Classification
Land use problems:
- There has been less snow cover during winter time, and less precipitation in the spring, resulting in a lack of irrigation water,
and a decline of soil fertility. (expert's point of view)
Annual cropping arid Soil erosion by water: loss of topsoil / surface Structural: Others ()
full irrigation erosion, Soil erosion by wind: loss of topsoil,
Chemical soil deterioration: fertility decline and
reduced organic matter content
Stage of intervention Origin Level of technical knowledge
Environment
Natural Environment
Average annual rainfall Altitude (m a.s.l.) Landform Slope (%)
(mm)
Soil depth (cm) Growing season(s): 170 days Soil water storage capacity: medium
Soil texture: coarse / light (sandy) Ground water table: < 5 m
0-20 Soil fertility: low Availability of surface water: poor / none
20-50 Topsoil organic matter: low (<1%) Water quality: poor drinking water
50-80 Soil drainage/infiltration: medium Biodiversity: low
80-120
>120
Tolerant of climatic extremes: temperature increase, seasonal rainfall increase, heavy rainfall events (intensities and
amount), wind storms / dust storms, droughts / dry spells, decreasing length of growing period
Sensitive to climatic extremes: seasonal rainfall decrease, floods
If sensitive, what modifications were made / are possible: Of course the technology only works if there is a water flow
available, therefore a decrease in seasonal rainfall could negatively impact the performance of the spiral water pumps.
Human Environment
Cropland per Land user: groups / community, Small scale Importance of off-farm income: less than
household (ha) land users, common / average land users, 10% of all income:
mainly men Access to service and infrastructure: low:
<0.5 Population density: 10-50 persons/km2 employment (eg off-farm), roads & transport,
0.5-1 Annual population growth: 1% - 2% financial services; moderate: health, education,
1-2 Land ownership: state, individual, titled market, energy, drinking water and sanitation;
Land use rights: communal (organised) high: technical assistance
2-5
Market orientation: mixed (subsistence and
5-15 commercial)
15-50 Mechanization: animal traction
50-100 Livestock grazing on cropland:
100-500
500-1,000
1,000-10,000
>10,000
Technical drawing
Maintenance/recurrent activities Maintenance/recurrent inputs and costs per unit per year
- maintenance of pump Inputs Costs (US$) % met by land
user
Labour 10.00 100%
TOTAL 10.00 %
Remarks:
The material needed to build such a spiral waterpump is the most important factor determining the costs.
The costs apply to the construction of 1 spiral pump.
Assessment
Impacts of the Technology
Production and socio-economic benefits Production and socio-economic disadvantages
This has improved the amount of area that can be utilised for cultivation of several varieties of crops.
Benefits /costs according to land user
the spiral pumps were only installed in 2011, therefore long-term returns can not be assessed yet
Acceptance / adoption:
100% of land user families (4 families; 100% of area) have implemented the technology with external material support. It was
the Social Unit Development Village Organisations (SUDVO) who received the spiral water pumps from MSDSP
There is no trend towards (growing) spontaneous adoption of the technology. not yet determined, as the technology has been
installed only recently
Concluding statements
Strengths and how to sustain/improve Weaknesses and how to overcome
Spiral water pumps can provide water up to 30 m higher than Relatively high initial investment A micro-loan might help to
the river due to the system of compressed air in the spiral cover the initial investment
tubes
It may be expensive to replace some of the parts if they wear
Increase of irrigation water quantity out in a few years time. Buy replacement parts in advance.
The water pumps are easy to build using the manual provided
Provide an user friendly manual, listing the detailed steps of
construction including materials and prices
The land was not productive and now I have a good yield of
fruit Training on fruit tree cultivation.