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Waterlogged Area as New Horizon for Aquaculture Development: a Golden Dream to the Rural Communities of Begumgonj, Noakhali

Nani Gopal Das
Institute of Marine Sciences and Fisheries University of Chittagong, Chittagong-4331, Bangladesh

M. Shahadat Hossain
Institute of Marine Sciences and Fisheries University of Chittagong, Chittagong-4331, Bangladesh

M. Shafiqul Islam
Institute of Marine Sciences and Fisheries University of Chittagong, Chittagong-4331, Bangladesh

Abstract/ Executive Summary:

Begumgonj Upazila situated under the district of Noakhali, Bangladesh is suitable for rice cultivation during dry season, but unsuitable during rainy season due to deep waterlogged situation. Landsat TM image and thematic information were analyzed using ENVI and ArcView GIS software and were recorded 22,186 ha seasonal waterlogged areas occupied by 294 polygons that cover about 52% of the total study area. Aquaculture suitability was identified on the basis of water depth and waterlogged duration for nursing and culture of fish/prawn and indigenous brood fish rearing through the establishment of local fish sanctuary. Rapid Participatory Rural Appraisal was carried out with different stakeholder groups to find out the available resources of waterlogged areas and their importance for community livelihoods. The paddy cum prawn culture on rotational basis may be economically viable and ecologically sound in this region. This is the prime way to increase rural economy through the development of primary production sector in the waterlogged paddy lands. As a result, employment opportunity of waterlogged-area-based villagers could secure their livelihoods during rainy season and the migration tendency of rural people would be discouraged. The study advocates that the local community in the waterlogged area requires the extension and training support to utilize the dormant waterlogged resources for the improvement of socio-economic status of the rural people by promoting sustainable aquaculture

Keywords: Waterlogged area, Paddy-prawn, Livelihood, Satellite image, and Suitability classification

Location: Noakhali, Bangladesh

Start Date: 00-00-2001

End Date: 00-00-2001

Program Area: Resource Development and Management

Commodity: Aquatic animal

Objectives:

To make a full inventory of the waterlogged paddy lands and map their spatial location with suitability classification for community-based sustainable aquaculture development.

Methodology:

Data collection: Landsat TM image acquired on 14 January 2001 was used for the present study. Topographic maps at 1:10,000 scale, published by the Survey of Bangladesh and at 1:50,000 scale, published by LGED (Local Government and Engineering Department) were used for geometric correction. The Upazila maps with union boundary of Begumganj Upazila were digitized using Arc View GIS software. Geometric correction was performed with the fourth order polynomial and the error was (0.56) controlled less than one pixel (30 m) for 50 ground control points (GCP). Road joint, rail line, cross-point of small canal and road, and prominent features (e.g. bazar, school, college campus) were selected as the main GCPs in the image. Image processor for the analysis was ENVI (The Environment for Visualizing Image). Ground data were obtained by field investigation of about 85 plots, including some permanent ones. All other required data such as climatic conditions, land use, Upazila and union boundary, and demography were collected from the respective Departments. The collected data were synthesized and the useful data were extracted for this study. Satellite image classification: Map to image registration was used to create image data covering the whole area. ISODATA unsupervised classification (use of information from the image itself to identify spectral clusters, which are interpreted as classes) was performed considering minimum and maximum classes of 5-10, 10-15 and 15-20, where the 10-15 classes turned out to be useful. Supervised classifications were carried out on the basis of Region of Interest (ROIs), where the ground truth or so-called training areas (collected during field investigation) were regions of terrain with known properties or characteristics. Parallelepiped and maximum likelihood classification strategy were applied but maximum likelihood classification was found to be most useful for discriminating the category of interest. After finishing the image processing, the reference points along with the study area were chosen for ground verification. The reference points were surveyed for the ground truthing in order to collect data and compare the preliminary map to real world. The preliminary maps of the waterlogged areas were revised and finalized by using Arc View GIS software. Participatory approach: Participatory appraisal involves a series of qualitative multidisciplinary approaches to learn about local-level conditions and local peoples’ perspectives. Rapid Participatory Rural Appraisal (RRA/PRA) was carried out using field observations and community level group meetings with different stakeholder groups in the waterlogged areas from May to August 2004 in order to gather primary information and also to know the available resources of the waterlogged areas as well as their importance for community livelihoods. Direct observation prevents rapid appraisal from being misled and it often provides more valid and less costly information than other research methods. Group meetings with local communities are the important way of learning about local conditions and resources Three PRA tools e.g. the seasonal calendar, daily activities and family food analysis were chiefly employed. The seasonal calendar technique was helpful for documenting regular cyclical periods (i.e., seasonal) and significant events that occur during a year and influence the life of the community. Community members were asked questions in group meeting regarding the duration of the rainy and dry seasons, environmental conditions, land use patterns, and their activities. In cross checking among different groups, a high degree of uniformity was maintained. Nutritional adequacy of the foods and beverages consumed by the family members were assessed. It provides an opportunity to gather information on food sources, allocation, diversity and their security. The research team interviewed ten families of different unions to record the schedule and number of meals taken each day as well as the foodstuff to describe the family diet for household nutritional information. Stakeholder selection and analysis were required to find out the appropriate groups for collecting information and to reveal the relationship between their activities.

Source of Information: Bangladesh Journal of Marine Sciences and Fisheries Vol.1, No., 1: 47-62, 2009

Article Link (Online Journal):

Funding Source:

Total Budget (Tk.) :

Achievement/Findings:

In the thrust for rapid aquaculture development, management of waterlogged areas in the Begumgonj Upazila has not been paid adequate attention in the planning process due to lack of requisite data as well as resource crunch. Community based aquaculture is a suitable allied activity for small-scale producers to augment their income and to promote ecological soundness farms in waterlogged area. The paddy and prawn culture in rotational basis may be economically viable and ecologically sound in this region. Species selection is important for aquaculture development in seasonal waterlogged paddy land. The polyculture of silver carp, grass carp and prawn in waterlogged area can ensure sustainable utilization of the available natural foods that ensure good production. Excess aquatic plants may hamper the growth of prawn that can be consumed by grass carp and keep the aquatic environment favourable to prawn. Thus, the farmers can earn substantial return from both grass carp and prawn. Taking advantage of this situation it is easy to retrieve this waterlogged area for community based aquaculture.

Knowledge Management: Journal