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Impact of rainwater harvesting on water resources of the modder river basin, central region of South Africa

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  • Welderufael, W.A.
  • Woyessa, Y.E.
  • Edossa, D.C.

Abstract

Along the path of water flowing in a river basin are many water-related human interventions that modify the natural systems. Rainwater harvesting is one such intervention that involves collecting and use of surface runoff for different purpose in the upstream catchment. Increased water consumption at upstream level is an issue of concern for downstream water availability to sustain ecosystem services. The upper Modder River basin, located in a semi arid region in the central South Africa, is experiencing intermittent droughts causing water shortages for agriculture, livestock and domestic uses. To address this problem a technique was developed for small scale farmers with the objective of collecting and concentrating of rainwater for crop production. However, the hydrological impact of a wider adoption of this technique by farmers has not been well quantified. In this regard, the SWAT hydrological model was used to simulate potential hydrological impact of such practices. The scenarios studied were: (1) baseline scenario, based on the actual land use of 2000, which is dominated by pasture (combination of natural and some improved grass lands) (PAST); (2) partial conversion of actual land use 2000 (PAST) to conventional agriculture (Agri-CON); and (3) partial conversion of actual land use 2000 (PAST) to in-field rainwater harvesting which was aimed at improving the precipitation use efficiency (Agri-IRWH).

Suggested Citation

  • Welderufael, W.A. & Woyessa, Y.E. & Edossa, D.C., 2013. "Impact of rainwater harvesting on water resources of the modder river basin, central region of South Africa," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 116(C), pages 218-227.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:agiwat:v:116:y:2013:i:c:p:218-227
    DOI: 10.1016/j.agwat.2012.07.012
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Stephen Ngigi & Hubert Savenije & Francis Gichuki, 2008. "Hydrological Impacts of Flood Storage and Management on Irrigation Water Abstraction in Upper Ewaso Ng’iro River Basin, Kenya," Water Resources Management: An International Journal, Published for the European Water Resources Association (EWRA), Springer;European Water Resources Association (EWRA), vol. 22(12), pages 1859-1879, December.
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    3. Andersson, Jafet C.M. & Zehnder, Alexander J.B. & Rockström, Johan & Yang, Hong, 2011. "Potential impacts of water harvesting and ecological sanitation on crop yield, evaporation and river flow regimes in the Thukela River basin, South Africa," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 98(7), pages 1113-1124, May.
    4. Gassman, Philip W. & Reyes, Manuel R. & Green, Colleen H. & Arnold, Jeffrey G., 2007. "The Soil and Water Assessment Tool: Historical Development, Applications, and Future Research Directions," ISU General Staff Papers 200701010800001027, Iowa State University, Department of Economics.
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    1. Daniel Kyalo Willy & Arnim Kuhn, 2016. "Technology Adoption Under Variable Weather Conditions — The Case of Rain Water Harvesting in Lake Naivasha Basin, Kenya," Water Economics and Policy (WEP), World Scientific Publishing Co. Pte. Ltd., vol. 2(02), pages 1-25, June.
    2. Wambura, Frank Joseph & Dietrich, Ottfried & Graef, Frieder, 2018. "Analysis of infield rainwater harvesting and land use change impacts on the hydrologic cycle in the Wami River basin," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 203(C), pages 124-137.
    3. L. Feng & G. Sang & W. Hong, 2014. "Statistical Prediction of Changes in Water Resources Trends Based on Set Pair Analysis," Water Resources Management: An International Journal, Published for the European Water Resources Association (EWRA), Springer;European Water Resources Association (EWRA), vol. 28(6), pages 1703-1711, April.
    4. Luo, Chong-Liang & Zhang, Xiao-Feng & Duan, Hai-Xia & Zhou, Rui & Mo, Fei & Mburu, David M. & Wang, Bao-Zhong & Wang, Wei & Kavagi, Levis & Xiong, You-Cai, 2021. "Responses of rainfed wheat productivity to varying ridge-furrow size and ratio in semiarid eastern African Plateau," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 249(C).

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