Capturing Water for FoodAnd Carbon Sequestration

•Environnemental issues…

•Sustainable crop production

Carbon sequestration inCropping systems ?

THE CENTRAL CONCEPT

•RIDGE TILLAGE ALONG CONTOUR LINES(Billons en courbes de niveaux)

Alfisols

Aridisols

Ultisols

Major Soil Types (USDA Soil Taxonomy)

Major Soil Constraints

•LAC soil properties

•P and N deficiencies

•Soil acidity

•Soil erosion (run-off)

•‘Soil mining’

THE APPROACH

•Capture rain water (infiltration)

•Use soil water efficiently (biomass)

•Manage soil organic matter (increase and maintain)

‘C-4 TECHNOLOGIES’

•A: ‘Courbes de niveaux’

•B: O & M fertilizers management

•C: Crop residues management

•D: Reduced tillage

‘COURBES DE NIVEAUX’

•Reduced run off (20 – 40%)

•Deeper wetting front ( from 1.2 to 2.0 m)

•Increased soil water content (10 to 30% - vol.)

‘COURBES DE NIVEAUX’…

•Yield increase of 30% (alone)

•Yield increase of 50% (in combination with fertilizers)

•Cost: US$10.00 per ha (contour lines or ‘ados’)

•Acreage and demand: ???

DESIGNING THE ’ADOS’…

‘SIDE IMPACTS’…

•Vegetation regeneration - biodiversity

•Increased fructification of ‘shea butter tree’ (Vitellaria paradoxa)

•Increased availabilty of drinking water

•Environmental rehabilitation (reclaimed ‘bare soils’ to producing 1 – 2 t/ha cotton).

Ridge Tilling – cumulative effects

Vegetation increase due to ridge tillage (Konobougou, Mali)

No Ridge-till

A Major Challenge:INCREASING & MAINTAINING SOC

•The social-economic roles of crop residues…

•Reducing tillage…

•Live fencing…

In-situ Measurements

•C-4-T testing

•Water properties of RT

•Carbon properties of RT

•‘LOI’ temperatures

•Methods of carbon analysis

8 Experimental Sites

PRODUCTS TO DELIVER… in 5 years

•100,000 ha under C-4 technologies

•Productivity and rural income doubled

•Access to drinking water increased

•SOM increased (0.20 to 0.40%)

•Improved environment

•500,000 t of C DELIVERED ($2,000,000.00)

Thanks for your attention !