Saline Irrigation for Agriculture and Forestry

347 Pages·1968·8.07 MB·English

by  Dr. Hugo Boyko (auth.), Dr. Hugo Boyko (eds.)

SALINE IRRIGATION
FOR
AGRICULTURE AND FORESTRY
WORLD ACADEMY OF ART AND SCIENCE
4
SALINE IRRIGATION
FüR
AGRICULTURE AND
FORESTRY
edited by
HUGO ßOYKO
SPRINGER-SCIENCE+BUSINESS MEDIA, B.V.
1968
©1968 BY SPRINGER SCIENCE+BUSlNESS MEDIA DORDRECHT
ORIGINALLY PUBLISHEO BY WORLO ACAOEMY OF ART ANO SCIENCE IN 1968
SOFTCOVER REPRINT OF THE HARDCOVER 1S T EDITION 1968
ISBN 978-94-017-5696-9 ISBN 978-94-017-6016-4 (eBook)
DOI 10.1007/978-94-017-6016-4
Proceedings
ofthe
International Symposium on Plantgrowing with Highly Saline or Sea-water,
with and without Desalination
heldinRome
5-9 September 1965
organized by
The World Academy of Art and Science
in cooperation with the
Accademia Nazianale di Agricoltura
and the
Consiglio Nazianale delle Ricerche
and
Co-sponsored by UNESCO
Contents
Editor's Preface . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . IX
Opening Address by Professor VINCENZO CAGLIOTI XI
Opening Address by Professor HuGo OsvALD . XIII
Opening Address by Dr. THA HLA . . . xv
Opening Address by Dr. M. ANDERSEN . XVI
GIUSEPPE MEDICI: On the Use of our Water Sources and the Problem
Camplex of Brackish and Sea-water for Irrigation . . . . . . . . xvn
PART I: PRINCIPLES, PROBLEMSAND LABORATORY EXPERIMENTS
HuGo BoYKO: Principles of Saline and Marine Agriculture 3
GIACOMO LoPEZ: Germination Capacity ofSeeds in Saline Soil . II
E. R. R. IYENGAR, T. KuRIAN & A. TEWARI: Utilization ofSea-water and
Coastal Sandy Belts for Growing Crops in India . . . . . . . 24
JosEPH STERNBERG: Nuclear Biology and Irrigation with Sea-water . 41
LUIGI CAVAZZA: Problems oflrrigation with Brackish Water in Italy. 53
GIAN PIETRO BALLATORE: On Saline Irrigation Problems in Sicily. Re-
marks to Professor Cavazza's Report . . . . . . . . . . . . 8o
PART II: FJELD TRIALS WITH SALINE IRRIGATION
HuGo BoYKo & EusABETH BoYKo: Plantgrowing with Sea-water and
Other Saline Waters in Israel and Other Countries . . . . . . . . 85
IsiDRO EsTEBAN-GOMEZ: Agricultural Cultivation by means of Direct
Irrigation with Undesalinated Sea-water. . . . . . . . . . . . . 93
viii CONTENTS
RoGER FIRMIN: Forestry Trials with Highly Saline or Sea-water in
Kuwait . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 107
ELISABETH BoYKO & HuGo BoYKo: The Desert Garden of Eilat 133
NICOLA F1cco: Irrigation with Saline Water in Puglia . . . . 161
J. W. VAN HooRN, CH. ÜLLAT, R. CoMBREMONT & G. NoviKOFF: Irri
gation with Salty Water in Tunisia . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 168
JEAN-PAUL COINTEPAS: Irrigation with Salt Waterand Drainage in Tu-
nisia . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 187
MANUEL MENDIZABAL & GunLERMO VERDEJO: A New Way of Culture
to Decrease Salinity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 195
PART III: SALINE SOlLSAND BIOTOPES
V. J. CHAPMAN: Vegetation under Saline Conditions ... 201
P. C. RAHEJA: Saline Soil Problems with Particular Reference to Irri
gation with Saline Water in India . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 217
NIC OLA F1cco: Behaviour ofSalty Soils under Irrigation in Puglia . . . 234
ALAIN RuELLAN: Experiments in the Improvement of Saline and Alka-
Hne Soils of the Zebra Plain (Morocco) . . . . . . . . . . . . . 241
MEERTINUS P. D. MEIJERING: Freshwater Organisms in Biotopes Influ
enced by Sea-water . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 249
PART IV: DESALIN ATION
Introductory Address by CARLO SALVETTI . . . . . 263
GIORGIO NEBBIA: Economics of the Conversion of Saline Waters to
Fresh Water for Irrigation. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 266
RAFFAELE DI MENZA: The Application ofNuclear Energy to Sea-water
Desalination . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 274
CARLO BARBERIS: Remarks on Some Agrarian Economic Questions
Connected with Desalination . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 289
APPENDIX
The UNESCO-WAAS-Italy-Symposium .. 292
Informatory Notes about the World Academy of Art and Science and
the World University • • . . . • • . . . . . . . . . . . . . • 296
Declaration of the World University of the World Academy of Art
and Science • 303
Index • . . • • • • . . . . . • . . . . • • . • . • . . . . . . . 311
Editor' s Preface
Two important Symposia were held in connection with the Illrd Plenary
Meeting of the Wo rld Academy of Art and Science.l One was the
symposium on "Causes ofConflicts and World Education," with which the
3rd volume of our publication series is dealing. The other symposium had
as its subject the utilization of highly saline water or sea-water by either its
direct use for irrigation or by desalting it. The lectures of this latter sympo
sium are being presented in the present volume.
Science and technology in their powerful drive forward have already
shown two different ways to utilize the great amounts of saline waters in
the deserts, as well as the practically unlimited resources of sea-water from
the ocean. Both, the methods of direct use of salty waters as well as the
sophisticated techniques of desalting them, open new and hopeful vistas
for mankind and shed new rays of hope into the sad picture presented by
our population statisticians for the next two or three decades.
To productivize the deserts with these saline waters for food production
would mean the conquest of new regions of the total size of a large conti
nent. According to the official U.S.D.A. Yearbook of 1948, sand deserts alone
occupy an area seven times as large as the total agricultural area of the
United States.
If farming can be introduced into these vast wastelands of our globe, and
if, on the other hand, adequate birth control can be brought about by
world education, then weshall have won a major victory for human wel
fare and for a lasting peace.
These words are so frequently repeated that they begirr to sound like
empty phrases. However, we have to consider that hundreds of millians of
people will - without such a victory - out of necessity be forced to rise
agairrst hundreds of millians of other people in the foreseeable future, in
order to save themselves from starvation.
1. See Appendix: Informatory Notes on "The World Academy of Art and Science"
(page296).
X PREFACE
Furthermore, if our thoughts project towards the means at our disposal
for such a fight for survival, then we have every reason to further any re
search work, which may devise a solution without such a desperate war.
Even today the masses are aware of the significance of sendinghydrogen
bombs and death rays by space ship to any place on earth, of chemical and
bacterial war, and perhaps still worse methods oflife extermination in the
future.
In order to attain that major victory for humanity, all our economic and
political powers, whether they be national or international, have to be
mobilized for the support of this research.
This is particularly necessary for the research of converting the vast
stretches of sand deserts by the direct use of saline waters into highly pro
ductive Iands.
Up-to-date, with the help of UNESCO, most successful results could be
achieved in the laboratory as weil as in small scale field experiments in
various countries along a climatic profile from the Tropics oflndia and the
hot desert regions ofSouth West Asia and North Africa to the cool temper
ate, humid regions of the North Sea and Baltic Sea coasts.
The new principles proved tobe correct and instead of the muchfearedsalt
accumulation, a reduction of salt content in the sand could be observed.
This scientific breakthrough stands now before its last step, which al
most all scientific breakthroughs have to encounter: it must overcome
preconceived ideas, professional jealousies and administrative red herrings
in ordertobring its enormous and predictable benefits to waiting mankind.
The international symposium on saline and sea-water irrigation was a
great stride forward in breaking former prejudices. Thanks for these
achievements must be extended to the Special Agencies ofUNO, UNESCO
and FAO, the Accademia Nazionale di Agricoltura and the Consiglio Na
zionale delle Ricerche of Italy, and other organizations, which together
with the Wo rld Academy of Art and Science sponsored this Symposium.
One hundred and four experts from twenty four countries unanimously
expressed these thoughts in a resolution at this symposium, saying that:
"They firmly believe that results already achieved by irrisation with hishly saline water
indicate clearly that those arid areas at least where such a water supply is available, can be
rendered capable of crop production, and they therefore stronsly recommend to international
and national orsanizations concerned with human welfare that jinancial provision continue to
be made for the necessary expansion ofr esearch and jield trials."
Let us hope that this fourth volume will contribute in broadening the
scope of this new line of research and will help to achieve its aims.
HUGOBOYKO
President,
World Academy of Art and Science
OpeninB Addresses
ladies and Gentlemen,
It is indeed a great pleasure and privilege for me, in opening this important
international Symposium on Problems of Irrigation by Salt Water and
Desallnation ofSea Water, to greet the participants on behalf of the Nation
al Research Council and on my own behalf and to thank them, whole
heartedly, for having accepted our invitation to come here and communi
cate the results of their studies and experience. My thanks are extended,
also, to the Institutions that they represent.
Special thanks are due to the World Academy of Art and Science and to
the National Academy of Agriculture for having taken the initiative of
organizing an International Symposium on a theme of such particular
actuality and great importance.
Before continuing with the few introductory remarks that I have to
make, I wish to recall, briefly, to my colleagues the memory ofDr. ScHWElT
ZER. As you know, yesterday the world lost this great apostle of peace, a
man who so truly belonged to the world of ideals from which the Academy
draws its best elements. Irequestall those present here to dedicate aminute
of silence to his memory. [A minute's silence is observed.]
The problern of the availability of water of good quality, in sufficient
quantity and at the right time and place is by now a precondition of the
economic and social development of many of the nations of the world.
Desalting, which already, in many areas with a particular lack of hydric
resources, represents an economic source of supply, will be able in the
future to supply water for drinking purposes. But it is clear that, at least for
the present, it cannot constitute a complete solution of the problem.
Agriculture certainly represents a major sector of water consumption,
either because the greater part of soil water absorbed by plants is lost
through evaporation or because it is lost through spilling. Expansion of
agriculture is closely connected with the fertilization of high precipitation