and 12 kg of N, 0.2 kg of P and 18 kg of K per ha. This practice would result
in commencing enough soil moisture that would continue to be available to plants for a period of 6 months after the cessation of the monsoon and increase the cashew yield to 2.5 times than conventional practices. BCR and IRR were higher under the continuous contour trenches with S. scabra and G. maculata (5.07 and 13 per cent, respectively). Hence, the continuous contour trenche with vegetative barriers was the best in-situ moisture conservation measures as compared to all other conservation measures for runoff and soil loss reduction and increase in cashew yield.
References
Anonymous. 2005. Estimation of area average yield and production of various crops in Goa State for the year 200405. Directorate of Agriculture, Government of Goa, Panaji. Badhe, V.T. and Magar, S.S. 2004. Influence of different conservation measures on runoff, soil and nutrient loss under cashewnut in lateritic soils of South Konkan region. Indian J. Soil. Cons., 32(2): 143-147. Bhardwaj, S.P. 1994. Vegetative barriers as an effective economic and eco-friendly measure of erosion control on agricultural lands. In: 8th ISCO Challenges and Opportunities, New Delhi, India: Pp. 204-205. Kale, S. R, Salvi, V. G, Varade, P.A. and Kadrekar, S. B., 1993. Effect of different per cent slopes and crops on runoff, soil and organic Carbon loss in latteritic soil of West Cost Konkan - Maharashtra, Annual Convention, Indian Society of Soil Science, Dehradun. Prasad, S.N., R.K. Singh, Shakir Ali and A.K. Parandiyal. 2005. Comparative performance of grass barriers on erosion and crop yields in medium black soils of Kota. Indian Journal of Soil Conservation, 33 (1): 58-61. Rai, R.N. and Singh, A. 1986. Effect of hill slopes on runoff, soil loss and nutrient loss and rice yield. Indian J. Soil Cons., 14 (2): 1-6. Subudhi, C.R. and P.C. Senapati. 1996. Runoff and soil loss under different vegetative measures in Kalahandi district of Orissa. Indian Journal of Soil Conservation, 24 (2):82-83. Subudhi, C.R., P.C.Pradhan and P.C. Senapati. 1998. Effect of vegetative barrier on soil erosion and yield of rice in Eastern Ghats. Indian Journal of Soil Conservation, 26 (2): 95-98.
65
Table 1:
Year CCT + VB 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 Mean 8.3 12.8 9.1 13.0 11.4 10.9
Table 3:
Year
Water, soil and soil and water conservation efficiencies of different conservation measures
Treatment CCT + VB SCT + VB 41.9 33.6 36.2 31.6 32.9 35.2 66.7 67.3 65.8 67.9 69.4 67.4 54.3 50.5 51.0 49.8 51.1 51.3 CST + VB 43.3 25.1 24.0 28.2 26.6 29.4 66.7 63.5 62.0 66.0 67.3 65.1 55.0 44.3 43.0 47.1 47.0 47.3 VB alone 27.0 7.7 9.5 11.3 10.9 13.3 51.8 33.7 46.8 35.8 38.8 41.4 39.4 20.7 28.2 23.6 24.8 27.3 Water conservation efficiency (per cent)
2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 Mean 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 Mean 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 Mean
49.3 45.0 43.5 46.0 47.3 46.2 76.0 77.9 81.0 79.2 83.7 79.6 62.6 61.4 62.2 62.6 65.5 62.9
66
Table 4: Cashew yield under different conservation measures during the fourth, fifth and sixth year of plantation
Nut yield per tree (kg) Treatment CCT + VB SCT + VB CST + VB VB alone Control CV CD p (0.05) 2004-05 (IV th year) 2.5 2.0 1.8 1.3 1.1 15.6 0.51 2005-06 (Vth year) 1.2 1.0 0.9 0.7 0.6 17.1 0.28 2006-07 (VIth year) 1.9 1.4 1.2 0.9 0.7 15.9 0.37 Total yield (q ha-1) 2004-05 (IVth year) 6.8 5.6 4.9 3.5 3.0 15.2 1.36 2005-06 (Vth year) 3.5 2.8 2.4 2.0 1.6 16.4 0.76 2006-07 (VIth year) 5.2 3.9 3.2 2.5 2.0 15.0 0.96
Table 5: Net present worth, benefit cost ratio and internal rate of return of different conservation measures adopted for cashew crop
Conservation measures Continuous Contour Trench + S. scabra + G. maculata Staggered Contour Trench + S. scabra + G. maculata Crescent Shape Trench + S. scabra + G. maculata S. scabra + G. maculata alone Without conservation measures NPW (Rs. / ha.) 1,64,900 1,27,190 1,09,130 69,090 43,410 BCR 5.07 4.64 4.46 3.74 2.79 IRR (%) 13.0 12.5 11.0 10.0 10.0
67
8
Drought Mitigation through Floodwater Harvesting for the Artificial Recharge of Groundwater: Prudence vs Large Dams
Sayyed Ahang Kowsar
Introduction
Iran was the land of floods, droughts and qanats until 1945, when the inappropriate technologies, cable tool and powerful pumps invaded our groundwater resources. The arrival of rotary drilling machines in the late 60s blew coup de grce to our aquifers (Kowsar, 1991; Mohammadnia and Kowsar, 2003). Not only the lowering of the watertable beneath the qanat galleries made more than 20,000 of them nonfunctional, but also caused saline water intrusion into freshwater aquifers and land subsidence in many plains a common place phenomenon. Kassas (1987) is of the opinion that the falling watertable in arid areas, where most water needs are supplied through underground resources, is a variation of drought. Therefore, we are doubly trapped in the agricultural and hydrological droughts of our own making, and the climatic drought that Nature has forced upon us. Judging our precipitation history from the studies of Vita-Finzi (1979) on the alluvium deposition in the Tehran area, we have over-exploited in less than 60 years most of the groundwater that Nature had bestowed upon us between 38,000 to 6,000 years before present 69
(BP)! Thus, depleting the very last resort, we have to face a precarious water shortage in the most severe drought in a living memory. It is inconceivable that our compatriots, especially the policy-makers, are unaware of our climatological history. About 90% of our country is semi-arid, arid and hyper arid. Recurrent and prolonged droughts in such environments are a rule rather than an exception. These periods are usually interrupted by flood-producing downpours that devastate the drought-stricken people, particularly nomad herders who inhabit the low-laying area surrounding water holes. With all these risks, the desert-dwellers have adapted themselves to the vagaries of the climate following the Genesis Strategy. The following historical account is the wake up call for the rulers of drought-prone countries. The gradual warming of the climate, which attained its optimum range about 8,000 years ago, and perhaps abundant precipitation, brought about the prerequisites for the formation of human societies. Matthews (1976) postulated that high precipitation from 8,000 to 5,000 years ago blessed the present
African Sahara and the Arabian desert, and provided the groundwork for the evolution of great civilizations in the Fertile Crescent, which extended from Palestine to the Persian Gulf (northern parts of present-day Saudi Arabia). Then, an 800-year drought (5,000-4,200 BP) transformed all this area into a desert, and forced the Semites to migrate to the Levant (present-day Syria). This droughty period affected the Sind Valley and obliterated the Harapan Civilization. This vast area, which was once covered with forests, is now so dry that rainfed farming is impossible over most of it; only a name remains from an outstanding civilization that peaked 5,300 year ago (Linton, 1955). Frequent droughty periods, which occurred from 2500 to 1600 BP, destroyed the North African agriculture and forests of Lebanon and Galilee (Matthews, 1976). Prolonged droughts cause famine, mass starvation, immigration, and finally, termination of the affected civilizations. Although the most obvious cause of famine is prolonged droughts, other natural phenomena and human-mediated disasters should not be forgotten. Freezing weather, floods, earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, outbreaks of plant and animal pests and diseases, epidemics, wars, and wrongful policies of governments and colonialists are also instrumental in the occurrence of famine. Keeping these exceptions in mind, the records of famine may be used to reconstruct previous droughts. The first authentic written record is based on the Stele of famine from 5,500 BP discovered on a tomb in the Nile that describes the lack of Nile flood for 7 years and the vast misfortune caused by the drought (Anon., 1973, p.58-59). The 7 good and 7 lean years during the time of Prophet Joseph, which probably occurred around 1675 BC, have been mentioned in the Bible and the Glorious Koran (the Chapter of Joseph, verses 43-49). Failure of Nile flood for 7 years (10641072) resulted in cannibalism in Egypt (Anon., 1973: 58; Anon., 1978). Droughts in India during the 917918, 1148-1159, 1344-1345, 1396-1407, 1630, 1661, 1669-1670, 1769-1770, 1783, 1790-1792, 1803-1804, 1837-1838, 1861, 1866, 1868-1870, 1874, 1876-1878, 1896-1897, 1899-1901 and 19431944 periods caused starvation of millions. Three to 10 million deaths occurred in the drought of 1769-1770 in Bengal, India, which, at the highest estimate, was onethird of the population. India would have suffered a major famine in 1966-67 were it not for the importation of 26 million tons of grain to that country by the U.S., Canada, 70
and Australia during 1965-1967. Two consecutive poor monsoons resulted in grain crops about 20% below average. China has suffered 1,828 famines from 108 BC to 1911 AD, of which the number of deaths for the 1876-1879, 1892-1894 and 1928-1929 periods were 9-13, 1, and 3 million, respectively. In the great drought of 1921-1922 grain production was less than one-half of an average crop for 2 consecutive years; between 1.25 and 5 million people starved in the former Soviet Union, particularly in the Ukraine and Volga region (Anon., 1973; Anon., 1978). Nicholson (1978) studied 5 centuries of climatic variations in the Sudano-Sahelian region by analyzing lake-level variations and stream regime changes. Reconstruction of past climates, particularly precipitation events, revealed that the famines of the 1681-1687, 1738-1756 and 1828-1839 periods were due to severe droughts. According to the travel account of Browne (Nicholson, 1978) in 1799, the now dry Bahr el-Ghazal valley of Chad was flooded at that time, since he had traveled the distance between Lake Chad to Borkou by canoe. The level of Lake Chad receded to its lowest in 500 years during the 1828-1839 period. The 1968-1973 drought resulted in 500,000 deaths in 8 African countries in 1973, from Mauritania in the west to Ethiopia in the east, where 200,000 starved (Anon., 1983; Anon., 1983). Again, about 1 million people starved during the 1984-1985 drought in Ethiopia (Johnson, 1990); the loss in cattle in the 1983-1984 drought numbered 1.5 million (Biswas et al., 1987). Persian historians and poets have reported the accounts of famines in Iran and parts of the Old World. Ferdowsi (940-1020) discussed the 7-year drought during the reigns of Kaykavoos and Pirooz, son of Yazdgerd, and the 4-year drought during the reign of Bahram-e-Goor (throned 421, died 438). Saadi (1209-1295) mentioned the drought during the time of Khalifa Omar-benAbdolaziz and also in Lebanon in 1245. The History of Sistan (Anon., no date) described the story of drought in 835 in Afghanistan and Sistan. Naser Khosrow (10031088) reported the droughts in Qazvin (1046), Mecca (1047-1048), and Isfahan (1052). Hamdollah Mostoufi (1329) and Abdollah Vassaf (died in 1330) reported the drought of Qazvin in 1217, and that of 1284-1286 in Fars, respectively; about 100,000 people starved in the Fars famine. Chardin (1643-1713) observed the 1669 Isfahan famine first hand. Fasaii (1895) reported the
famines of 1729, 1747, 1866-1867 and 1871 in some parts of Iran, and Khanshaqaqi (1974), told of the 1871 drought in Tehran when the British envoy extraordinary provided relief funds from India and personally distributed bread among the needy. The famines of 1866-1867 and 1871, and also the very high prices of food in 1878 reported by Fasaii were due to the recurrent droughts during the 1860-1880 period that Andreas and Stolze published their report on drought in Iran in 1885 (Reza et al., 1971). En masse migration of the rural population, abandonment of villages, and their eventual ruin are usually caused by droughts. The famine of 1869-1871 left many homesteads abandoned. The population of Qom, which was 25,382 in 1867, was reduced to 14,000 by 1874 (Lambton, 1953). Living conditions in Sistan, an extremely arid region in Iran, wholly depend on the precipitation on the Hirmand Watershed, our relationships with Afghanistan, and the general policy of the Iranian Government. The 1948 drought in Afghanistan resulted in heavy losses to cattle herders in the Sistan area (Lambton, 1953). Flooding of Hirmand in 1949 caused a few years of drought. Extensive reed beds and rangeland, which were usually grazed by the cattle and livestock, dried out. This misfortune intensified poverty. Breaching of levees and failure of irrigation systems due to flooding were the
Table 1:
Date 937 1037 1243 1244 1275 Mar. 31 Apr. 25 Oct. 24
main causes of this disaster. Construction of the Kohak Diversion Dam on the Hirmand during 1965-1966, which misfired and diverted the Iranian share of the flow towards Afghanistan, was another reason for the ruin of numerous farms in the Sistan region. Short-duration droughts, in which the rainfall is less than the mean annual precipitation, mainly cause livestock and cattle loss due to a relative lack of nutritious forage and subsequent diseases that befall them. Although these events do not cause famine and starvation, the financial loss to farmers and herders is enormous. The drought period that peaked in 1891 caused the loss of 50 million sheep in Australia (Arnon, 1972: 106). During the same period, the rainy 1870s in the American Great Plains was followed by a decade of drought (Dregne, 1977). Iran, India, and Russia experienced famine during the same decade. What would happen if this misfortune repeats itself? ... wherefore take example, you who are endowed with sight (The Glorious Koran, Chapter 59 [Emigration], verse 2), More recently, the livestock population of Algeria, which had risen to 8 million, was reduced to 2 million in 1945 owing to a few lean years (Arnon, 1972: 99). Wet years with abundant flood-producing rainfalls occur frequently in dry areas too. The Land of Iran has repeatedly experienced devastating flooding, a number of which from 937 to 1950 are reported in Table 1.
Some of the notable flooding events of Iran from 937 to 1950 (after Melville, 1984)
Locality Sari Zarang (Sistan) Sistan Sistan Yazd Remarks All buildings destroyed; inhabitants fled to foothills; local officials warned not to act oppressively Collapse of a bund (dyke or dam) north of the city; poor harvest the next year; city walls rebuilt by 1040-41 Huge area of Sistan and Hirmand delta affected; Zarang under water for three months; over 300 people died in province Further flooding washes away most of Sistans grain Catastrophic flood after 5 days [of] continuous heavy rain; water ruined the districts on the E. and S. side of town, spilled over the moat and destroyed part of citadel; lasted 36 hrs. Flight to high ground Most of the buildings were ruined Caused by early summer snowmelt; flooded qanats; flash flood destroys half town, the citadel and all the corn lands Heavy rainfall in upper reaches of Qara Aghach, causing floods in Shiraz and Shabankareh region of Fars. Karzin area inundated; Buyid bridge at Pul-i Arus broken by palm trees carried in spate Catastrophic flood after weeks of rain; river from hills south of the town broke through flood barrier; qanats from Muhrijird district destroyed; enormous damage to buildings in Yazd; at least 1000 tumans of personal property destroyed apart from loss of houses, gardens and cultivated lands etc. Great damage also at Taft. Miraculously, no lives lost. No relief was given but on the contrary great oppression was shown towards the victims Following violent hailstorms on hills to N.E. of the city, a torrent that damaged Gazdi Gah and the plains north of Herat
May ? Spring ?
1456
Apr. 13
Yazd, Taft
1493
Apr. 14
Herat
71
Qazvin Sarab Most of W. Iran and the towns on the edge of the Dasht-i kavir
1600
Amul
Spring
Dec.
Spring Apr. 10
1867
Apr. ?
Kashan district
1867
May 7
Tehran
1868 1870
Spring
Aug. 31 May
Flood ruined 2000 houses in the Darb-i Abhar quarter of Qazvin Flood after 48 hours [of] heavy rain, completed earthquake destruction Af ter t wo days of v iolent a nd de str uct ive N. w i nds over (Per sia n) Iraq, heav y rai n caused extensive f loo di ng of river s; Zaya ndeh-r ud over f lowed de stroying water mi l ls a nd bridge s; ir rigat ion ca nals fi l led up w it h debris; much destruction also of buildings and gardens in and around Qum; in Qazvin, the deluge burst at midnight; attempts to block the spate with planks and boards and doors of houses proved futile, but it was ultimately diverted by carpets, felts and other fabrics draped over large tree trunks, away from the areas containing the government buildings; one or two other quarters were however demolished. The flood also affected Kirman, and Yazd, where a torrent from Taft wiped out all buildings and cultivation, which reverted to desert. Few places in the whole country escaped the effects of this storm and the resultant flood. In the spring, plague broke out in Isfahan, causing heavy mortality and emigration to nearby towns until the autumn; cholera reported in Qazvin A great flood of the river Haraz destroyed Amul and surrounding villages killing thousands of people who were caught unawares. Area repopulated with imported Georgian captives. Landslides in the Namarustaq district created a small lake which later drained down to the sea Heavy snow and torrential rains cause heavy flood damage around Shiraz Sudden inundation of Qum river following rainfall in mountains; caused great loss of life and destruction of 1000 houses Remarks Disastrous flood destroyed a third of the town, and prompted its desertion by a number of the inhabitants; followed by an epidemic Two thousand houses and all the ancient buildings ruined Town ruined by a deluge Flooding of Karun after heavy rains Heavy floods carried away portions of the bridges at Shushtar and Dizful; the correct date may rather be 1837 Four quarters of the town were damaged with the loss of more than 3000 houses; Shah grants funds for construction of a barrier; heavy and prolonged rain reported from Tabriz in March and April D i s a st ro u s f l o o d i n g fo l l ow s t h re e c o n s e c u t i ve d ay s o f r a i n ; g a r d e n s o n W. side of Kashan completely flooded, qanats ruined and ditches filled up, walls collapse and damage to houses; runoff from river and foothills floods villages to the north of Kashan such as Nushabad, Aran and Bidgul, villagers abandon hope but floods cease before the whole district completely destroyed. Total cost of property, damage to houses and gardens, loss of cultivation from break down of water supply and incurred in repairing and cleaning the qanats estimated at 200,000 tumans A flash flood struck Tehran (heavy rain reported the previous week) and filled the city moat, overflowing to flood the low-lying sections, where 120 houses were destroyed, several people lost their lives Heavy floods in Khuzistan; possibly affecting Sush (Susa). This event should probably more correctly be dated 1870, as below A torrent from the Kuh-i Chagatai swept away most of Mazinan and other villages, such as Behnamabad, on the fringe of the kavir. Mazinan was rebuilt about half a mile N. of the ruined site and attracted settlers from the other villages thatg were affected Great damage caused in Tabriz; poem written to commemorate the event Flood following two days rain; apparently not damaging Flash flood burst through dam and inundated Asadabad to a level of two feet of water; much destruction of property and loss of life
72
9
Tank Systems for Water Harvesting
R. Sakthivadivel
Introduction Water harvesting and storage has been a key strategy against water scarcity in semi-arid regions of the tropics because of sporadic spatial and temporal distribution of precipitation. As opposed to many modern agricultural systems structured around large reservoirs and distribution systems, small tanks and cascades, predominantly supplied by surface run off have been used for centuries as water harvesting structures at micro- and mesocatchment levels The term water tanks is interpreted differently in different parts of the country. In south India, water tanks are usually called irrigation tanks. These are storage structures built on the ground (with out digging) from which water is let out by gravity flow through sluice out let and overflow spillway. In addition to these tanks, there exists in each village a number of dugout structures called ponds used for domestic and livestock purposes. In the north Indian context it appears that there is no difference between ponds and tanks and are used interchangeably for any small water holding structure. Both tanks and ponds are included under water tanks discussed here in. Water tanks have been in existence in India over centuries. They have not been constructed at any particular time 73
period but came into existence as a sequel to population pressure and demand for additional. Water storage to meet peoples livelihood needs. Because tanks were constructed over the land surface without digging, availability of suitable abutting sites to locate a tank played a major role in choosing a site for constructing a tank. The tanks of south India vary over a wide range in their command, catchments and water spread areas (ranging from a few hectares to hundreds of hectares). Their ratio among these three parameters also varies widely (Sakthivadivel, 2004). South Indian Tanks Tanks in south India are classified in a number of ways. They are classified as PWD tanks. Panchayat tanks and Ex-Zamin tanks. PWD tanks have command areas greater then 40ha. While Panchayat tanks have command areas lees than 40 ha. Ex-Zamin tanks are those managed by Zamindars which have now been transferred to either PWD or Panchayat depending on the size of the tanks. Tanks are also classified as rain fed tanks and system tanks. Rains fed tanks receive their water supply from their own catchments while system tanks receive runoff from its own catchment as well as supply diverted from
rivers/reservoirs through canals. Then comes the cascade of tanks; these are tanks big and small interconnected and located within a watershed. North Indian Tanks In the North Indian context also, there are big and small tanks. The big tanks which store water recharge the aquifer as well as retain sufficient soil moisture in the unsaturated thick layer of clay tank bed. When the water is emptied from the tank bed, then the tank bed itself is used for taking one winter crop with the soil moisture stored in the tank bed and occasionally supplemented by nearby well water. So, basically tanks are used as inundation tanks. There are also tanks basically meant for rearing fish. In the semi arid regions such as Kutch and Bhal regions in Gujarat, and in some dry areas of Rajasthan tanks are constructed with lined PVC sheets to prevent contamination with underlying saline water as well as to prevent deep percolation losses. These tanks are mainly used for drinking water supplies to humans and animals. Who Owns Water Tanks? Historically water tanks were common property of village community; they were owned, maintained and managed by the beneficiaries. The benefits accruing out of the tank and its water use including usufruct rights were enjoyed by the village community especially women, landless and poor. After the introduction of Ryotwari system by the British colonial regime in 1857, the Government took over the tanks and handed over to PWD and Panchayat for maintenance and management. It then started collecting tax from tank water users and controlling the usufructs from the tanks through Revenue Department. As a result, the villagers lost interest in tank maintenance; and what was once a multiple use tank has come to be known as irrigation tanks because irrigators pay tax for tank water use and they claim users rights over tanks. Recently with NGOs involvement in tank rejuvenation programme, tanks are again considered as common property resource of the village to provide equal access to all including those landless, women and poor and meant for multiple uses. Tank Performance In the recent past, tank irrigated area is on the decline; tank maintenance and management is abysmal; many tanks have degenerated and become defunct for various reasons. Some of the reasons for under performance are: Because of onslaught of private ground water development and Govt. emphasis on large and medium scale irrigation projects, investment on water tanks and Govts focus on 74
managing and maintaining these tanks have considerably been reduced. Population pressure coupled with diminishing land per capita has fueled encroachment of waterways and tank beds thereby exacerbating the degeneration of tanks. Physical rehabilitation of tank proper with de-silting of tank beds and repair to the bund is being attempted in a haphazard manner. The impact of such isolated work on tank performance is minimal. Change in tank hydrology due to erratic rainfall distribution and land use pattern changes in tank catchment, large scale ground water development, weakening of tank institutions and less profitability of tank based agriculture are some of the other major reasons for underperformance of tanks. Tank Irrigation There are 39202 irrigation tanks of varied size and capacity in the state of Tamil Nadu. Of this, 8903 tanks including 3627 system tanks are maintained by PWD presently known as Water Resources Department. The rest of the tanks are in charge of local Panchayat Union. The PWD and the Panchayat Union will look after the source and the tank proper. But the water distribution and water regulation are with the villagers especially the farmers who are the beneficiaries. Being small systems, almost every village may have at least one tank and the villagers who have cultivated with tank water claim some ownership. They have been operating and maintaining these systems through village committees. Due to the neglect on the part of Government and community at large, these tanks fell into the various cycle of Rehabilitation Poor maintenance Deterioration Rehabitation. During the late 1970s, the Government of Tamilnadu started to plan a comprehensive modernization of the PWD tanks with assistance from Economic Council and subsequently Panchayat tanks with external funding. The present approach adopted by both the Government and the funding agencies and their impact can be characterized as: (1) Top- down , inflexible and blue print approach with less involvement of local communities in planning, implementing and managing the system. (2) It is a piece meal approach focused on tank proper and not the tank system as a whole. The concept that the tank system is embedded in a watershed and as a result, the tank system needs to be considered in the context of
watershed, taking into account the impact of upstream and downstream effects has not permeated in the planning process. (3) Tank systems are locally managed systems by local communities. For efficient and effective sustainable management, involvement of local communities from the very beginning of rehabilitation process is imperative. Local institutions are to be created, strengthen, their capacities built and adequate empowerment of rights and responsibilities are to be bestowed upon. At present, the weakest link is between the people who are the real stakeholders of the tank and the government agency who implement the tank program. During the drought period, the ground water drinking wells gets recharged due to rehabilitation of tanks; provide adequate water and the most benefited of these augmented recharge are the poor and landless people; Otherwise, they need to walk long distances to get a pot of water or they have to pay through their noses to purchase drinking water. Rehabilitation of tanks and related improvements in the agriculture systems increases the intensity of agriculture, changes the crops and cropping pattern and increases the agricultural production and the livestock population. All these changes increase the demand for labour and by this the landless and the poor people are able to get more number of days of labour work both on- season and offseason. A number of studies carried out on rehabilitated tanks indicate that the wells in and around the tank get additionally recharged due to increased storage of tank water, stored over a longer period of time. When adequate and reliable supply of water is available, farmers go for crop diversification with high value crops. What was originally used for one crop, now two crops are grown. In this process, there are instances that more than what the recharged water will be pumped out especially during drought year. If the drought continues for more than one year, over extraction takes place; wells dry; 75 (7)
(4)
competitive drilling and well digging among farmers take place, wasting their hard earned money. Ground water is considered as private property and as such those who own lands can pump groundwater underneath their land to any extent without government control. Groundwater has to be treated as common property and necessary laws must be enacted to regulate and use the groundwater in conjunction with rainfall and tank surface water. Many farmers in the tank command area who own wells do not participate in the collective action of maintaining and managing the tanks thinking that they have wells which can be depended upon to supply water when there is no tank water. Of late with a deterioration of tank maintenance ground water level in the command is fast declining and shallow wells become dry. There is now a realization among well owning farmers that unless the tank and supply channels maintained properly and tank water is augmented their wells will not be able to supply adequate quantity of water. Deforestation, over grazing, soil erosion and siltation have a very great impact on the tank performance and supply of water to the tanks. The impact of siltation on supply channel is very great in that it effectively prevents the water from catchments entering into the tank; added to this is the human intervention in the supply channels such as encroachment, construction of roads and culverts resulting in drastic reduction in water supply to the tanks. One of the major causes of deforestation and overgrazing is increased soil erosion leading to siltation of tank beds causing degeneration of tank and reduced storage capacity. Deforestation has also impact on tank supply, the distribution of which is affected by deforestation thereby affecting agricultural operation in the tank command. The specific economic benefits that tank development provides in the long run are: increase in agricultural intensity and output; increased fish, milk and bio-mass production and rise in ground water levels.
(5)
(6)
(8)
(9)
One of the major social benefits that the tank rehabilitation can bestow on landless and women is to mitigate migration to other places (both seasonal and permanent). Women have to bear the brunt of most of migration. Other kinds of benefit that can accrue out of rehabilitation are to provide income earning avenues such as fishing rights, right to tank bed cultivation, right to use tank bed silt, right to make bricks and right to have community dug well in the tank bed and share that water among command area of farmers. The indirect impact is mainly the availability of drinking water throughout the year due to increased recharge from rehabilitated tanks and maintenance of groundwater levels.
(10)
Institutions for Tank Management There are different groups which undertake rehabilitation, maintenance and management of tank systems. In some tank systems hereditary leadership maintains and manages the tank system even today. There are tanks which are purely managed by women SHG during rehabilitation (Grama Vikas). Then there are groups formed by the representatives of all tank water users including the landless and women; they work satisfactorily in single caste and multi-caste villages. Some tanks are directly managed by Gram Sabha. There are tanks which are entrusted to certain people in the villages (called kaval maniam and neer maniam) for maintaining and managing the tank systems with clear water regulations evolved over time and regulated by village Panchayats. So there is no single model that one can say that it works in all places under all socio- cultural , economic and political settings. From successfully operating tanks we can infer that the tank management group must be broad based representing the interest of all users and the users must have faith and confidence in the group and they should feel that they are all treated fairly and equitably. Resource mobilization by the user group for tank maintenance and management. The various methods adopted for resource mobiliza tion by the tank user association are: Foreshore cultivation with fast growing tress inter cropped with fodder for livestock. Tank bed cultivation with pumpkin, watermelon, cucumber, napier- grass etc. Tank bed cultivation with coconut and tamarind 76
trees. Revenue occurred to tank users due to tank usu fructs such as trees, fish, silt, brick etc. Establishing community well in tank bed and selling water by TUA. Annual auctioning of village common land for pri vate use. Charging well owners extra for pumping seepage water from tank. Entrance and annual fees charged from members of TUA. Village common fund for tank use. Income generation through purchase of equipment and hiring it out to farmers. Allow farmers to pump dead storage in the tank and charge them. Governance Structure for Tanks at The State Level At the state level, the funding for maintenance and management for tanks is meager resulting in deferred maintenance and leading to rehabilitation with donor funds. Much of the funds provided for maintenance go for administrative expenses leaving very little money for physical maintenance. While implementing donor funded projects, the approach is bureaucratic, top down, no involvement of farmers in all activities of rehabilitation, no expertise is used in institution building exercise and no involvement of NGOs. The end result is that the project envisaged is not implemented properly leading to substandard and un-sustainable performance. At the district level there are system tank, PWD tank, and panchayat tanks. In a cascade of tanks, one may come across PWD tanks and Panchayat tanks lying one after the other. Under such situations, rehabilitating PWD tanks alone without attending to Panchayat tanks will delink the supply channels and the full benefits of rehabilitation may not be achieved. The tanks in a river basin irrespective of their size and type, should be handled by one agency at least for planning purposes and such agency must be tagged on to the Basin Authority so that the water in a basin context can be accounted for and the available water can be put to productive uses through integrated planning at the basin level. At Panchayat level too not much of coordination exists between Panchayat and TUAs. Further devolution of powers to Gram Sabha level is necessary to have an effective interaction between the lowest level Government bureaucracy and the TUAs. After a period of nearly three decades of implementing rehabilitation projects, the government agencies have realized the importance of involving user community
in tank maintenance and management. They are ready to transfer these functions without neither empowering the local community to make decisions nor to enjoy the usufructs of tanks. Recent studies by Anna University and others have indicated that farmers are capable of planning, constructing maintaining and managing the system in a more efficient and cost effective manners and capable of integrating indigenous knowledge with modern technological development to get the optimum output in a sustainable manners. The total involvement of farmers in all phases of rehabilitation process is necessary to make rehabilitation process successful and to get the benefits expected out of rehabilitation. Cost Effective Tank Rehabilitation To make tank rehabilitation cost effective four aspects are suggested: 1. Tank rehabilitation work must be planned and implemented by TUAs with support from NGO and the government agencies. Only20 to 25% of the sanctioned budget is utilized or works in the case of contractors implemented projects whereas nearly100%of the fund allocated to TUAs through GO goes to work in addition to farmers contribution raging from 10to 25%. 2. The second aspect is whether the tank proper, or tank with its catchment and command area, or integrated watershed treatment with rehabilitation of tank cascade should be taken up and which is cost effective? There is no clear cut answer available to this question. A few experiments carried out in the recent past point to the fact that tank cascade should be taken up for rehabilitation under the watershed development programme. The third aspect is to use machine and men in appropriate mix that will be cost effective for tank rehabilitation. The fourth aspect is de-silting of tanks as a component of rehabilitation. There are arguments for and against de-silting as a component of rehabilitation. A few impact studies carried out recently indicate the selective de-silting of tank improves tank performance. It increases the dead storage for domestic and livestock use, allows to rear fish and provides supplementary irrigation through pumping. 77
3.
4.
Concluding Remarks Tanks have been existence from time immemorial. Even today some of the tanks maintained and managed properly functions well and provides sustainable services. So, tank systems are sustainable if proper maintenance and management is bestowed upon them. Tanks are decentralized systems catering to the needs of local community have played a very important role in irrigation and in the local eco-system in areas with relatively low (annual rainfall of 1000mm or less) such as in most parts of Karnataka, Andra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu. Through the ages, Indian agriculture has been sustained by natural and man-made water bodies such as lakes, ponds and similar structures. It has been estimated that there are more than a million such structures and about 500,000 are used for irrigation. Many of them have fallen into disuse. Many of them have accumulated silt. Many required urgent repairs. The three important factors contributing to the under performance of tanks are : siltation and encroachment; ground water development; weak organizational structure and government interference. Although inscriptional and other evidence indicates that tanks continued to be constructed over a long historical period, the original plan seems to have certainly been a grand one, which considered a large network of interconnected chains of tanks, running all the way from Eastern Ghats down to the Bay of Bengal. It is difficult to imagine that tanks would have been constructed one by one and at some point would have formed perfectly connected systems. Only recently, modern irrigation experts have begun river basin as an appropriate unit for designing irrigation systems. This was an established practice in ancient times. The curvature of the tank bunds designed to be elliptical to give maximum strength to the embankment, the stone facing on the inner side of the bund to minimize the action of waves forces and the tank sluices of plug and rod type are outstanding example of the engineering ability of Indian builders. Closely related to the engineering design of the tanks is the social organizations necessary to maintain and manage the vast network in the tank systems which are important in order to comprehend the related social organization: (i) Each tank irrigates, usually, fields lying within one village or at most a few villages. Hence, each tank needs to be locally managed. (ii) Where tanks are interconnected, which is usually the case, integration of supra-local or supra-village localities must be possible in
order to maintain and manage the entire chain of tanks. The existing literature indicates that the social and political organizations of pre-British India were designed to meet this need. The historical material on irrigation organization and structures and some recent data on the local and supralocal organization of the pre-British Indian societies together underline the fact that the Indian civilization placed a great value on decentralization of resources and political power which automatically set a limit to the size of irrigation structures. Large scale systems such as modern dams would not have been compatible with the values and goals of the Indian civilization. The traditional irrigation technology of tanks, anaicuts etc were also ecologically the optimal solution for the natural conditions obtaining in certain parts of India. In this sense, traditional irrigation technology is certainly modern as well as sophisticated. The village institutions, which are reasonably functional even today, ought to be fully involved in any plan to improve irrigation management. In addition, resources which are essential for the healthy functioning of the institutions need to be restored to them. Resources must be appropriately allocated to them to enable them to
function effectively. In the absence of such resources, merely appealing or exhorting the village communities to under take voluntary action to maintain tanks will have no impact, as is evident from the non-functioning of various efforts under taken by the government to make beneficiary commitment to under take maintenance. The governments should make serious attempt to turn over the tank system to the village community with a proviso to enjoy by the community the benefits from usufruct of tank and tank water. Recent research has pointed out that the first effort of the government must be to restore all the old tanks which are gradually dying and disappearing due to urbanization. The result of disappearance is that there is no way of holding rain water and recharging ground water. Instead, during heavy rainfalls, entire residential areas become water logged since they are low lying. In order to be able to effectively rejuvenate and extend the tank system, the most basic requirement is a data base. Appropriate agencies must be created to generate reliable tank data and such data can be generated only by involving knowledgeable individuals from each village which has a tank.
References Sakthivadivel.R (2004) A Study on Tanks and Ponds: Consultancy Report submitted to NOVIB, Netherlands in Association with Dhan Foundation, Madurai.
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10
Water Harvesting and Ground Water Recharge
N.Varadaraj
Introduction
The ubiquitous availability of ground water coupled with technological advancement in its extraction, institutional supports and deemed considered ownership of ground water as easement to land has led to quantum leap in the ground water development in our country during last five decades. Even though the ever increasing dependence on ground water has ensured countrys food security and fulfilled other socio economic needs its over exploitation at places has led to dwindling sustainability of this precious natural resource with emerging adverse environmental consequences. The serious manifestation of over exploitation of ground water resources is evident from the fact that over exploited and dark blocks in the country have increased from 250 in 1985 to 1089 in 2004 besides recording of steep decline in ground water levels in 300 districts over the years. Tamil Nadu is one of the highly water stress state with 142 over exploited blocks out of total 385 blocks. The consequent decline in ground water levels and associated environmental impacts are observed in major parts of the State. The state has 8 saline blocks in the coastal districts of Nagapattinam and Ramanathapuram and fresh water 79
aquifers are under persistent threat by ingress of saline water through upconing and sea water intrusion in parts of North Chennai, South Chennai, Puducherry and Tuticorin coast. The challenges faced to mitigate the impact of over exploitation of ground water need a sound ground water management policy on scientific considerations. The stand alone regulatory measures though may endorse some positive impact, but holistically, various measures to augment the available ground water resources with adequate level of peoples participation can only have positive impact on long term perspective in minimizing the adverse effects of ground water over exploitations.
storage by modifying the natural movement of surface water, utilizing suitable civil construction techniques to increase the seepage rate exceeding that under natural conditions of replenishment. The rainfall occurrence in India is limited to about 3 months period, ranging from about 10 to 100 rainy days. In case of Tamil Nadu, the south west monsoon period of June to September as well as North East monsoon during October to December gives rainfall around 1000 mm . The very high rainfall during the year 2005 has recorded highest intensity of 47 cm in 2 days and recorded heavy discharge of precious fresh water to sea. The estimated quantum of 15 months water supply to Chennai was lost to sea. Such surplus run off has to be effectively harvested and put to beneficial use by creating adequate surface storage and recharge to ground water structures. The quantum of water that can be stored in the sub-surface depends on the aquifer conditions and prevailing water level. The rate of infiltration to sub-surface is slow and at many pockets, particularly when torrential rain occurs, the same has to be stored in surface and then allowed to percolate into the ground with proper structures. The natural recharge is restricted to rainy season only. The artificial recharge techniques aim at increasing the recharge period in the post-monsoon for about 3 months to provide additional recharge. This would result in providing sustainability to groundwater development and also check the sea-water ingress. In hilly areas like north eastern regions and Western Ghats, even though the rainfall is high, scarcity of water is felt in post-monsoon season. Due to steep gradients, a large quantity of water flows out to low lying areas as surface runoff. Springs are the major source of water in hilly areas which gets depleted after monsoon. There is a need to provide sustainability to these springs. Small surface storages above the spring level are effective in providing additional recharge and sustain the spring flow for a longer period. Central Ground Water Board, under Ministry of Water Resources, Govt. of India, has played a crucial role in initiating artificial recharge in the country and propagating the message to State Governments and public through mass awareness programmes, trainings, seminars and utilizing electronic media. For success of this programme the importance of scientific approach cannot be underrated. Necessary literature in the form of Manual, guides etc. on artificial recharge to groundwater 80
were issued which include detailed technical aspects of site selection for different types of artificial recharge structures, their suitability to various hydrogeological set ups and climatic conditions etc. Under Central Sector Scheme, financial assistance was rendered to State Government & Non Governmental Organizations to take up construction of artificial recharge structures to augment recharge to groundwater systems. The criteria for selection of sites for artificial recharge structures were as follows. (i) Need for artificial recharge structures, indicated by declining water level trends or need for improvement of water quality by way of dilution Scope for artificial recharge, indicated by available uncommitted surplus run off taking into consideration the capacity of existing structures and the ability of groundwater system to accept the recharge and Economic viability of the scheme
(ii)
(iii)
(vi) (vii)
depth to water level and chemical quality of ground water. (ii) Availability of source water, assessed in terms of non-committed surplus monsoon run-off. (iii )Area contributing run-off like area available, land use pattern etc. (iv) Hydrometeorological characters like rainfall pattern, its duration and intensity The implementation of the recharge schemes at point will have impact to limited extent in the radius of 100 to 750m only. The availability of suitable site for the larger size recharge structures is the main constrain reported in many areas. The micro-watershed level studies and recharge program is essential to make the effective change in the ground water regime in terms of quantity and quality of water. The artificial recharge practices can be grouped into two categories, namely , surface and sub-surface practices as listed in Table-1 . The rain water harvesting is the easiest way of improving our
SUB-SURFACE PRACTICES Dug Well Recharge Recharge Shaft/Trench Injection Well (i) Gravity Head (ii) Pressure Injection Water Conservation Structures Sub Surface Dykes Ground Water Dams
II. Storage in sub- surface (aquifers) Recharge pit Recharge pit with bore hole Recharge pit with tube well Recharge trench Recharge trench with bore hole Recharge trench with tube well Existing Bore well with pre cast filters Existing Bore well with settling pit and filtering pit Existing Tube well with pre cast filters Existing Bore well with settling pit and filtering pit Existing dug well with pre cast filters Existing dug well with settling pit and filtering pit (i) (ii) (iii) (iv) (v)
B. OPEN SPACE I. Storage in sub-surface (aquifers) Temple Tanks Temple tanks with recharge shaft Percolation ponds Percolation ponds Percolation ponds with recharge shaft
81
water resources which is having two types of approach namely, rooftop harvesting and open space methods as listed in Table-2
existing wells and the increases in the area cropped were collected from the farmers and this data was used to quantify the benefits due to construction of the structure. The background information on hydrogeology and hydrological particulars of each site along with the impact assessment are given in succeeding sections.
of rain water collected from the open area in the CLRI campus with measuring rod is shown in Fig-2.
Impact Assessment
In order to study the impact of constructed percolation ponds on ground water regime, a piezometer was constructed inside the CLRI campus and DWLR was also installed. The impact can be either quantified in terms of rise in water level or reduction in the demand-
cu.m and the quantum harvested by the percolation ponds during Northeast monsoon has been computed as 11550 cu.m. the estimated evaporation losses is 937.50 cu.m and net ground water recharge is 10612.5 cu.m.
supply gap. The hydrographs (DWLR) showing the changes in water level are shown in Fig.3.
The existing irrigation tank is having thick cover of silt and clay and the recharge to ground water is slow. Desilting of two tanks in Gangavalli block through PWD increased the net storage and hence recharge to ground water. Another 39 structures like check dam, percolation pond with recharge shaft/bore is constructed in scientifically selected sites to have improvement in regional ground water level in the watershed. Specific designs for recharging deeper fractures zones, which are
exploited by number of bore wells resulting in complete desaturation of fractures at faster rate than the natural
recharge, are devised and implemented. The impact of the structures in ground water regime is evaluated by monitoring the water levels in a network of existing irrigation wells and also the increase in crop productivity by sustained ground water resources is noticed. The monitoring of the total impact in the water shed with the recharge structures are made and analysed. The estimated increase in ground water storage varies from structure to structure depending on the water spread area, number of days of water storage and rate of infiltration. The run off generated from the catchment from the rainfall and local hydrogeological condition like depth to water level and thickness of aquifer and extraction pattern of ground water by dug wells and bore wells are playing important role in the water storage in structure. In fact, the recharge structures will be more effective if its water retention period is short and percolation rate is high. The number of fillings and its percolation is the controlling factor in many of the structures in which the rain fall run off is being collected. Only few rainfall days is seen with higher intensity of more than 20 mm to generate required run off to fill the water spread area and in the study area good rain fall occurs only in 10-20 days from which, the volume of water equal to 3 to 5 full storage of percolation ponds and check dams is estimated as potential addition to ground water storage. The check dams in major stream will surplus after full storage level and continuous flow in streams are limited to 30 days. The rate of infiltration is found to be low in many check dam sites and percolation ponds due to silt deposit with time. The experimental filter bed with recharge bore in check dam and percolation pond has shown good result and a small percolation pond with recharge bore ( Fig-7) has indicated the impact in more than 2 km down slope and the faster infiltration through fractures made it feasible for total recharge to 84
evaporation.
The unit cost per cubic meter of additional ground water storage created is calculated from the estimated life of structure as 20 years and the present construction cost which is low for the percolation ponds with bore well and desilting of existing tanks which is around Rs 1.5 per cu.m. It is very high for the check dams in the order of Rs 10 to 15 / cu.m and will be uneconomical when flash floods in streams totally wash the structure or create bank erosion as noticed in Gangavalli in November 2007. The maintenance of the structures is very crucial for the continuous benefit and silting of recharge bore wells and vandalism on the structures by miscreants for vested interest are also to be tackled properly.
The Chennai coastal aquifer system is prone for sea water ingress and such quality threat needs proper recharge program. Tiruvanmiyur area is one such coastal aquifer system which is over exploited and the regulation on transporting water from this area has marginally reduced the stress but local increase in population and construction of more wells and bore wells resulted
ment with people participation Experience sharing in replication in similar recharge programmes The recommended recharge well designs by CGWB for implementation in Tamil Nadu is given in Fig. 9. The recommended dimensions of the recharge pit of 2x2x2 m at a safe distance from well may be made flexible to suit the area of water collection and rainfall intensity depending on land holding and its positions with local terrain condition (morphology). The larger collection pit for area with more catchment / land to be used for diverting surplus run off. Clayey soil will
Fig. 8.
in lowering of water table. A well planned battery of recharge tube wells is recommended for such case and the improved recharge well design is given in fig-8.
have more run off than other area. The rate of likely collection of water depends on the field condition and about 20 to 40 % of the rainfall when it exceeds 10 mm is expected to generate over land flow. It is estimated that a rain fall of 50 mm will generate a flow of 80,000 liters in one acre of land with more sand and loam. It will be as high as 140,000 liters in case of clay covered area. The rapid sand filter proposed can convey 20,000 liters per hour and the time required will vary from 4 to 7 hours . The rise in water level will vary from 4 to 7 meters for 5m dia. well and in the absence of weathering, the dissipation will be minimum. The inflow of the water from well to aquifer depends on the nature of weathering. Thus dimensions of collection pit and filter media and well will control the inflow and rise in the water level of the well . Regulatory measures like silt trap, diversion channel for excess collection, protection to motor, parapet of well are essential.
can improve the quantum of water available for irrigation and also improve the water quality. The innovative techniques practiced in the country as well as in other parts of the globe needs proper evaluation and local site specific design has to be identified and implemented. The impounding of rain water in surface in check dams, percolation ponds, lakes and reservoirs over years has given us valuable information on the cost benefit and socio economic conditions. The studies at microwatershed level by number of agencies are to be properly documented and shared with the local community and all stake holders. The experience of CGWB in Gangavall block, Salem district has shown the effective recharge of ground water by providing bore wells with filter beds in the check dams and percolation ponds . The quality improvement in irrigation wells downstream side of the tank with recharge well at Virudunagar is the success story of increase in ground water recharge coupled with quality improvement. The dug well recharge scheme is implemented jointly by state and Central government in 7 states including 232 overexploited, critical and semi-critical blocks in Tamil Nadu by direct subsidy of Rs 4000 to Marginal and Small farmers and Rs 2000 to other farmers will increase the point recharge structures in each micro water shed and improve the ground water potential in large scale. The rain fed areas need supplementary irrigation from ground water to improve the crop productivity. The limited ground water potential in the dry lands can also be effectively harnessed and adopting the modern irrigation practices like sprinklers etc will save the crops from failure of rains in critical period of water needs. The artificial recharge structures by integrated scientific methods will improve the ground water system and even in poor ground water potential areas, the conjunctive use of surface and ground water will improve the soil moisture availability to the crops.
Conclusions
Though a major headway in governments initiatives has been made for broad identification of nationwide feasible recharge worthy areas vis a vis design consideration of ground water structures in diversified hydrogeological environments through experimental studies, efficacy of such technology needs to be replicated at grass root level for other areas on micro level considerations. The need for artificial recharge to ground water in Tamil Nadu is needless to be emphasized. The area suitable for recharge depends on the prevailing water level and water quality as well as local natural recharge conditions. The unfavorable situation is prevalent in high grounds of hard rock areas and deeper aquifers of coastal zone. The priority areas are the locations covered by black soil like Virudunagar, Coimbatore, Ramanathapuram districts and 142 over exploited blocks and 33 critical blocks spread over the state. The deeper aquifers in Cuddalore, Oratanadu aquifer in Tanjore and Pudukottai districts, Tiruvadanai aquifer in Ramanathapuram and Sivagangai districts and Udankudi aquifer in Tuticorin district needs major recharge tube well program to match the ongoing ground water development in these areas. There is also need to further step up the awareness activities and capacity building programme at grass root level with active peoples participation to promote rain water harvesting in the country. Modernization of tanks in brackish zone area like Vadipatti with recharge wells 86
Acknowledgements
The author expresses his sincere thanks to Shri B.M.Jha, Chairman, CGWB, Faridabad for his encouragement and permission to present this paper. The author is also grateful to Dr S.C.Dhiman, Member (ED&MM) and Shri A.R.Bhaisare, Regional Director (HQ) for their constant encouragement.
References
CGWB. 2007 : Hydrogeological condition of Neyveli basin, Tamil Nadu, Unpub. Report. CGWB. 1998 : Ground water exploration in Tamil nadu and U.T. of Pondicherry as on 31.03.1996, Unpub. report of CGWB. 255p. CGWB, 2007 : Manual on artificial recharge of ground water, CGWB Technical series, 198 P.
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11
Potential of Water Harvesting as a Tool for Drought Mitigation
S. Mohan
Introduction
Water is one of the most important natural resource and is vital for all living organism and major ecosystems, as well as human health, food production and economic development of a nation. Due to increasing human population, use of water for various purposes such as, domestic, industrial development, hydropower generation, agriculture, recreation and environmental services has increased considerably over time. Water table in various states of India has gone down due to recurrent droughts, deforestation and unsustainable utilization of water resources. Therefore, the availability of safe drinking water for rural as well as urban habitation has become a major issue and challenge to the government. In India, the per capita average annual freshwater availability has been reduced from 5177 cubic meters from 1951 to 1820 cubic meters in 2001 and it is estimated to further come down to 1341 cubic meters in 2025 and 1140 cubic meters in 2050 (Ministry of Water Resources, GOI, 2003). The main source of freshwater in India is the rainfall including the snowfall at the higher altitude in Himalayan region. During the 88
previous century, the Indian arid zone experienced agricultural drought in one part or the other during 33 to 46 years which suggests a drought once in three years to alternate year. Often drought persists continuously for 3 to 6 years as prolonged drought faced by this region during 190305, 1957-60 1966-71,1984-87 and 19972000. Such prolonged droughts put tremendous stress on natural resources arid lead to severe scarcity of food, fodder and water. Droughts impose a serious threat to agricultural production and off-farm economic activities in the affected region. In China, over 50 million tons of agricultural production was lost due to drought of 2000. The monetary losses in Iran during extensive 19992000 droughts were estimated at US$ 3500 million. In India, severe droughts affecting more than 40% of the countrys geographical area occurred 6 times since 1918 and during pre-Green revolution period, losses in food grain production due to drought used to be as high as 25% of total produce. In southwest Asia as a region, more than 100 million people get affected during extensive droughts.
The ability of the local communities and governments in developing countries and international relief agencies to deal with droughts is constrained by the absence of reliable data and tools, information networks and the professional and institutional capacities. The important shift is necessary in drought management policies in general a shift form contingent drought relief to drought preparedness. Water harvesting and conservation measures should be seen in this context of proactive drought management approach as a measure of risk control.
change from area to area. Meteorological Droughts are normally induced by natural causes. Several types of weather changes can alter the normal rainfall pattern in an area and cause drought. Water that evaporates from the ocean is brought inland by the wind to the regions where it is needed. Droughts can also occur when air currents do not flow their normal pattern or cycle and do not bring clouds to the area that requires rainfall.
Agricultural Drought
Agricultural drought mainly effects food production and farming. Agricultural drought and precipitation shortages bring soil water deficits, reduced ground water or reservoir levels, and so on. Deficient topsoil moisture at planting may stop germination, leading to low plant populations.
Drought
Drought is a long period with no rain or with less rainfall than normal for a given area. Drought usually originates from a deficiency of precipitation (rainfall) over an extended period of time, resulting in water shortage for some activity or group. It may last for a few months or in some cases many years. Also, drought is a normal, recurrent feature of climate, and not a rare or sudden event. It can lead to an acute shortage of water, which is caused by deficiency of surface and subsurface water. Drought is a recurring natural climatic event, which stems from the lack of precipitation over an extended period of time from a season to several years. It is considered to be the most complex, but least understood natural hazard, affecting more people than any other hazard (Hagman, 1984). Being normal feature of climate, its recurrence is inevitable. It occurs in all geographical regions, but its impacts and frequency are more pronounced in arid and semi-arid regions (e.g. Baluchistan and Sindh provinces in Pakistan; western and southern lowlands of Afghanistan; parts of Rajasthan and Gujarat states in India; large parts in Iran, China, Australia and sub-Saharan Africa). Drought extremity is frequently characterized according to the deficiency of rainfall. In India, a severe drought is defined as the condition in which more than 51 per cent of rainfall deficiency prevails in more than 20 per cent of the geographical area under study. Every drought is a meteorological drought, but definitions of various droughts are mainly centered around the demand and supply of water for different sectors. The following are the typical classification of droughts.
Hydrological Drought
Hydrological drought is associated with the effects of periods of precipitation shortages on water supply. Water in hydrologic storage systems such as reservoirs and rivers are often used for multiple purposes such as flood control, irrigation, recreation, navigation, hydropower, and wildlife habitat. Competition for water in these storage systems escalates during drought and conflicts between water users increase significantly.
Socioeconomic Drought
Socioeconomic drought occurs when the demand for an economic good exceeds supply as a result of a weather-related shortfall in water supply. The supply of many economic goods, such as water, forage, food grains, fish, and hydroelectric power, depends on weather. Due to variability of climate, water supply is sufficient in some years but not satisfactory to meet human and environmental needs in other years. The demand for economic goods is increasing as a result of increasing population. Supply may also increase because of improved production efficiency and technology. The major causes of agricultural droughts in the Indian and zone are its geographic location not favouring abundant monsoon rainfall, poor quality and excessive depth of groundwater limiting its use for irrigation, absence of perennial rivers and forests, poor water holding capacity of soils, arid huge drawl of limited groundwater resources. Because of lack of substantial irrigation facilities, the agriculture is mostly dependent on rainfall. The increased pressure of both human (400%) and livestock (127%) population during 89
Meteorological Drought
Meteorological drought is the amount of dryness and the duration of the dry period. Atmospheric conditions that result in deficiencies of precipitation
twentieth century has put tremendous pressure on land, and surface and groundwater resources. Therefore, the impact of drought is felt much more severely in the arid region compared to other parts of the country. As the water storage is dependent on the scanty and erratic rainfall, the duration of availability of water in surface water resources is reduced significantly in drought years. In drought affected areas, the groundwater table is declining @0.2 to 0.4 m/annum in almost threefourth of the region, consequently shallow wells dry up during droughts and deep wells become deeper. Also the quality of groundwater deteriorates and sometimes the concentration of undesirable substances such as fluoride and nitrate increase to harmful/toxic levels. Grazing herds of animals quickly remove the scanty grass cover that come up with meagre rainfall, thus aggravating the problems of soil erosion and desertification. Widespread crop failures lead to acute shortage of food and fodder. Both human and livestock suffer from malnutrition and consequently become victim of host of diseases. As most of the people of this region depend on agriculture and pastoralism, drought leads to decline in income and employment opportunities. Large-scale migration with livestock or in search of employment is a common feature during prolonged droughts. The effects of droughts may be categorized in terms of Economic, Environmental, or Social as listed below.