climate proofing of watershed development programme for...

Climate Proofing of Watershed Development Programme for Sustainable Agriculture

Unnikrishnan Divakaran Nair1 and Mashar Velapurath2 1Senior Advisor (Natural Resource Management), GIZ, New Delhi, India

2Deutsche Gesellschaftfür Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH GIZ, New Delhi, India

E-mail: [email protected], [email protected]

ABSTRACT

Climate proofing of watershed development programmes is a methodological approach aimed at incorporating climate change impacts into watershed development planning. It helps in assessing adaptation measures in relation to current and future challenges/opportunities and enables implementation of efficient and resilient watershed programmes through identification and prioritization of options for action. For developing net plan for climate resilient watershed management, current climate risks, future climate projections, its impacts on water and agriculture and farmer’s experiences/knowledge in facing the extreme weather events were considered. Important suggestions included, soil and water conservation, increasing water use efficiency, mobile phone linked ICT and capacity building.

Keywords: Climate Change, Climate Proofing, Watershed Development Planning, Net Plan, Scenario

INTRODUCTION

Farming is a gamble with nature. The impact of climate change is expected to be more severe in poor, geographically vulnerable regions with largely agrarian economies. Adaptation to climate change in India requires integrated solutions that simultaneously address livelihood improvements, sustainability, as well as growth issues. While climate change will affect the nation’s economy as a whole, its impact will be more severely felt by the poor who also have the least adaptive capacity. Recognizing this, the National Action Plan on Climate Change (NAPCC) clearly outlines its first principle as “protecting the poor and vulnerable sections of the society through inclusive and sustainable development strategy, sensitive to climate change”.Climate Proofing of watershed development programmes is one of the approaches followed by the the National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD)and Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) to integrate adaptation to climate change into catchment treatment planning. The programme is being piloted in two watersheds of Dindigul district in Tamil Nadu state viz., Appiyampatti and Poosaripattiwatersheds which have more than 70 per cent of its workforce in agriculture and climate change is expected to lower yields in key crops that would have implications on the livelihoods of the people. Through this climate proofing study,a climate proofing table was developed to flag the issues of climate change into the watershed development action and to develop resilient watershed programmes through identification and prioritization of options for action with regard to the current and future challenges and opportunities presented by climate change in the two selected watersheds.

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Climate Proofing of Watershed Development Programme for Sustainable Agriculture 165

MATERIALS AND METHODS STUDY AREA

Fig. 1: Location of the Project Area

166 Green India: Strategic Knowledge for Combating Climate Change: Prospects & Challenges

The two selected watersheds viz., Appiyampatti and Poosaripatti are located in the Thoppampatti block of Ottanchathram Talukin Dindigul district (Fig. 1). It is situated between 10°05’ and 10°09’ north latitude and between 77°30’ and 78°20’ east longitude. The two watersheds lie adjacent to each other; both are water starved and depends mainly on rainfall for success of crop production. Normal rainfall received during the North East (NEM) and South West Monsoon (SWM) is 374 mm and 221 mm respectively. In most of the farms, cropping is taken up only once in a year utilizing NEM rainfall. In few farms cultivation is done in two seasons utilizing SWM and NEM rainfall along with supplemental irrigation from underground water resources. Major crops grown are millets and other cereals, pulses, groundnut, gingelly, and cotton. Major soil types present are red sandy soil, red loamy soil and laterite soil.

Fig. 2. Rainfall Distribution in different Seasons (1969–2005)

HISTORICAL WEATHER DATA ANALYSIS

Climate resilient watershed planning requires data and information on climate and on agriculture, environmental, and social systems affected by climate, with a view to carrying out realistic vulnerability assessment and looking towards the near future (Levina and Adams, 2006). For understanding the current climate, daily rainfall, maximum and minimum temperatures and wind speed data were obtained from Regional Meteorological Centre (RMC), Chennai for the period from 1969–2005. Analysis of historical weather data of the study region in relation to frequency of occurrence of extreme weather events such as drought, excess rainfall, extremes in temperature and wind speed and its impact on agricultural productivity helped in ranking the climate related risks and the results are presented in Table 1.


Table 1. Climate Related Risks S.No Risk Event Consequence Likelihood

Probability Risk Rank

1 Drought Reduction in crop yields All most every year

High 1

2 Excess rainfall Soil erosion Once in 5 years Medium 2 3 High wind speed Physical damage to crops Often Low 4 4 Temperature

extremes Increased evapo-transpiration

Frequent Medium 3

CLIMATE CHANGE SCENARIO

The future climate change scenario was developed using Regional Climate Models (RCM) viz., PRECIS that was developed by Hadley Centre, UK met office that can be used over any part of the globe (PRECIS, 2011). Special Report on Emission Scenario (SRES)-A1B scenario was selected and from the large number of generated output from the models, only maximum temperature, minimum temperature and rainfall were retrieved. Models were run for 129 years from 1971 to 2099.

ASSESSING CLIMATE CHANGE IMPACTS ON HYDROLOGY AND CROP PRODUCTIVITY Impact of changing climate on the hydrological parameters of the selected watershed was assessed using Soil and Water Assessment Tool (SWAT) model (SWAT, 2012). A Digital Elevation Map of the study region was derived from a SRTM 30 m elevation dataset. Information on soil was based on the soil map at a scale of 1:50,000 obtained from the Remote Sensing Unit of Tamil Nadu Agricultural University, Coimbatore, India. Land use data was obtained from the open source global land use land cover data (USGS, 2010). Impact of climate change on crops (maize and groundnut) productivity was assessed using DSSAT (Decision Support System for Agrotechnology Transfer) model which is an advanced physiologically based crop growth simulation model and has been widely applied to understanding the relationship between crops and its environment (Jones et. al., 1998).

FARMERS SURVEY ON CLIMATE CHANGE A survey was conducted with 80 farmers using survey questionnaire to understand perceptions of the farmers with respect to (a) Changes in rainfall pattern over time, (b) Impact of climate change on water availability, (c) Frequency of occurrence of extreme weather events and their impact on crop production, (d) Socio-economic consequences due to changing climate, and (e) Developing adaptation strategies for overcoming the impacts of climate change. Participatory Rural Appraisal (PRA) tool used for collecting information from the communitiesare: (a) seasonal calendars, (b) timeline analysis, and (c) hazard mapping (Robert Chambers, 1994).

DEVELOPING CLIMATE PROOFING TABLE Climate proofing table was developed including the direct impacts as well as indirect impacts (e.g. income opportunities) due to expected climate trends on watershed.Information on non-climatic stresses (e.g., land use management practices) that contribute to the impacts of stresses caused by climate variability was also listed. Parameters that make the communities/ecosystem


sensitive to the observed or projected impacts of climate change and capacities that the communities have to cope with the impacts were also listed in the climate proofing table. Mal-adaptation with the meaning of activities which further increase the sensitivity to climatic stresses were also identified along with the measures to address impacts of climate change.

RESULTS AND DISCUSSION CURRENT CLIMATE ANALYSIS Rainfall and Temperature The study region receives an annual average rainfall of 692 mm, out of that, 374 mm is received in Northeast Monsoon and 221 mm is received in Southwest monsoon season (Fig. 2).

Among the four different seasons, maximum amount of rainfall with 80% probability is received in NEM season which indicates that rain fed cropping with less climatic risk is possible only during NEM in the study watershed. Rainfall deviation from the normal during SWM and NEM over 37 years (1969–2005) indicated that 14 years received either normal / above normal / excess rainfall during the southwest monsoon and 12 years recorded deficit rainfall and 8 years had scanty rainfall. In the absolute terms, only during 9 years, the SWM received more than average rainfall. This indicates that cropping during SWM is highly risky and hence the amount of rainfall received may be properly stored in the soil for utilizing it in the NEM season crop. In contrast, during NEM, among the 37 years, 9 years had normal rainfall and 14 years had excess rainfall and 10 years received either deficit (7 years) or scanty rainfall (3 years).

Temperatures play a major role in determining the growth, productivity, and duration of the crop growth. Both maximum and minimum temperatures are increasing in the study region over the past four decades. Linear trend analysis results (Fig. 3 a-f) clearly state that minimum temperatures are increasing at a faster rate compared to maximum temperature. Increase in maximum temperature is more during SWM period and the observed rate of increase is 0.9°C over a period of 100 years while it was only 0.5 °C during NEM.

In the case of minimum temperature, the rate of increase in NEM is observed to be higher (1.2 °C) compared to SWM season (1.1 ° C) during the past century. As the major crop growing season is falling in NEM, the likely trend of higher rate of increase in nocturnal temperature would definitely decline the productivity (Craufurd and Peacock, 1993) of many annual crops.

Extreme Weather Events Analysis

Extreme weather events like flood, drought/dry spell, frost, storms, and even aberration in weather cause obvious impacts on crop production (Rowell, 2006).


Fig. 3: [Left Panel] Trend Line for Maximum Temperature (a) Annual (b) SWM (c) NEM [Right Panel] Trend Line for Minimum Temperature (d) Annual (e) SWM (f) NEM

Flood

An analysis was made from the historical rainfall data on rainfall with >100 mm/day; 75 mm to 100 mm/day and 50 mm to 75 mm/day to understand the shift in quantum of rainfall received in one day (Fig. 4). Extreme rainfall events analysis indicated that in the recent years higher intensity rains are falling in a shorter time span. Frequency of occurrence of rainfall with more than 100 mm /day are increasing in the recent past which will have implications on soil erosion. The resultant rainfall and its impact on maize and tomato yields are presented in

Table 2: High Intensity Rainfall Due to Depression & Yield of Tomato and Maize

Year Date Category Event in Study Region Maize Yield Tomato Yield

1992 Nov 11-17 SCS 112.5 mm of rainfall due to Cyclonic disturbance from 11–17 November -8.34 % -33.2 %

1993 Nov 8-9 D 310 mm of rainfall in two days (9-10, November)-Super Cyclone that crossed Tamil Nadu coast

-14.95 % -20.6 %

1993 Dec 19-20 D 81 mm of rainfall received -3.78 % -8.5 % 1994 Oct 29-31 SCS 61.8 mm due to depression in BoB -5.8 % -3.8 % 1994 Nov 4 D 54.9 mm due to depression in BoB -5.8 % -17.8 %

1996 28 Nov-7 Dec SCS 172 mm of rainfall in one week (10-

16 Dec) due to Cyclonic disturbance -6.55 % -62.3 %

2000 Dec 23-28 SCS December : 191 mm of rainfall -6.71 % -54.5 % *BoB–Bay of Bengal


Drought

The effects of drought became apparent with a longer duration, because more and more moisture–related activities are affected. In the study area, over the 37 years period (1969–2005), 11 years (1982, 1983, 1984, 1985, 1986, 1988, 1990, 1995, 2001, 2002, 2003) were severe drought years and the yield of maize crop was reduced to a greater extent due to shorter length of growing period and more dry spells within the growing season (Table 3).

Table 3: Impact of Drought on LGP and Maize Yield Year Rainfall Deviation in G LGP (days) Dry Spell in Weeks Maize Yield Kg / Ha 2003 -90.4 67 7 0 2002 -89.6 82 7 0 1986 -73.8 59 5 0 2001 -63.9 79 5 35 1995 -46.4 59 3 0 1988 -44.0 96 6 212 1982 -33.0 91 4 567 1985 -28.2 75 5 55 1990 -22.2 48 2 0

FUTURE CLIMATE PROJECTIONS

Future climate projection as per A2a scenario for the study region indicates that the temperatures are expected to gradually increase over time. By the middle of the century, maximum temperature is expected to be higher by 0.9 degree C and minimum temperature by 1.52 degree C. precipitation is expected to slightly decline till 2030 and thereafter gradually increase. Rainfall is expected to increase by 7 % from the current conditions by 2050 (Table 4).

Table 4: Expected Decadal Variations in Temperature, Rainfall and CO2 Timeline Expected

Maximum Temp

Deviation Expected Maximum

Temp

Deviation Expected Changes in

Rainfall

Expected CO2 level

2010 29.97 0 19.13 0 0 370 2020 30.36 0.39 19.48 0.35 -5 % 385 2030 30.45 0.48 19.73 0.60 0 420 2040 30.62 0.65 20.12 0.99 + 5 % 470 2050 30.87 0.90 20.65 1.52 + 7 % 500 2060 31.33 1.36 21.12 1.99 + 8 % 520 2070 31.75 1.78 21.59 2.46 + 8 % 535 2080 32.13 2.16 22.00 2.87 + 10 % 550 2090 32.75 2.78 22.64 3.51 + 14 % 565 2099 33.57 3.60 23.19 4.06 + 15 % 588

IMPACT OF CLIMATE CHANGE ON HYDROLOGY AND CROP PRODUCTIVITY

The values obtained from SWAT model were averaged for subsequent decades to understand hydrology and the results (Table 5) indicates that rainfall will decrease from the current level during the near future (upto 2030) and again there will be an increasing trend towards the end of the century. Evapotranspiration (ET) as well as potential evapotranspiration (PET) demand will increase with the advancement of time. This must be due to the influence


of increased temperature on crop water demand (ET) as well as atmospheric water demand (PET). Surface runoff will be highest during the end of the century indicating the possibility of more intense rainfall. DSSAT model simulation shows yield of maize(Table 6a)has reduced by 107 Kg ha-1 decade-1 for PRECIS output. This reduction in yield might be mainly due to increase in both maximum and minimum temperatures as well as variation in rainfall in addition to shortening of growing period. The evapo-transpiration increased gradually from 2050 indicating more water requirement under future warmer climate. In contrast, water productivity is decreasing over time which warrants measures for increasing water use efficiency. Straw yield is also decreasing which would have impact on dry fodder availability to cattle. DSSAT results clearly indicate that groundnut will be more impacted compared to maize crop due to changing climate(Table 6b). The yields are expected to go down by 60 % by the end of the century if no proper adaptation measures are taken up. Much change could not be observed in evapotranspiration but the water productivity got declined over time (i.e.) the yield produced for every millimeter of water evaporated got declined. Duration of the crop was reduced by a week towards the end of the century.

Table 5. Impacts of Climate Change on ET, PET, Sediment Yield and Crop Yield Percolation Evapotranspiration Potential

Evapotranspiration Sediment

Yield Crop Yield Biomass

Yield 2004 314.23 1519.48 25.13 723.5 2501.8 2020 310.34 1541.54 20.58 646.2 2206.6 2030 314.23 1519.48 25.13 723.5 2501.8 2040 322.9 1558.74 30.26 597.2 2008.3 2050 325.85 1575.04 32.1 453.4 1927.5 2060 328.74 1598.45 33.86 399.1 1756.1 2070 330.61 1619.66 34.69 383.9 1680.6 2080 334.33 1638.62 36.86 369.6 1588.7 2090 341.19 1667.25 40.32 379.3 1541.8 2099 346.08 1713.06 41.27 338.6 1410.2

Table 6: (a). Impacts of Climate Change on Maize Timeline Yield ET Water Productivity Straw Yield Duration

2010 2196 312 7.06 5186 104 2020 1941 312 6.23 5139 101 2030 1925 310 6.4 5021 100 2040 1904 308 6.4 5152 99 2050 1880 350 5.42 5038 95 2060 1813 350 5.52 4971 94 2070 1799 367 4.96 5005 92 2080 1670 366 4.63 4752 89 2090 1570 371 4.29 4526 88 2099 1236 367 3.41 4053 84

Table 6: (b). Impacts of Climate Change on Groundnut Timeline Yield ET Water Productivity Haulms Yield Duration

2010 1576 365 6.14 131 2020 1277 362 5.08 3595 130 2030 1211 361 4.86 3415 129 2040 970 360 3.98 3360 128 2050 779 360 3.27 2995 127


2060 749 358 3.14 2940 127 2070 697 367 2.92 2910 126 2080 674 376 2.82 2870 126 2090 631 378 2.63 2820 126 2099 623 365 2.57 2755 124

OUTCOMES OF FARMERS’ SURVEY

Farmers have observed reduction in rainfall, lowering of water table in the wells, shift in seasonality of rainfall occurrence, shortening of rainy season, etc. They have also identified the causes for water deficit viz., low rainfall, lack of rainwater harvesting structures, over exploitation of ground water, increasing temperatures and decreasing farm ponds. Farmers felt that the extreme weather events such as drought/flood impacted the agriculture, drinking water, food and fodder shortage, more pest and diseases in plants and animals that led to unemployment, migration and low income

CLIMATE PROOFING FOR WATERSHED PLANNING

For designing sustainable watershed plan under changing climate, climate proofing analysis was done. This included listing of climate variability factors, its direct impact, indirect impacts, Non climatic stresses, sensitivities, existing local adaptive capacities to deal with the climatic stresses, existing faulty practices and suggested adaptation strategies (Annexure 1).

SUGGESTIONS FOR NET PLAN

The two key features, which adversely affect agriculture, are the low amounts of rainfall and their unreliability. Adding to the problem, the two incidents are linked, in that the variability becomes greater as the mean rainfall decreases. The selected two watersheds of Dindigul districts have low average annual rainfall received in a shorter rainy season. The soils are mainly shallow red soil with very low water holding capacity. Soil erosion is one of the major problems noted in the study region. Most of the farmers fall into small and marginal category where the size of land holding is on an average 1 ha and makes it more vulnerable for any changes in climatic condition. In this region, to increase the agricultural productivity, mainly water and soil conservation measures need to be concentrated besides suggesting technological innovations for improving agricultural productivity.

Soil Conservation Measures

There are always strong links between measures for soil conservation and measures for water conservation, and this applies equally in semi-arid areas. Reduction of surface run-off by structures or by changes in land management will also help to reduce erosion. Similarly, reducing erosion will usually involve preventing splash erosion, or formation of crusts, or breakdown of structure; all of which will increase infiltration and so help the water conservation.


Deep Tillage

Performing tillage operations below the normal tillage depth to modify adverse physical and chemical properties of the soil is termed as deep tillage. One of the reasons for low yields in the dry lands is the limited amount of moisture available at crop root zone. From the examination of LGP and the dry spells within the LGP, it could be understood that, whether it is early/ normal /late onset of growing season, the cessation happens towards the end of December and the number of dry spell weeks ranges from 3.25 to 3.85. Under such situation, the LGP can be increased by one week to 10 days, if deep tillage is done as it helps in increasing the rooting depth of the plant. The available moisture to the plant will be increased if the rooting depth is increased and would help in supporting for the crop development for more number of days after the cessation of rainfall.

Summer Ploughing

From the climate analysis, it could be seen that the quantum of rainfall received during the SWM is slightly increasing over time.To capture the increased amount of rainfall effectively in the soil column, the hard topsoil should be opened up. Ploughing the soil in advance of the start of the monsoon season (Summer ploughing) would help in opening the hard topsoil, which would lead to increased rate of infiltration besides reducing the soil borne pests, diseases and weeds besides controlling Soil erosion.

Application of Tank Silt

The major soil type in the study region is redsoil (Alfisol) in which the water holding capacity and the nutrient availability are poor. The climate change projections indicate that the temperatures are going to increase in the future time, which will increase the water requirement of the crops. Under this context it is necessary to improve the soil physical and chemical properties. Application of tank silt will help for insitu soil moisture conservation by improving the soil structure, texture, and infiltration rate. It will also improve the available soil nutrient status that would lead to increased crop yields.

Growing Shelter Belts / Wind Breaks

Extreme weather events in the future are expected to increase as predicted from the global climate models. Frequency and intensity of cyclones are expected to increase which would mechanically damage the agricultural crops. Moreover, the strong winds would carry away the moisture available in the region and would increase the rate of evapo-transpiration. Shelterbelts are barriers of trees or shrubs that modify the microclimate, mostly in its downwind vicinity. They help in reducing wind velocity and, therefore, reduce soil erosion. It helps to retain the soil moisture for crop growth by reducing moisture loss through evaporation.

Sunken Pits

As the intensity of rainfall is increasing due to extreme weather events, the topsoil is lost due to erosion. To reduce the rate of erosion sunken pits may be


formed from starting point of drainage line. This would also help in reducing the flow of water and allows more time to percolate into the soil column both vertically and laterally.

Water Conservation Measures

Water conservation deals with methods to increase the amount of water stored in the soil profile by trapping or holding rain where it falls, or where there is some small movement as surface run-off. Some of the water conservation techniques that can be followed to increase the water conservation are suggested for inclusion in the net plan.

Percolation Pond

It is the shallow depression created at lower portions in a natural and diverted stream course, preferable under gentle sloping stream. Main advantage of percolation pond is improvement in ground water recharge. Afforestation on the boundaries of the percolation pond would help in reducing the siltation of the ponds, minimizing evaporation losses and also stabilizes the bunds for a longer period of time.

Check Dam

Constructions of check dams help to provide more water for the users of both upper and lower catchments. It stores the higher level of water during the rainy season that helps in increasing the cultivable land in and around the check dam.

Farm Pond

High intensity rains falling in a shorter period would lead to higher runoff. Farm pond helps in storing the runoff water that can be utilized during critical water need of the crop or for livestock watering during dry periods.

Loose Boulder Structure

Loose boulder structures are created across the slope to arrest the sediment movement. It also serves to slow the movement of water, allowing increased percolation of rain water into the soil.

Field Bunds

Field bunds are constructed up to the height of 30-45 cm in different cross sections (0.3, 0.42, 0.63) depending on the landscape, wherein, the run-off water is retained in the field during the rainy season.

Broad Bed and Furrow System (BBF)

The Broad Bed and Furrow system is a modern version of the very old concept of encouraging controlled surface drainage by forming the soil surface into beds. The recommended BBF system consists of broad beds about 100 cm wide separated by sunken furrows about 50 cm wide. The preferred slope along the furrow is between 0.4 and 0.8 percent. Two, three, or four rows of crop can be grown on the broad bed, and the bed width and crop geometry can be varied to


suit the cultivation. BBF helps in draining off excess water in the field and soil, provides congenial condition for the plant growth and development.

Ridging and Tie Ridging

This involves either planting the crops in small furrows on the flat and making ridges during crop development or planting the crop on prepared ridges and then blocking the furrows at regular intervals. It acts as mini dam which collects the rainwater and minimize the flow of water off the field especially in the context of changing climate with more extreme events.

Increasing Water use Efficiency within the Field

Increasing Organic Matter Content of the Soil

As a result of increasing temperature, the crop residue gets easily decomposed and soil organic matter content goes down. Organic matter content in the soil can be improved through application of vermicompost or bio-fertilizers at a frequent interval. Vermicompost is organic manure (bio-fertilizer) produced as the vermin cast by earthworm feeding on biological waste material/ plant residues. This compost is an odorless, clean, organic material containing adequate quantities of N, P, K and several micronutrients essential for plant growth (Banaet al., 1993).

Vermicompost is a preferred nutrient source for organic farming. It is eco-friendly, non-toxic, consumes low energy input for composting and is a recycled biological product (Edwards, 1998).Bio-fertilizers such as Azospirillum/Phospobacterum can also be applied to the soil to increase the availability of nutrients to the plants. Alternatively green manure crops such as Sesbania can be grown during the SWM period with minimum rainfall and incorporated into the soil at the age of 40 days when the crop is in peak flowering stage. This will increase the water holding capacity of the soil by increasing organic matter content.

Micro Irrigation (Drip Irrigation/ Micro Sprinklers)

Micro-irrigation refers to low-pressure irrigation systems that spray, mist, sprinkle or drip. Drip irrigation is the targeted, intelligent application of water directly to the root zone, fertilizer, and chemicals that when used properly can provide great benefits such as: Increased revenue from increased yields (up to 80%), increased revenue from increased quality, decreased water costs, decreased labor costs, decreased energy costs, decreased fertilizer costs, decreased pesticide costs and improved environmental quality. Water use is reduced by 40–60 %.

Fertigation

Increase in temperature would result in increasing the soil temperature and soil microbial activity, which would lead to quick decomposition and release of green house gases such as Carbon dioxide, Nitrous oxide, and Methane besides reducing the nutrient use efficiency. Application of liquid fertilizer through drip irrigation is popularly known as fertigation. In this method, nutrient use


efficiency is increased, cost on fertilizer is reduced and yield of most of the crops are increased.

Cross Seeding

Sowing the seed across the slope is known as cross seeding. This helps in maximizing water use efficiency in addition to controlling the soil erosion.

Agro-Forestry

Agro-forestry is a collective name for land use systems and practices in which woody perennials are deliberately integrated with crops and/or animals on the same land management unit (Nair, 1983).

The integration can be either in a spatial mixture or in a temporal sequence. Agro-forestry systems offer and facilitate the framer with the extra earning because it enhances the production ability of the land. Diversification of forest and cultivating crops also reduces resources and labor costs and also minimizes the risks involved in the cultivations of crops. Mix up of long lasting forest crops with annual agricultural income creates big profits on the annual basis too. Agro-forestry system increases the fertility of soil and also helps in preventing soil erosion.

Some of the trees/shrubs suitable for agro forestry in the study region which are creating favorable micro climate for the crops in addition to minimizing soil erosion are: Acacia Senegal (multi-purpose fodder tree), Acacia tortillis (fuel wood), Albizialebbeck (shade & fodder), Cajanuscajan (leguminous shrub), Pithecellobiumdulce (cut and carry fodder), Sesbaniabispinsoa (leguminous, fixes atmospheric nitrogen), Tamarindusindica (Tamarind), Dalbergiasissoo (cut and carry fodder), Casuarinaequisetifolia (Pole & Fuel wood), Gliricidiasepium (fodder), Sesbaniagrandiflora (leguminous live fence). Agro forestry also helps in sequestering atmospheric carbon dioxide which would become eligible for carbon trading and would pave way for additional income to the farming community.

Agri-Horticulture

Growing fruit crops in between the annual crops is known as agri-horticulture. Fruit crops such as amla, pomegranate, guava, sapota, mango, etc. can be grown for more profit in the selected watersheds. It provides better microclimate for the annual crops besides providing off season employment and income to the farm family.

Increasing Crop Productivity/ Farm Income

Use of High Yielding Varieties

High yielding varieties with drought resistant and temperature tolerant character are highly suitable for the selected watershed as it experiences frequent droughts.


Need Based Fertilizer Application

Soil test based and crop requirement based fertilizer application would improve the crops yield besides maintaining the soil health. Application of Plant Growth Regulators Application of plant growth regulators that contain growth promoting agents and micro nutrients essential for higher yield would save the crops from dry conditions. Growing Alternate Crops/ Fodder Sorghum during SWM Using the quantum of rainfall received during the SWM, minor millet crops like barn yard Millet can be grown which are drought hardy and needs less water. Instead of keeping the land fallow, a fodder sorghum crop can be grown to create fodder reserve for the animals. Intercropping/ Mixed Cropping/ Rotational Cropping Intercropping is the practice of growing two or more crops in proximity. The most common goal of intercropping is to produce a greater yield on a given piece of land by making use of resources that would otherwise not be utilized by a single crop. Careful planning is required, taking into account the soil, climate, crops, and varieties. Alternate Fodder The land area available for cultivation is expected to decline in the future years due to socio economic changes that arises out of climate change. Under such context, allocating sizable area of land for fodder production would lead to addition stress on cultivation of food crops. Hence, alternate (conventional and non conventional) fodder crops need to be promoted to meet the challenges in fodder requirement of the future. Azolla can be promoted as alternate fodder which doubles its biomass in 10 days with very less water requirement. It also increases omega fatty acid content in the animal products. Integrated Farming System Under changing climatic condition frequent crop failures can happen due to increased frequency of extreme weather events. Growing crops and animal (goat/sheep/dairy/poultry) together helps in increasing the adaptive capacity of the community by raising the productivity, profitability and sustainability of the farm. There is an efficient recycling of by-products from one component to another that leads to environmental safety. Income and employment is generated throughout the year.

Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) in Agriculture

Mobile Linked Information System

Providing following information through SMS / voice mail to the registered farmers to plan their crop management activities and their marketing based on the expected weather information and market intelligence:


1. Weather Forecast.

2. Agro Advisory.

Capacity Building

Following capacity building activities to the farmers would help in managing the crops in more profitable ways. Creation of Village Knowledge Centre (VKC) in the selected watersheds and providing basic infra-structure such as touch screen facility for current and future weather, weather based advisory, identification of problems related to physiological disorders, pest and disease problems, its management would be of great help to the farming community in taking early actions against crop production problems. An automatic weather station may also be set up in both the selected watersheds to record the daily weather parameters. Through the VKC, following capacity building programmes can be organized to the stakeholders:

1. Crop production technologies.

2. Profitable animal rearing.

3. Value addition to agricultural produces.

4. Cultivation of fruit trees.

5. Response farming.

6. Drip fertigation.

7. Irrigation technologies.

8. Biodiversity conservation–Awareness to student.

REFERENCES [1] Craufurd P.Q. and Peacock J.M. 1993. Effect of heat and drought stress on sorghum. Experimental

Agriculture29: 77–86. [2] Jones, J.W., Tsuji. G.Y., Hoogenboom. G., Hunt. L.A., Thornton. P.K.,. Wilkens. P.W, Imamure D.T.,

Bowen W.T. and Singh U. 1998. Decision support system for agrotechnology transfer: DSSAT v3. in: G.Y. Tsuji et al. (eds): Understanding options for Agricultural production, p. 157-177. Kluwer Academic Publishers.

[3] Levina E. and Adams, H. 2006. Domestic policy frameworks for adaptation to climate change in the water sector, Part I: Annex I Countries.

[4] The PRECIS Regional Climate Modeling system. 2011. http://www.metoffice.gov.uk/precis/ [5] Robert Chambers.1994. Participatory Rural Appraisal (PRA): Challenges, Potentials and Paradigm.

World Development, Vol.22, No. 10. p. 1437-1454. [6] Rowell, D.P. 2006. A demonstration of the uncertainty in projections of uk climate change resulting

from regional model formulation. Clim. Change, 79 (4): 243-257. [7] SWAT. 2012. Soil and Water Assessment Tool. http://swatmodel.tamu.edu/ [8] USGS. 2010. USGS MODIS Re projection Tool Web Interface (MRTWeb). http://mrtweb.cr.usgs.gov/

http://www.metoffice.gov.uk/precis/

http://swatmodel.tamu.edu/

http://mrtweb.cr.usgs.gov/


ANNEXURE I CLIMATE PROOFING TABLE AS EMERGED DURING THE STAKEHOLDER WORKSHOP

Climate Variability

Direct Impacts

Indirect Impacts

Non Climatic

Stress

Sensitivities Existing /Local

Adaptive Capacities

to Deal with

Climatic stresses

Existing Faulty

Practices

Suggested Adaptation Strategies

Less

rain

till

2030

/ In

crea

sed

recu

rren

ce o

f dro

ught

Wat

er sc

arci

ty: P

oor w

ater

ava

ilabi

lity

for i

rrig

atio

n &

cons

umpt

ion

Redu

ce C

rop

prod

uctiv

ity D

rop

in g

roun

d w

ater

leve

l Mig

ratio

n

Incr

ease

in b

ore

wel

l den

sity

, Hig

h ra

te o

f ext

ract

ion

of g

roun

d w

ater

, Ove

r Gra

zing

Non

avai

labi

lity

of cr

edib

le a

gro-

met

eoro

logi

cal i

nfor

mat

ion,

Hig

h te

mpe

ratu

res,

Hig

h de

pend

ence

on

wat

er in

tens

ive

crop

s, Lo

w

wat

er ta

ble,

Poo

r wat

er h

oldi

ng ca

paci

ty o

f the

soil,

Poo

r veg

etat

ive

cove

r, La

ck o

f enf

orce

men

t on

polic

es to

chec

k tu

be w

ell.

Poor

ec

onom

ic p

rofil

e La

ck o

f affo

rdab

ility

of a

ltern

ativ

es to

agr

icul

ture

Live

stoc

k as

insu

ranc

e Kn

owle

dge

of d

roug

ht re

sist

ant m

illet

s Pi

tche

r irr

igat

ion

for h

ortic

ultu

re cr

ops C

rop

Rota

tion

with

dee

p an

d sh

allo

w ro

oted

crop

s Wor

k as

Far

m la

bour

ers M

igra

tion

Alte

rnat

ive

non-

farm

sour

ces o

f inc

ome

Incr

ease

in th

e nu

mbe

r and

dep

th o

f bor

e w

ells

Mor

e flo

od

irri

gatio

n In

cent

ives

for g

row

ing

wat

er co

nsum

ing

crop

spec

ies

(veg

etab

les)

Pre

fere

nce

for w

ater

inte

nsiv

e cr

ops l

ike

grou

nd n

ut

and

vege

tabl

es

Mea

sure

s to

Incr

ease

wat

er u

se e

ffici

ency

thro

ugh

Soil

& W

ater

Co

nser

vatio

n m

easu

res I

ntro

duct

ion

of m

icro

irri

gatio

n pr

actic

es

like

drip

and

spri

nkle

rs W

ater

har

vest

ing

stru

ctur

es li

ke P

T an

d su

nken

pits

, nal

a bu

nds e

tc. W

eath

er a

dvis

ory

Live

stoc

k fin

ance

s M

icro

fina

nce

faci

lity

Incr

ease

in te

mpe

ratu

re a

nd In

crea

se in

dur

atio

n of

dry

spel

ls d

urin

g m

onso

on

Redu

ced

crop

pro

duct

ivity

Loss

of i

ncom

e fo

r far

mer

s Mig

ratio

n

Poor

eco

nom

ic p

rofil

e

Lack

of m

arke

t acc

ess L

ack

of la

bour

for

harv

estin

g an

d po

st h

arve

st o

pera

tions

Lac

k of

af

ford

abili

ty o

f alte

rnat

ives

to a

gric

ultu

re

Know

ledg

e of

tem

pera

ture

tole

rant

mill

ets

Spec

ies s

peci

fic cr

oppi

ng p

atte

rns (

mix

ed, i

nter

an

d ro

tatio

nal c

ropp

ing)

Liv

esto

ck a

s ins

uran

ce

Alte

rnat

ive

nonf

arm

sour

ces o

f inc

ome

Hig

h in

tere

st lo

ans f

rom

mon

ey le

nder

s

Wea

ther

inde

xed

Crop

insu

ranc

e Ag

ricu

ltura

l ad

viso

ry se

rvic

es L

ives

tock

fina

nces

Mic

ro

finan

ce fa

cilit

y

180 Green India: Strategic Knowledge for Combating Climate Change: Prospects & Challenges Ch

ange

in ra

infa

ll di

stri

butio

n pa

tter

n

Loss

of f

ertil

e to

p so

ils

due

to S

oil e

rosi

on

Redu

ced

land

pr

oduc

tivity

Over

gra

zing

Poor

veg

etat

ion

cove

r an

d to

p so

il ex

pose

d

Fiel

d bu

nds

Engi

neer

ing

stru

ctur

es

with

out l

ooki

ng in

to th

e flo

w fr

om th

e ca

tchm

ent

Impr

oved

rain

wat

er

harv

estin

g Fa

rm p

ond

/ si

ltatio

n ta

nks

Agri

cultu

re a

dvis

ory

Late

setti

ng o

f sea

son/

Lat

e on

set o

f m

onso

on

Hig

her i

ncid

ence

s of p

ests

/ d

isea

ses

Low

er cr

op y

ield

Loss

of i

ncom

e

Poor

lite

racy

leve

l

Lack

of a

gric

ultu

ral e

xten

sion

syst

em

Trad

ition

al e

arly

sow

ing

vari

etie

s Tr

ap cr

ops

Over

use

of p

estic

ides

Grow

ing

shor

t dur

atio

n va

riet

ies

Alte

rnat

e cr

ops (

puls

es /

fodd

er C

rop

insu

ranc

e M

oist

ure

cons

erva

tion

stru

ctur

e lik

e fa

rm p

onds

for c

ritic

al

irri

gatio

n.

Slig

ht in

crea

se in

pre

cipi

tatio

n af

ter 2

030

Incr

ease

in fr

eque

ncy

of e

xtre

me

wea

ther

eve

nts

like

flood

s and

ext

ende

d dr

y sp

ells

Loss

of s

oil f

ertil

ity S

carc

ity fo

r irr

igat

ion

wat

er

Redu

ced

Nut

rien

t Use

Effi

cien

cy N

ew p

est a

nd

dise

ases

Pres

sure

on

avai

labl

e w

ater

Lack

of v

arie

ties s

uita

ble

for c

hang

ing

clim

ate

Info

rmat

ion

on lo

catio

n sp

ecifi

c ada

ptat

ion

tech

nolo

gies

Per

man

ent w

ater

har

vest

ing

stru

ctur

es to

man

age

extr

eme

wea

ther

eve

nts

Over

use

of p

estic

ides

Ove

r exp

loita

tion

of

grou

nd w

ater

Exc

ess u

se o

f fer

tiliz

ers

Intr

oduc

tion

of d

rip

fert

igat

ion

Mic

ro sp

rink

lers

to

save

the

rain

fed

crop

s Wea

ther

Bas

ed C

rop

Insu

ranc

e Cl

imat

e ch

ange

aw

aren

ess p

rogr

ams

Capa

city

bui

ldin

g to

farm

ers o

n pr

actic

ing

clim

ate

resi

lient

agr

icul

ture

Hig

h w

ind

spee

ds

Phys

ical

dam

age

of cr

ops /

Cr

op lo

ss R

educ

tion

of cr

op

yiel

d So

il er

osio

n

Loss

of i

ncom

e M

igra

tion

Hig

h de

pend

ency

on

agri

cultu

ral p

rodu

ctio

n La

ck

of v

eget

atio

n /

tree

s

Tree

shel

ters

aro

und

field

s an

d ho

uses

Soil

cons

erva

tion

Grow

ing

shel

ter B

elts

/ w

ind

brea

ks:C

ashu

rina

climate proofing of watershed development programme for...

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