Agriculture Reference
In-Depth Information
number of dams the land was permanently handed over to the WUA, and
WUA members farm it in the dry as well as wet season.
5.3.2
Dugout Irrigation Technology
Historical Background and Development
Dugouts are fundamentally excavations positioned within the flood plains of
rivers and streams (Ofori et. al., 2006). Dugouts are usually positioned in
depressions close to streams or rivers and may not necessarily have spillways
nor are their banks constructed with boulders. Dugouts are constructed by
scooping the sand in the flood plain/depression using bulldozers and
excavators to create the embankments. The embankments of dugouts are not
engineered or designed like the embankments of small reservoirs. Dugouts are
constructed to receive surface water runoff through diversion channels from
the streams during the rainy season and store the water for livestock
farming, aquaculture, irrigation and domestic water use during the dry
season.
The main distinguishing feature between dugouts and small reservoirs is that
while small reservoirs are constructed in the stream channel, dugouts are
constructed in the flood plains of the stream and are fed by surface water in
the flood plains. A second distinguishing feature is that dugouts are much
smaller. catchment areas ranging from 4-165ha; have storage volumes
ranging from 0.4x10 4 m 3 to 0.58x10 5 m 3 , full scale storage area of 0.04-3.2ha, a
maximum depth of 0.7-3.0m, embankment length of 38-320m
The development of dugouts has been concurrent with the development of
small reservoirs both in the Upper East Region and Burkina Faso. Data
compiled by the GIDA in 1994 showed that there were about 73 dugouts in
the Upper East Region. By 2003 there were over 850 dugouts in the
Northern and Upper East Regions of Ghana (Ofori et al., 2006).
Most dugouts in the sub-basin have been developed by either government or
development agencies aimed at improving the supply of water for domestic
and agricultural purposes to communities.
Some farmers however have developed their own dugouts purposely for
tomato irrigation in the dry season (Figure 5.3). At least two farmers seen
irrigating with dugouts narrated how they developed these dugouts with
their own financial resources. These farmers happened to be landowners
whose farmlands were located close to streams from which they could divert
water into their dugouts.
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