2006 年 1 巻 1 号 p. 6-16
The sustainable utilization of water resources has become an important national agendum in Korea. Great temporal and spatial variations of precipitation and stream flow cause frequent water shortages and floods. The water quality of rivers and lakes has been degraded significantly despite continuing investments for water quality improvement. Rapidly increasing water use has placed serious constraints on reliable water supplies because one-third of stream flow is now diverted to agricultural, domestic and industrial uses. A national survey reported that water supplies will be 1.8 million m3 short of meeting the demands by 2011. Additional water resources have to be developed and water demand controls and efficient water use need to be more extensively implemented. Basin-wide integrated flood controls are also important for sustainable development. The concept of sustainability has been incorporated into on-going efforts concerned with water related issues and policies. Presently, three-quarters of paddy fields are provided with water from irrigation systems. The Korean government has placed a high priority on sustainable water use for paddy irrigation. The concept of ‘sustainable development’ has been incorporated into many on-going national projects such as the reinforcement of existing irrigation dams, transboundary water use, automatic water management, telemetering/telecontrol systems and water quality improvement projects. Drainage improvement projects for agricultural lands have also been implemented to mitigate flood damages in paddy fields. The sustainable agriculture promotion act has improved water quality of paddy fields as well as preservation of the agricultural ecosystems. This paper presents an overview of the geography, agriculture, water resources and water uses for agricultural production in Korea. The National agenda concerned with sustainable water use is presented. The on-going efforts for sustainable use of agricultural water resources are introduced. A review of case studies on integrated water management for more efficient water use and on an irrigation reservoir water quality improvement project is given. Results of wastewater reuse for irrigation that may help restore the natural hydrologic cycle by reducing the over-exploitation of water from rivers are also presented. The roles of agro-environmental education, which include capacity building for the interdisciplinary aspects of sustainable water utilization in harmony with natural ecosystems are also discussed. The importance of accredited curricula development is stressed for future agro-environmental education. Finally, interdisciplinary research and development needs to be explored for sustainable water use in agricultural production.
