Salinization is a process of increasing concentrations of salts in soil and water. Soil salinity is the most serious agricultural problem in irrigation agriculture in Tanzania. Severe salinity can cause significantly lower yields, food insecurity, and environmental degradation. If not properly addressed, soil salinization can accelerate and potentially expand to currently unaffected irrigated agricultural land. Despite the efforts made by the government and other stakeholders, rice production in irrigated rice fields in Tanzania is still experiencing low yields. Current rice yields are between 2.5 and 4 tons/ha, which is low compared to the average rice yields reported in other countries. Salinity problems are caused by the prevailing climate characterized by high evapotranspiration, geological and geographical characteristics of the area, quality of irrigation water, and inadequate land use practices. This paper aims to review available information on the causes and effects of soil salinity on irrigated rice fields in Tanzania and to provide information on management strategies to adjust soil salinity and improve soil fertility. References from books, papers, journals, online readings, and dissertation papers from different universities and institutions were used to get information for this paper review. In this review, the various reasons that cause soil salinity in irrigated fields in Tanzania have been identified, which are the nature of rocks, poor irrigation management, and non-compliance with established irrigation regulations. Also, the effects of soil salinity in Tanzania have resulted in a decrease in yields, an increase in costs of production, poor quality of products, and water shortages for irrigation. Lastly, some recommendations identified to solve the challenges of soil salinity include setting up a local drainage system on affected land, renovating some irrigation facilities, reclaiming the affected soil with gypsum and manure, and flushing all salt-affected water with non-salt water.

Prahok (fermented fish paste) is commonly used as a side dish or condiment in Cambodian cuisine. Because of the condition of the raw material and inadequate hygiene during processing, this type of fermented fish is frequently loaded with histamine toxicity. The purpose of this study was to examine the potential histamine-producing bacteria (HPB) isolated from prahok collected from three provinces in Cambodia and to evaluate the efficacy of local lactic acid bacteria (LAB) in controlling those HPB. For HPB isolation, a modified Niven's agar was used and the bacteria species were identified using the Biolog GEN III Semi-automatic system, while histamine concentration was quantified using a colorimetric enzyme assay. Ten LAB strains from the stock collection of Laboratory Food Biotechnology, Faculty of Agro-Industry, were used to evaluate their antibacterial activities against HPB using the well diffusion method and the co-culture method, and compared to the control which involved growing HPB without LAB. As a result, five identified HPBs isolated from prahok, including Enterobacter aerogenes, Klebsiella oxytoca, Morganella morganii, Proteus penneri, and Staphylococcus xylosus, were found to produce histamine at levels of more than 200 ppm in vitro. A well diffusion and co-culture examination demonstrated that the growth of all potential HPB cultured with three LABs (Lactobacillus plantarum, Lactobacillus gasseri, and Lactococcus lactis) of a total of 10 LAB strains was inhibited compared to the control. In conclusion, because the three LABs listed above cannot create histamine, they are promising candidate LABs to apply in Prahok processing to control HPB as well as histamine levels in the final product.

The Philippines is one of the few countries in the world which was originally and thoroughly covered by rain forest. The conversion of natural forests to agricultural land uses has led to land degradation. Soil is a vital resource for human survival in that it is the medium in which most plants grow, it cleans and stores water, detoxifies pollutants, and plays a key role in the regulation of the Earth’s temperature. One of the intentions of rainforestation farming (planting of native tree species) is to regenerate soil fertility. However, the effect of native forest trees on soil fertility is still poorly understood. Hence, this study was conducted to evaluate the influence of native trees on the fertility status of the soil in Mailhi, Baybay City, Leyte, Philippines. Two adjacent sites were evaluated and sampled. These were the 22-year-old rainforestation farm and the nearby coconut plantation. At each site, a 20 m x 20 m plot for sampling purposes was established which was divided into four parts. In each part, four (4) composite soil surface samples were collected from a soil depth of 0-20 cm using a soil auger. Each of the four composite samples came from three (3) subsamples. The subsamples were mixed, and one-half kilogram was placed in properly labelled plastic bags and brought for processing and laboratory analysis. Results revealed that the rainforestation farm did not have an effect on water holding capacity and soil pH but significantly increased the organic matter and total N contents of the soil, when compared with the nearby coconut plantation. On the other hand, available P and exchangeable K were lower in the soil under native tree species compared to the coconut plantation. The results indicate that indeed, the native trees in the rainforestation site have caused important changes to the fertility status of the soils.

Climate change poses a challenge to irrigation water supply, especially in the case of the continuous flood irrigation method (CF). Alternate wetting and drying irrigation (AWD) is a method of rice cultivation widely used as a mitigation measure for water consumption, without reducing yields. To better promote AWD in areas where water scarcity occurs in the future, it is necessary to quantify the impact of AWD on growth. The objective of this study was to evaluate the impact of AWD on rice growth under AWD irrigation using logistic curves. Subsequent analysis demonstrated that by using AWD, irrigation capacity was reduced by approximately 19 %. Additionally, multiple regression analysis indicated that temperature, sunshine hours, and relative humidity had significant effects on plant growth. A growth model (RMSE = 2.98 cm to 3.82 cm) was generated by applying a logistic curve where the daily mean integrated values of meteorological data as explanatory variables and plant growth as the objective variable. Using the model, it was found that AWD increased the growth rate of the rice plant; however, rice plant growth in the initial period was lower compared to CF.

Education indicators in Sri Lanka compare well with other South Asian countries relative to economic standards. However, educational disparities between living sectors (urban, rural, individual farming, and estate) remain, and children in the estate sector face the greatest challenges in improving educational attainment. Tea is a prominent industry in the estate sector, with several common types of tea cultivation management, and the educational attainments of children whose parents work in this sector have been previously found to vary depending on the cultivation management type in which their parents are involved. This study aimed to investigate the factors that contribute to children's educational disparities, specifically by focusing on the different management types within the low-grown tea cultivation community. This study adopted a two-step mixed-method analysis. The first step examined children’s educational disparity among four living sectors across 9 tea-growing districts, using data from the Child Activity Survey 2008/09. The second step investigated educational disparities within three management types (plantation companies, private estates, and individual farming) of the tea cultivation community. Quantitative analysis employed cross-tabulation, while qualitative analysis relied on questionnaires and interviews. Six indicators of the children's environment were considered key factors influencing educational disparities, with school enrollment status as an indicator of educational attainment. The quantitative analysis revealed that children in the estate sector had the lowest school enrollment rates, particularly those belonging to private estate communities. Contrary to the widely-held belief that household income is a significant factor in educational disparities, it was not found to be statistically significant within either the estate sector or the tea cultivation community. The qualitative analysis indicated that relocation is one of the factors contributing to the low enrollment status of private estate children. It also suggested that other indicators, such as household income, are interconnected factors contributing to educational disparities.

This study investigated the uptake of minerals by moringa (Moringa oleifera Lam.) and examined the salt tolerance of moringa under different salinity treatments (0, 4, 8, and 16 dS/m). The effect of root growth on soil permeability at different salinity levels was also examined. Moringa showed significant negative effects of salinity on growth parameters at 8 dS/m. Significant growth inhibition was observed for moringa at 16 dS/m. The higher C/F ratios, calculated as (assimilated organ mass)/ (non-assimilated organ mass), in moringa in the 16 dS/m treatment may be due to the inhibition of nitrogen uptake by the roots, causing photosynthesis in the leaves to produce assimilates to sustain the body of the tree. In each moringa organ, the Na concentration increased as salinity increased. Significant differences in concentration were observed for Ca and K in leaves and Fe in stems at different salinity levels. The correlation analysis showed that only Mg and P in the branches and Fe and Mg in the stems were significantly negatively correlated with Na concentration, suggesting that increases in Na concentration cause limited inhibition of mineral uptake by moringa. A significant positive correlation was found between Na and P in the roots. It was suggested that moringa roots may have promoted growth by increasing P uptake in response to increased Na. There was a positive correlation between the length of moringa main roots and saturated hydraulic conductivity. The saturated hydraulic conductivity of the soil without moringa cultivation was 1.1 × 10^-6 cm/s, and moringa root growth increased the saturated hydraulic conductivity by two orders of magnitude (10^-4 cm/s) at 0 and 4 dS/m and by one order of magnitude (10^-5 cm/s) at 8 and 16 dS/m.

Rice is the most important staple food for feeding nearly half of the world’s population, and almost the entirety of the population of Asia. An increase in food demand leads to an increase in agricultural residues, resulting in impacts on human health and environmental consequences. The current study aimed to estimate the emission of primary and secondary fine particulate matter attributable to fertilizer from the open burning or rice straw in Cambodia in terms of country-specific characterization factors (CFs), and to estimate the human health and ecosystem impact of particulate matter formation and terrestrial acidification. Additionally, the study aimed to propose an alternative scenario to reduce the negative impact on human health and the ecosystem. Three scenarios were set to conduct the study’s assessment, including a baseline scenario representing current farmer practices, including typical fertilizer application rates and open burning of rice straw after harvest (S0); a scenario reducing fertilizer use to 60 % while still allowing open rice straw burning (S1); and a scenario with no open rice straw burning and a 60 % reduction in fertilizer use (S2). Human health damage was calculated in units of Disability Adjusted Life Year (DALY), and ecosystem impact was expressed in the units of Potentially Disappeared Fraction of species (PDF/m²/yr) presented under the scenarios. The total human health impact of S0 was 5.35E+01 DALY, S1 was 5.27E+01 DALY, and S2 was 3.75E-01 DALY, while the total ecosystem impact of S0 was 4.38E-02 (PDF/m²/yr), S1 was 3.60E-02 (PDF/m²/yr), and S2 was 4.85E-03 (PDF/m²/yr). The results of this study indicated that minimizing the use of chemical fertilizer and zero open burning of agricultural waste can reduce the number of pollutants that affects human health and ecosystem soil acidification. It showed that reducing burning straw waste can reduce the toxins that affect human health by 99 % and reduce the increase of soil acidity by 94 %.

Cheung Ek Lake is the biggest wastewater lake inside Phnom Penh City and has massive water and nutrient inflow. Around 70 % of rain runoff and wastewater in Phnom Penh flows into Cheung Ek Lake through three main canals: Trabek Canal, Stung Meanchey Canal, and Lou Pram Canal, before discharging into the Bassac River. Since 2008, the rapid urbanization of the satellite city in Phnom Penh has decreased the area of the lake and contributed to the degradation of the lake's water quality. Cheung Ek Lake performs many functions such as flood control, natural wastewater treatment, and provision of water for vegetable production. Previous studies identified the positive and negative impact of lake water on the local ecosystem and human livelihoods. The aim of the current study was to monitor seasonal changes in water quality in Cheung Ek Lake, Cambodia. Additionally, the objectives of this study were to (i) analyze the changes in water quality parameters in the rainy season and the dry season and (ii) describe daily and hourly changes in phosphate (PO₄^3-) concentration in the lake. For that, selected chemical parameters such as pH, electroconductivity (EC), phosphate, nitrate (NO₃^-), iron (Fe²⁺), and dissolved oxygen (DO) were measured in the rainy and dry seasons. In addition, phosphate (PO₄^3-) was analyzed hourly for a week in the dry season. The water samples were collected at 3 points: inlet, middle, and outlet of the lake, at a depth of 0.5 m. Water samples were analyzed in situ using a spectrophotometer. The decreased values of EC, NO₃^-, PO₄^3-, and Fe²⁺ from inlet to outlet show that the lake has the potential to reduce the nutrient level in both seasons. Phosphate increases at 10 am, 1 pm, and 7 pm indicated that water quality was remarkably affected by daily rush hours of household activities. This further suggested that household activities could be the main sources of the presence of a high concentration of PO₄^3- in the lake.

Japan imported over 1 million tons of bananas in 2021, 76 % of which were from the Philippines. Meanwhile, in banana production fields including in the Philippines, there are problems such as unfair contracts between banana producers and companies and bad working conditions. Although consumers' interest in ethical consumption is growing in Japan, the market of ethical bananas, including bananas certified under the Fair Trade (FT), Rainforest Alliance (RA), and organic¹ standards that are the focus of the current study, is still small. Therefore, this study aimed to identify consumer behavior toward ethical bananas and the possibility of expanding the market for ethical bananas in Japan. An online questionnaire survey using Google Forms was conducted throughout August 2021, and 279 valid answers were obtained. Factor Analysis and Cluster Analysis revealed that the respondents were segmented into three clusters, which are "quality-conscious", "ethical-possible, " and "unconcerned". In addition, Conjoint Analysis clarified that when the respondents purchased bananas, consumers attached the highest importance to the “price” attribute, followed by the "appearance, " "ethical", and "cultivation method" attributes. Furthermore, the perceived utility for consumers of RA and organic bananas was as high as that of non-ethical bananas, while that of FT bananas was low. As such, the results suggested that there is significant potential for an increase in the demand for organic and RA bananas, while the potential for an increase in demand for FT bananas is low. Meanwhile, the "ethical-possible" cluster, which accounted for over 50 % of the respondents, displayed the highest utility scores towards FT bananas among the three clusters. To expand the market for ethical bananas in Japan, the authors recommend increasing consumer recognition and comprehension of FT and issues in the banana production field and promoting the sale of RA and organic bananas in supermarkets.

The climate change problem is caused by human-induced increases in the stock of greenhouse gases (GHGs) in the atmosphere. In Cambodia, forests provide many important ecosystem services to local people such as food production, natural medicine, water supply, and wind/storm protection. Additionally, Cambodian forests sequester a considerable amount of carbon, contributing to the mitigation of greenhouse gas-induced climate change on a global level. However, the amount of carbon stored in forests differs according to spatial and temporal factors such as forest type, size, age, stand structure, associated vegetation, and ecological zonation, among other things. The current research aimed to i) conduct forest inventory of upland forest area in the Koh Kong, Mondulkiri, Preah Viher, and Siem Reap provinces of Cambodia, and ii) assess carbon stock at the target sites across different provinces. The study applied the carbon stock assessment methodology as outlined in the National Forest Inventory and the Field Manual for the National Forestry Inventory of Cambodia issued by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) in 2018, applied across different types of forest at several pilot project sites. In addition, the study conducted an assessment of carbon stock in soil and ground litter carbon pools. The research studied five carbon pools: aboveground biomass pool (AGB), belowground biomass pool (BGB), litter biomass pool, dead wood biomass pool, and soil organic carbon pool (SOC). The results indicated total carbon stock in Koh Kong Province at 200.04 tonnes C/ha for evergreen forest, in Mondulkiri Province at 246.18 tonnes C/ha for deciduous forest, in Preah Vihear Province at 185.06 tonnes C/ha for deciduous forest, and in Siem Reap Province at 207.67 tones C/ha for deciduous forest and 414.13 tones C/ha for evergreen forest

In recent years, extreme weather events have become more frequent, and there are concerns about the increase of chalky rice grains. Therefore, it is important to understand the frequency and severity of high-temperature injuries to rice grains occurring nationwide in Japan. Thus, the objective of this research was to analyze the hazard of high temperature through a probabilistic method using big weather data and to assess the risk of chalky rice grain. In this research, we analyzed air temperature data from approximately 800 stations of the AMeDAS (Automated Meteorological Data Acquisition System) in Japan and checked the chronological changes. To assess the risk of chalky rice grain, the Probabilistic Risk Assessment (PRA) method was applied and the risk for each of the 20 years from 1980 to 1999 and from 2000 to 2019 was compared. Chalky rice grains, which reduce rice quality, increase when the average temperature exceeds 26 °C during the first 20 days after the heading date of rice. A comparison of the areas with air temperatures exceeding 26 °C at least once per three years (33.3 %) between the past and the recent 20 years shows that the risk of high temperatures has increased in the inland areas of the southern Tohoku region and the southern part of Ibaraki Prefecture. Subsequently, a multiple regression model was applied to identify the factors affecting high temperature risk. The 20-day averaged daily mean temperature, which has a probability of 33.3 %, was set as the dependent variable, and longitude, altitude, and urban area ratio were set as explanatory variables. As a result, regions located further north experience greater temperature increases due to climate change, and regions with higher urban rates also experience greater temperature increases due to anthropogenic effects.

In Japan, engaging in agriculture as a new farmer comes with various challenges and uncertainties. To sustain and secure the agriculture sector’s future, national and local governments, farmers, private entities, and other stakeholders provide a wide range of support. Seeking best practices is a sound basis for increasing the number of new farmers and improving their resilience. Through a case study approach, this study aimed to clarify the current condition and issues of agricultural support for new farmers in H City, Tokyo, and determine the initiatives and agricultural support that assisted a young female farmer in establishing an urban farm. This study conducted interviews with a young female farmer and city officers. The in-depth key informant interviews revealed that training, subsidies, securing land services, and referral to farmer’s organizations are some of the available forms of support. The interviewed farmer considered the recent revision of the Law on Productive Green Areas a significant opportunity for her to rent farmland, which is a challenge for most new farmers. Despite the fact that a 5-year rental period is commonly practiced, she could avail of a 30-year lease, conveying the importance for new farmers to also develop trust, confidence, and a good relationship with the farmland owner. Although the interviewed farmer has successfully established a farm, there is a need for further investigation to clarify consumer preferences, buying behavior, and their degree of familiarity with her farm and products to improve her farm business and resilience.

The Benguet Province of the Philippines is endowed with distinct agroecological zones favorable for the production of high-value vegetables. Potato is one of the top ten vegetable crops in Benguet Province in terms of production area, volume, and value. However, potato production in the Philippines in general is characterized by low yield, with a yield per hectare of 15.5 tons compared to the world average yield of 20.9 tons in 2018. This study examined the technical efficiency (TE) and inefficiency determinants of potato producers in Benguet Province, Philippines. Data from 101 farmers from the major potato-producing municipalities in Benguet Province was collected in 2019. We employed the Cobb-Douglas stochastic production frontier after the null hypothesis for the translog function was rejected. The production function result revealed that land, hired labor, organic fertilizer (chicken dung) and fungicide had significant effects on potato yield. We also found that the mean technical efficiency of potato farmers is about 0.89, implying that farmers can increase their production by about 11 %, with an average yield increase from 15.8 to 17.6 t/ha, using existing resources. The yield gap result further revealed that farmers are producing below the production possibility frontier. However, the observed average yield is about 50 % lower than the potential yield (31 t/ha) found by Benguet State University. The inefficiency model result depicted that a larger household size, higher level of education, using the Granola potato variety, receiving training related to vegetable production, and partial irrigation significantly improve technical efficiency, while hand tractor ownership and rainfed cultivation were the major sources of technical inefficiency in potato production. In conclusion, while comprehensive plot-level studies including various parameters remain important to understanding why potato producers’ yields are significantly lower than the potential yields, we recommend promoting the Granola variety along with the use of organic fertilizers and the provision of training to enhance the efficiency of producers.

Residue from the food industry such as dry brewery residue (DBR) has the potential to replace traditional ingredients used in chicken feed, the costs of which have been increasing greatly year by year. The current study is aimed at evaluating the effect of different levels of DBR in chicken feed on chicken growth. The basic diet was supplemented with 0 % (used as a control), 20 %, 25 %, or 30 % DBR content. The broiler chickens were raised in a Completely Randomized Design (CRD) with three replicates, and each replicate contained ten six-week-old broilers. Experimental results showed that there was no significant difference in the mean weight of chickens among the four treatments from week 1 to week 5. However, in weeks 6 and 7, the second treatment which applied 25 % DBR, resulted in greater weight gain than the control (0 % DBR), the first treatment (20 % DBR), and the third treatment (30 % DBR) at P<0.05. Additionally, the intake of feed by chickens in the second treatment was significantly higher than for other treatments (P <0.05) during weeks 6 and 7. Taken together, these results suggest that basic feed supplemented with 25 % DBR can promote chicken growth better than other levels of DBR, and this increased growth is likely promoted by more feed intake.

The spillways of most irrigation ponds in Japan need additional repairs to safely pass the 200-year flood event, which is the design criteria set by the government. At the same time, low water level control (LWLC) in irrigation ponds is currently recognized as one of the countermeasures for mitigating floods and avoiding dam collapse. However, the pond managers do not know to what extent the water level of the pond should be lowered. In this study, the flood mitigation function of LWLC in each pond was quantitatively evaluated, and indexes were proposed to determine whether it is worth practicing LWLC in each pond or whether the spillway needs to be repaired. Seventy-two irrigation ponds in Tottori prefecture were selected for analysis and the water balance of each pond was calculated with 10-, 50-, and 200-year rainfall events. The results showed that half of the ponds cannot safely cope with a 10-year rainfall event even if they are empty prior to the event. The ratio of the catchment area to water surface area at full capacity in such ponds often exceeds 50 to 1. On the other hand, ponds with a catchment to water surface area ratio of less than 50 show a high flood mitigation function due to LWLC. In addition to this, priority for repair work can be evaluated in terms of whether the spillway can pass peak runoff or not, because the size and the type of spillway are different among ponds. The effectiveness of LWLC can be evaluated in terms of the ability of the spillway to pass peak runoff from the catchment when the pond is full. The three indicators, namely, the ratio of catchment area to water surface area at full capacity, difference of peak flood reduction rate, and peak discharge ratio, are simple and useful indexes for LWLC to prevent dam collapse.

In this study, we analyzed the reduction in snowfall and snowmelt under climate change scenarios in a cold snowy region. Also, we clarified the causal relationship between deforestation and disaster risk in watershed management in Mishima Town, Fukushima Prefecture. We used SWAT+ to conduct simulations; the SWAT+ model of Mishima town was built in a previous study, and its reproducibility was verified by NSE and RMSE by correcting parameters and using auto-calibration. The latest set of models from the CMIP6, also used in the 6th Impact Assessment Report of the IPCC and statistically downscaled scenarios in Japan developed by the Center for Climate Change Adaptation, National Institute for Environmental Studies, was adapted to simulate climate change scenarios. The Emission Scenarios are based on RCP8.5, which has been used in future climate change discussions (i.e., the assumption that greenhouse gases will continue to increase without any global warming countermeasures). We simulated the end of the 21^st century situation. As the result of the simulation, the RCP8.5 scenario showed a significant decrease in snowfall and snowmelt, with only one day of snowfall of RCP8.5 from January to March. The potential for early spring snowmelt water availability of RCP8.5 at the end of the 21st century could have been much higher. Additionally, we conducted a simulation of deforestation. We assumed that 5 % of the forested area became agricultural land due to deforestation. Simulation results indicated that the surface flow under deforestation conditions was 145.1 mm, a 7 % increase over the surface flow of the original forest prior to deforestation (135.1 mm). Heavy and long-lasting rainfall showed no difference in water storage function between the two cases, but 5 % deforestation was shown to increase river discharge at the beginning of a rainfall event.

Vegetable production in Cambodia is minimal; thus, 70 % of the country’s internal consumption is dependent on imported vegetables, primarily from Thailand and Vietnam. Although the government is encouraging vegetable production, clarifying the status, issues, and challenges is crucial to establishing detailed strategies for vegetable production in the country. This study aimed to identify the challenges and prospects of vegetable production in Cambodia by examining the status of vegetable cultivation, including production volumes and varieties, vegetable business conditions, and producers' socio-economic characteristics. A commune in Takeo province, which has year-round access to agricultural water, was selected as the study area. Semi-structured interviews based on a questionnaire were conducted with both vegetable producers and non-producers for comparative analysis. Producers were asked about their vegetable production and other income-generating activities and expenditures. Non-producers were asked about their income-generating and expenditure activities. Valid responses were obtained from 113 vegetable-producing households (HHs) and 89 non-producing HHs. The survey results indicated that 97 % of vegetable producers had a surplus; however, the average net profit (35 USD) was minimal compared with other income sources, such as factory work. The net profit was strongly influenced by the production volume derived from the size of owned farmland and the limited planted area due to unsuitable production methods. Nevertheless, nearly 60 % of non-producers had arable upland, but they stopped production owing to a lack of sales channels. Thus, the low production volume per producer and limited sales channels were identified as the key challenges Cambodia faces in terms of increasing vegetable production volumes.

Escherichia coli (E. coli) can be transmitted from dogs to surfaces through direct exposure to dog faeces, pus, and urine; alternatively, it can live in the environment for a short period. We aimed to determine the prevalence and antibiotic resistance profile of E. coli from dogs and environmental surfaces of animal clinics in Phnom Penh, Cambodia. We swabbed twenty-four samples from dogs (18 faeces and 6 pus) and twenty-three from environmental surfaces (8 cage-floors, 7 cage-walls, 1 feeding-plate, and 7 treatment-tables) at animal clinics. The bacterial culture method was used to isolate E. coli from both dog and environmental surface samples. An antibiogram of the isolates was tested using the disk diffusion method with six antibiotics (amoxicillin, ampicillin, ceftriaxone, gentamycin, levofloxacin, and tetracycline), following the standard of the Clinical and Laboratory Standard Institute. The results showed that E. coli was present in approximately 54 % of dog samples and 22 % of environmental surface samples. The E. coli isolates from dog samples showed high resistance to amoxicillin, ampicillin, and tetracycline (54 %) and lower resistance to ceftriaxone, gentamycin (27 %), and levofloxacin (8 %). E. coli isolates from environmental surfaces demonstrated high resistance to amoxicillin, ampicillin, ceftriaxone, and tetracycline (80 %-100 %), and lower resistance to gentamicin and levofloxacin (60 %). In conclusion, E. coli was found in both dogs and veterinary clinic surfaces and exhibited resistance to numerous antibiotics. This study suggests that further research is necessary to identify the specific genes responsible for the antibiotic resistance of E. coli found in dogs, on clinic surfaces, as well as in humans –including clinic technicians and dog owners – in order to better understand how this resistance is affected by the transmission of E. coli between different carriers.

Haitian farming faces serious climate risks. Losses due to hurricanes, droughts, floods, and diseases seriously threaten productivity. This paper aimed to study the feasibility and acceptability of agricultural technology packages that could help manage risk while improving the productivity of farming in Haiti. Significant risks faced by farmers include uninsurable disasters due to their systemic and catastrophic nature. Therefore, a package of technologies including a paid-in-kind "stabilization account" component may be an appropriate financial tool for risk management. Are Haitian farmers open to such innovation? To answer this question, we collected data from 28 agricultural experts and 1,400 farmers, including 234 maize farmers in southern Haiti, and adopted the new product development (NPD) process to test the feasibility of the concept. We used the Spearman correlation, multinomial logistic regression, and linear regression to determine factors affecting the openness of Haitian farmers to innovation. We also conducted the Cochran-Mantel-Haenszel test to analyze the association between "financial inclusion" and "openness to innovation." Based on the results, 70 % of farmers expressed their willingness to pay 6 % to more than 12 % of their harvested crop as a stabilization account. Farmers with "financial inclusion" are expected to be twice as likely to adopt innovative technologies, while farm size, gender, household size, and revenue had a significant positive impact on openness to innovation. However, contrary to the trends found in literature, we found that risk aversion may positively affect the acceptance and adoption of some technologies. The results also suggest that, in Haitian farming, risks linked to natural disasters are more strongly related to financial incapacity than uncertainty. Therefore, access to proper just-in-time inputs complemented by a financial tool to overcome uncertainty will significantly boost the adaptability and resilience of Haitian farmers toward climate risks.

Increasing soil water content due to soil reduction is generally confirmed in rice paddy soils after flood irrigation or in littoral sediments with high organic matter content. This could be caused by soil aggregates during the reduction process through biological and electrostatic phenomena. In the literature, changes in liquid and plastic limits owing to soil reduction treated with electrokinetic treatment (ET) have been reported; however, there was no report relating to changes in other soil physical properties, such as grain size distribution (GSD) and water-holding capacity (WHC). Thus, this study aimed to examine changes in soil physical properties caused by soil reduction treated with ET. Changes in GSD, hydraulic conductivity, and WHC were examined in laboratory experiments to understand soil aggregates due to soil reduction. During ET application, a decrease in electrical conductivity was observed, indicating the cohesion of ions (soil aggregate). This resulted in increases in the percentage of particles ranging from 0.075-0.212 mm, hydraulic conductivity, and WHC. However, particle dispersion occurred when the electrical current was high (10 mA), resulting in a significant decrease in hydraulic conductivity and WHC. Therefore, it can be said that soil aggregates can develop electrostatically. Thus, ET can be used for developing soil aggregate.

The System of Rice Intensification (SRI) is an environmentally friendly and sustainable rice farming practice developed in the 1980 s in Madagascar. It has spread to many countries in the early years of the 21st century, with Indonesia becoming one of the early adopters of SRI practices. The authors conducted experiments on SRI plots on Lombok Island, Indonesia, measuring water consumption, rice growth, GHG emissions and other variables. The focus of the current study was on accessing the appropriate number of seedlings under different irrigation regimes. This experiment prepared 30 small plots and set 2 types of irrigation: intermittent and continuous; 3 types of seedlings by nursery age: 0, 7, and 21 days; and 3 types of seedling groups: 1, 2, and 4 seedlings. At the harvest stage, the number of tillers, number of panicles, grain weight, filled grain weight, and root weight of 5 samples were measured from each plot. In terms of the irrigation method, intermittent irrigation achieved a higher yield than continuous irrigation. 2 seedlings achieved the best yield under intermittent irrigation, regardless of nursery age, while 4 seedlings achieved the best yield under continuous irrigation for both 7 day- and 21 day-old seedling types. In Indonesia, SRI promoters including local government and NPO staff recommend farmers to transplant one 7-day seedling. However, the experiment conducted in this study demonstrated that two day-old seedlings achieved better results. The two-seedlings method costs twice as much as the one-seedling method, but is only about half the cost of the traditional method. Moreover, the two-seedlings method gives farmers peace of mind at the transplant stage. The two-seedling method can thus be considered more reasonable than the one-seedling method.

The purpose of this research was to implement smart mushroom cultivation by applying a sensor network and control algorithm to test the performance of the cultivation system and yield obtained compared to the conventional method. This research introduced innovative automated methods to the cultivation of rice-straw mushrooms by utilizing sensor technology and a controller with a control algorithm. The control algorithm automatically controlled the environment in the mushroom house based on feedback from the sensors to maintain the environment in an optimum condition for mushroom growth. The experimental setup included two cycles for growing the rice-straw mushrooms in different control environments, with three stages per cycle. The first stage was used during the vegetative phase, the second stage was used to control mushroom growth during the spawn-run phase, while the last stage was applied during the pinhead and cropping phases. The first cycle of the experiment was implemented to verify the circumstances surrounding mushroom growth under automated control based on three parameters: ambient temperature, relative humidity, and carbon dioxide (CO₂). The experiment utilized one controller with four pieces of equipment to automate control based on those parameters, which included the ventilation fan, exhaust fan, sprinkler, and motor pump for the cooling pad. During the first cycle, some problems with the CO₂ sensor and the exhaust fan were encountered, so it was necessary to implement a combination of manual control and automated control in the controlling algorithm for the second cycle. After completing these experiments, we determined that utilizing a combination of automatic and manual control, mushroom farmers will be able to save time, money, and labor while also increasing mushroom yield to satisfy market demand.