SALINE WATER GROUP Recommendations

1
SALINE WATER GROUPRecommendations

• Saline water is a potential source of irrigation
  and freshwater saving in irrigated agriculture.
• Current Research on salt tolerance of various
  crops, water, soil and crop management,
  irrigation and drainage methods and the reuse of
  drainage effluents, will enhance and increase its
  potential use for irrigation.
• Management of salinity is a multidimensional
  problem require the understanding of the genesis,
  and the development of appropriate technology
  which is socially acceptable and economically
  viable.
• Focus should be directed towards the setup of new
  crop/water management strategies that facilitate
  the use of saline water for irrigation and
  minimizing the negative impacts on soil
  productivity, yield production and the
  environment.
• Monitoring should be for both water quantities
  and qualities, as well as soils salinity
• Establishing Pilot projects in saline shallow
  groundwater areas to evaluate efficacy of
  localized water application methods.

2
SALINE WATER GROUPRecommendations

• Blending/mixing strategy of saline water with
  fresh water may not be appropriate under certain
  condition. More crop production can be achieved
  by using the fresh and saline water alternatively
  (separately).
• Sustainable and safe use of saline water for
  irrigation requires

3
SALINE WATER GROUPRecommendations

• An integrated approach is needed to conserve
  water and prevent soil Stalinization and water
  logging while protecting the environment and
  ecology.
• Promotion of conjunctive use of saline
  groundwater and surface water to lower water
  table levels.
• Developing and implementing new technologies and
  management practices.
• Increasing irrigation efficiency by the adoption
  of appropriate management strategies, systems and
  practices and through education and training.
• Introduction of the participatory approach in
  saline irrigation practices and management.
  Farmers participation and involvement in
  planning and management is a key factor for a
  successful application of saline water for
  irrigation.

4
SALINE WATER GROUPRecommendations

• There is no universal approach to achieve
  salinity control in irrigated agriculture. It
  varies from country to another. It depends on
  economic, climatic, social and hydro-geological
  conditions.
• Further Research is needed to close the gaps in
  the following areas
• Integrated management of water of different
  qualities at farm level.
• Developing and use of mathematical models such as
  SALTMED model (Freely available at
  http//www.ceh-wallingford.ac.uk/research/cairowor
  kshop) to relate crop yield to irrigation
  management under saline conditions. Tested models
  can be useful tools to predict long term impact
  of using saline water without conducting
  expensive field experiments.
• The trade-off between provision of full drainage
  and drainage volume reduction
• The incorporation of salinity into groundwater
  flow models to predict the development of not
  only water logging but also of soil water
  salinity. Regional agro-hydro-salinity models
  should be of immense value in planning
  appropriate water management strategies

5
SALINE WATER GROUPRecommendations

• Activating the role of policies and institutions
  in creating demand for technology.
• Conducting a comprehensive and coordinated
  research on benefits and hazards of the use of
  saline water for irrigation. This requires
• formulation of networks
• conducting and fostering a comprehensive
  multi-disciplinary basic and applied research
  programmes
• Providing facilities for research workers and
  improving the Institutional Capacity Building.

6
Integrated Water, Crop Field Management
Participatory Management
Non-Conventional Water Resources
Irrigation systems
Water Use Efficiency
7
Management of Saline Water