Abstract
Groundwater (GW) management is an essential element in irrigated agriculture. This paper analyzes the temporal dynamics of GW table and salinity in Khorezm, a region of Uzbekistan which is situated on the lower Amu Darya River in the Aral Sea Basin and suffering from severe soil salinization. We furthermore identify the critical areas for potential soil salinization by examining GW table and salinity measured during 1990–2000 in 1,972 wells, covering the entire region. Additionally, case studies were performed to assess the contribution of the GW to the soil salinization on a field scale. Over the entire area, GW was only moderately saline averaging 1.75 ± 0.99 g l−1 However, GW levels were generally very shallow averaging 148 ± 57 cm below the ground surface and thus likely to prompt secondary soil salinization. Three case studies where GW table, soil and GW salinity were closely monitored at the field scale, suggested that the elevated GW levels forced soil salinization by annually adding 3.5–14 t ha−1 of salts depending on the position and salinity of the GW table. Maps interpolated from the regional dataset revealed that GW was significantly shallower and more saline in the western and southern parts of Khorezm despite the presence of a drainage network which is rather uniformly distributed throughout the region. The results of the current study will assist the development of an improved drainage management in Khorezm.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Abdullaev U (2003) Republic of Uzbekistan. Land degradation assessment in dry lands (LADA). State Design and Research Institute (Uzgip), Tashkent
Abrol IP, Yadav JSP, Massoud FI (1988) Salt-affected soils and their management. FAO Soils Bulletin 39. FAO, Rome, pp 1–131
Allen RG, Pereira LC, Raes D, Smith M (1998) Crop evapotranspiration. Guidelines for computing crop water requirements. FAO Irrigation and drainage paper 56. FAO, Rome, p 300
Bucknall J, Klytchnikova I, Lampietti J, Lundell M, Scatasta M, Thurman M (2003) Irrigation in Central Asia. Social, Economic and Environmental Considerations. World Bank. www.worldbank.org/eca/environment
Cressie N (1992) Statistics for spatial data. Wiley, New York
Forkutsa I (2006) Modeling water and salt dynamics under irrigated cotton with shallow groundwater in the Khorezm region of Uzbekistan. Dissertation, Univ. Bonn
Ghassemi F, Jakeman AJ, Nix H (1995) Salinization of land and water resources: human causes, extent, management, and case studies. Univ. New South Wales Press, Sydney, Australia
Glantz MH (1999) Sustainable development and creeping environmental problems in the Aral Sea region. In: Glantz MH (ed) Creeping environmental problems and sustainable development in the Aral Sea Basin. Cambridge University Press, UK, pp 1–26
Hillel D (2000) Salinity management for sustainable agriculture: integrating science, environment, and economics. The World Bank, Washington, DC
Ibrakhimov M, Park S, Vlek PLG (2004) Development of groundwater salinity in a region of the lower Amu-Darya River, Khorezm, Uzbekistan. In: Ryan J, Vlek P, Paroda R (eds) Agriculture in Central Asia: research for development. Proceedings of a symposium held at the american society of agronomy annual meeting at Indianapolis, Indiana, USA. International Center for Agricultural Research in the Dry Areas (ICARDA), Alleppo, Syria, 10–14 Nov 2002
Ikramov R (2004) Present salinity and drainage condition, and salinity control measures in Uzbekistan. Proceedings of the IWMI conference “Materials for meeting on development of the salinity, Land degradation and Drainage—Waste Water Reuse. Research program for Central Asia”. May 11–17, Tashkent, 2004
Ivanov VN, Chub VE, Subbotina OI, Tolkacheva GA, Toryannikova RV (1996) Review of the scientific and environmental issues of the Aral Sea basin. In: Micklin PP, Williams WD (eds) The Aral Sea Basin. NATO ASI Series 2, vol. 12. Springer, Berlin, pp 9–26
Jabbarov H (1990) The analysis of the indicators of ameliorative conditions in irrigated areas of Khorezm region. PhD Thesis, NPO SANIIRI, Tashkent, Uzbekistan
Journel AG, Huijbregts CJ (1978) Mining geostatistics. Academic, New York
Kats DM (1976) The influence of irrigation on the groundwater (in Russian). Kolos, Moscow, p 271
Khamzina A (2006) The assessment of tree species and irrigation techniques for afforestation of degraded agricultural landscapes in Khorezm, Uzbekistan, Aral Sea Basin. Dissertation, Univ. Bonn, 139 pp
Khodzhibaev NN (1979) Natural flow of groundwater in Uzbekistan. Fan, Tashkent, Uzbekistan (in Russian)
Kiseliova IK, Jumaniyazov A (1975) To the question about optimal groundwater regime. SoyuzNIHI series: questions of amelioration and irrigation during cotton production (in Russian). Tashkent, Uzbekistan
Micklin P (1996) Introductory remarks on the Aral issue. In: Micklin PP, Williams WD (eds) The Aral Sea Basin. NATO ASI Series, Vol. 12. Springer, Berlin, pp 3–9
Ministry of Agriculture and Water Resource Management (MAWR) 1990–2000. Groundwater table and salinity (database)
Mukhammadiev UK (1982) Water resources use. Tashkent, Uzbekistan (in Russian)
Nurmanov NN (1966) Salinization and waterlogging of land in the Amu Darya River Delta. Nukus, Karakalpakia (in Russian)
Popov VG, Sektimenko VE, Tursunov AA (1992) Soil cover change in the contemporary Amu Darya River delta under the influence of anthropogenic desertification. Fan, Tashkent, Uzbekistan (in Russian)
Rakhimbaev FM, Bezpalov NF, Khamidov MK, Isabaev KT, Alieva D (1992) Peculiarities of crop irrigation in lower Amu Darya river areas (in Russian). Fan, Tashkent, Uzbekistan
Ramazanov A (2004) Issues of salinity control on irrigated lands—trends and development. Proceedings of the IWMI conference “Materials for meeting on development of the salinity, Land degradation and Drainage—Waste Water Reuse. Research program for Central Asia”, Tashkent, May 11–17
Ramazanov A, Yakubov K (1988) Leaching and moisture-increasing irrigations (in Russian). Mehnat, Tashkent, Uzbekistan
Rhoades JD, Kandiah A, Mashali AM (1992) The use of saline waters for crop production. FAO Irrigation and Drainage paper 48, Rome
Schmidt CM (1985) Estimation of ameliorative conditions of the irrigated lands in Uzbekistan. SANIIRI scientific report (in Russian). Tashkent, Uzbekistan
Shirokova YI, Sharafutdinova N, Forkutsa I (2000) Use of electrical conductivity instead of soluble salts for soil salinity monitoring in Central Asia. Irrig Drain Syst 14:199–205
Tursunov L (1981) Soils of the irrigated areas in western Uzbekistan (in Russian). Fan, Tashkent, Uzbekistan
Tursunov L, Abdullaev C (1987) Soil-physical characteristics of the lower Amu Darya (in Russian). Fan, Uzbekistan, Tashkent
UNEP (2000) State of environment of the Aral Sea Basin. Regional report of the Central Asian States' 2000. http://www.grida.no/aral/aralsea/english/water/water.htm
UNESCO (2000) Water-related vision for the Aral Sea basin for the year 2025. United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, Paris, France
Vodproject 1997, 1999. “VodProject” Production Association, Ministry of Agriculture and Water Resources, Uzbekistan. Annual reports
Acknowledgements
This research was carried out within the framework of the ZEF/UNESCO landscape restructuring project (www.uni-bonn.de/khorezm). It was funded by the International Association for the Promotion of Co-operation with Scientists from the New Independent States of the Former Soviet Union (INTAS) and the German Ministry for Education and Research (BMBF; project number 0339970A).
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Ibrakhimov, M., Khamzina, A., Forkutsa, I. et al. Groundwater table and salinity: Spatial and temporal distribution and influence on soil salinization in Khorezm region (Uzbekistan, Aral Sea Basin). Irrig Drainage Syst 21, 219–236 (2007). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10795-007-9033-3
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10795-007-9033-3