Impacts of Soil and Water Conservation Practices on Crop Yield, Run-off, Soil Loss and Nutrient Loss in Ethiopia: Review and Synthesis

Adimassu, Zenebe; Langan, Simon; Johnston, Robyn; Mekuria, Wolde; Amede, Tilahun

doi:10.1007/s00267-016-0776-1

Cited by 142 publications

(98 citation statements)

References 90 publications

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“…To curb this severe land degradation, the government of Ethiopian launched massive rehabilitation programs starting from the mid-1970s (Ebabu et al 2017;Adimassu et al 2017). It is estimated that more than 1 billion US dollars were invested during the years of 1974-1991.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Effects of sustainable land management interventions on selected soil properties in Geda watershed, central highlands of Ethiopia

et al. 2020

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Background: Land degradation through soil erosion by water is severe in the highlands of Ethiopia. In order to curb this problem, the government initiated sustainable land management interventions in different parts of the country since 2008, and in Geda watershed since 2012. However, the impacts of the interventions on soil properties were not assessed so far. Thus, this study investigated the impacts of sustainable land management interventions on selected soil properties in Geda watershed. Soil samples were collected from treated and untreated subwatersheds at the upper and lower landscape positions, from cropland and grazing lands at two soil depths (0-15 cm and 15-30 cm). Selected soil physicochemical properties were assessed with respect to landscape position, land-use type, and soil depth in both treated and untreated sub-watersheds. Results: Generally, most of the soil physicochemical properties differed greatly across sub-watersheds, land-use types, and soil depths. Clay, electrical conductivity, total N, available P, exchangeable K, and organic carbon were higher in the treated sub-watershed, whereas sand, silt, bulk density, and pH were higher in the untreated subwatershed. The higher sand, silt, and bulk density could be attributed to erosion, while the higher pH could be due to the higher exchangeable Na in the untreated sub-watershed. Most of the selected soil chemical properties were not affected by landscape position, but land-use type affected available P and organic carbon with higher mean values at croplands than at grazing lands, which could be ascribed to the conservation structure and tillage of the soils in that conservation structures trap and accumulate transported organic materials from the upper slope, while tillage facilitates aeration and decomposition processes. Conclusion: Sustainable land management interventions improved soil physicochemical properties and brought a positive restoration of the soil ecosystem. Maintaining the soil conservation measures and enhancing community awareness about the benefits, coupled with management of livestock grazing are required to sustain best practices.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Effects of sustainable land management interventions on selected soil properties in Geda watershed, central highlands of Ethiopia

et al. 2020

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“…Agronomic trial data for individual crop percent change exclude the aggregate data reported in Adimassu et al. (). ISFM denotes integrated soil fertility management.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Economywide effects of climate‐smart agriculture in Ethiopia

Komarek

Thurlow

Koo

et al. 2019

Agricultural Economics

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Climate‐smart agriculture (CSA) is an approach for transforming and reorienting agricultural systems to support food security under climate change. Few studies, however, quantify at the national scale CSA's economic effects or compare CSA to input‐intensive technologies, like fertilizer or irrigation. Such quantification may help with priority setting among competing agricultural investment options. Our study uses an integrated biophysical and economic modeling approach to quantify and contrast the economywide effects of CSA (integrated soil fertility management in our study) and input‐intensive technologies in Ethiopia's cereal systems. We simulate impacts for 20‐year sequences of variable weather, with and without climate change. Results indicate that adopting CSA on 25% of Ethiopia's maize and wheat land increases annual gross domestic product (GDP) by an average 0.18% (US$49.8 million) and reduces the national poverty rate by 0.15 percentage points (112,100 people). CSA is more effective than doubling fertilizer use on the same area, which increases GDP by US$33.0 million and assists 75,300 people out of poverty. CSA and fertilizer have some substitutability, but CSA and irrigation appear complementary. Although not a panacea for food security concerns, greater adoption of CSA in Ethiopia could deliver economic gains but would need substantial tailoring to farmer‐specific contexts.

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“…The BT in Wegelen was started from the top to down approach which makes it difficult to estimate the amount of earthwork required for cut and fill as well as the depth of BT [2,15,13]. Some BTs were constructed on a very steep slope (72%).…”

Section: Evaluation Of Wegelen Bt In Atsela Alaje Districtmentioning

confidence: 99%

Performance Evaluation of Constructed Bench Terraces in Southern Zone of Tigray Region

Tassew

Gidey

Eyasu

2019

AJEE

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In the varying climate and weather environments and fast-growing population, the production of feed that could meet the demand of this ever-growing population will be challenging with limited land, soil, and water resources. In many developing countries, terraces have been constructed in sloppy, hilly and valley areas to rectify their shortage of cultivated land and severe water erosion problems to meet livelihood demands. In the southern zone of Tigray region, various labor-intensive bench terraces (BTs) have been constructed and are on the way of construction. Despite its coverage and labor intensiveness, these terraces are facing problems such as malfunctioning and collapse of structures leading to unsustainability, unproductiveness and additional labor and material costs. Thus, this study was designed to identify the basis of the above-mentioned problems and to put real solutions for the problems. A multi-disciplinary evaluation of BTs from natural resources and socioeconomic researchers was conducted to identify observational gaps in the stability and sustainability of the terraces and to put ways forward. Technical assessment and measurement of BTs were conducted onsite to evaluate and compare the specification with the recommended specification. Inappropriate site selection, water scarcity, free-grazing and neglected maintenance, poor buffer zone, and stone placement were directly or indirectly major reasons for the failure of bench terrace (BT) structures. Most of the BTs were not supported with biological soil and water conservation materials. Site selection and technical standards of BTs should be done based on recommended specifications with continuous follow-up.

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Impacts of Soil and Water Conservation Practices on Crop Yield, Run-off, Soil Loss and Nutrient Loss in Ethiopia: Review and Synthesis

Cited by 142 publications

References 90 publications

Effects of sustainable land management interventions on selected soil properties in Geda watershed, central highlands of Ethiopia

Effects of sustainable land management interventions on selected soil properties in Geda watershed, central highlands of Ethiopia

Economywide effects of climate‐smart agriculture in Ethiopia

Performance Evaluation of Constructed Bench Terraces in Southern Zone of Tigray Region

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