SPSC Written Preparation For the Posts of Assistant

Executive Engineer Civil (BPS-17) in Irrigation &

Power Department, Government of Sindh

Irrigation and Drainage Engineering

(Lecture No: 07)

Course Instructor:
Faisal Iqbal Shaikh
Former Assistant Engineer Civil (BPS-17), PHE & RD Department, Govt. of Sindh
Assistant Executive Engineer Civil (BPS-17), Irrigation Department, Govt. of Sindh
B.E Civil (MUET, Jamshoro)
MEM Construction Management (NEDUET, Karachi)
 Lecture Modules

Waterlogging and its Remedial Measures

Salinity and its Management Techniques
Land Reclamation and its techniques
 Water Logging
 When water table rises to such heights that the soil pores in the root
zone become saturated, thus displacing the air, the land/area is said
to be water logged.
 With restriction of normal circulation of air, decline in the level of
oxygen and increase in the level of carbon dioxide occurs.
 Over irrigation can raise the water table high enough to suffocate
plant roots with water logging.
 Water rises on the surface due to capillary action.

 Capillary action depends upon the type of soil, being small in height
for coarse and sandy soil and large for fine grainedsoil.
 The water table which is considered harmful will depend on the
type of crop, type of soil and the quantity of water.
 With respect to the type of crops, depth of water table may vary
over a wide range from zero for rice to about 1.5m for other crops.

 Optimum Depth of Water Table:

 The water table should be maintained at a reasonable depth below
the ground surface to make larger volume of soil available to the root
zone of crops.
 Usually, the land is said to be water logged if the water table is 5.0 ft
below the ground surface.
 In humid areas, optimum water table depth: 3.0 ft (atleast)
 In arid and semi-arid areas, optimum water table depth: 5.0 to 6.0 ft
 Environmental Impacts of Water Logging
Environmental Impacts of water logging are caused by un-thoughtful
planning of irrigation system and result into:
 Loss in crop yield
 Destruction of vegetation and crops
 Dampness and therefore diseases like Malaria,etc
 Destruction of roads due to reduced bearing capacity of water logged soil
 Rise of water in buildings due to capillaryaction
 Appearance of salts on thewalls
 Coming down of plasters in the buildings
 Certain weeds grow very fast in the water logged soil and normal crops
cannot compete with them thus suppressing the useful crop cultivated in
the area.
 Due to reduced bearing capacity, the agricultural machinery cannot
operate in the fields and agricultural operations cannot be carried out.
 Remedial Measures of Water logging
1. Surface drainage
 It is the removal of excess water from the land surface to create more
favourable conditions for plant growth.
 The water may be from excess precipitation; water applied in irrigation;
losses from conveyance channels and storage systems and/or water
that has seeped from ground water in upper reaches.
 These can be broadly described as
 On-farm field drainage system
 Intermediate drains (collector or carrier drains)
 Main drains ( or sub main drains)
 Seepage drains
2. Sub-surface drainage
 It is the removal/control of ground water and removal/control of salts
using water as vehicle.
 The source of water may be percolation from precipitation or irrigation,
leakage from canals, drains or surface water bodies at higher elevation.
 Any drain or well, designed to control/lower the ground water, is
considered sub-surface drainage.
 They may be broadly classified in two categories as :
 Horizontal drainage: It is accomplished by buried pipes or pipe less
(mole) drains and also by deep open ditches.
 Vertical Drainage: It consists of direct extraction of groundwater to lower
the water table by a system of shallow tube wells spread in the area.
 Other Water logging Management Techniques
 Employing artificial drainage methods.
 All new canals to be planned and constructed as lined canals and the
existing canals need to be lined.
 Watercourses need to be lined and their alignment as well as section
should be corrected.
 By using an efficient irrigation method.
 Salinity
 The appearance of dissolved salts in the soil pores and
ultimately on the surface due to evaporation of ground water
when it rises or is very close to the surface due to capillary
action is called salinity.
 Evaporation in arid areas draws water up through the soil, bringing
salts with it. Irrigation causes repeated evaporation, bringing more
salts up.
 The whitish salts appearing on the surface usually is Sodium
chloride (NaCl).
 In the areas where water logging has occurred, salinity is also
produced.
 In Pakistan about 6.3 million ha are affected by different levels
and types of salinity, out of which nearly half are under irrigated
agriculture.
 Soil salinity problems are particularly serious in the Sindh
province where some 70–80% of the soil is classified as
moderately or severely saline (Smedema, 2000).

Province-wise Distribution Of Cultivated Area And Salt

Affected Area (WAPDA, 2003)
Provinces
Punjab Sindh KPK Baluchistan Pakistan
Cutivated area (Mha) 12.27 5.65 2.11 1.84 21.87
Salt-affected area 1.234 3.04 0.11 0.12 4.50
(Mha)
 Salinity Management Techniques
 Leaching:
 Application of water in excess of evapotranspiration needs of the crop
to remove a portion of concentrated soil solution from the root zone of
a crop in order to prevent soil salinity from reaching the harmful level.
 Amount of leaching depends upon the quality of irrigation water, crop
grown and the frequency and uniformity of irrigation.
 Frequent Irrigation:
 The concentration of salts, available in soil and water, increases as the
water is used up by the crop for its growth.
 Frequent irrigation is applied as it keeps the salt concentration in the
soil solution low.
 Additional Leaching:
 Done either with each irrigation, after a few irrigations, once in a year
or in a period when no crops are planted on the soil.
 Salinity Management Techniques (Contd…)
 Pre-plant irrigation:
 Seed germination or seedling preparation are badly affected when salts
accumulate near the soil surface.
 It occurs when water tables reach higher level, especially during fallow
periods.
 Therefore, a pre-plant irrigation with adequate amount of irrigation
water is necessary.
 Land Levelling:
 In case of unlevelled lands, water in uneven areas may be collected
which may lead to salinity problems.
 Precession land levelling techniques by laser would help in controlling
salinity.
 Selection of More Salt Tolerant Crops:
 Use of saline irrigation water for raising crops would require use of
more salt tolerant crops.
 Salinity Management Techniques (Contd..)
 Soil Profile Modification:
 If the soil consists of layers that impede or inhibit roots and water
penetration, they need to be destroyed, fractured or at least made more
penetrable.
 It can be done by deep ploughing.
 Changing Source of Water supply:
 A better quality water improves crops yield and controls salinity.
 Changing Irrigation Method:
 Surface irrigation methods are not flexible enough to control salinity
because it is quite difficult to change frequency of irrigation or depth of
water applied which results in wastage of water supply and reduction
in efficiency.
 The sprinkler method, with its proper design, can supply water to the
crops at the rate which is sufficient for crop requirement but does not
allow surface run off.
 In case of drip irrigation system, crop yield can be increased by good
quality and controlled amount of water supply.
 Land Reclamation:
 Also called as land rehabilitation or simply reclamation, it is a process to
create new lands from oceans, riverbeds or lake.
 The process of returning disturbed lands to an improved state.
 The process of reconverting disturbed land to its former or other
productive uses.
 The land reclaimed is known as reclamation ground or landfill.

 Types of Land Reclamation:

1. Reclamation of Agricultural lands
2. Creation of New Land (Shallow water reclamation and deep water
reclamation)
3. Seashore Restoration
4. Desert Rehabilitation
5. Rehabilitation of Abandoned Mine Lands
 Saline/Alkaline Land
 The land containing salts injurious to plants i.e. alkali salts is
called a saline or under extreme cases alkaline land.

 Alkali salts include NaCl, Na2So4 and Na2Co3 (black alkali).

 NaCl being the least and Na2Co3 being the most harmful.

 The process of coming up of these salts and forming a thin

crust (5-7.5 cm) on the surface after the evaporation of
water is called efforescence.
 Agricultural Land Reclamation
 Restoring the productivity and the fertility of the land which has
become unculturable or has suffered a reduction in the crop yield
because of waterlogging, salinity, etc.
 Methods of Agricultural Land Reclamation:
Before any reclamation is attempted, the land is essentially perfectly
levelled to ensure uniform application of water and prevention of
accumulation of water in fields.
1. Leaching:
 Leaching is the process in which the land is flooded with an abundant
quantity of water to a depth of 15 to 25 cm.
 The excess salts are washed down from the land surface to the ground
water, provided the water table had already been lowered to a safe
limit.
 The process is continued till the salts in the surface layer are reduced
to a safe limit.
 Process of Leaching
 Small dikes (or bunds) are built to enclose the fields of the suitable
sizes. The dikes are usually 20 to 30 cm high so as to contain the water
without spilling.
 The land is flooded between the dikes and the water is maintained for
several days.
 The water gradually percolates through the soil and the surface
becomes dry. The flooding operation is then repeated.
 The process is continued till most of the salts have been washed to the
depth below the root zone of plants.
 Drying of the land surface between the flooding operations permits the
formation of surface cracks in the soil. These cracks increase the
infiltration during subsequent flooding.
 The rate of infiltration during leaching operation depends upon a
number of factors such as soil texture, the degree of dispersion of
clayey soil and the depth of water table.
 Alkali soils usually disperse during leaching process and become more
permeable as the soluble salts are washed down.
 Process of Leaching (Contd…)
 Leaching operation can be repeated after 4 to 5 years, if necessary.
However, excessive leaching is not desirable, as it may also remove the
salts from the soil which are essential for the plant growth.

 Moreover, over-use of flooding water creates the drainage problems.

 During the reclamation process, weeds and grass are allowed to

grow to consume some of the salts.

 On completion of the leaching process, salt-resistant crops, such as

rice and fodder crops (berseem, maize, etc), are grown for a year or
two to reduce the salinity further.
 Mathematical Expression for Salt Balance of Irrigated
Lands/Equation of Leaching Requirement:
 In order to maintain soil salinity, it is necessary to apply water to the
soil in excess of the consumptive use.
 This excess water flows down beyond the crop root zone to the
underground drainage system, washing down the excess salts which
otherwise would have been deposited in the soil to further increase its
salinity.
 This excess water is known as “Leaching requirement” and is
expressed as the percentage of the total irrigation water applied to the
soil (field) to meet the consumptive use as well as the leaching needs.
 This percentage quantity of water is used for maintaining
equilibrium in the salt content of the soil.
 Mathematically,
Leaching Requirement (LR) = Dd / Di
Where, Dd = Depth of water drained out per unit area
Di = Depth of irrigation water applied per unit area
 Mathematical Expression for Salt Balance of Irrigated
Lands/Equation of Leaching Requirement (Contd…):
Di = Cu + Dd
Where, Cu = Consumptive use
So, Dd = Di - Cu

LR = Dd / Di = (Di - Cu) / Di

For salt equilibrium,

Dd / Di = Ci / Cd

Where, Ci = Salt content of irrigation water

Cd = Salt content of drainage or leached water

Also, salt content is directly proportional to electrical conductivity

(measure of salt content in a given water sample), therefore
Ci / Cd= ECi / Ecd

Thus, Dd / Di = ECi / Ecd

2. Crop Rotation:
 Leaching is followed by a combination of crop rotation. The
following two crop rotations are commonly adopted.

 Rice in rotation
 Rice-wheat-moong-rice
 Rice-senji-sugarcane-rice
 Rice-berseem-rice
Wheat in rotation
 Wheat-maize-berseem-cotton-wheat
 Wheat-maize-senji-wheat
 Wheat-maize-rice-wheat
3. Adopting Rice Cultivation:
 Salinity of the land is reduced by adopting rice cultivation. In rice
cultivation, the large depth of water over the land leaches the salts and
keeps them at a safe depth below the surface.

 Rice cultivation also causes a reduction in the alkalinity of the soil. The
roots of the rice plants produce carbon dioxide which lowers the pH
value, increases the percolation and brings the exchangeable sodium
ions of the soil into solution.

 However, during rice cultivation, nitrogen in the soil, which is essential

for the growth of plants, is reduced due to excess water and absence of
adequate air. To compensate the nitrogen in the soil, a leguminous crop,
such as gram, is grown during the next Rabi season.
4. Green Manuring:
 A crop called Jantar is generally used as a green manuring crop. It has a
rapid growth in saline and poorly drained soil. Other green manuring
crops are Guar and Berseem.

 Green manuring also improves the structure of the soil. It releases the
organic acids which lower pH value and add nitrogen to the soil.

5. Addition of Amendments:
 Addition of amendments containing soluble calcium salts such as
gypsum, acid or acid forming fertilizers is very useful for the
improvement of alkali soils.
 For saline sodic soil, use of gypsum results in not only higher yield of
crops but also in improving the soil.
 Unlike fertilizers, gypsum application is not to be repeated every year.
6. Addition of Agricultural Waste Products:
 The salinity of the soil can be reduced by adding agricultural waste
products such as groundnut hull, saw dust, molasses with lime sludge,
distillery waste, sunflower hull, tamarind seed powder, etc.
 Molasses alone are not effective for the reclamation of alkali soils.
However, when combined with lime sludge, they are quite effective.
 Distillery wastes are acidic and quite effective in reducing alkalinity
and in replacing sodium with calcium.
7. Use of Argemona Plants:
 Argemona is a plant which grows on the waste land.
 This plant is highly acidic and can be effectively used to reduce the
alkalinity of the soil.
 Other similar plants are also sometimes used.
8. Use of Processed Coal:
 The alkalinity of a soil can be reduced by the addition of a small
quantity of processed coal to the soil.
9. Electro-dialysis:
 When an electric current is passed through the soil, it renders it
porous and permeable. Hence the infiltration rate is increased and
soluble salts are washed out.

 However, this method is quite expensive. It can be adopted where

cheap power is available.
10. Surface Drainage:
 Drains wash out salts from the soil surface and also remove them from
within the soil.
 Reduction in salt content by drains is very slow but they help in
reclamation of saline soils.
11. Sub-Surface Draiange:
 Provision of sub-surface drains is a very effective reclamation measure
for areas with high salt content throughout the profile or saline
underground water.
12. Dug-out Ponds:
 For permanent reclamation of waterlogged and saline-alkali soils, the
excess runoff is collected in dug-out ponds of sufficient capacity in low
lying areas.
 Either runoff from first rain of the season is not ponded or such waters
with high sodium carbonate content could be used for irrigation with
addition of gypsum .
13. Skimming Drainage:
 The brackish water overlies saline water in areas of rising water table.
The better quality of upper water can be removed by skimming
drainage, i.e., installing partially penetrating wells just to pump out
better quality water.
 Creation of New Lands
 Creation of “Artificial Islands” is an example of land reclamation.
 Although it is quite expensive and risky undertaking, yet it is often
considered at the places with high population density and scarcity of
flat lands.
 Examples include the palm Islands, Burj Al Arab in Dubai, city state of
Singapore.
 Seashore Restoration
 Beach rebuilding is the process of repairing seashores using materials
such as sand or mud from inland.
 This can be used to build up seashores suffering from seashore
starvation or erosion from long shore drift.
 It stops the movement of the original seashore material through long
shore drift and retains a natural look to the seashore.
 Although it is not a long-lasting solution, it is cheap compared to other
types of coastal defenses.
 Desert Rehabilitation
Various techniques are available for this category of land reclamation.
 Control of sand dunes: Flood water is used to reclaim deserted land,
flattening sand dunes, thus controlling wind sand erosion and
creating farmland. Oil in areas of water shortage.
 Farming Practices: suitable crop types are cultivated.
 Afforestation: It is an effective method used to enhance areas that are
affected by drifting sand. Air-seeding allows the distribution of seeds
into regions that would otherwise be ecologically unreachable.
 Irrigation Techniques: Suitable and inexpensive irrigation
techniques are adopted. Plants are guaranteed to grow in all seasons
and the permanently wet roots prevent termite plagues.
 Desert rehabilitation is a slow process and is dependent on number of
variables such as level of soil fertility, available financial resources etc.
 However, Preventing desertification is easier and cheaper than
restoring desertified land to its most productive level.
 Rehabilitation of Abandoned Mine Lands:
 Abandoned mine lands are utilized as grazing place for animals.
 Grassland is developed and maintained for this purpose.
 This can positively affect the health and reproduction of many types of
grasses.

 Dangers of Land Reclamation

 Soil Liquefaction
 Land subsidence
 Sinking of drained marshlands during flooding.