Suggessions for wasteland reclamation and management
Control and Management of Waterlogging and Salinization
The preventive measures to control this problem are the adoption of efficient water application technology, substitution of saline water, restrictive use of saline water, wetting of soil surface to enhance seed germination and plant growth, intorduction of ridge and furrow as well as drip and sprinklar irrigation system, intercropping of irrigated and unirrigated crops, fertility and integrated nutrient management and adoption of suitable cropping pattern and crop rotation. The control measurees to overcome this problem are vertical drainage, sub-surface drainage, bio-drainage, conjuctive use of saline/ sodic water, reduction of water allowance, emptying the Ghaggar depressions, lining of canals and development of fish culture
(Kavadia,1991).
Gap Filling/Regeneration of Tree Species on Degraded Forest Land
Degraded part of the forest areas should be developed by gap filling, reseeding and transplanting. Suitable plant species like Acacia nilotica, Acacia tortilis, Dalbergia sissoo, Azadirachta indica, Eucalyptus camaldulensis, Popular, Tamarix spp. using soil and water conservation measures such as trenching and contour furrowing. The ground flora should be enriched by growing suitable shrub and grass species in contour furrows. Grazing should be restricted and properly regulated.
Reseeding and Development of Degraded Pasture/Grazing Lands
Major objective to develop these degraded lands is to provide a palatable vegetation cover on these lands and regeneration of the degraded vegetation cover by providing suitable soil and moisture conservation measure and the protection. The approach should be ecologically suitable and acceptable to local people. Being in the vicinity of the village it becomes essential to check the movement of grazing animals. Several methods to be adopted are construction of barbed wire fencing, live fencing , contour furrows, inter row water harvesting system, planting of multipurpose leguminous species of topfeed value with piting-discing technique, division of area into compartments for smooth running of rehabilitation work and reseeding with high yielding grass species like C. Ciliaris, C. setigerus, D. annulatum, P. antidotale and Lasiurus sindicus. Besides, top feed species like A.tortilis, A.nilotica, Prosopis cineraria, Salvadora oleoides, A.senegal, Dichrostachys nutans, Ziziphus nummularia, Calligonum polygonoides and Capparis decidua may be transplanted (Singh and Kar, 1997).
Stabilisation and Management of Sand Dunes
In order to stabilise shifting or active sand dunes the erection of barbed wire fencing and construction of micro wind breaks with locally available brush wood or undershrubs and shrubs is first requirement. This should be followed by transplantation / revegetation with disease resistant and fast growing tree/shrub species like Acacia tortilis, Acacia nubica, Cercidium floridum and Calligonum polygonoides. In between the tree species, the rooted slips of locally available indigenous perennial grasses may be transplanted. For active and loose parts of stabilized dunes live chess board system should be made with local material and cuttings of suitable tree/shrubs should be planted after first monsoon shower. In subsequent years these may be filled with Bawli, Israeli babool, Phog, etc. The ground flora can be enriched by growing the adopted grasses like Lasiurus sindicus, Cenchrus ciliaris, Panicum antidotale and Citrullus colocynthis. Thus a blend of suitable plant species, planting technique and after- care, can develop the area for silvi-pasture and also control wind erosion.
Rehabilitation and Development of Mine Spoil Areas
Land shaping and soil profile modification are to be first undertaken to rehabilitate gypsum mine spoil areas. There after plantation of a mixture of top feed tree, shrub and grass species is to be done at 5 m x 5 m spacing in order to enhance soil fertility and stability, nitrogen fixation and provide fodder for animal browsing. These are Acacia nubica, Acacia tortilis, Azadirachta indica, Cercidium floridum, Dichrostachys nutans, Prosopis cineraria, Salvadora oleoides, Salvadora persica and Tamarix aphylla.
|
S.No. Wastenland Category |
Area in ha
|
Percentage to total district area |
Percentage to total wastelands area |
| 1. Waterlogged and marshy land |
10851 |
1.12 |
30.30 |
| 2. Land affected by salinity/alkalinity |
943 |
0.09 |
2.63 |
| 3. Under utilized degraded notified forest area |
555 |
0.06 |
1.55 |
| 4. Degraded pasture/grazing land |
11057 |
1.14 |
30.87 |
| 5. Sands inland/desertic |
12192 |
1.26 |
34.04 |
| 6. Mining/industrial waste |
219 |
0.02 |
0.61 |
| Total |
35817 |
3.69 |
100.00 |
Total district area = 970315 ha
Conclusions
About 3.69 per cent of the district area has been mapped under different wasteland categories using IRS LISS-III data and GIS technologies. Waterlogged, degraded pastures and desertic sands are the dominant wastelands. Degraded pastures and sandy waste areas are mainly concentrated in rainfed southern part of the district while waterlogged and salt affected lands are created in canal irrigated northern part of the district due to excessive irrigation and seepage from canals. Thus salt affected lands are caused due to secondary salinization. Waterlogging is the most dangerous and constantly increasing problem which has not only sharply declined the crop productivity but rendered irrigated double cropped area out of cultivation, deserted a number of village settlements and badly hampered the transport network system. To overcome this problem, both preventive and control measures are suggested. Moreover, detailed study using more higher resolution and multidate satellite data along with other parameters and regular monitoring are needed for all the problematic areas. The district has ideal conditions to develop the degraded and under utilized notified forest areas. Technologies are suggested for stabilization of active sand dunes and periodic reseeding and gap filling of semi- stabilized sand dunes. Thus with the adoption of proven technologies and management practices further degradation of wastelands can be minimized and the same can be rehabilitated and developed into sustainable production systems to meet the aspirations of the farming communities.
Acknowledgement
The authers are highly thankful to Dr. Pratap Narain, Director Central arid zone research Institute, Jodhpur for providing all the facilities during the course of this study.
References
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- Kavadia, P.S. 1991. Problem of waterlogging in Indira Gandhi Nahar Project and outline of Action Plan to tackle it. pp. 271-279.
- NRSA, 1997. Manual of procedure for preparation of wastelands digital data base using remote sensing and GIS techniques. NRSA, Hyderabad, 90 p.
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