Strategies for agricultural development in the Fayoum area, Egypt

Abstract

With the present regime of irrigation supplies to the Fayoum province of Egypt, there is no real problem regarding the increase in water levels of Lake Qaroun which is the major recipient of drainage water. Future developments should therefore concentrate on solving the problem of peak supplies for agricultural use. It has been proposed to remedy the shortage caused by further agricultural developments by increasing the system capacity by 20%. There is, however, an alternative approach which requires no engineering work; this is to change the cropping pattern by introducing rotations which reduce peak water requirements. A simplified water balance based on available data is prepared in order to acquire a better understanding of the whole situation and to set up a strategy for future agricultural development. The developed strategy takes into account the limitations imposed by the closed system of the Fayoum basin such as the irrigation efficiency, the Lake Qaroun optimum water level, land reclamation possibilities, Wadi Rayan drainage surplus, and salt concentrations in Lake Qaroun.