Laserfiche WebLink
<br />1 gation is the key to this development. In humid areas, it'takes away <br /> <br />2 the risks so that investment can be made in fertilizer and other inputs. <br /> <br />3 And it extends modern production techniques to areas with less rainfall. <br /> <br />4 Both of these approaches will be necessary in other countries also. <br /> <br />< <br />5 But, a key to their success will be the development ~f irrigation sys- <br /> <br />6 tems that give individual farmers control over their water supply. A <br /> <br />7 farmer's capability of withholding water during harvest or land prepara- <br /> <br />8 tion and applying it precisely when it is needed to germinate a new crop <br /> <br />9 can make a big difference. Irrigation timing is crucial for multiple <br /> <br />10 cropping. A few days can often mean the difference between growing an <br /> <br />11 additional crop and having to allow the field to lie idle for a season. <br /> <br />12 Most of our present full-scale irrigation systems do not give the <br /> <br />13 farmer the water control he needs. Too often, large irrigation projects <br />I <br /> <br />14 consist of spectacular structures and canals that end at main outlets <br /> <br />15 serving 40 to 200 hectares. The individual farmer is usually denied <br /> <br />16 the facilities for effective water control, and is forced to resort to <br /> <br />17 taking water whenever it is available, whether he needs it.or not. In <br /> <br />18 attempting to insure against the prospect of not having sufficient water <br /> <br />19 "hen he does need it, he often applies more than the soil will hold. <br /> <br />20 The extra water percolates below the root~one to the water table. Not <br /> <br />21 only does this waste water, but it also causes extremely serious damage. <br /> <br />22 In the 10 million hectares irrigated in the Indus Plain, for example, <br /> <br />23 deep percolation and canal seepage have caused the wate~ table to rise <br /> <br />24 to within 3 meters of the surface in over half the area. Waterlogging <br /> <br />25 and salinity are severe in well over 1 million hectares. Trr2 problem is <br /> <br />26 worsening, and threatens to eliminate agriculture in large areas if the <br /> <br /> <br />,'," C '7." <br />Egypt, "hich \prcAi'u()~all its <br /> <br />27 pace of remedial steps is not quickened. <br />