The Present Condition and Problem of Agricultural Water Management in the Northern Part of Taklamakan Desert

Abstract

Irrigation is indispensable to guarantee the agricultural production in arid regions like the Tarim Basin. In this region, administrators and farmers have reclaimed waste land such as gravel and sandy desert, and have attempted agricultural development by securing the water resources. But the poor plan has resulted in a conflict between agricultural land reclamation and water resource development this has resulted in an acute shortage of water in this region. Also, this condition has caused ecological damage. In this paper, problems about agricultural water use were discussed in relation to the real conditions of the water resource utilities and farmers activities. Most of the data on water use and management were provided by the Xayar Water Resource Agency. Interviews with representatives of the branch offices of the agency and farmers were conducted between 2003 and 2009. It was shown that water supply volume per unit of the farmland is tending to decrease because of the changed relations between quantities of intake from the river and the cultivated area during the past ten years. It is clear that the water supply from the river has decreased greatly in the region where irrigation by groundwater pumping had been introduced. Water-saving irrigation is being introduced to overcome water shortages and create new water resources. Though it seems water resources can be effectively saved in this way, improper management will limit effective irrigation in farmland where the water saving irrigation was introduced. In particular, consideration needs to be given to the different water management practices among landowners and farmers. It is there are many problems: lack of adequate management systems; lack of training systems for facilities maintenance. These need to be overcome to enable water saving irrigation to be introduced to the entire region.