Abstract

Impact assessment of shallow wells on agriculture using HRS images
Track: Agriculture
Authors: Salman Siddiqui

Traditionally shallow wells have been the source of freshwater in dry coastal regions of Sri Lanka. The area (Jaffna in the north, Kalpitiya in west) though lack surface water sources, have high water table and hence suitable for shallow large-diameter wells (agro-wells). Due to government incentives, there has been explosion of agro-wells. With the introduction of such agro-wells, not only the area under agriculture has increased but the cropping intensity as well. On the other hand there has been raising concerns of unmanageable groundwater extractions. The shallow aquifers are vulnerable to high extraction rates. In this study a methodology has been developed to identify shallow wells (especially used for agriculture) by using high resolution XS imagery. It is then used to study the trends in annual increase in shallow wells in region and to see the impact of increased number of the agro-wells on the total agricultural area and production.