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Oasis crop production constraints and sustainable development strategies Volume 13, issue 1, Mars 2002

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Authors
Ministère de l'Environnement et de l'Aménagement du Territoire, Direction régionale du Sud saharien Cité CNRPS, Tozeur 2200, Tunisie.
  • Page(s) : 5-12
  • Published in: 2002

The development of irrigated agriculture in southern Tunisia is closely linked with the availability of water - often at great depth - and the construction of water delivery systems. Agricultural activities, i.e. mainly irrigated date cropping, are concentrated along the slopes around urban oasis centres located on hilltops. One of the main problems encountered in these ecosystems is that available water supplies are not always sufficient to meet downslope cropland expansion needs. Abundant use of saline irrigation water has led to serious soil degradation in lower slope areas and lowlands as a result of the rising water table. As there is a risk that these areas will no longer be cultivable because of waterlogging and increased salinity, there is mounting concern about proper control of serious water quality deterioration and soil salinisation. A modern interdisciplinary and ecological research strategy encompassing a broad range of system components, including socioeconomic aspects of human involvement in these ecosystems, is required to enable an accurate assessment of waterlogging and salinity problems in these irrigated lands. Some strategies for improving and sustaining the agricultural productivity of irrigated oasis cropland are proposed.