Assessment of Water Productivity and Socioeconomic Well-Being of Fishermen in Seasonal Floodplains: A Case Study of Beel Mail and Beel Chandpur Rajshahi District, Bangladesh.Being_978-3-8465-1036-0.Lambert Academic Publishing (original) (raw)

Abstract

There are three million hectares of medium and deep flooded areas in Bangladesh which remain inundated for four to six months each year during rainy season and render the land unavailable for crop production. This generates the opportunity for managing these waterbodies with community based approaches for conservation and propagation of existing and potential aquatic resources and thereby to enhance water productivity (WP). It also promotes food security and provides additional income to stakeholders involved especially for the poor. Information on WP values, achieved from water uses and water resources, will help to implement effective and concerted management actions to enhance the benefits to the people from these floodplain areas as an integral part of approaches to improving WP. The study has been conducted with objectives of assessing water productivity (WP) of seasonal floodplain waterbodies of Bangladesh and examining the impact of alternative rice fish culture in these deep flooded waterbodies with community based fisheries management approach (CBFM). To attain these objectives, alternating rice-fish culture was introduced in a deep flooded waterbody and results have been compared with that of another waterbody with similar agro ecological environment. Aquatic and terrestrial environmental framework and water accounting framework have been used for assessing WP by aquatic resources and dry season’s boro rice crop, respectively. A range of variables including biophysical (water quality), agricultural (input cost, irrigation water volume, crop yield, fish culture, wild fish catch) and socioeconomic (income, fish consumption, fishing activity) variables have been monitored in both the control and study site. WP by net return on the basis of production cost of aquatic resources is TK 3913 ha-1 of waterbody and dry season’s rice crop including by product is TK 2.87±0.085 m-3 of irrigation water in control site. WP by aquatic resources on the basis of production cost is TK 8016 ha-1 waterbody and dry season’s rice crop including by product is TK 3.42±0.243 m-3 of irrigation water in study site. Results show that net yield of stocked fish per hectare waterbody is 7.53 times higher in study site than in control site due to the intervention of CBFM approach without reducing the wild fish catch. However during dry season, yield of boro rice was estimated to be 1.09 times higher per cubic meter of irrigation water use in study area than control site due to better yield of boro rice crop with less irrigation water requirement. Net WP based on production cost was 1.19 times higher due to the reduction of input cost specially land preparation cost. It has also been observed that CBFM incurs additional income and increases fish consumption for both landowners and landless fishers. So it is evident from the study that alternating rice fish culture in seasonal floodplain area can reduce water use conflict between crops and aquaculture in Bangladesh. If communities are strengthened to overcome obstacles in resource management with effective fundamental and financial supports, community based aquatic resource management approach can serve as a useful tool for increasing WP by enhancing water use efficiency and thus can contribute to current food demand and future food security.

Md. Istiaque Hossain hasn't uploaded this book.

Let Md. Istiaque know you want this book to be uploaded.

Ask for this book to be uploaded.