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Coastal Water Resource Use for Higher Productivity: Participatory Research for Increasing Cropping Intensity in Bangladesh.

M. K. Mondal
Bangladesh Rice Research Institute, Gazipur, Bangladesh.

S. K. Adhikary
Khulna University, Khulna, Bangladesh

M. M. Islam
Khulna University, Khulna, Bangladesh

P. K. Majumber
Department of Agricultural Extension, Khulna, Bangladesh.

M. H. K. Choudhury
Proshika Monobik Unnyan Kendra, Dhaka, Bangladesh.

A. M. Chasi
HEED-Bangladesh, Dhaka, Bangladesh.

S. P. Ritu
Bangladesh Rice Research Institute, Gazipur, Bangladesh.

T. P. Tuong
Crop, Soil and Water Sciences Division, International Rice Research Institute, Metro Manila, Philippines.

Abstract/ Executive Summary:

In Bangladesh, about 1.0 million ha of coastal saline soils have been mono-cropped with low-yielding, traditional rice varieties during the monsoon season from June to December. Most of these lands remain fallow in the dry season because of high soil salinity and the lack of good-quality irrigation water. This research was conducted with farmers' participation to test the hypothesis that a combination of on-farm storage of surface water, to prolong freshwater availability beyond the end of the rainy season, together with the proper selection of rice varieties, can increase cropping intensity and productivity of the area. Selected farmers and local leaders were involved in the whole process, from designing the new cropping systems to managing, testing and evaluation. In the wet season, the traditional rice varieties were replaced by short-duration, high-yielding varieties (HYV), which can be harvested earlier, about 1.5 months before traditional varieties. This opened up opportunities for early establishment (in mid November) of short-during HYV of rice during the dry season. River water was directly used for irrigation of the dry-season crop up to mid-February. Beyond this time, river water became too saline for irrigation purposes. Before it became too saline, river water was taken in through sluices in the first week of February and conserved in on-farm canal networks. The stored water was used to irrigate rice from mid-February to the end of March. The new cropping system increased annual rice yield by two to threefold and farmers profited by 1.5 to 2.0 fold compared to the farmers' traditional system, and with no apparent negative effect on the environment. The technology has been taken up at a fast pace, indicating that farmers preferred it to shrimp farming. Principles of the technology can be applied to other monsoon, deltaic coastal areas.

Keywords: Coastal zone, Short duration rice, River water conservation, Water salinity, Rice productivity

Location: Kismat Fultala,Batiaghata Upazila,Khulna,Bangladesh.

Start Date: 00-05-2002

End Date: 00-04-2004

Program Area: Farming System

Commodity: Water productivity

Objectives:

Participatory Research for Increasing Cropping Intensity in the Coastal Zone of Bangladesh.

Methodology:

The study was carried out at Kismat Fultala village under Batiaghata Upazila, Khulna district. The site has many typical characteristics of the agricultural land of the south-western coastal zone of the country. The area has two distinct seasons: a rainy season from June to October and a dry season from November to May. The area of the present study lies on the banks of the Kazibachha River. The river has a diurnal tidal regime. During flood tide, the water level could be 1-3m higher than the land surface, thus offering opportunities for gravity irrigation in both the wet and dry seasons, provided the salinity level is not too high. Water of the river is fresh most of the time during the rainy season, with an average electrical conductivity mostly below 1.0 dS/m from July to December and below 4.0 dS/m from mid January to mid-February. However, the average monthly salinity of the river water can reach a maximum of about 20 dS/m at the end of the dry season, and this high salinity level makes the river water unsuitable for irrigation during March to June. A new cropping system with a rainfed rice crop during the wet season and an additional irrigated rice crop during the dry season was conceptualized to increase cropping intensity of the study area. The new cropping pattern made use of two principal components described below. i) An innovative water management strategy. Rice cultivation in the area after October needs irrigation water. River water is suitable for irrigation until mid-February. To extend irrigation water availability beyond mid-February, river water can be taken into and stored in the on-farm canal network before the water becomes too saline. The stored water can be used to irrigate the dry season rice until the harvest. ii) Use of short-duration HYV of rice. the use of short-during varieties is critical for increasing the cropping intensity of rainfed lowland rice. It was perceived that HYV rice in the wet season not only gave higher yields but also reduced the growth span of wet season rice compared to traditional varieties, and facilitated the advancement of dry-season rice establishment. Early establishment and the use of short-duration HYV in the dry season allowed the crop to be harvested before water salinity reached damaging levels in April and May. In the study area transplanted dry-season rice in February and used river water for irrigation at the end of the cropping season. This resulted in total crop failure because the river water was too saline.

A 3.5 ha area, provided with a sluice gate at the south and a flash gate at the north, was selected for this participatory experiment. The area was divided among 29 participating farmers. In the 2002 wet season, 15 HYV rice varieties developed by BRRI and in wet season of 2003, an advanced line BR6110 were selected for experimentation. Water stored in the canal was used to irrigate rice from mid-February to the end of March with the help of a low lift pump. Water salinity of the Kazibachha River was measured daily as far as 500 m north of the intake sluice of the study site during ebb( daily low tide) and flood tide using a portable electrical conductivity meter. Top soil salinity of the site was measured at 15 days interval in the dry season and at 30 days intervals in the wet season from May 2002 to April 2004. At each sampling time,17 soil samples were taken randomly from the 0-15 cm soil layer of the experimental field to make a composite sample. Areas of 5 m² each, from four different corners and one from the middle of the plot, were harvested from seven to 16 farmers fields to estimate grain yield, and values were later adjusted to 14% moisture content.

Source of Information: CAB international 2006. Environment and Livelihoods in TRopical Coastal Zones (eds C.T.Hoanh,T.P.Tuong,J.W.Gowing and B.Hardy)

Article Link (Online Journal):

Funding Source:

Total Budget (Tk.) :

Achievement/Findings:

The study showed that, soil salinity during the wet season was low enough to grow modern rice varieties, even if they are not specifically bred for salt tolerance. In addition, HYV rice can be grown in the dry season using river water stored in on-farm canal networks before it becomes too saline. The stored water was used for irrigating rice in the later part of the dry season. The modified water management and cropping practices increased the productivity of the coastal saline rice lands and farmers' income by 50-100% over the traditional farmer's practice. The study though focused on a particular coastal area of Bangladesh, but the principle of the technology can be applied to any part of the coastal area of Bangladesh and elsewhere in tropical deltas with similar characteristics.

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