Publication from "Water Stories" magazine - People, countries, rivers in Central Asia
NEW TECHNOLOGIES IN AGRICULTURE
In Uzbekistan, every farm in the upper reaches of the Syrdarya has the right to receive a limited amount of water during the irrigation season. It is up to the farmer to decide whether this year will be enough or not. So some of them decide on technological experiments.
LONG EXPERIENCE
Bakhtiyor Kadyrov has lived and worked in the Fergana Valley, one of Central Asia's most populous regions, for nearly 40 years. He opened a private farm in Namangan six years ago.
He has new opportunities and new questions. One such question is water. To avoid the problems associated with its shortage, Bakhtiar risked relying on new technology for the region, which in a sense makes water scarcity an advantage.
One of the two largest rivers in the region, the Syrdarya, is formed in the eastern part of the Fergana Valley, in the territory of Uzbekistan, at the confluence of the Naryn and Karadarya rivers. Initially, the river flow is weak, but this is only on the surface, and the underwater flow is strong. The locals love to swim here, but they cling to the shore, and no one dares to swim more than three or four feet. Large and small canals have been dug into the river - thanks to which the residents of the valley receive not only drinking water, but also food. Bakhtiyor farm - Golden Lake is located three tens of kilometers from the head of the Syrdarya.
The river enters Uzbekistan for the second time, passing through Tajikistan and the southeastern part of the country. The most remote areas of the settlements are covered with reeds - the current here is already very strong, but this does not prevent local children from swimming. After almost two and a half thousand kilometers, the river ends its journey in the Aral Sea (more precisely, in the rest of it - the small Aral Sea) in Kazakhstan.
Bakhtiyor is good at farming - as a child he helped his parents in the fields, then leveled the fields before watering and went to work as a tractor driver. "As soon as the field is flooded in April, it is immediately clear how many times the tractor has made a mistake," he said.
Careful planning is done before irrigation to increase the coverage area, irregularities are eliminated. For three years in a row, seasonal planning has been carried out, which is comparable to a "cosmetic repair" of the field, a major overhaul every four years, said Avazkhan, an associate professor at the Namangan Institute of Engineering and Technology. Merganov.
After harvest, the soil is loosened and after rainfall it settles
Avazkhon Merganov is a scientist who has dedicated his life to the development of agronomy in his country and has worked in various regions of Uzbekistan. Engaged in increasing land efficiency. According to Avazkhan, the soil changes due to subsidence, which leads to significant unevenness. After harvest, the soil is loosened and after rainfall it settles. Depending on the crop to be planted, certain plots of land will be located more or less. That's why every spring, Bakhtiyor Kadyrov rides a tractor and uses a method that has been used here for decades to level the ground.
Bakhtiyor graduated from the Andijan Agricultural Institute and worked as an agronomist for six years in his native village of Golden Lake. A few years after his father's death, Bakhtiyor set up his 83-hectare farm. Bakhtier also had a family: a wife and two daughters.
As a happy farmer, he understood better how much water was used in the field. It is delivered to these places through the Fergana canal, which starts from the Syrdarya. If water is consumed in excess, consumers will have to pay large fines. Bakhtier said the water distribution is one of the busiest times of the year.
As a farmer, I began to understand how much water was used in the fields. It is delivered to these places through the Fergana canal, which starts from the Syrdarya. If water is consumed in excess, consumers will have to pay large fines. Bakhtier said the water distribution is one of the busiest times of the year.
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IN THE FIRST YEAR AFTER USE
LASER PLANNER FARMING
BAKHTIYORA CUT TO 15 FORIES
LESS WATER THAN FIRST
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There is another side to the problem. Farmer Bakhtiyor Kadyrov and associate professor of the Agricultural Institute Avazkhon Merganov are approaching the edge of a field where the ashes of a fire that burned a day or two ago are lying. There was scattered coal, unburned horns, and the ground covered with something of a color similar to dirty snow, except for the ashes. The “whiteness” of the earth is stronger at the center of the previous fire. This is salt.
A lot of water was spilled in this area, which lifted the salt from the soil. When the fire was lit. a, the moisture evaporated under high temperature and began to leave salt on the surface. In summer, a similar process occurs in the fields: when the temperature exceeds 40 degrees, the whole area turns white. Bakhtiar repeats twice that saline soil is a "farmer's horror." Where its content is high, nothing will grow until the soil is thoroughly washed.
NEW - IMPROVED OLD
Three years ago, an exhibition of resource-saving technologies was held in the region. The Namangan Institute of Engineering and Technology then applied to the Global Environment Facility (GEF) Small Grants Program to purchase water-saving equipment. The foundation supported the initiative, and the project's authors are preparing to distribute a laser field planner in the Fergana Valley.
Bach himself attended training seminars, and six months later, along with dozens of farmers, they agreed to participate in a project to use a laser planner. However, the use of new technologies has caused a number of inconveniences. The first of these is related to time.
"There will be irrigation and planting until May, for example, planting corn," said Bakhtiyor Kadyrov. - We harvest in summer. Then we plant cotton and harvest it in the fall. After the second and third cotton harvest, it starts to rain, there is no point in planning. The field will "rest" until next spring.
After the introduction of new technologies, the fields can be planted only from the second year. This could mean that the farm will be unproductive in the first year.
So Bakhtiar decided to cultivate only part of the land. If the fields are suitable for planting, it is the turn of the rest of the farm. Last year, Bakhtiyor set aside 83 hectares for 20 hectares for laser planning.
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Salty land is a nightmare
ANY FARMER UCHUNsomnevayus in perevode
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But the first problem he faced was time. After the introduction of new technologies, the fields can be planted only from the second year. This meant that the farm would be unproductive in the first year. Who would agree to that.
After six months of training seminars, Bakhtiyor Kadyrov agreed to participate in a project to use a laser planner with dozens of farmers.
"There will be irrigation and planting until May, for example, planting corn," said Bakhtiyor Kadyrov. - We harvest in summer. Then we plant cotton and harvest it in the fall. After the second and third cotton harvest, it starts to rain, there is no point in planning. The field will "rest" until next spring.
As a result, he decided to farm only part of the land. When the fields are ready for planting, it's the turn of the rest of the farm. Last year, Bakhtiyor set aside 83 hectares for 20 hectares for laser planning.
After the introduction of new technologies, the fields can be planted only from the second year
In the first year after using the laser planner, his farm used fifteen percent less water than before. Up to 300 hectares of land are planned to be cultivated by the end of 2013 in Mingbulak district, where the Bakhtiyor farm is located. Compared to the total area of more than 16,000 hectares of irrigated land in the region, this is a drop in the ocean. However, according to Abdusamat Sobirov, chief specialist of the Zadarya Irrigation Department, if such technologies are further introduced, saving 15-20 percent of the total water allocated for soil washing and irrigation will cost an average of $ 20 million. cubic meters. The use of the saved resources for the development of new lands and the effective removal of salt from the fields will significantly increase the productivity of the region.
So far, not all farmers in the country are ready to buy new equipment. So it was only after Bakhtier's neighbors harvested their first crop that they became interested in technology.
"Of course I took a risk," said the farmer, standing in the middle of the wheat fields. - Part of the land will be left uncultivated for the first time, in the first year it was necessary to use twice as much fuel. But it's worth it.
Laser flattening results in a smoother surface. The laser tower measures the surface height, transmits a signal to the tractor driver. The data is passed to a tillage machine that cuts the soil to the desired height. The error usually does not exceed two centimeters.
Sergey Kostychev, Tashkent, Uzbekistan
