Watershed management, groundwater recharge and drought resilience: An integrated approach to adapt to rainfall variability in northern Ethiopia
Rainfall variability coupled with poor land and water management is contributing to food insecurity in many sub-Saharan African countries such as Ethiopia. To address such challenges, various efforts have been implemented in Ethiopia. The objective of this study was to evaluate the long-term impacts...
| Autores principales: | , , , , , , , , , |
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| Formato: | Journal Article |
| Lenguaje: | Inglés |
| Publicado: |
Elsevier
2024
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| Materias: | |
| Acceso en línea: | https://hdl.handle.net/10568/134730 |
| _version_ | 1855531547060338688 |
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| author | Woldearegay, Kifle Grum, Berhane Hessel, Rudi Steenbergen, Frank Fleskens, Luuk Yazew, Eyasu Tamene, Lulseged D. Mekonnen, Kindu Reda, Teklay Haftu, Mulu |
| author_browse | Fleskens, Luuk Grum, Berhane Haftu, Mulu Hessel, Rudi Mekonnen, Kindu Reda, Teklay Steenbergen, Frank Tamene, Lulseged D. Woldearegay, Kifle Yazew, Eyasu |
| author_facet | Woldearegay, Kifle Grum, Berhane Hessel, Rudi Steenbergen, Frank Fleskens, Luuk Yazew, Eyasu Tamene, Lulseged D. Mekonnen, Kindu Reda, Teklay Haftu, Mulu |
| author_sort | Woldearegay, Kifle |
| collection | Repository of Agricultural Research Outputs (CGSpace) |
| description | Rainfall variability coupled with poor land and water management is contributing to food insecurity in many sub-Saharan African countries such as Ethiopia. To address such challenges, various efforts have been implemented in Ethiopia. The objective of this study was to evaluate the long-term impacts of different soil and water conservation and water harvesting interventions on groundwater and drought resilience of the Gule watershed, northern Ethiopia. The study involved: (i) documentation of the approaches followed and the technologies implemented in Gule since the 1990s, (ii) monitoring the hydrological effects of the interventions for ten years, and (iii) evaluation of the effects of the interventions on groundwater (level and quality), spring discharge and suspended sediment concentration (SSC) in runoff. Results showed that interventions were implemented at different stages and scales. As a result of the interventions, the watershed was transformed into a landscape resilient to rainfall variability: (a) dry shallow groundwater wells have become productive and the level of water in wells has raised, (b) the groundwater quality has improved, (c) SSC in high floods has reduced by up to 65%, (d) discharge of existing springs has increased by up to 73% and new springs have started to emerge. Due to improved water availability, irrigated land has increased from less than 3.5 ha before 2002 to 166 ha in 2019. Communities have remained water-secure during an extreme drought in 2015/2016. Implementation of watershed management practices has transformed the landscape to be resilient to rainfall variability in a semi-arid environment: a lesson for adaptation to climate variability and change in similar environments. |
| format | Journal Article |
| id | CGSpace134730 |
| institution | CGIAR Consortium |
| language | Inglés |
| publishDate | 2024 |
| publishDateRange | 2024 |
| publishDateSort | 2024 |
| publisher | Elsevier |
| publisherStr | Elsevier |
| record_format | dspace |
| spelling | CGSpace1347302025-10-26T12:56:05Z Watershed management, groundwater recharge and drought resilience: An integrated approach to adapt to rainfall variability in northern Ethiopia Woldearegay, Kifle Grum, Berhane Hessel, Rudi Steenbergen, Frank Fleskens, Luuk Yazew, Eyasu Tamene, Lulseged D. Mekonnen, Kindu Reda, Teklay Haftu, Mulu farming systems climate change intensification Rainfall variability coupled with poor land and water management is contributing to food insecurity in many sub-Saharan African countries such as Ethiopia. To address such challenges, various efforts have been implemented in Ethiopia. The objective of this study was to evaluate the long-term impacts of different soil and water conservation and water harvesting interventions on groundwater and drought resilience of the Gule watershed, northern Ethiopia. The study involved: (i) documentation of the approaches followed and the technologies implemented in Gule since the 1990s, (ii) monitoring the hydrological effects of the interventions for ten years, and (iii) evaluation of the effects of the interventions on groundwater (level and quality), spring discharge and suspended sediment concentration (SSC) in runoff. Results showed that interventions were implemented at different stages and scales. As a result of the interventions, the watershed was transformed into a landscape resilient to rainfall variability: (a) dry shallow groundwater wells have become productive and the level of water in wells has raised, (b) the groundwater quality has improved, (c) SSC in high floods has reduced by up to 65%, (d) discharge of existing springs has increased by up to 73% and new springs have started to emerge. Due to improved water availability, irrigated land has increased from less than 3.5 ha before 2002 to 166 ha in 2019. Communities have remained water-secure during an extreme drought in 2015/2016. Implementation of watershed management practices has transformed the landscape to be resilient to rainfall variability in a semi-arid environment: a lesson for adaptation to climate variability and change in similar environments. 2024-09 2023-11-27T13:32:25Z 2023-11-27T13:32:25Z Journal Article https://hdl.handle.net/10568/134730 en Open Access Elsevier Woldearegay, K., Grum, B., Hessel, R., Steenbergen, F., Fleskens, L., Yazew, E., Tamene, L., Mekonnen, K., Reda, T. and Haftu, M. 2023. Watershed management, groundwater recharge and drought resilience: An integrated approach to adapt to rainfall variability in northern Ethiopia. International Soil and Water Conservation Research |
| spellingShingle | farming systems climate change intensification Woldearegay, Kifle Grum, Berhane Hessel, Rudi Steenbergen, Frank Fleskens, Luuk Yazew, Eyasu Tamene, Lulseged D. Mekonnen, Kindu Reda, Teklay Haftu, Mulu Watershed management, groundwater recharge and drought resilience: An integrated approach to adapt to rainfall variability in northern Ethiopia |
| title | Watershed management, groundwater recharge and drought resilience: An integrated approach to adapt to rainfall variability in northern Ethiopia |
| title_full | Watershed management, groundwater recharge and drought resilience: An integrated approach to adapt to rainfall variability in northern Ethiopia |
| title_fullStr | Watershed management, groundwater recharge and drought resilience: An integrated approach to adapt to rainfall variability in northern Ethiopia |
| title_full_unstemmed | Watershed management, groundwater recharge and drought resilience: An integrated approach to adapt to rainfall variability in northern Ethiopia |
| title_short | Watershed management, groundwater recharge and drought resilience: An integrated approach to adapt to rainfall variability in northern Ethiopia |
| title_sort | watershed management groundwater recharge and drought resilience an integrated approach to adapt to rainfall variability in northern ethiopia |
| topic | farming systems climate change intensification |
| url | https://hdl.handle.net/10568/134730 |
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