Technological innovations have played a crucial role in enhancing Climate Smart Agriculture and water management. Climate Smart Agriculture refers to the use of sustainable agricultural practices that increase productivity, enhance resilience, and reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Water management, on the other hand, involves the efficient use of water resources to meet the needs of agriculture while conserving water resources.

Here are some ways in which technological innovations have enhanced Climate Smart Agriculture and water management:

1. Precision agriculture: Precision agriculture involves the use of technology such as GPS, sensors, and drones to optimize crop yields while minimizing inputs such as water, fertilizer, and pesticides. This technology enables farmers to apply inputs only where they are needed, reducing waste and conserving resources.

2. Climate data analysis: Climate data analysis involves the use of climate models and satellite imagery to analyze weather patterns and predict weather events. This information can be used to inform agricultural practices such as planting and harvesting times, irrigation scheduling, and crop selection.

3. Water-efficient irrigation systems: Water-efficient irrigation systems such as drip irrigation and sprinkler systems can significantly reduce water usage in agriculture. These systems deliver water directly to plant roots, reducing evaporation and runoff.

4. Soil moisture sensors: Soil moisture sensors can be used to monitor soil moisture levels and optimize irrigation scheduling. This technology helps farmers avoid over-irrigation, which can lead to water waste and soil erosion.

5. Remote sensing: Remote sensing involves the use of satellites to monitor crop health, soil moisture levels, and weather patterns. This information can be used to optimize agricultural practices and improve water management.

In conclusion, technological innovations have revolutionized Climate Smart Agriculture and water management by enabling farmers to optimize resource usage while reducing environmental impact. These innovations have the potential to significantly increase agricultural productivity while conserving water resources for future generations.

Technological innovations will increase the yield and effect og crop

Adaptation of a Quota system as a strategy to face future drought situations in managing water in major reservoirs

Background

World is now marching towards a Global Warming Situation. Drought situations now being occurred in the Dry Zone of Sri Lanka is a good indicator demonstrating future disasters possible due to Global Warming. Unfortunately, though those natural disasters are beyond the control of the government, it has to bear the whole responsibility of crop damage due to lack of rainfall. The main objective of this article is to explain a strategy for the efficient use of already available water resources with community participation to address such future issues. The author expects the following information would be a useful guide, for managers in large-scale Irrigation Projects to get ready in advance to tackle such management issues. For example, though the approach recommended below was recommended as the priority item in the Feasibility Study done to source funding for the rehabilitation of the Canal Network in Uda Walawe Right Bank area, the attention of implementation agencies as well as Funding Sources had been focused only to repair the Hardware part of Main Canal. I hope the content of this article would be an eye-opener for those agencies also.

Strategy

This approach is somewhat similar to Quick Response (QR) system recently used to address Fuel Shortage in Sri Lanka. In this case, it is water for agriculture instead of fuels for vehicles. The only difference is that there is no price tag like imported fuel. This approach was adopted in Mahaweli Areas from 1980 to about 2006. When QR for the system was adapted for water management, it was named as Water Quota (WQ). The motivation factor used to save the limited water availability in main reservoirs in WQ approach was the constantly updated Volumetric Awareness among the Farmers about the water level in the main reservoirs such as Kala Wewa. Explained below how that approach was introduced under Kala Wewa Reservoir in 2000 to address droughts.

Case study on Water Quota (WQ) approach

In a typical Irrigation Project like Kala Wewa, there are about 40 Distributary Canals (DCs). originating from its Main Canal about 40 KM long. Each DC feed about 300 farmers. Main objective of the WQ approach was to create a constantly updated Volumetric Awareness among Farmer Organizations under each Distributary Canal (DCFOs), about their water allocation available in the main reservoir which is located far away from their farms. For updating that data among about 12,000 Farmers, a display boards were fixed along the Main Canals (Fig 1) at the head of each Distributary Canals (DCs). For example, under a project called Mahaweli Restructuring & Rehabilitation Project (MRRP) implemented in 2000 in Kala Wewa area, about 40 such Display Boards were fixed at the head of each Distributary canal. Each DC outlet was calibrated to measure water volume issued from the Main Canal and the Leaders of each DCFO was trained to maintain individual water accounts on a volume basis, in order to avoid conflicts among the DCFOs.

Because of this constantly updated volumetric awareness, each Distributary Canal Farmer Organization (DCFOs) would know how many Cubic Meters of water would be available in the main reservoir for the rest of the cultivation season at any time. As a result of this awareness, DCFOs got motivated to save water, as groups. Later that approach was further sophisticated at pilot scale in the Maduru Oya area using Modern communication Technologies such as SMS for regular updating the balance quota allocated in the main reservoir to each DCFOs[1].

The outcome of the WQ approach launched in 2000 in Kala Wewa area

As a result of practicing the WQ approach, the farmers got motivated to save water by adopting efficient On-Farm Irrigation water management strategies such as the construction of dug wells to capture groundwater and anicuts to capture runoff water from their farms. Farmers also tend to enhance the tree cover in their homestead areas as a strategy to replenish groundwater aquifer. Locally available intermittent rainfalls were also used as a supplementary source by the farmers as a strategy save their water quota. Farmers were also motivated to adopt low-water consuming high-value crops by diverting from Rice only cultivation. For example, after introducing WQ approach, the cropping intensity in System H was increased up to 165%[2]. According to a World Bank report (2003), WQ was recognized as the best water management approach suitable for countries in South Asia[3]. That approach was also accepted by IESL/IWMI as the best water management approach suitable for large-scale irrigation culture in Sri Lanka[4]. Latter same approach was duplicated in other Mahaweli Areas also.

[1] https://ascelibrary.org/doi/10.1061/9780784413548.174

[2] Bandula Gunaratna- “Pilot Water Management Study in Mahaweli System H for Improving Water Productivity by Introduction of Bulk Water Allocation Concept”-2013 WPD -PGIA University of Peradeniya.

[3] World Bank Report (2003), Aid Memoirs, MRRP Implementation Progress Review, June 2-12,2003

[4] file:///C:/Users/panap/Downloads/7080-24607-1-SM%20(61).pdf