Africa RISING in the Ethiopian Highlands

Objective: Evaluating the impacts of SWC interventions at different scales.

Research methodologies • Hydrological bounded runoff plots used to evaluate at plot scale (Fig. 2).• Gauge hydrological stations were used to evaluate at watershed scale (Fig. 2).

Impacts of SWC interventions and land use on discharge and sediment yield at plot and watershed scale

Tesfaye Yaekob, Lulseged Tamene, Solomon Gebreyohanes, Solomon Seyoum, Kindu Mekonnen, Zenebe Adimassu, Kifle Woldearegay

Fig. 2. Runoff Plot and Hydrological Station

0

50

100

150

200

250

300

350

Faba Beanwithout SWC

Faba Beanwith SWC

Eucalyptuswoodlot with

SWC

Grazing land Mean

231

130 123

345

207

Me

an r

un

off

(m

m)

4.72

2.28

0.21

2.68 2.47

0.00

0.50

1.00

1.50

2.00

2.50

0.000.501.001.502.002.503.003.504.004.505.00

Faba Beanwithout SWC

Faba Beanwith SWC

Eucalyptuswoodlot with

SWC

Grazing land Mean

Ave

rage

Se

dim

en

t C

on

c.(S

SC)(

g lt

-

1)

Me

an S

oil

Loss

(to

n/h

a)

Soil Loss Average SSC (g lt-1)

Results• Plot-and catchment-level experiments showed significate differences in runoff and

sediment yield between treatments and land use/cover types (Fig. 3 , 4 and Table 1).

• Terraces with trenches on cropland reduced runoff and soil loss by 44% and 52%,respectively.

• At the catchment scale, discharge reduced by over 40% for the sub-watershed with SWCpractices.

• Sediment yield at catchment scale reduced by 70% due to SWC and water harvestingmeasures.

The SWC mobilization program achieved the intended target to reduce soil erosion and increase retention capacity of the watersheds. Integrating physical measures with biological options and supplementing these with water

harvesting structures can promote their adoption.

Conclusion

Fig.1. Gully and Sediment load at Gudoberet Kebele

Parameters Watersheds

With SWC Without SWC

Area (Ha) 33.83 22.08

Rainfall (mm) 737.60 737.60

Discharge (m3/watershed) 134682.40 105933.00

Discharge (m3/ha) 3981.15 4797.69

Sediment Yield (ton/watershed) 31.03 102.05

Sediment Yield (ton/ha) 0.92 4.62

Table 1. Sediment and discharge summary data

Fig. 3. Runoff estimated for different land use and management types

Fig. 4. Effects of land use and management on soil loss

Core partners

This poster is copyrighted by the International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI). It is licensed for use under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International Licence. November 2016

We thank farmers and local partners in Africa RISING sites for their support

Soil erosion is a serious problem for agricultural production in Ethiopia (Fig. 1). To tackle it, communities are engaged in various soiland water conservation (SWC) and water harvesting practices.