Contribution of integrated catchment and surface water management to livestock water productivity in pastoral production systems

crop-residuesEmmanuel Zziwa, Swidiq Mugerwa, Brian Owoyesigire, Denis Mpairwe

Department of Agricultural Production, College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences, Makerere University, Kampala P.O BOX 7062, Kampala, Uganda

National Livestock Resources Research Institute, P. O. Box 96, Tororo, Uganda

Buginyanya Zonal Agricultural Research and Development Institute, Mbale, Uganda

Key words: Crop residues, livestock water productivity, rainfed, Uganda.

Abstract

Seasonal water fluctuations both in quality and quantity negatively affect livestock production and subsequently reduce livestock-water productivity (LWP) in rainfed pastoral production systems. This study aimed at assessing the effects of improved catchment and surface water management on LWP and to establish whether the effects of integrated catchment and surface water management are additive, synergistic or counteractive. Three pastoral production systems of Uganda (settled, semi-settled and non-settled) were considered under three management interventions (improved catchment management, improved surface water management and integrated catchment and surface water management) taking the base scenario as a control.

Young maize plants growing on wheat residues on a plot under conservation agriculture (CA) at CIMMYT's headquarters at El Bat·n, Mexico, illustrating the key CA principles of zero tillage (the plants are growing in narrow-type permanent beds), residue retention, and crop rotation. Some weeds are also visible, and will soon be removed using a selective herbicide. Without tillage to control weeds, the issue of weed management requires attention within a CA system. Herbicide is applied once per growing season, while the weed plants are small. Ideally, if it rains before sowing, or in irrigated fields, herbicide can be applied before the crop is sown, avoiding any risk of damaging the crop. However, following planting in dry soil, a selective herbicide is applied later, following the start of the rains, when the weeds reach around the size shown. Photo credit: CIMMYT.

Beneficial livestock outputs (p = 0.155), depleted water (p = 0.76) and LWP (p = 0.488) were not significantly different across production systems but were higher in settled and least in non-settled production systems. Improving catchment management increased LWP by 180%, 458% and 142% while improving surface water management increased LWP by 62%, 165% and 60% in settled, semi-settled and non-settled production systems. Integrated catchment and surface water management increased LWP by 353%, 518% and 280% in settled, semi-settled and non-settled production systems respectively. The effects of practicing integrated catchment and surface water management were hence synergistic and not additive. There exists a great potential for improving LWP in water stressed pastoral production systems of Uganda by reducing the amount of water depleted in production of animal products through practicing integrated catchment and surface water management interventions as well as increased utilization of crop residues in livestock feeding.

Get the original articles in Source: Volume 2, Number 5, May 2012 – IJB

Published By: International Journal of Biosciences (IJB)

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