Prospects of Saline agriculture in the Arabian Peninsula: Proceedings of the International Symposium on "Prospects of Saline Agriculture in the GCC Countries"
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Citation
Faisal Taha, Shoaib Ismail, A. A Jaradat. (31/12/2004). Prospects of Saline agriculture in the Arabian Peninsula: Proceedings of the International Symposium on "Prospects of Saline Agriculture in the GCC Countries". Massachusetts, United States of America.
Abstract
This Proceedings presents a comprehensive review of the prospects for saline agriculture in the Gulf Cooperation Council countries. In the six Gulf Cooperation Council countries of Bahrain. Kuwait. Oman. Qatar. Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates. only 170-200 cubic meters of renewable water resources are available per person per year. This is less than 3 percent of the global average. Nevertheless. agriculture still consumes the largest proportion of the freshwater in the region. The withdrawal for irrigation in the six Gulf Cooperation Council countries is 85 percent. Only 15 percent is used for domestic and industrial purposes.
Unfortunately, the use of freshwater for agriculture per person is higher in the Gulf Cooperation Council countries than the global use per person because of the aridity and high summer temperatures over much of the region. Thus. irrigation in agriculture assumes a greater significance. Even in areas where the environmental conditions preclude intensive agriculture, there is a growing demand for water in horticulture and landscaping. In the six Gulf Cooperation Council countries. the area planted to horticultural crops increased by 12-15 percent per annum from 1980 to 1999.
Hence, saline agriculture will become increasingly important because. in the Arabian peninsula. water resources will be exhausted within the next 20 years unless consumption of freshwater is reduced.
Recent advances in biosaline agriculture and salt-tolerant crops now merit assessment of saline water resources and their potential for agricultural use. Moreover. there have been rapid advances around the world in the use of saline water for irrigation. including development of irrigation systems. improved water management. and control of salinity within the root zone.
Biosaline agriculture technologies use salty water productively. Plants that tolerate salt in water and soil are being evaluated for productive use. perhaps replacing varieties that will only grow in sweet soil irrigated by fresh water. If economically useful plants are grown with salty water and on saline land, more food and feed can be made available globally and land abandoned because the soil has become saline can be put to economic and sustainable agricultural use. Making use of saline water for agriculture will relieve pressure on scarce freshwater resources.
