Irrigation and Soil Salinity in the Indian Subcontinent

Irrigation and Soil Salinity in the Indian Subcontinent
Author: N. T. Singh
Publisher: Lehigh University Press
Total Pages: 408
Release: 2005
Genre: Business & Economics
ISBN: 9780934223782

This book deals with the development of irrigation in the subcontinent since the beginning of settled agriculture, and its possible connections with the occurrence of salinity and alkalinity in irrigated lands.

Soil Health and Environmental Sustainability

Soil Health and Environmental Sustainability
Author: Pravat Kumar Shit
Publisher: Springer Nature
Total Pages: 732
Release: 2022-09-27
Genre: Science
ISBN: 3031092708

This book demonstrates the measurement, monitoring, mapping and modelling of soil pollution and land resources. This book explores state-of-the-art techniques based on open sources software & R statistical programming and modelling in modern geo-computation techniques specifically focusing on the recent trends in data mining/machine learning techniques and robust modelling in soil resources. Soil and agricultural systems are an integral part of the global environment and human well‐being, providing multiple goods and services essential for people worldwide and crucial for sustainable development. Soil contamination is an environmental hazard and has become a big issue related to environmental health. The challenge of the twenty-first century is to reduce the contaminant load and bring it to below permissible level. The contamination is not only a problem affecting local environments at the place of occurrence but also spreading to other regions because of easy transportation of pollutants. This leads to direct and indirect contamination of land and aquatic systems, surface water and groundwater, inducing significant risks for natural ecosystems. In this context, the spatial modelling, prediction, efficient use, risk assessment, protection and management of soil resources in the agriculture system are the key to achieving sustainable development goals and ensuring the promotion of an economically, socially and environmental sustainability future. The aim of this book on soil contaminants and environmental health: application of geospatial technology is to identify the soil and sediment quality, sources of contaminants and risk assessment and focuses on the decision-making and planning point of view through GIS data management techniques. This book covers major topics such as spatial modelling in soil and sediments pollution and remediation; radioactive wastes, microbiology of soil and sediments, soil salinity and sodicity, pollution from landfill sites, soil erosion and contamination from agricultural activities, heavy metal pollution and health risk; environmental impact and risk assessment, sustainable land use, landscape management and governance, soil degradation and risk assessment, agricultural soil pollution, pollution due to urban activities, soil pollution by industrial effluents and solid wastes, pollution control and mitigation in extreme environments. The content of this book is of interest to researchers, professionals and policy-makers whose work is in soil science and agriculture practices. The book equips with the knowledge and skills to tackle a wide range of issues manifested in geographic data, including those with scientific, societal and environmental implications.

Developments in Soil Salinity Assessment and Reclamation

Developments in Soil Salinity Assessment and Reclamation
Author: Shabbir A. Shahid
Publisher: Springer Science & Business Media
Total Pages: 827
Release: 2013-01-15
Genre: Nature
ISBN: 9400756844

The papers assembled here cover topics such as technological advances in soil salinity mapping and monitoring, management and reclamation of salt-affected soils, use of marginal quality water for crop production, salt-tolerance mechanisms in plants, biosaline agriculture and agroforestry, microbiological interventions for marginal soils, opportunities and challenges in using marginal waters, and soil and water management in irrigated agriculture.

Salt-affected Soils and Marginal Waters

Salt-affected Soils and Marginal Waters
Author: Ranbir Chhabra
Publisher: Springer Nature
Total Pages: 729
Release: 2022-01-01
Genre: Science
ISBN: 3030784355

This book presents systematic scientific appraisal, classification, genesis and viable technologies for reclamation and management of salt-affected soils and marginal quality waters across India and several other countries. Nature, solubility and geo-chemical mobility of salts have been provided as basis for the development of alkali and saline soils and groundwaters under specific agro-hydro-ecological regions. Chemical amendment (gypsum) based reclamation technology of alkali soils and related pre and post-reclamation water, nutrient and crop management interventions, including re-sodification issues have been comprehensively addressed. Features and operational guidelines of surface, subsurface, vertical and bio-drainage systems have been thoroughly discussed; likewise, amelioration of irrigation induced saline soils in inland and coastal regions and preventive measures for control of salinity and waterlogging along with environmental trade-offs. Practical approaches for amelioration and judicious use of saline, alkali, high SAR- saline and waste waters have been synthesized for different cropping and agro- forestry systems. Emerging issues on use of industrial by-products as amendments for alkali soils, physiological aspects of salt resistance, anatomical and biochemical mechanism of submergence tolerance, specific ion effects of poor quality waters, crop diversification, groundwater recharge, rejuvenation of tsunami affected coastal soils, safety against occurrence of poisonous gas in tube well pits, paddy straw burning and others have been adequately deliberated upon. Combining scientific principles with field experiences, the book is expected to serve as a useful knowledge base for research workers, teachers and students of soil science, agronomy, plant breeding, forestry, irrigation engineering, extension workers, environmentalists and planners associated with reclamation and management of salt affected soils and waters on sustainable basis in developing and developed countries.

Innovative Saline Agriculture

Innovative Saline Agriculture
Author: J.C. Dagar
Publisher: Springer
Total Pages: 518
Release: 2016-08-10
Genre: Technology & Engineering
ISBN: 8132227700

The land degradation due to salinity and waterlogging is a global phenomenon, afflicting about one billion hectares within the sovereign borders of at least 75 countries. Besides staring at the food security, it has far reaching and unacceptable socio-economic consequences since a large proportion of this land is inhabited by smallholder farmers. The anthropogenic-environmental changes and the climate change are further adding to the problem of salinity and waterlogging. The phenomenon of sea-level rise will bring more areas under waterlogged salinity due to inundation by sea water. Thus, dealing with the salinity in reality is becoming a highly onerous task owing to its complex nature, uncertainty and differential temporal and spatial impacts. Nevertheless, with the need to provide more food, feed, fuel, fodder and fiber to the expanding population, and non-availability of new productive land, there is a need for productivity enhancement of these lands. In fact, the salt-affected and waterlogged lands cannot be neglected since huge investments have been made throughout the world in the development of irrigation and drainage infrastructure. The social, economic and environmental costs being high for theon-and/off-farm reclamation techniques, saline agriculture including agroforestry inculcated with modern innovative techniques, is now emerging as a potential tool not only for arresting salinity and waterlogging but for other environmental services like mitigate climate change, sequester carbon and biodiversity restoration. This publication attempts to address a wide range of issues, principles and practices related to the salinity involved in rehabilitation of waterlogged saline soils and judicious use of saline waters including sea water. Many of the site specific case studies typical to the saline environment including coastal ecologies sustaining productivity, rendering environmental services, conserving biodiversity and mitigating climate change have been described in detail. Written by leading researchers and experts of their own fields, the book is a must, not only for salinity experts but also for policy makers, environmentalists, students and educationists alike. More importantly, it contributes to reversing the salinity trends and teaches to sustain with salinity ensuring the livelihood of resource-poor farming families leaving in harsh ecologies including coastal areas which are more vulnerable to climate change.

Agroforestry for the Management of Waterlogged Saline Soils and Poor-Quality Waters

Agroforestry for the Management of Waterlogged Saline Soils and Poor-Quality Waters
Author: Jagdish Chander Dagar
Publisher: Springer
Total Pages: 214
Release: 2016-02-11
Genre: Technology & Engineering
ISBN: 8132226593

Land degradation caused by salinity and waterlogging is a global problem afflicting about one billion hectares and endangering the food security of at least 75 countries. Since the social, economic and environmental costs of on and/off-farm reclamation techniques are high, agroforestry is now emerging as a potential tool, not only for arresting salinity and waterlogging, but also for other environmental services like mitigating climate change, sequestering carbon and restoring biodiversity. This publication addresses the vital issues, principles and practices related to rehabilitation using agroforestry and includes many site-specific case studies from a number of the world’s typical catchments. Written by leading researchers, the book is a must, not only for scientists whose research interests lie in soil salinity, waterlogging and poor-quality waters, but also policy makers, environmentalists, students, and educationists alike. More importantly, it contributes to reversing the salinity trends and ensuring the livelihoods of resource-poor farming families living in these harsh agro-ecosystems.

Natural Resources Management and Biological Sciences

Natural Resources Management and Biological Sciences
Author: Edward R Rhodes
Publisher: BoD – Books on Demand
Total Pages: 388
Release: 2021-02-17
Genre: Science
ISBN: 1838804641

The natural resources of the Earth are indispensable for the survival of humans, plants, and animals and for the state of biodiversity. The way they are managed determines the extent to which they will be preserved for future generations. Climate change underscores the need for the proper use of natural resources. This book brings together reviews of literature and the results of research studies on the status and management of soil, water, plant, and wildlife resources, especially as they relate to the biological sciences, in Africa, Asia, Europe, North America, and Latin America. It covers work on classification and inventories, impacts of anthropogenic activities, and exploitation and conservation. The book will be of interest to scientists and practitioners of natural resource management worldwide.

Water Security in India

Water Security in India
Author: Vandana Asthana
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing USA
Total Pages: 417
Release: 2014-10-23
Genre: Technology & Engineering
ISBN: 1441189521

Few people actively engaged in India's water sector would deny that the Indian subcontinent faces serious problems in the sustainable use and management of water resources. Water resources in India have been subjected to tremendous pressures from increasing population, urbanization, industrialization, and modern agricultural methods. The inadequate access to clean drinking water, increase in water related disasters such as floods and droughts, vulnerability to climate change and competition for the resource amongst different sectors and the region poses immense pressures for sustainability of water systems and humanity. Water Security in India addresses these issues head on, analyzing the challenges that contemporary India faces if it is to create a water-secure world, and providing a hopeful, though guarded, road-map to a future in which India's life-giving and life-sustaining fresh water resources are safe, clean, plentiful, and available to all, secured for the people in a peaceful and ecologically sustainable manner.

Ecology and Power in the Age of Empire

Ecology and Power in the Age of Empire
Author: Corey Ross
Publisher: Oxford University Press
Total Pages: 488
Release: 2017-03-31
Genre: History
ISBN: 0191091960

Ecology and Power in the Age of Empire provides the first wide-ranging environmental history of the heyday of European imperialism, from the late nineteenth century to the end of the colonial era. It focuses on the ecological dimensions of the explosive growth of tropical commodity production, global trade, and modern resource management-transformations that still visibly shape our world today-and how they were related to broader social, cultural, and political developments in Europe's colonies. Covering the overseas empires of all the major European powers, Corey Ross argues that tropical environments were not merely a stage on which conquest and subjugation took place, but were an essential part of the colonial project, profoundly shaping the imperial enterprise even as they were shaped by it. The story he tells is not only about the complexities of human experience, but also about people's relationship with the ecosystems in which they were themselves embedded: the soil, water, plants, and animals that were likewise a part of Europe's empire. Although it shows that imperial conquest rarely represented a sudden bout of ecological devastation, it nonetheless demonstrates that modern imperialism marked a decisive and largely negative milestone for the natural environment. By relating the expansion of modern empire, global trade, and mass consumption to the momentous ecological shifts that they entailed, this book provides a historical perspective on the vital nexus of social, political, and environmental issues that we face in the twenty-first-century world.

Agrarian Change and Urbanization in Southern India

Agrarian Change and Urbanization in Southern India
Author: Seema Purushothaman
Publisher: Springer Nature
Total Pages: 302
Release: 2019-08-28
Genre: Business & Economics
ISBN: 9811083363

This book takes readers on a journey through the evolution of agricultural communities in southern India, from their historical roots to the recent global neo-liberal era. It offers insights into a unique combination of themes, with a particular focus on agrarian change and urbanisation, specifically in the state of Karnataka where both aspects are significant and co-exist. Based on case studies from Karnataka in South India, the book presents a regional yet integrated multi-disciplinary framework for analysing the persistence, resilience and future of small farmer units. In doing so, it charts possible futures for small farm holdings and identifies means of integrating their progress and sustainability alongside that of the rest of the economy. Further, it provides arguments for the relevance of small holdings in connection with sustainable livelihoods and welfare at the grass roots, while also catering to the welfare needs of society at the macro level. The book makes a valuable contribution to the scholarship of agrarian as well as peri-urban transdisciplinary literature. For agrarian academics, students and the teaching community, the book’s broad and topical coverage make it a valuable resource. For development practitioners and for those working on issues related to urbanisation, urban peripheries and the rural–urban interface, this book offers a new perspective that considers the primary sector on par with the secondary and tertiary. It also offers an insightful guide for policymakers and non-government organisations working in this area.