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Water management for sustainable agricultural development of north Sinai, Egypt

Date

2009-11

Authors

El-Hassan, Abou, author
Inoue, Mitsuhiro, author
Kitamura, Yoshinobu, author
U.S. Committee on Irrigation and Drainage, publisher

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Abstract

Optimum management of the currently available limited water resources in Egypt is important for making water savings for land expansion necessary for increased food security. One of the ways for more efficient use of this water is to recycle the agricultural drainage water through either direct use or after blending it with freshwater. The study reported here is based on an assessment of the water resources and cropping patterns in the North Sinai Development Project (NSDP) area. It reassessed the availability of drainage water from the Nile Delta and freshwater resources required to meet the demand of the quantity and the quality of the of irrigation water for the entire project area. The study re-examines the crop rotations originally planned by the project planners, and, considering the recent cropping interests of local farmers and expected changes in availability and quality of the drainage water, it suggests new cropping patterns and, accordingly, the readjusted water demand for the whole NSDP area. The crop intensity in the recommended cropping pattern will be 178% as compared to 167% in the original plan. The study also examines the current policy of allocation of the newly reclaimed land to various stakeholders (big investors, small investors, and small farmers) and it concludes that as the small-holder farmers tend to manage best the newly reclaimed lands allocated to them, their share in the allocation should increase. Irrigation with Nile water and drainage water mixtures in a 2:1 proportion, instead of 1:1 as originally planned, would be desirable to support sustainable agriculture in the area.

Description

Presented at the fifth international conference on irrigation and drainage, Irrigation and drainage for food, energy and the environment on November 3-6, 2009 in Salt Lake City, Utah.

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