WIT Press


Verification Of The Water Supply Rules In An Arid Area: A Case Study Of The Xayar Irrigation District In The Northern Part Of The Taklamakan Desert

Price

Free (open access)

Volume

185

Pages

9

Page Range

3 - 11

Published

2014

Size

921 kb

Paper DOI

10.2495/SI140011

Copyright

WIT Press

Author(s)

T. Yamamoto, A. Jalaldin, T. Nagasawa

Abstract

Chronic water shortage is a major problem in the Tarim River Basin. Countermeasures to overcome this shortage include water supply management and water-saving irrigation, unless a new water resource can be developed. Here we examined the status and adequacy of water supply management and the problems with agricultural water use in this area. The research field was the Xayar district located in the northern part of the Taklamakan Desert, Xinjiang, China. The water management office provided data for the monthly irrigated water volume that was supplied to the districts, and the township water management office provided data for the daily water supply. In addition, we interviewed the water management staff and farmers. The results indicated that the water supply rules were considered rational in this area. However, the enforcement of these rules was not strict, particularly on the borders of the irrigation channel compared with the upper irrigation district. This study demonstrated that the basic rules were strictly observed under the direct control of the water management office, and the rules were flexible, depending on each condition, through direct correspondence with farmers.

Keywords

irrigation, water distribution rule, arid region