Drainage and sustainability
Definition / description
Engineering science has long recognised the importance of drainage for sustainable agriculture. Many textbooks have been written on drainage techniques suitable for a range of hydrological and regional contexts. Their central message has been that there should be no irrigation without drainage, in order to avoid negative impacts on agricultural production and soils.
Surprisingly, this principle has often been overlooked by the international water community, which has been discussing the concept of integrated water resources management intensively for many years. In particular, while irrigation system management has undergone significant changes in some countries, drainage has frequently been excluded from consideration .
Reference: [Scheumann and Freisem, 2001]
Publications / information
- Scheumann, W. and C. Freisem, 2002:
The role of drainage for sustainable agriculture. -
Journal of Applied Irrigation Science, Vol. 37. No 1 /2002, pp. 33 - 61.
VL reprint under:
VL Irrigation & Hydrology - vl_ref_id_x_0005
Reference
- Pearce, G., Denecke, H.W., 2001:
Drainage and Sustainability. -
Issues Paper No. 3. - March 2001, International Programme for Technology and Research in Irrigation and Drainage (IPTRID), FAO, Rome, Italy. -
Heuperman, A.F., Kapoor, A.S., Denecke, H.W., 2002:
Biodrainage - Principles, Experiences and Applications. -
Knowledge Synthesis Report, No. 6 - May 2002, International Programme for Technology and Research in Irrigation and Drainage (IPTRID), FAO, Rome, Italy. - Scheumann, W. and Freisem. C., 2001:
The Forgotten Factor: Drainage - Its Role for Sustainable Agriculture. -
German Development Institute (GDI), Bonn, October 2001. -
Tanji, K.K. and Kielen, N.C., 2002:
Agricultural Drainage Water Management in Arid and Semi-Arid Areas. -
FAO Irrigation and Drainage Paper 61, Food and Agriculture Oganization of the United Nations, Rome.