/^^EϮϭϴϱͲϭϱϵ;ᶃᶐᶂ/ŶƚĞƌŶĂƚŝŽŶĂů:ŽƵƌŶĂůŽĨŶǀŝƌŽŶŵĞŶƚĂůĂŶĚZƵƌĂůĞǀĞůŽƉŵĞŶƚ

sŽůƵŵĞϮEƵŵďĞƌϭƉƌŝůϮϬϭϭ/ŶƚĞƌŶĂƚŝŽŶĂů^ŽĐŝĞƚǇŽĨŶǀŝƌŽŶŵĞŶƚĂůĂŶĚZƵƌĂůĞǀĞůŽƉŵĞŶƚ

,-(5'±,QWHUQDWLRQDO-RXUQDORI(QYLURQPHQWDODQG5XUDO'HYHORSPHQW  ±

,QWHUQDWLRQDO-RXUQDORI(QYLURQPHQWDODQG5XUDO'HYHORSPHQW

 ᶃᶐᶂ







2IILFLDO-RXUQDORIWKH,QWHUQDWLRQDO6RFLHW\RI(QYLURQPHQWDODQG5XUDO'HYHORSPHQW

$LPVDQG6FRSH
7KH ,QWHUQDWLRQDO -RXUQDO RI (QYLURQPHQWDO DQG 5XUDO 'HYHORSPHQW ,-(5' LV DQ LQWHUGLVFLSOLQDU\ MRXUQDO
FRQFHUQLQJHQYLURQPHQWDODQGUXUDOGHYHORSPHQWUHVHDUFKLQWKHHGXFDWLRQIRUVXVWDLQDEOHGHYHORSPHQW(6'
7KH,-(5'LVGHYRWHGWRSXEOLVKLQJSHHUUHYLHZHGUHVHDUFKDUWLFOHUHYLHZDUWLFOHDQGWHFKQLFDOUHSRUWLQWKH
ILHOGV RI HQYLURQPHQWDO DQG UXUDO GHYHORSPHQW VXFK DV HGXFDWLRQ IRU VXVWDLQDEOH UXUDO GHYHORSPHQW UXUDOGHYHORSPHQWHQYLURQPHQWDOPDQDJHPHQWRUDJULFXOWXUDOV\VWHPV(YHU\DUWLFOHRUUHSRUWLQ,-(5'PXVWEH
DFFHSWHGE\DWOHDVWUHYLHZHUVDQGDQHGLWRULDOPHPEHU 
7KH DLPV RI ,-(5' DUH WR SXEOLVK WKH ODWHVW UHVHDUFK GHYHORSPHQW DQG DFKLHYHPHQWV WR VWUHQJWKHQHGXFDWLRQV\VWHPVWRSURPRWHFRRSHUDWLRQLQHQYLURQPHQWDODQGUXUDOGHYHORSPHQWDQGWRFRQWULEXWHWRWKH
SURJUHVV LQ VXVWDLQDEOH GHYHORSPHQW 7KH HGLWRULDO ERDUG RI WKLV MRXUQDO FRYHUV D YDULHW\ RI VFLHQWLILF
GLVFLSOLQHV7KHPDWLF$UHDV
7KHIROORZLQJDUHDVDUHHQYLVLRQHGLQ,-(5'(GXFDWLRQIRU6XVWDLQDEOH5XUDO'HYHORSPHQW(QYLURQPHQWDO(GXFDWLRQ)RRGDQG$JULFXOWXUDO(GXFDWLRQ3DUWLFLSDWRU\$SSURDFK&DSDFLW\%XLOGLQJ&RPPXQLW\(PSRZHUPHQW$JULFXOWXUDO([WHQVLRQHWF
5XUDO'HYHORSPHQW
0DUNHWLQJ 3DUWQHUVKLS 9DOXH $GGHG 3URGXFW &RPPXQLW\ 'HYHORSPHQW $FFHVV WR 7HFKQRORJ\&XOWXUDO3UHVHUYDWLRQHWF(QYLURQPHQWDO0DQDJHPHQW %LR'LYHUVLW\6RLO'HJUDGDWLRQDQG/DQG&RQVHUYDWLRQ:DWHU4XDOLW\&RQVHUYDWLRQ'HIRUHVWDWLRQDQG
6XVWDLQDEOH)RUHVW0DQDJHPHQW(QYLURQPHQWDO0DQDJHPHQWHWF$JULFXOWXUDO6\VWHPV
2UJDQLF )DUPLQJ &RQVHUYDWLRQ 7LOODJH 0HFKDQL]DWLRQ ,UULJDWLRQ DQG 'UDLQDJH 1XWULHQW DQG 3HVW
0DQDJHPHQW&DWWOH%UHHGLQJ$JUR)RUHVWU\,QGLJHQRXV7HFKQRORJ\HWF,QIUDVWUXFWXUDO6\VWHPV:DWHU5HVRXUFH'HYHORSPHQW/DQG5HFODPDWLRQ5RDG&RQVWUXFWLRQHWF (GLWRULDO%RDUG(GLWRULQ&KLHI
3URI'U(LML<DPDML7KH8QLYHUVLW\RI7RN\R-DSDQ0DQDJLQJ(GLWRUV
3URI'U0DFKLWR0LKDUD7RN\R8QLYHUVLW\RI$JULFXOWXUH-DSDQ'U<RNR0RFKL]XNL8QLWHG1DWLRQV(GXFDWLRQDO6FLHQWLILFDQG&XOWXUDO2UJDQL]DWLRQ)UDQFH
'U0XKDPPDG$TLO,QGRQHVLDQ&HQWHUIRU)RRG&URSV5HVHDUFK,QGRQHVLD 'U/DOLWD6LULZDWWDQDQRQ$VVRFLDWLRQRI(QYLURQPHQWDODQG5XUDO'HYHORSPHQW7KDLODQG (GLWRULDO$GYLVRU\%RDUG
'U9HQNDWDFKDODP$QEXPR]KL$VLDQ'HYHORSPHQW%DQN,QVWLWXWH-DSDQ 'U5REHUW-)DUTXKDUVRQ7KH8QLYHUVLW\RI0HOERXUQH$XVWUDOLD
3URI'U.HLVKLUR,WDJDNL7RN\R8QLYHUVLW\RI$JULFXOWXUH-DSDQ 'U&KXOHHPDV%RRQWKDL,ZDL.KRQ.DHQ8QLYHUVLW\7KDLODQG 
3URI'U$UDWD.RJD8QLYHUVLW\RI9HWHULQDU\DQG$QLPDO6FLHQFH3DNLVWDQ 
3URI'U5REHUW-0DUWLQ8QLYHUVLW\RI1HZ(QJODQG$XVWUDOLD 'U%XQWKDQ1JR5R\DO8QLYHUVLW\RI$JULFXOWXUH&DPERGLD 'U+LURPX2ND]DZD7RN\R8QLYHUVLW\RI$JULFXOWXUH-DSDQ  
3URI'U6DOYDGRU&DWHOOR8QLYHUVLW\RIWKH3KLOLSSLQHV3KLOLSSLQHV 'U5DMHQGUD36KUHVWKD$VLDQ,QVWLWXWHRI7HFKQRORJ\7KDLODQG
3URI'U0XUDUL6XYHGL0LFKLJDQ6WDWH8QLYHUVLW\86$ 
3URI'U0DULR77DEXFDQRQ8QLWHG1DWLRQV8QLYHUVLW\,QVWLWXWHRI$GYDQFHG6WXGLHV-DSDQ'U9LGKD\D7UHORJHV.KRQ.DHQ8QLYHUVLW\7KDLODQG (GLWRULDO6HFUHWDULDW'U7DNDVKL8HQR0V.XPLNR.DZDEH0U-XOLDQ7RULOOR-UDQG0U6HUJLR$]DHO0D\&XHYDV,-(5'±,QWHUQDWLRQDO-RXUQDORI(QYLURQPHQWDODQG5XUDO'HYHORSPHQW  ±

&RQWHQWV
5HVHDUFKDUWLFOH
(IIHFWRI/DQG8VH&KDQJHDQG)RRG$YDLODELOLW\LQ3KDWWKDOXQJ:DWHUVKHG6RXWKHUQ7KDLODQG$QLVDUD 3HQVXN DQG 5DMHQGUD 6KUHVWKD    

7KH5LFH6RLO)HUWLOLW\&DSDELOLW\&ODVVLILFDWLRQ6\VWHP
9R 4XDQJ 0LQK    
,QIOXHQFHVRI/DQG8VHGXULQJWKH3XGGOLQJ3HULRGRQ:DWHU%DODQFHDQG4XDOLW\
LQD5LFH)DUPLQJ$UHD
0RKDPPHG .DPUXO +DVDQ <DPDPRWR 7DGDR DQG 1DJDVDZD 7HWXDNL   ,QIOXHQFHRI6RLO6DOLQL]DWLRQRQ*URZWKRI&RWWRQLQDQ$ULG$UHDLQ1RUWKZHVWRI&KLQD
<DPDPRWR 7DGDR +DVHJDZD 6KXLFKL .DPL\D 0LWVXKLNR $EGLVDODP -DODOGLQ     $QZDLUH0DLPDLGLDQG1DJDVDZD7HWXDNL   
6RLO(URVLRQ&RQWUROE\&RFRQXW+XVN%XIIHU6WULSLQ%RKRO,VODQGRI3KLOLSSLQHV-XOLDQ 7RULOOR -U DQG 0DFKLWR 0LKDUD   

7KH6RFLDO(FRQRP\.H\(OHPHQWRI6XVWDLQDEOH(QYLURQPHQWDODQG6RFLHWDO'HYHORSPHQWLQ$VLD
)DELDQ 7KLHO   (IIHFWRI/DQG8VH$JJORPHUDWLRQRQ1LWURJHQ&RQFHQWUDWLRQVLQ5LYHU:DWHULQWKH7RNDFKL5LYHU
+LURPX 2ND]DZD 7RVKLPL 0XQHRND <XGDL .XGR DQG <DVXVKL 7DNHXFKL   (FRORJLFDO0DQDJHPHQWLQ6DOWDIIHFWHG$UHDRI1RUWKHDVW7KDLODQG0RQLWRULQJ6RLO4XDOLW\$XQJ 1DLQJ 2R &KXOHHPDV %RRQWKDL ,ZDL DQG %XESKD 7RSDUN1JDUP   
5LVN$VVHVVPHQWRI3HVWLFLGH5HVLGXHVLQ2UJDQLF:DVWHLQ1RUWKHDVW7KDLODQG-DUXSRQJ 3UDVRSVXN DQG &KXOHHPDV %RRQWKDL ,ZDL   )XQGDPHQWDO6WXG\RQ1LWURJHQ5HPRYDOIURP3DGG\'UDLQDJH8VLQJ&OLQNHU$VK
+LWRVKL <DPDPRWR +LURPX 2ND]DZD <XNR 2KWDND <DVXVKL 7DNHXFKL     
DQG<RVKLWDND0XUDNDPL   
/RFDO*RRG*RYHUQDQFHRI5XUDO,QIUDVWUXFWXUH'HYHORSPHQW3ODQQLQJ&DVH6WXGLHVRI&RPPXQH&RXQFLOVLQ&DPERGLD<RXQJ 6RNSKHD 6RSDUWK 3RQJTXDQ DQG 6RSKDO (DU   
5XUDO3HRSOH¶V/LYHOLKRRGV$&DVH6WXG\LQD&RPPXQHDW0HNRQJ'HOWD9LHWQDP
9R 9DQ 9LHW   &XUUHQW6WDWHRI)RRGDQG$JULFXOWXUH(GXFDWLRQ 6+2.8128.<28,.8 LQ-DSDQ+LURNL ,QDL]XPL   
6WXG\RQ(YDOXDWLQJWKH+DUGQHVVRIWKH6LGHZDON3DYHPHQW
0LH +LJXFKL <DVXVKL 7DNHXFKL +LURPX 2ND]DZD DQG .HQLFKL 6DWR   
6XVWDLQDEOH'HYHORSPHQWLQ,QGRQHVLDQ(QYLURQPHQWDO/DZ/HVVRQVIURP*HUPDQ\¶V6XVWDLQDEOH
)RUHVW0DQDJHPHQW3UDFWLFHV
6UL :DK\XQL   
&KDQJHVLQ6XUYLYLQJ(FROL&ROLIRUP%DFWHULDDQG*HQHUDO%DFWHULDLQ0DQXUHZLWK$LU'U\LQJ7UHDWPHQW
<XWD ,VKLNDZD DQG 0DFKLWR 0LKDUD   L,-(5'±,QWHUQDWLRQDO-RXUQDORI(QYLURQPHQWDODQG5XUDO'HYHORSPHQW  ±
*URZWKDQG<LHOGRI2UJDQLF5LFHDV$IIHFWHGE\5LFH6WUDZDQG2UJDQLF)HUWLOL]HU$QDQ 3ROWKDQHH $UXQHH 3URPNKDPEXW DQG 6RPSRWK .DHZUDKDQ   $ZDUHQHVVRI2UJDQLF9HJHWDEOH3URGXFWLRQ3UDFWLFHVLQ:HVW-DYDDQG%DOL,QGRQHVLD&KLIXPL 7DNDJL DQG 0XUDUL 6XYHGL  
,PSDFWVRI0LFURFUHGLWRQ+RXVHKROG(FRQRPLF
6LYFKRX 7HQJ 6RNKDN 3ULHQ 1DUD 0DR DQG %XQKRU /HQJ  

2UJDQLF5LFH)DUPLQJ6\VWHPVLQ&DPERGLD6RFLRHFRQRPLF,PSDFWRI6PDOOKROGHU6\VWHPVLQ7DNHR3URYLQFH
6D .HQQYLG\  LLIJERD – International Journal of Environmental and Rural Development (2011) 2–1

Research article
erd

Effect of Land Use Change and Food Availability in
Phatthalung Watershed, Southern Thailand
ANISARA PENSUK
Thaksin University, Phatthalung, Thailand
Email: anisara.pensuk@gmail.com

RAJENDRA SHRESTHA
Asian Institute of Technology, Pathumthani, Thailand
Received 30 November 2010

Accepted 21 February 2011

Abstract During the past few decades, land use change has been taking place over the
Phatthalung watershed and the major change has been the replacement of paddy fields
with rubber plantations. Those changes cause the reduction of paddy field and crop landarea. Together with the population growth, urbanization and soil degradation, the foodavailability becomes a concerned issue. The food availability situation of Phatthalungwatershed under different possible scenarios has been investigated as the major objectiveof this study. The scenarios developed in this study included the biophysical factors, socioeconomic factors and policy factors. The projected food production of four scenarios
except the worst case exceeded the local consumption rate and the high surplus of rice wasfound in the best case scenario. The projected food production from the baseline and themoderate case scenarios was medium, whereas the projected food production from theworst case scenario was lower than the household requirement, which can be interpreted as
insufficient. These results from the four scenarios should be recognized in order to prevent
and avoid the local and national food, especially rice, insecurity in the future.
Keywords biophysical factor, food availability, land use change, Phatthalung watershed,socio-economic factor, policy factor

INTRODUCTION
Food security is currently becoming a global concern due to the rapidly increasing population, thedegradation of arable land and the conversion of food crop land into biofuel crop production whichis resulting in the depletion of the fertile land for food production. The recent agricultural
production data shows that the global cereal production is in decline (FAO, 2004). The assessmentof the availability of food helps understanding the situation of food supply and food security.
However, there are concerns that there are various factors besides land use which influences foodproduction, e.g. water availability, land quality, the adoption of technology, commodity prices,
population  and  its  growth  rate  as  well  as  the  country’s  policy  on  promoting  rubber  plantation  and  the biofuel crops.
In Phatthalung watershed, the conversion of food production areas (e.g. paddy fields) to rubber
plantation is the major land use change (Anisara and Shrestha, 2008). The increasing trend of
paddy area conversion to rubber plantation has resulted in the decline of rice growing area andproduction in the watershed. Among several types of food items consumed by the population of
Phatthalung watershed, rice is the major source of staple food. Thus, the decreasing rice production
area is a serious concern in terms of food availability.
It is useful to realize the future food availability condition as we are able to prepare for
uncertainty and ensure that local food production is sufficient for local people. Scenarios analysis,an environmental assessment tool, is useful to examine the future food availability. There areseveral scenarios related to food system including IPCC-SRES, GEO-3, Millennium Ecosystem
Assessment, Global Scenarios Group, IFPRI 2020 and FAO (Monika, 2006). In this study, the© ISERD

1

IJERD – International Journal of Environmental and Rural Development (2011) 2–1

likely change in future food availability was assessed under four different scenarios involving
variation in land uses, the quality of land and water, the commodity prices and the local andnational land policy.
MATERIALS AND METHODS
Factors influencing food availability
The availability of food can be influenced by various biophysical, economic, social or policy
factors. Fig. 1 presents various factors used in the study to simulate future food availability under
different scenarios.
The biophysical factors were the factors which have influences on the rice production systeme.g. land area, production rate, the technology input etc. The change in those factors can havepositive or negative effect on the food availability. Among various factors, the factors considered inthis study included rice production area, land quality and the availability of water. Major economic
factors included the import and export of rice and those factors can have effects on the quantity ofrice within the watershed, whereas commodity price of agricultural productions was anotherimportant economic   factor   which   can   have   influences   on   farmers’   land   use   decisions   on   crop  selection to grow in their land. For example, the price of rubber was much higher than that of rice
during the study period, hence farmers tended to convert their land to rubber plantation. Even
though, the commodity prices did not have a direct effect on the availability of food, it can affectthe production area. Population and population growth were the social factors considered in thisstudy, higher population growth can reduce the food availability and hence, consequence to foodinsecurity as insufficient food supply. Furthermore, the increasing population can also reduce theproduction area due to agricultural land conversion to urbanization. Policy factors can play
important roles indirectly via other factors which can have positive or negative effects on foodavailability. For example, policy can affect food availability via social factors by establishing the
population control policy thus reducing the food demand. Similarly, land use policy can influence
area dedicated for rice cultivation through commodity prices.

Fig. 1 Factors influencing food availability
Scenarios development
Scenarios are alternative possible outcomes in future, affected by different factors at different
levels. Scenario analysis helps make better decisions in the context of uncertainty, particularly
associated with future events. In this study, four potential scenarios were developed in order to© ISERD

2

IJERD – International Journal of Environmental and Rural Development (2011) 2–1

predict the availability of food in different situations. The influencing factors considered fordeveloping the scenarios included population and its growth rate, the agricultural commodity prices
and rice yield. The rice production area is influenced by agricultural commodity prices and thepolicy whereas the rice yield is influenced by land quality and water availability.
The availability of food assessed in this study was presented as quantity of rice per capita(kg/capita). There are four scenarios developed in this study, the criteria and assumptions for four
scenarios are given in Table 1.
1) Baseline scenario (BL): It assumes a business-as-usual scenario. It is assumed that thecurrent trend will continue in the future too. Hence, the assumptions are simply the extension of thepast trend of different factors to continue in the future in the study area.
2) Best case scenario (BC): It assumes the synergy of the factors for the highest level of foodavailability in the area. The population of this scenario is assumed unchanged and it is under theassumption that the birth rate and the immigration are assumed equal as the death rate and theoutmigration.
3) Moderate case scenario (MC): This scenario is less optimistic than best case scenario andassumes that policy intervention and technological development will be at the moderate level.
4) Worst case scenario (WC): This scenario assumes the worst possible condition with highrate of population growth and high decreasing rice production rate.
Table 1 Criteria and thresholds for assessing food availability under four scenarios
Scenario
Social factor
Population

Baseline(BL)

Best case(BC)

Moderate case(MC)

Worst case(WC)505,129505,129505,129505,129

0

+0.60

+1.09

+4.76

+2.10

-16.80+0.30+15.00

+0.15
+5.00

-0.30
-6.00

+4

+15

+30

+5% of riceproduction area

+3% of riceproduction area

-15% of riceproduction area

Population growth rate
+0.26(%/year)Biophysical factor
Rice production area changing
0
rate (%/year)aLand quality (%/year)-0.16
Water availability (%/year)-5.00
Economic factor
Commodity prices changing
0
rate (%/year)b
Policy factor (National/Provincial Plan)
Land related policy (%/year)
0
Note:

a
b

Present paddy field area = 72,826.4 ha
The average rubber price in 2006 = 61 Baht/kg

Food availability projection
The relationships of the influenced parameters mentioned in Table 1 have been constructed in the
STELLA environmental dynamic model in order to project the food availability in a 30-year timeframe.
RESULTS
Food availability under the baseline scenario
The baseline scenario was projected based on the real situation. The projected population is
showing the increasing trend with the moderate rate (Fig. 2). Even though, the area for riceproduction under this scenario is assumed unchanged (Fig. 3), the projected rice production shows
the declining trend (Fig. 4) resulting in the decline of food availability. The present rice production
is about 163,000 tons and it decreases to 130,000 tons in 2030. The decrease in rice production
under this scenario mainly results from the decreasing of the rice yield; the current rice yield is 2.24
© ISERD

3

IJERD – International Journal of Environmental and Rural Development (2011) 2–1

tons/ha/year and it became lower than 2 tons/ha/year in 2025 because the land and water resource isassumed to be left over without improvements.
The decline of rice production area resulting in the declining rice production and the increasein the population can lead to the declining of food availability (Fig. 5). The range of the projectedfood availability under baseline scenario was between 0.24 and 0.32 tons/capita/year with theaverage decreasing rate of 1% per year. The projected food availability is found slightly lower thanthe local rice consumption rate (336 kg/capita/year). Therefore, the Phatthalung watershed will befacing the problem of rice insufficiency in the near future under the current situation. There is theneed of having appropriate policy and plan, both local and national, to increase the area under riceproduction in order to avoid the food insecurity problem in the study area.
Food availability under the best case scenario
Fully aware of the global food insecurity problem and the fact that Thailand is one of the biggest
food exporters globally, the Thai government is establishing a policy of paddy area preservation inorder to produce more food especially rice for the global market. The growing rice export can also
contribute to the growth of national economy through agricultural development. Phatthalungwatershed is considered as one of the most suitable area for rice production. The rice production
area preservation policy is to turn the area which is suitable for rice but is being used to produce
other types of crops (e.g. rubber plantation, oil palm, shrimp farms etc) to rice production area.
As described earlier, this scenario assumes strong policy intervention on rice area preservation,and improvement in land quality and water availability. The rice production of this scenario isincreasing not only from the assumed enforcement of rice area preservation policy but also fromthe assumed very small rate of increase in the rubber prices, which in turn is expected to result in
low economic incentives to convert rice production areas into rubber plantations. Fig. 3 shows arapid increase of rice production area projected under this scenario; the increasing trend becomesstable in 2030 as it reaches the maximum suitable land area for rice production (at 150,000 ha).
Together with the improvement in land quality, the implementation of irrigation system, theprojected amount of rice production under this scenario was the highest. The maximum and theminimum of the projected food production are over 640,000 and about 167,000 tons respectively(Fig. 4).
The predicted food availability under the best case scenario was substantially higher than theother three scenarios, because of the increased area under rice production and the increase in rice
yield due to land and water improvement accompanied by decreasing of rice consumption due tothe population control policy. The predicted annual food availability per capita of the best casescenario ranged between 0.32-1.21 kg (Fig. 5) and it is about double of the household consumption
obtained from HH survey from the year 2023, implying sufficiency and surplus of food under this
scenario.
Food availability under the moderate case scenario
In this scenario, the population is assumed to increase with moderate rate. Similarly, the riceproduction area and rice yield are assumed to increase at moderate rate due to the area preservation
policy, with the smaller percent compared to the best case scenario, and ongoing land conversion
because of the stable increase of rubber prices. The quality of land and the availability of water
were assumed to slightly improve through fertilizer and irrigation water supply.
Similar to the best case scenario, the area for rice production was assumed to increase due tothe policy even though at lower rate. Also, the economic factor, i.e., rubber prices, has been
assumed to have lower influence in encouraging farmers to change the paddy field to rubber
plantation.
In terms of social factors, population and its growth rate of this scenario are assumed toincrease with the rate of 0.6% per year without population control policy (Fig. 2). The rice

© ISERD

4

IJERD – International Journal of Environmental and Rural Development (2011) 2–1

production area of this scenario is projected to increase with the rate at 2.1% per year, themaximum projection area is nearly 136,000 ha (Fig. 3).
The amount of rice production projected under this scenario is increasing at the rate of about
2.8% per year (Fig. 4). The minimum projected amount of rice production under this scenario is
about 163,000 tons and the maximum is nearly 379,000 tons (Fig. 4) due to the land and water isassumed to be improved under this scenario.
The projected annual food availability of this scenario ranged between 0.32-0.63 tons/capita.
The projected results for first few years (2010-2017) are less than the local consumption rate
obtained from the household survey but it rises afterwards (Fig. 5).
In this scenario, the food availability predicted under this scenario is showing sufficiency for
local consumption for the next 30 years of the projection period (until 2040) but it is under risk if
the population of this scenario keeps increasing without control, resulting in consumption of rice
higher than its production.
Food availability under the worst case scenario
The worst case scenario assumed a greater decrease in rice production area, deteriorating land
quality, water availability as well as the rice yield, along with the increase in the population and its
growth rate. In terms of economic factors, the rubber price was assumed to increase by about 30%
from the present one, which encourages farmers to convert rice paddies into rubber plantations.
The increasing population and the development of economic and industrial sectors are thedominant assumption of this scenario. Policy assumed in this scenario mainly focuses on economic
development and the growing industrial sector together with the increasing population. Therefore,
the paddy areas are encroached and replaced by human habitats and the infrastructures such as
roads, buildings, and factories.
The high population growth rate without control and the high increase in rubber price drive tothe worsening food availability. The projected population of this scenario shows a rapid increase(Fig. 2). On the other hand, the projected rice production and its area of this scenario are the lowest
with the rapidly decreasing rate (Fig. 3-4). The projected area for rice production is found less than
50,000 ha in 2013, the rice production area kept deceasing over the years and it can be completely
replaced by other types of land use within few decades. The area was rapidly decreasing to about
30,000 ha in 2015 (Fig. 3) which was the preserved area for rice production due to land properties
constraints.
The degradation of land quality and the water insufficiency assigned for this scenario causes
negative effects on the rice yield. The projected yield becomes lower with a high rate and it isfound lower than 1 ton/ha/year within a decade. The decrease of rice yield causes the decrease ofrice production amount and it is found nearly three times lower than the baseline scenario, only forthe first decade of the projection.
The results of food availability showed a rapid decline until 2013 with a decreasing rate ofabout nearly 20% annually; the results ranged between 0.08-0.32 tons/year (Fig. 5) and lower thanthe local consumption rate (0.33 tons/capita/year) obtained from household surveys. The minimum
amount of the projected results under this scenario is inadequate for people in terms of energy
requirement from carbohydrate because the general minimum energy requirement fromcarbohydrate or rice is at about 73 kg/year (Anchanee, 2005).
According to the projected results under this scenario, the situation of food availability of
Phatthalung watershed is in crisis as all rice production area can be completely replaced by othertypes of land use within the two decades.
The food availability of Phatthalung watershed will be insufficient and lead to malnutrition
problem if the food production keeps reducing. In this scenario, the declination is resulting fromthe decreasing production area with the increasing demand for food due to the high population.

© ISERD

5

IJERD – International Journal of Environmental and Rural Development (2011) 2–1

1: population BL
1:
2:
3:
4:

2: population BC

3: population MC

4: popuation WC

1: rice production area BL

700000

1:
2:
3:
4:

2: rice production area BC

3: rice production area MC 4: rice production area WC

160000
2

2

2

4

4

3
3

1:
2:
3:
4:

4

600000

2

1:
2:
3:
4:

3

94500

3

4

3
3

1

2

3

1

1

1

1

3
3

4

1:
2:
3:
4:

500000

1

2

3

1

0.00

1

1
2

2

6.00

1

2

12.00

18.00

Page 1

1:
2:
3:
4:

2

4

Y ears

0.00

6.00

12.00

2: rice production BC

4

24.00
30.00
9:50 PM Mon, Jan 11, 2010

Rice production (ha)Fig. 2 Projected population for all scenarios
1: rice production BL

4
18.00

Y earsPopulation

1:
2:
3:
4:

4

4

29000

24.00
30.00
9:50 PM Mon, Jan 11, 2010 Page 1

3: rice production MC

Fig. 3 Projected rice production area for all
scenarios

4: rice production WC

620000

1: rice per capita BL
1:
2:
3:
4:

2

2: rice per capita BC

3: rice per capita MC

4: rice per capita WC

2

2
2
2

2
1:
2:
3:
4:

1:
2:
3:
4:

3

335000
3

2

2
1
2

3
3

1
1:
2:
3:
4:

2

3

1
4

4

50000
0.00

6.00

Page 1

1

1

1
4

12.00

1
4

18.00
Y ears

4

1:
2:
3:
4:

24.00
30.00
9:50 PM Mon, Jan 11, 2010 Page 1

Rice production (tons)

2

3

1
4

1
4

3

3

3

3

1
4

1
4

4

0
0.00

6.00

12.00

18.00
Y ears

24.00
30.00
9:50 PM Mon, Jan 11, 2010

Food av ailability (ton/capita/y ear)Fig. 4 Projected rice production for all scenarios Fig. 5 Projected food availability for all
scenarios
CONCLUSION
There are numerous factors which can have influences on the availability of food. In this study,
population size, the area for rice production, rice yield, the condition of land and water resources,
which are important factors for crop productions, and the policy were considered as the key factors
affecting the food availability.
The 30 years projected food production of the four scenarios, except for the one worst casethat exceeds local consumption and the minimum human energy requirement. The high surplus ofrice was found in the best case scenario, whereas the projected production from the worst casescenario was the lowest and lower than the household requirement.
The promotion of rubber plantation can be good alternative sources of household income,since the economic return from cultivating rubber is higher than producing rice. However, it has to
be ensured that the remaining area is capable to produce sufficient food for the local population.
Otherwise local people have to purchase imported rice from neighboring countries which willaffect the majority of household expenditure in the future.
REFERENCES
Anchanee, U. (2005) Thai food to the world: Weight control Thai food. http://www.thaifoodtoworld.com/
home/recipediet.php?&language=TH&language=TH&language=EN.
Anisara, P. and Shreatha, R. (2008) Linking land use change and rural livelihoods: A study of Phatthalungwatershed in Southern Thailand. APJORD, 18(2), 143-164.
FAO (2004) FAO Global information and early warning system on food and agriculture world foodprogramme, Rome.
Monika, Z. (2006) A short review of global scenarios for food systems analysis. GECAFS, Rome.

© ISERD

6

IJERD – International Journal of Environmental and Rural Development (2011) 2–1

Research article
erd

The Rice Soil Fertility Capability Classification System
VO QUANG MINH
Department of Land Resources, Cantho University, Vietnam
Email: vqminh@ctu.edu.vn
Received 2 December 2010

Accepted 10 February 2011

Abstract The Rice Soil Fertility Capability Classification (RSFCC) is based on FCC(Fertility Capability Classification) system, with some modifications. The system deals
with soil morphology, physics, and chemistry characteristics. Most of the class limits ofmodifiers are borrowed from soil taxonomy, others could be from field observation, which
consists of 4 categories and based on three soil layers. The upper layer coincides with the
top 20cm or Type (C for clay and L for Loamy). The soil below the upper layer from 20 to
50cm is referred to the Substrata Type (C for Clay and L for Loamy), and from 50 to100cm is referred to Subsoil Type (C for Clay, L for Loamy, and S for Sandy). The
condition modifiers, directly relevant to plant growth, include a, a- c, c-, e, f, f-, g+, i, n-, s,s-, o, p. Some modifications and additions for classification are suggested, in which newmodifiers of p (low P available), o (low organic carbon), c, c- (actual acid sulfate), f, f(potential acid sulfate) are added, the former c condition modifier (sulfidic) divided into c(actual acid sulfate) and f (potential acid sulfate). Modifiers of a, i, n, s, are suggested withmodifications from FCC system. The classes within each category and assigned modifiersfor each soil type/substrata type/subsoil type are different, which is followed by modifiers
presented.
Keywords FCC, fertility capability classification, modifier, rice

INTRODUCTION
Soil is a component of the natural medium that acquires its morphology and properties after a longand slow evolution after reaching equilibrium with environmental conditions. The data from fieldtests or from yield production provided by individual farmers records or else are usually local,
spotty, and sometimes not reliable and are generally difficult to extrapolate. Therefore, theevaluation is normally conducted indirectly on the basis of the soil properties. The evaluations
made should be validated finally with real constraints and yield data. According to Sanchez et al(2003), the problem with soil taxonomy is that it quantifies only permanent soil parameters, mostof which are located in the subsoil. Soil taxonomy ignores many dynamic parameters crucial tocrop productivity, which are mostly in the topsoil where the majority of plant roots are located,both in natural and agricultural systems. To overcome this limitation, a fertility capability soil
classification system (FCC) was developed to interpret soil taxonomy and soil tests in aquantitative manner that is relevant to growing plants (Buol et al., 1975). It is now widely used andis included in the FAO soils database (FAO, 1995).
Based on the developed FCC system by Sanchez et al (2003), the research suggests theframework for developing the system for rice soil fertility classification and recommendation,
where soil environment is effected such as soil acidity, agrochemical uses of fertilizer, pesticide,etc, and soil nutrient degradation. The recommended system is useful for farmers or agriculturalextension workers to classify their soil, due to its simplicity and easy to apply by using simple lab
analytical methods or field identification, with some recommendations for proper soil fertility
improvement.

© ISERD

7

IJERD – International Journal of Environmental and Rural Development (2011) 2–1

THE CONSTRAINS FOR RICE CULTIVATION RELATED TO SOIL MODIFIERS OR
INDICATORS IDENTIFIED
The system was developed based on the soil constraints for rice cultivation, related to suggested
system condition modifiers. The attributes used in the system are the lower-case letters of theconstraints that have been identified for that soil, which recommended in the system description.
Constraints related to soil mineralogy
High leaching potential (e): Soils with a low cation exchange capacity (CEC) have topsoils withlow organic matter content, low clay content, clay minerals with low CEC, or all these properties.
These soils have a low inherent fertility and also a low capacity to retain nutrients added as
fertilizers.
High phosphorus fixation (i): This is caused primarily by a high content of free ferric oxides(Fe2O3) in the clay fraction, which fix phosphate ions. It is a feature also found in strongly acidsoils, and hence commonly associated with aluminum toxicity. High P fixation by Fe; P
deficiency; Fe toxicity potential; these soils are difficult to puddle and will regenerate to their
original structure rapidly.
Low Nutrient Capital Reserves (k): Low inherent fertility because of low inherent reserves ofweatherable minerals; potential K deficiency depending on base contents of irrigation water.
Low organic matter status (o): N deficient; response to N fertilization very likely; low ECEC on
sandy soils; N fertilizer should be applied in frequent, small doses.
Low inherent P content (p): Plant available P deficient; response to small additions of P
fertilization.
Constraints related to soil reaction
Al toxicity, low pH (a, a-): Aluminum toxicity will occur in aerobic layers; these are soils in which
the exchange complex is dominated by alumina. The problem is strongly acid soils, which can becaused by strong leaching from high rainfall, and mainly from oxidation of sulfidic material.
Actual acid sulfate soils (c, c-): Al and Fe toxicity, low pH, and P deficiency, which originatedfrom oxidation of sulfidic material.
Potential acid sulfate soil (f, f-): Potential acid-sulfate soils, causing Fe and S toxicity whenanaerobic and Al toxicity when aerobic; depth at which sulfidic material occurs determines
feasibility of rice production; Zn deficiency common; prevent seepage from these areas.
Constant saturation (g+): Prolonged submergence causes Zn deficiency. N loss increased if soil isintermittently flooded and drained.
Saline (s, s-): Defines saline soils; drainage needed but EC of irrigation water must be considered. .
Potential Sodic (n-): This soil has a slightly high content of sodium but is low in calcium andmagnesium salts causing soil dispersion, puddling, poor infiltration and poor aeration, and if
sodium is high in the plow layer, probability of surface crust formation will be increased
METHOD FOR RICE SOIL FERTILITY CLASSIFICATION
Based on the soil constraints for rice cultivation, a method for rice soil fertility classification related
to constraints recommended, on the basis of FCC system from Sanchez et al (2003) with somemodifications, which are easy to apply and classify by using the simple methods for identificationin the field or laboratory.
The   term   “FCC”   is   used   to   indicate   adaptation   of   the   Fertility   Capability   Classification,   as  developed by Sanchez and Buol (1985), and modified by Sanchez et al (2003), to the soil and rice
growing conditions, which deal with soil morphology, soil physic, and soil chemistrycharacteristics. Most of class limits are borrowed from Soil taxonomy (Soil Survey Staff, 1994) or
the FAO/Unesco soil classification system (FAO, 1974). The system consists of two categorical© ISERD

8

IJERD – International Journal of Environmental and Rural Development (2011) 2–1

levels. The first category; type/substrata/subsoil type - describes topsoil, substrata and subsoil
texture at three soil depths and is expressed in capital letters. The second category; condition
modifiers defined to delimit specific soil conditions affecting rice growth with quantitative limits.
Each condition modifier is expressed as a lower case letter. The type/substrata type/subsoil typeand condition modifiers are the soil attributes in terms of their capability for rice plant growth.
Emphasis is placed on features that are easily detectable in the field, such as texture, color, depth ofhorizons, presence or absence of mottles, etc. Soil analytical laboratory data are only used tosupport the classification if available. This approach was chosen to enable people with little
practical experience in pedology to easily identify soils in the field and classify them into one of
the broad groups or phases.
Based on the FCC structure from Sanchez et al (2003), modifiers from system were used forrice soil. Based on the FCC structure from Sanchez et al (2003), modifiers from system were used
for rice soil. We found the new structure system that can be used for classifying rice soils. Fourteen
soil modifiers that affect rice growth were determined: a, a-, c, c-, e, f, f-, g+, i, n-, s, s-, o, and p.
Among these parameters, a, a- ,e , g+, i , k, n-, o, p, s- for topsoil type, (which directly affects riceroot), and a, a-, c, f, g+, k, i, s, s-, n-, for substrata type, which directly affects rice root, and c-,f - , s,s- for subsoil type. There were 6 modifiers added to the system from Sanchez et al (2003), such as:p, o, c, c-, f, f-, in which superscripts + or - indicate a greater or lesser expression of the modifiers.
The structure of the soil names in the system were changed as follows: Soil texture of topsoil
layer 0 to 20cm (C, L) plus modifiers of topsoil layer (a, a-, e, i, k, g+, n-, o, p, s-) plus soil textureof substrata topsoil; 20 to 50cm (C, L) plus modifiers of substrata topsoil (a, a- ,c ,f ,g+ ,k ,i, s ,s- ,n-),plus texture of subsoil 50 to 100cm (C, L, S), plus modifiers of subsoil layer (c-, f-, s, s-). The
pertinent parts of the classification, which have relevance to rice growing, are described below.
System description
Type (Textute) at less than 20cm
L : Loamy : <35% clay but not loamy sand or sand.
C : Clayed : > 35% clay;
Modifiers:a : Soil pHH2O(1:1) < 5.0 (or > 60% Al saturation),a- : Soil pH
from 5.0 to 6.0 (or 10-60% Al saturation).
H2O(1:1)e : < 4 cmolc kg-1 soil as ECEC, or < 7 cmolc kg-1 soil by sum of cations at pH 7, or < 10 cmolc
3+
kg-1 soil by sum of cations +Al +H+ at pH 8.2
k : Exchangeable K < 0.2 meq/100g soil, or coarse texture (sandy) .
g+ : Prolong submergence more than 200 days/year, soil without clearly mottles represented forFe3+ from less than 20cm.
n- : Soil ESP from 6 to 15%.
o : < 0.75% Organic Carbon, and applied for top soil only.
p : (Applied for surface soil only). Available P < 2mg/100g (Olsen), or < 1mg/100g (Bray II).
s- : ECe 2 - 4 mmhos/cm at 25oC.
(Above types and modifers should be applied in this layer only)

Substra type (Textute) at 20 to 50cm
L : Loamy, <35% clay but not loamy sand or sand;C : Clayed, > 35% clay
Modifiers:
a- : Soil pH
from 5.0 to 6.0 (or 10-60% Al saturation).
H2O(1:1)

a : Soil pHH2O(1:1) < 5.0 (or > 60% Al saturation)c : Soil pHH2O(1:1) < 3.5; Jarosite mottle with hue = 2.5Y or yellower, chroma 6.
© ISERD

9

IJERD – International Journal of Environmental and Rural Development (2011) 2–1

f : Sulfidic material; pH < 3.5 after drying, without jarosite mottle with hue = 2.5Y at < 50 cm.
i : > 4% free Fe; or mottle with hue redder 5YR which > 35% clay.
k : Exchangeable K < 0.2 meq/100g soil, or coarse texture (sandy)g+ : Prolong submergence more than 200 days/year, soil without clearly mottles represented forFe3+ from 20cm to 50cm.
n- : Soil ESP from 6 to 15%.
s- : ECe 2 - 4 mmhos/cm at 25oC.
s : ECe > 4 mmhos/cm at 25oC.
(Above Substrata types and modifers should be applied in this layer only)

Subsoil type (Textute) at 50 to 100cm
S : Sandy, loamy sands and sands
L : Loamy, <35% clay but not loamy sand or sand;C : Clayed, > 35% clay
Modifiers:c- : Soil pH< 3.5; Jarosite mottle with hue = 2.5Y or yellower, chroma 6.
H2O(1:1)

f- : Sulfidic material; pH < 3.5 after drying, without jarosite mottle with hue = 2.5Y at > 50cm soil
surface.
s : ECe 2 - 4 mmhos/cm at 25oC.
s : ECe > 4 mmhos/cm at 25oC.
(Above Subsoil types and modifers should be applied in this layer only)Interpretation of system nomenclature
The whole idea of this  system  is  that  the  soil  ‘name’  as  given  by its system is meaningful for soil
fertility management.
CAPITAL character: indicated for TYPE, SUBSTRATA TYPE, SUBSOIL TYPE according
to soil depth.
Normal character: indicated for Modifiers and follows after above character
Example: Soil profile which has silt texture (L) at < 20cm, silt (L) and clay (C) at 20-50cm, and50-100cm, and modifiers a, p at surface and a, c, i at subsurface and f-, s- at subsoil, which can be
named as LapLaciCf-s-.
Strategies for better utilization of soil and soil fertility conservation
The management requirements are given per interpreted soil property or group of properties. A
complete listing of all possible combinations is not given because only a limited number of
combinations of soil properties will be found in any area under consideration. On a large scale,
however, interpretation of the soil properties in relation to farming systems, local expertise or rice
varieties could be a valuable extension tool. The management requirements are based on Sanchez
et al (2003), Smith (1989) and several experiments in the Mekong delta, Vietnam, on soil
reclamation, etc. A description of each soil fertility or management constraint identified is given
below.
Al toxicity, low pH (a, a-): Soluble and exchangeable acidity should be removed as much as
possible by leaching before applying amendments.
Actual acid sulfate soils (c, c-): The free sulfuric acid dissolves clay minerals and produces large
amounts of exchangeable aluminum. Iron and manganese toxicities and phosphorus deficiency arecommon. Physical properties are very poor. Jarosite occurs at 10 to 50 cm depth (c). Draining
results in a dramatic decrease in pH. High liming rates (greater than 10t/ha every 3 to 4 years) or
long term leaching would then be required for crop production (Breeman and Pons, 1978). The© ISERD

10

IJERD – International Journal of Environmental and Rural Development (2011) 2–1

most profitable practice is shallow drainage to grow one crop of a medium-term rice (Vo-Tong
Xuan, 1997).
High leaching potential (e): The use of mineral fertilizers is not recommended in these soils intheir natural state, as nutrients are not retained by these soils due to the low capacity to retain
nutrients. In addition, leaching causes big nutrient losses when lime and fertilizers are applied;therefore, heavy applications of these nutrients and of N fertilizers should be split. Organic matter
application is also recommended to increase soil cation exchange capacity. The practicality ofadding high activity clays to increase permanent charge could be assessed (Noble et al., 2004).
Potential acid sulfate soil (f, f -): When f soils are exposed to air and are low in calcium carbonate,
FeS2 is oxidized to ferric sulfate and free sulfuric acid, producing pH values on the order of 2 or 3.
Drained acid sulfate soils are extremely infertile. Flooded rice is often grown, since underconstantly reduced conditions, the pH is sufficiently high to eliminate aluminum toxicity.
High phosphorus fixation (i): These soils require high levels of P fertilizers or special P
management Sources and a method of P fertilizer application should be considered. P fertilizer
application should be split into several times as recommended by Đỗ Thị Thanh Ren and Nguyễn
Mỹ Hoa (1998).
Low Nutrient Capital Reserves (k): Potassium fertilizers must be added. Generally, these soils
have also limited capacity to retain nutrients and the potassium, calcium and magnesium added canbe easily lost (Nguyễn Mỹ Hoa, 2003). The other source of nutrient capital reserves is soil organic
matter, which contains all the nitrogen and much of the phosphorus and sulfur capital of soils.
Potassium fertilizers or organic amendments with a significant content of K will need to be applied.
Crops should be closely monitored for K deficiency symptoms (P. M. Moody et al, 2008).
Prolong submergence (g+): Prolonged submergence causes Zn deficiency, especially on all year
round cultivation soil remittently flooded and drained. H2S toxicity symptom can occur if soil highin organic matter (Ponnamperuma, 1977)
Potential Sodic (n-): Reclamation requires the replacement of Na+ on the exchange complex by
Ca2+ and leaching of Na+ out of the root zone. Soil permeability and internal drainage must also be
improved, so the displaced sodium ions can be leached out of the root zone.
Low organic matter status (o): Increasing the levels of organic matter in these soils would
improve nutrient supply, increase CEC and water holding capacity. The management of soilorganic   matter   involves   mulching   and   incorporation   of   ‘green   manure’   crops,   retaining   all   crop  residues in the field where the crop has grown, not burning crop residues, minimum or zero tillage
farming systems, strip or alley cropping and application of organic materials such as animal
manure, composted municipal waste, sewage sludge and locally available organic wastes obtained
from off-site (P. W. Moody et al, 2008).
Low inherent P content (p): P management should be considered as a long-term investment insoil fertility, and it is more effective to prevent P deficiency than to treat P deficiency symptoms,
because P is not easily lost or added to the root zone by biological and chemical processes that
affect N supply. The residual effect of P fertilizer application can persist for several years, andmanagement must emphasize the buildup and maintenance of adequate soil-available P levels toensure that P supply does not limit crop growth and N use efficiency. Use rice cultivars that use P
efficiently.
Saline (s, s-): Presence of soluble salts requires drainage and special management for salt-sensitive
rice varieties. Total reclamation of saline soils is often impractical because of the lack of highquality water for irrigation and leaching. Wetland rice production may be an economical alternative.
Continuous flooding helps to leach salts out of the root zone. Where enough irrigation water ofgood quality is available, salts can be leached unless there are high percentages of sodium in thesoil which will result in structure collapse and pan formation (Sombroek and nachtergaele, 1994).
Limitations of the method
Land use recommendations and soil improvement/reclamations were based on field survey, farmer
interview and several field, lab experiments from several authors recommended, which needs to betested and recommended for specific location. Modifiers on soil biology as recommended by© ISERD

11

IJERD – International Journal of Environmental and Rural Development (2011) 2–1

Sanchez et al (2003) is need to be added. Besides rice cultivation, other crops such as vegetable,
upland, aquaculture, etc, were integrated to rice cultivation, since the system did not classify orrecommend for all systems. There are some gaps in defining and identifying the indicators or
modifiers. The developed system is used for classification of rice soil fertility at specific locations
only.
CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONSThe soil fertility classification relies mostly on the topsoil and subsoils properties that indicate thesoil fertility capability and affect rice production. The classification allows no specialists to classify
the soil on which they are standing, in the field, even without the aid of a laboratory. The key to thesuccess of the system will be its usefulness to agriculturalists or soil scientists working in the field.
The results are the first attempt to compare soil constraints using standardized data andmethods. In order to develop sustainable systems, there must be reliable information on theconstraints and potential of the soil and land resources. The principles of soil management are wellknown, but because climatic, soil and water conditions vary so widely, the design of land use
systems, and particularly of conservation measures, must be site-specific. Details of the system fordifferent levels of classification and recommendation should be studied for proper recommendation.
If a soil cannot be adequately classified, or depending on the scale of study, then it is possible
to  create  a  new  phase  or  modifiers,  because  the  system  has  been  left  “open-ended”  to  accommodate  such modifications in the future, which can be classify the soil for better management and forgetting more crop productions. There are some relations between modifiers definition with soil
diagnostic horizons, properties, materials from FAO-WRB (World Reference Based) system, so itneeds to study on those relationships for conversion from soil map to soil fertility map.
REFERENCES
Breeman, N.V. and Ponts, L. (1978) Acid sulfate soils and rice. Soils and Rice. International Rice ResearchInstitute, 739-763, Philippines.
Buol, S.W., Sanchez, P.A., Cate, R.B. and Granger, M.A. (1975) Soil fertility capability classification, A
technical soil classification system for fertility management. Soil Management in Tropical America,
North Carolina State University, Raleigh, 126-145, USA.
FAO (1974) A framework for land evaluation. Soils Bulletin 32. FAO of the United Nations, Italy.
FAO (1995) Digital soil map of the world and derived soil properties. FAO, Rome.
Nguyễn Mỹ Hoa (2003) Soil potassium dynamics under intensive rice cropping. A case study in the Mekong
Delta, Vietnam. Ph.D thesis Wageningen University, Netherlands.
Noble, A.D., Ruaysoongnern, S., Penning de Vries, F.W.T., Hartmann, C. and Webb, M.J. (2004) Enhancing
the agronomic productivity of degraded soils in northeast Thailand through clay-based Interventions.
ACIAR Proceedings, 116, 147-160.
Moody, P.W., Legrandl, P.T.J. and Chon, N.Q. (2008) A decision support constraints to upland soils. Soil
Use and Management, 24, 148-155.
Ponnamperuma, F.N. (1977) Screening for tolerance to mineral stresses. International Rice Research Institute,
Philippines, 6, 21.
Sanchez, P.A., Palm, C.A. and Buol, S.W. (2003) Fertility capability soil classification: A tool to help assess
soil quality in the tropics. Geoderma, 114, 157-185.

© ISERD

12

IJERD – International Journal of Environmental and Rural Development (2011) 2–1

Research article
erdInfluences of Land Use during the Puddling Period on
Water Balance and Quality in a Rice Farming Area
MOHAMMED KAMRUL HASAN
Hokkaido University, Sapporo, Japan
Email: hasan@env.agr.hokudai.ac.jp

YAMAMOTO TADAO
Hokkaido University, Sapporo, JapanNAGASAWA TETUAKI
Hokkaido University, Sapporo, Japan
Received 3 December 2010

Accepted 28 January 2011

Abstract The study was carried out on the Shinotsu Canal agricultural watershed of
Hokkaido, Japan from 2003 to 2008. This study was conducted to evaluate the nutrients
fluxes after using irrigation into the paddy fields and the effectiveness of the paddy fields
in removing nutrients load of the Shinotsu Canal watershed. Upper part of the Shinotsu
Canal is dominated by paddy field and lower part is dominated by upland field. Water
samples were collected with an automatic sampler at pump station (inflow) and end ofdrainage channel (outflow) of both block, and measured volume of inflow and outflow at
puddling period (May). The concentration of suspended solids (SS) was determined bygravimetrically through suction filtration, total nitrogen (TN) and total phosphorus (TP)were determined by UV spectrophotometric methods, respectively. Water balance ishigher at lower part of Mihara drainage block (MDB) than upper part of Tsukigata
drainage block (TDB) due to high percentage of upland that caused losses of water byleakage and percolation. TN, TP and SS concentrations in drainage water are higher in
MDB than that of TDB. The net loads of TN and TP are showed negative and lower valuesin TDB whereas MDB is positive and higher values, due to a combination of nitrificationand denitrification, sedimentation reactions and sorption by soil is more in high percentageof paddy field in TDB. TN, TP and SS concentrations outflow load and net load are
decreasing from 2003 to 2008 due to changed of water management by progress of pipeline. From the viewpoint of reducing the outflow of nutrients, it may be stated that the
paddy field dominated area showed good performance in purification function for
nutrients compounds.
Keywords land and water use, water balance, puddling period, water quality, Hokkaido

INTRODUCTION
In Japan, paddy fields cover 55% of the land used for agriculture. They require abundant water andaccount for 95% of the total agricultural water demand (Tabuchi and Hasegawa, 1995). Paddy
fields therefore play a significant role in the overall agricultural watershed. Most paddy fields arelocated along lower reaches of rivers, use rivers as their main source of water, and discharge theiroutflow back into the river. The Shinotsu Canal watershed has a significant role in agriculture in
Hokkaido, Japan. Water quality of the Shinotsu Canal is influenced by nonpoint source pollutantsarising from land-based agricultural activities (Hasan et al., 2010). In some paddy fields along thelower parts of the Ishikari River basin in the Shinotsu Canal, irrigation water is reused as means ofmaximizing water utilization, and the water may contain higher levels of pollutants from surface
and subsurface drainage compared with usual irrigation water. Several researchers have reported
that cyclic irrigation may increase the hydraulic retention time of nutrients, and thereby, enhance© ISERD

13

IJERD – International Journal of Environmental and Rural Development (2011) 2–1

water purification in paddy field districts (Feng et al., 2004, 2005; Takeda and Fukushima, 2006).
Cyclic irrigation may not only save water but also reduce the concentration of nutrients inagricultural areas (Kudo et al., 1995). The ability of cyclic irrigation to reduce nutrient load is
directly proportional to the quantity of water reused (Kaneki et al., 2003). Tong and Chen (2002)
examined the hydrologic effects of land use in Ohio and observed a significant relationshipbetween land use and stream water quality, especially with respect to nitrogen and phosphorus.
In irrigation practices, especially puddling and transplantation period (May), require abundant
water during the whole irrigation period (May to August) in paddy fields, and have strong influenceon the water environment. Furthermore, many studies on nutrient fluxes in paddy fields have been
outperformed in the irrigation period, but the flow of nutrients out of paddy fields has not beenstudied adequately in Hokkaido in instances of abundant water use. Therefore, this study aimed toassess the influences of land use and water management on water balance and quality during thepuddling period at the Shinotsu Canal watershed in Hokkaido.
MATERIALS AND METHODSThe  investigation  was  performed  in  the  Shinotsu  Canal  in  the  Shinotsu  district  (43°57′N,  141°4′E),  which is located at southern Ishikari River basin in west-central Hokkaido prefecture in northern
Japan (Fig. 1). The Shinotsu Canal is 23 km long and passes through 10,864 hectares ofagricultural watershed where the main cultivated crops are rice, wheat, corn, onions, and vegetables.
Agricultural irrigation is controlled by five pumping stations from upstream to downstream. The
lower stream pumping stations provide irrigation water derived through drainage channels from theoutflow or runoff from upstream paddy fields. The study area comprised the Tsukigata drainage
block (TDB) in the upper stream and Mihara drainage block (MDB) in the lower stream of the
Shinotsu Canal (Fig. 2).The soil is peat-dressed mineral soil, and most land is flat. The annual
average precipitation is 1024 mm, most is in the form of rain occurring from July to September.
The  annual  temperature  ranges  from  a  minimum  of  −7.4°C  in  January  to  a  maximum  of  23°C  in  August. Fertilizer is applied to paddy fields in this region (N, 60–75 kg/ha; P, 80–90 kg/ha) during
puddling to transplantation period (May) and the flowering stage (middle of July).
Sampling points
Tsukigata irri. areaN

Mihara irri.area
Paddy field

Ish

ika

ri

Ri

Sh

in

ve
r

ot

su

Ca

na
l

Upland0

Fig. 1 Location map of study areakm

5Fig. 2 Investigated area of Shinotsu

Inflow and outflow water samples (composite water samples) were collected from TDB and
MDB. Composite water samples (two mixture samples obtained at intervals of 6 h for 24 h) werecollected with an automatic water sampler (ISCO Model 3700) during the puddling andtransplantation periods (May) in 2003, 2004, 2006, 2007, and 2008. Inflow water samples werecollected at each pumping station, and outflow samples were collected at the end of the TDB and
MDB drainage channels. Inflow water volume of TDB and MDB were calculated from data on© ISERD

14

IJERD – International Journal of Environmental and Rural Development (2011) 2–1

pump discharge and water level in the delivery tank; these data were collected from the
management office of the Tsukigata and Mihara pumping stations (Shinotsu-chuoh Land
Improvement District). Outflow water volumes were calculated from continuous records of waterlevels using an automatic water gauge, and flow velocity was measured when the water was
sampled. Channel renewal (open to pipe) data were collected from the Shinotsu-chuoh Land
Improvement District. Precipitation was estimated from the Shin-shinotsu and Tsukigata rainfall
records using the Automated Meteorological Data Acquisition System (AMeDAS). Areas of paddy
fields and uplands in the study watersheds were calculated using GIS Arc-View software from
1:25,000 scale digital maps. The concentration of suspended solids (SS) was determined
gravimetrically by suction filtration, and total nitrogen (TN) and total phosphorus (TP) were
determined by UV spectrophotometric methods. The concentrations of SS, TN, and TP were
determined as described in the Japanese Industrial Standard (JIS).
RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
The Tsukigata and Mihara irrigation and drainage blocks were investigated from 2003 to 2008, andthe areas of their paddy fields and upland fields were calculated. The Tsukigata pumping station
irrigated 1948 hectares in the upstream agricultural watershed of the Shinotsu Canal (Table 1).
TDB forms part of the irrigation area for Tsukigata pumping station and covers an area of 743
hectares (Table 1). Mihara pumping station lies in the downstream agricultural watershed of the
Shinotsu Canal and irrigates 2018 hectares (Table 1). MDB is part of the irrigation area of Mihara
pumping station and covers 747 hectares (Table 1). During the study period, the paddy field area
was greater in TDB than in MDB, but the upland field area was greater in MDB than in TDB. A
high percentage of the paddy field area was found in TDB (41–46%). In contrast, the percentage of
upland was higher in MDB (56–63%) than in TDB (30–36%). TDB was dominated by paddy fields
and MDB by upland fields; land use pattern did not change substantially during the study period.
80

Pipe line (km)Government

Hokkaido

District and others

60
40
20
0
2003

2004

2006

2007

2008

2003

Tsukigata

2004

2006

2007

2008

MiharaFig. 3 Renewal of pipe line at Tsukigata and Mihara irrigation block
The form of irrigation channels is an important factor in water management in the agricultural
watershed of the Shinotsu Canal. The pipeline irrigation channels are constructed from open
channels in the Tsukigata and Mihara irrigation blocks. Lengths of the pipeline irrigation channelsof the Tsukigata and Mihara irrigation blocks were calculated for every year from 2003 to 2008,
except for 2005. The total pipeline length in the Tsukigata irrigation block was larger than that in
the Mihara irrigation block for every year (Fig. 3). Pipelines are constructed as part of projects
operated by the national government, the Hokkaido prefecture government, and the Shinotsu-chuohLand Improvement District. The length of pipeline constructed under the national government
project was constant during the study period, whereas the length of pipeline constructed under the
Hokkaido project increased from 2003 to 2006 in both blocks. Pipelines constructed under otherprojects gradually increased in length from 2003 to 2008 in both blocks. The condition of thesepipelines is evaluated at each drainage block. The water balance of each block was calculated using
Eq. (1):
Water  balance  =  total  inflow  −  total  outflow                                                                          

(1)where total inflow is the volume of pumped water plus precipitation, and total outflow is surface
plus subsurface drainage water per day. Inflow and outflow water volumes of TDB and MDB were
calculated for the years 2003 to 2008. Irrigation water is distributed from about May 7 every year
© ISERD

15

IJERD – International Journal of Environmental and Rural Development (2011) 2–1

in the Shinotsu district. Average daily inflow water volume was greater for MDB than for TDB for
every year. In contrast, outflow water volume of MDB was lower than that of TDB. Inflow andoutflow volumes gradually decreased due to increasing pipeline length in both blocks. The form of
irrigation channel is changing gradually from open to pipeline, and farmers now control irrigationwater for each paddy block to ensure proper water utilization. In contrast, the land use pattern ofeach block did not change significantly during the study period. The water balance of MDB was
higher than that of TDB for every year (Fig. 4), because the percentage of upland was higher in
MDB than in TDB, and paddy fields were scattered. Abundant water was therefore lost from the
paddy fields to adjacent uplands by leakage and percolation. Water balance in TDB and MDB did
not change significantly during the study years except in May, 2006 at MDB (Fig. 4).
50

Inflow

Water balance (mm/d)

40

Precipitation

Outflow

Balance

30
20
10
0
-10
-20
-30
2003

2004

2006

2007

2008

2003

2004

2006

TDB

2007

2008

MDB

Fig. 4 Water balance of TDB and MDB
15

15
(MDB)

Discharge weighted m ean

10

TN (m g/L)

5

10

2003

2004

2006

2007

2003

3

2007

Outflow

Inflow

Outflow

Inflow

Outflow

Inflow

Outflow

2006

2008

(MDB)

2

TP (m g/L)

1

2

1

2004

2006

2007

2003

2008

2004

2006

2007

Inflow

Outflow

Outflow

Inflow

Outflow

Inflow

Outflow

Inflow

Outflow

Inflow

Outflow

Inflow

Outflow

Inflow

Outflow

Inflow

Outflow

Inflow
2003
1200

Inflow

0

0

2008

1200
(MDB)

(TDB)
900

2003

2004

2006

2007

2008

2003

2004

2006

2007

Outflow

Inflow

Outflow

Inflow

Outflow

Inflow

Outflow

Inflow

Outflow

Inflow

Outflow

Inflow

Outflow

0

Inflow0

Outflow

300

Inflow

300

Inflow

600

Outflow

600

Inflow

SS (m g/L)

900

Outflow

TP (m g/L)

2004

3
(TDB)

SS (m g/L)

Inflow

Inflow

2008

Outflow

Outflow

Inflow

Outflow

Inflow

Outflow

Inflow

Outflow

Outflow

Inflow

0

Inflow

0

5

Outflow

TN (m g/L)

(TDB)

2008

Fig. 5 Concentarions of TN, TP and SS in TDB and MDB in May
The discharge weighted mean concentrations of TN, TP, and SS of inflow and outflow waterof TDB and MDB in May for every year are shown in Figure 5. The box plots of TN, TP, and SS
concentrations represent 75% and 25% quartiles, medians, and weighted mean values for TDB and
MDB. Mean TN, TP, and SS concentrations were higher in outflow than in inflow water in bothdrainage blocks. Variations in TN, TP, and SS concentrations were larger in outflow than in inflow
water. These variations are thought to be caused by agricultural activities, i.e., puddling and© ISERD

16

IJERD – International Journal of Environmental and Rural Development (2011) 2–1

transplantation. In the initial stages of rice cultivation, abundant irrigation water is used in paddy
fields for puddling, and it mixes with soil and fertilizer. Nutrient-rich flooded water is released
through surface drainage before transplantation. A high load of pollutants accumulates throughsubsurface drainage and is subsequently discharged into drainage ditches. The concentrations of
nitrogen and phosphorus in drainage water increase during puddling and transplantation, and also
when fertilizer is applied (Takeda et al., 1997; Feng et al., 2004). Several studies of water quality
indicators in drainage water from paddy fields in Japan showed that the concentrations of thesecontaminants increased significantly during puddling periods (Kondoh et al., 1992). Also, nutrient
concentrations are generally higher in drainage water than in irrigation water (Takeda et al., 1997).
In the present study the concentrations of TN, TP, and SS in outflow water were higher in MDB
than in TDB due to the land use pattern, i.e., low percentage of paddy fields in every year (Table 1).
Outflow discharge was lower in MDB than in TDB during the study period (Fig. 4), and nutrient
concentrations were decreased by the high outflow discharge in the TDB drainage. Tabuchi and
Takamura (1985) reported that outflows from paddy fields contained much less pollutants thanupland fields because nutrients are easily absorbed by soil particles in paddy fields. The
concentrations of TN, TP, and SS showed large variation due to puddling, transplantation, andinitial use of fertilizers, which runoff by surface and subsurface drainage from paddy fields in both
blocks. Nutrient concentrations of drainage water increased rapidly when the puddling process
began, and high concentrations continued to be present during subsequent farming activities.
The net outflow nutrient load is one of the most important factors to consider when evaluating
the role of paddy fields in reducing levels of pollutants from agricultural watersheds (Tabuchi and
Takamura, 1985). The net nutrient load associated with irrigation is defined as the outflow nutrient
load minus the inflow nutrient load (e.g., Takeda et al., 1997). The net load indicates increase or
decrease in the nutrient load discharged from the paddy field when irrigation is compared withdrainage water. A positive net load indicates that the paddy field area is a nutrient source, whereasa negative value indicates that the area is a nutrient sink, i.e., nutrients are absorbed by the paddy
soil. The nutrient load is the product of average nutrient concentration and water flow volume. The
daily nutrient load is calculated using the L-Q power Eq. (2):
L = aQb(2)

where L is the load in kg ha−1 d−1, Q is the flow rate m3 ha−1d−1, and a and b are coefficients. Thus,
the net nutrient load, Lnet (kg ha−1d−1) is given by the following Eq. (3):
Lnet = aQoutb–a′Qin b′(3)

TN, TP, and SS loads were greater in MDB than in TDB for every year except for the outflow
SS load of MDB. The net TN and TP loads were negative and lower values were found in TDB
than in MDB (Table 2), because TDB contained a higher percentage of paddy field than MDB,
causing greater nitrification and denitrification, sedimentation reactions, and sorption by soil.
Misawa (1987) and Shiratani et al. (2002) reported that paddy field areas in Japan caused net
removal of nutrients due to a combination of nitrification and denitrification, sorption by soils, andsedimentation reactions.
Table 2 Nutrients loads of TDB and MDB in May
Table 1 Land use of research areas
TDB
MDB
-1

Upland (ha)Paddy (ha)Study block
Irrigation block (ha)Drainage block (ha)
2003
2004
2006
2007
2008
2003
2004
2006
2007
2008

Load (kg ha )Tsukigata1948
743
303 (40.8%)308 (41.5%)311 (41.9%)
310 (41.7%)
343 (46.2%)
269 (36.2%)
264 (35.5%)
261 (35.1%)
262 (35.3%)
224 (30.1%)

Mihara2018747
161 (21.6%)
208 (27.8%)
184 (24.6%)
188 (25.2%)
177 (23.2%)
467 (62.5%)420 (56.2%)
444 (59.4%)
440 (58.9%)425 (56.9%)

TN

TP

SS

© ISERD

17

Year

2003
2004
2006
2007
2008
2003
2004
2006
2007
2008
2003
2004
2006
2007
2008

Inflow
10.25
10.13
9.54
10.03
10.06
1.54
1.23
0.84
1.04
1.12
105.39
96.53
92.51
90.35
88.08

Outflow-11.86-11.48
-9.21
-9.27
-9.49
-1.24
-1.15
-0.48
-0.47
-0.55
112.35102.00
56.57
53.90
50.83

Netload
1.61
1.36
-0.33
-0.77
-0.57
-0.31
-0.08
-0.36
-0.57
-0.57
6.96
5.47
-35.94-36.45-37.26

Inflow Outflow Netload
18.21 -23.94
5.73
15.35 -17.29
1.94
14.68 -33.53
18.85
13.76 -15.66
1.90
13.30 -13.28
-0.02
2.51
-3.78
1.26
2.06
-2.83
0.77
1.98
-5.07
3.09
1.81
-2.93
1.12
1.75
-2.25
0.50
61.33
26.22
-35.1048.68
24.99-23.69
49.42
56.20
6.78
40.67
23.97
-16.7033.09
21.04-12.05IJERD – International Journal of Environmental and Rural Development (2011) 2–1

Net SS loads were negative in both TDB and MDB. TN, TP, and SS loads decreased between
2003 and 2008 due to changes in water management activities, i.e., progress in pipeline
construction. However, progress in pipeline construction reduced outflow water volume, which
affects the outflow and net load of nutrients. Water discharge is closely related to nutrient load. Ourdata on net nutrient loads indicate that areas dominated by paddy fields promote the purification
mechanisms for nitrogen and phosphorus compounds in the water environment of agricultural
watersheds.
CONCLUSION
In this study, we evaluated the land use pattern, renewal of irrigation channels by pipeline
construction, water balance, water quality, and mass balance of nutrient loads in drainage blocks.
The data on land use pattern indicated that TDB is dominated by paddy field areas whereas MDB isdominated upland fields. The water management system changed from open channels to pipelines
in each block during the study period. Water balance was higher in MDB than TDB because MDB
had a larger proportion of upland, which caused greater losses of water by leakage and percolation.
The concentrations of TN, TP, and SS in outflow water were higher in MDB than in TDB, because
pollutant outflow from paddy fields was much less than that from upland fields. Paddy fields act topurify pollutants such as nitrogen and phosphorus. The net loads of TN, TP, and SS were negativein TDB, where the lower values indicated nutrient uptake by TDB paddy soil, whereas MDB paddy
fields had positive loads and higher values; i.e., they were nutrient sources. By reducing theoutflow of nutrients, blocks dominated by paddy fields showed good purification performance fornutrient compounds. The reasons for this were the relatively low nutrient concentrations in
irrigation water and the change in the water management system in TDB. Upstream (TDB) water istherefore cleaner than lower stream (MDB) water because of the effects of agricultural land use andthe water management systems of the Shinotsu Canal watershed.
REFERENCES
Feng, Y.W., Yoshinaga, I., Shiratani, E., Hitomi, T. and Hasebe, H. (2004) Characteristics and behavior of
nutrients in a paddy field area equipped with recycling irrigation system. Agric. Water Management, 68,
47-60.
Hasan, M. K., Yamamoto, T. and Nagasawa, T. (2010) Influences of land and water use on the water qualityof Shinotsu Canals through agricultural areas. IJERD, 1-1, 174-179.
Kaneki, R. (2003) Reduction of effluent nitrogen and phosphorus from paddy fields. Paddy Water
Environment, 1, 133-138.
Kondoh, T., Misawa, S. and Toyota, M. (1992) Characteristics of effluent loads of nutrient salts (N,P) frompaddy fields located in the alluvial and lower area in Hokuriku District - research study on nutrient loadin the low plain areas of Niigata. Trans. Jpn. Soc. of Irrigation, Drainage and Reclamation Engineering,
159, 17-27 (in Japanese with English abstract).
Kudo, A., Kawagoe, N. and Sasanabe, S. (1995) Characteristics of water management and outflow load froma paddy field in a return flow irrigation area. Jpn. Soc. Irrigation, Drainage Reclamation Engineering,
63-2, 179-184 (in Japanese with English abstract).
Misawa, S. (1987) Mechanism of water quality change in paddy field. Trans. Jpn. Soc. Irrigation, Drainage
Reclamation Engineering, 127, 69-79 (in Japanese with English abstract).
Shiratani, E., Yoshinaga, I., Feng, Y.W. and Hasebe, H. (2002) Scenario analysis for reduction of effluent
load from agricultural area by recycling use of the drained water. Proceedings of the Sixth International
Conference on Diffuse Pollution, Netherlands, 331-338.
Tabuchi, T. and Hasegawa, S. (1995) Paddy Fields in the World. Jpn. Soc. of Irrigation, Drainage andReclamation Engineering, 203-225.
Takeda, I. and Fukushima, A. (2006) Long-term changes in pollutant load outflows and purification function
in a paddy field watershed using a cyclic irrigation system. Water Res. 40, 569-578.
Takeda, I., Fukushima, A. and Tanaka, R. (1997) Non-point pollutant reduction in a paddy field watershedusing a circular irrigation system. Water Res. 31-11, 2685-2692.
Tong, S.T.Y. and Chen, W. (2002) Modeling the relationship between land use and surface water quality.
Journal of Environmental Management, 66-4, 377-393.
© ISERD

18

IJERD – International Journal of Environmental and Rural Development (2011) 2–1

Research article
erdInfluence of Soil Salinization on Growth of Cotton in an
Arid Area in Northwest of China
YAMAMOTO TADAO
Research Faculty of Agriculture, Hokkaido University, Sapporo, Hokkaido Japan
Email: tady@env.agr.hokudai.ac.jp

HASEGAWA SHUICHI
Research Faculty of Agriculture, Hokkaido University, Sapporo, Hokkaido, JapanKAMIYA MITSUHIKO
Hokkaido Institute of Technology, Sapporo, Hokkaido, JapanABDISALAM JALALDIN
College of Resources and Environmental Sciences, Xinjiang University, Xinjiang China

ANWAIRE MAIMAIDI
Xayar Water Resource Agency, Xayar, Xinjiang, China

NAGASAWA TETUAKI
Research Faculty of Agriculture, Hokkaido University, Sapporo, Hokkaido, Japan
Received 8 December 2010

Accepted 28 January 2011

Abstract This paper discusses the influence of soil salinization on cotton plant growth andthe factors that cause salinization in irrigated farmland located along the northern part of
the Tarim River, Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, China. A field survey was
conducted in a cotton field in Nuerbake Township, Xayar County. The physical propertiesof the soil, fluctuations in groundwater level, the growth of cotton plants and electricalconductivity (EC) of the soil saturation extract were investigated. The quality of irrigationwater and groundwater was also measured at the study area. The groundwater level was
low in the summer and high in early spring; this high level was due to thawing of the soil
and irrigation for planting. However, use of border irrigation temporarily raised thegroundwater level. Even within the same field, the EC of the soil saturation extract
differed depending on locations and soil depths. An EC of the surface soil exceeding 8.0
dSm−1 retarded cotton growth. We found that irrigation water quality did not affect thegrowth remarkably because the EC of the irrigation water was lower than 4.0–6.0 dS/m.
On the other hand, the existence of a less permeable subsurface soil damaged cotton
growth. The difference in hydraulic properties of the subsurface soil is influenced by theamount of clay that affects water and saline movement toward the surface.
Keywords electrical conductivity, soil saturation extract, salinization, irrigation

INTRODUCTION
The degradation of fields by soil salinization causes decrease in crop production. Soil salinization
is a serious problem in arid and semi-arid regions (Jan van S., 1994), and it is a chronic problem in
Xinjiang, northwest China. In Xinjiang, the agricultural field under salinization influence is about
one-third of the total cultivated field (Hou, Z. et al., 2007). At the same time, soil salinization
becomes a serious problem with the increase in irrigation agriculture (Yamamoto, T. et al., 2006).
The factors affecting soil salinization have been delineated in several past studies. In this areaof China, soil salinization is the result of several factors, namely; 1) soil and groundwater contain© ISERD

19

IJERD – International Journal of Environmental and Rural Development (2011) 2–1

large amount of saline; 2) the groundwater level is kept high and 3) soil moisture and saline moveto the surface by evapotranspiration under the above-mentioned conditions.
However, the groundwater level may not be a direct factor of soil salinization in Xayar, China,
because salt accumulates in the farmland where groundwater level is sufficiently deep (Nagasawa,
T. et al., 2008). Moreover, little research has been done on crop growth and soil salinization, andfundamental data are needed to counter this problem in the future. Therefore, in this study, we
considered the factors involved in soil salinization and its influence on cotton growth in the Tarim
River Basin.
METHODOLOGY
Outline of the investigation area
The investigation targeted Nuerbake Township of Xayar County, which is located in the
Taklimakan Desert in the northern border region of Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region. Xayar
County is located downstream of the Ugen River, which is a branch of the Tarim River (Fig. 1).
The   temperature   ranges   from   −30°C   to   40°C,   and   annual   precipitation   is   about   50   mm   in   this  region. Here, soil freezes during the winter. The primary local crop is cotton, and irrigation water
relies on the Kyzyl Dam located upstream of the Ugen River. The method of irrigation is mainly
border irrigation.

Fig. 1 Outline of Xayar County

Fig. 2 Investigation field

The sampling of the irrigation, drainage, groundwater and well water was performed in Xayar,
particularly in the Nuerbak Township in 2006–2010. The electrical conductivity (EC) was
measured onsite, and water quality was analysed for anions and cations with Japanese Industrial
Standards (JIS).
The EC of soil saturation extracts in a farmland damaged by salt accumulation was measured.
In addition, a soil survey of the farmland and groundwater level measurement was conducted. The
surveyed farmland was located near a drainage ditch and consisted of cotton fields where thegrowth of cotton was uneven and salt accumulation was relatively troublesome (Fig. 2). We
measured plant heights and collected soil samples from this farmland. The survey was conductedduring the flowering period in early August 2008 at two places, namely: along the A Lineextending in the east to west direction at 40 m north of the farm road where the growth of cotton© ISERD

20

IJERD – International Journal of Environmental and Rural Development (2011) 2–1

flowers was uneven and sporadic bare areas could be seen on the ground; and, along the B Lineextending in the east to west direction at 12 m north of the road where plant growth was relatively
even. Along both the lines, from points 1.5, 4.5, 7.5, 10.5, 13.5, 16.5 and 19.5 m from the westernend, soil samples were collected from the depth of 45 cm using a 50 cm long, thin steel pipe withan inner diameter of 2.7 cm at the tip and 3.0 cm along the rest of the pipe. At each point, soil
samples were collected three times and divided them into five layers (0-5, 10-15, 20-25, 30-35 and40-45 cm from soil surface); each layer was then collected in a separate plastic bag. These samples
were transferred to a polyvinyl chloride container, saturated from the bottom with water taken fromthe main irrigation channel (EC value: 0.45 dSm−1) and absorbed with an unglazed cup to measure
the EC value. Soil samples were collected from the depth of 1.0 m in each line with a hand auger.
Measurement of EC1:5 values (1 part soil with 5 parts water) and screening tests were performed
with these samples.
RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
Cotton growth and EC in the farmland
Along the A Line, 40 m from the road where the growth was bad (Fig. 3), there were sporadic bareareas on the ground and the heights of cotton flowers were uneven. In contrast, along the B Line,
12 m from the road side where the growth was relatively even, there were no bare areas on the
ground and the plant heights were comparatively even, albeit with differences of approximately 10
cm. Cotton is a salt-tolerant crop, comparable to beet and alfalfa, and capable of producing abumper harvest up to an EC value of 8 dSm−1.

Fig. 3 Growth situation of cotton on each transect line

Fig. 4 EC of soil saturation extracts at each depth on farmland
Figure 4 shows the EC values along the A Line in parallel with the heights of cotton. At somepoints, the EC value exceeded 20 dSm−1, which is the measurement limit of the EC metre used. In© ISERD

21

IJERD – International Journal of Environmental and Rural Development (2011) 2–1

such cases, the EC value was recorded uniformly as 20 dSm−1 on the figure. In the bare areas, inparticular, the EC value of shallow parts exceeded 20 dSm−1.
With the exception of the easternmost point, the EC value exceeded the threshold value forsurvival at all points and depths along the A Line. Besides, at most points, the shallower the depth,
the higher the EC value tended to be, thus indicating an accumulation of salt near the groundsurface due to evaporation. On the other hand, along the B Line where the growth of cotton was
relatively even, the EC values fluctuated considerably even at the same point depending on thedepth. However, the EC value never exceeded 15 dSm−1. Furthermore, with the exception of one
point, the EC value of the 0-5 cm layer was below the threshold value of 8 dSm−1; however, at mostpoints, the EC value of the 10-15 cm layer was in the vicinity of the threshold value. Therefore, thedeeper the depth, the higher the EC value tended to be (Fig. 4). This suggests that unlike the A Line,the influence of eluviation by irrigation water was greater than that of salt accumulation caused bysoil surface evaporation in the B Line.
Because EC is influenced by grain size composition in soil deeper than the target layer, we
could not find a tendency in the relationship of the EC value and the percentage of a specific grain
size (<3.8 × 10−5 m). However, in the relationship between the EC value of the 0-10 cm layer andthe relative elevation of the ground on each sampling point, the EC1:5 value increased as the relative
elevation increased (P<0.05, Fig. 5). From this result, since the dissolved matters move with soil
moisture by a capillary power with aridity, saline matters accumulation were estimated in thehigher elevation point where is susceptible to such effect.

Fig. 5 Relationship of EC1:5 and relative
elevation of the farmland

Fig. 6 Changes of EC in irrigation water

Table 1 Water quality of groundwater (Aug 2006)
No.

EC(dSm-1)

1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10

4.6
1.6
2.2
2.0
1.4
2.6
5.1
4.0
3.3
0.6

Cation (meq L-1)
Na+
16.0
5.2
6.4
8.6
4.4
10.8
17.9
12.3
8.7
2.9

Ca2+
13.7
3.7
7.9
2.0
3.9
4.2
11.0
12.9
11.3
1.4

© ISERD

22

Mg2+
15.1
4.6
9.2
2.0
4.1
7.4
14.1
14.8
15.0
0.0

Type
Shallow groundwater (<4.0 m)

Well water (<30 m)

Well water (120 m)

IJERD – International Journal of Environmental and Rural Development (2011) 2–1

Water quality in the area
The EC value of irrigation water changes seasonally, and it ranged from 0.4 to 0.7 dSm−1 in thisarea (Fig. 6). According to the standard of United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) (SoilSurvey Division Staff, 1993), this value shows an intermediate salt density disorder. The EC valuesof the groundwater were basically more than 2.0 dSm−1 in our research. This result is appropriate
because Chen, W. et al. (2010) shows that the salinity levels of most of the shallow groundwater
sources in Xinjiang are greater than 2.0 dSm−1. Dissolved cations are shown in Table 1. It showsNa+ value is higher at the time of EC is lower, and Mg2+ is higher as to be high value of EC. Whenthe EC value of groundwater is compared, the tendency is for the EC value to be higher in theshallow groundwater of a field and to be lower in a deeper well. The influence of the leachingeffect by irrigation is the likely cause that EC is higher in shallow groundwater.
Changing of groundwater level
In this area, it is assumed that a groundwater level of more than –2.0 m carry a high risk of soil
salinization. The change of groundwater level in research target farmland is shown in Fig. 7.

Fig. 7 Change of groundwater level in farmland
It shows groundwater level is higher in the winter and early spring and sufficiently lower insummer. Certainly, groundwater level is higher in the planting period (March to early April), but it
is not high enough to be a problem during the cotton growing season.
Why does unevenness of soil salinization occur?
In the case wherein irrigation water was very saline, soil salinization may have occurred due to thesalinity being supplied to the field by irrigation water. However, the EC of irrigation water wasmuch lower than that of the groundwater in this study. This suggests that irrigation water is not a
direct factor in soil salinization.
According to the USDA standard, the EC value of the irrigation water can be classified as
causing moderate salinity damage. Nevertheless, when compared with the EC value and positive
ions of shallow underground water, the effects of leaching are evident. This implies that the supplyof salts by the irrigation water was not directly connected with salt accumulation. Saline in the soilof the farmland migrates by capillary attraction. In particular, it is believed that the presence of soil
stratum containing clay beneath the Ap layer contributes to the maintenance of dampness in the soil,
thereby promoting capillary attraction.
When the groundwater level is sufficiently deep, the supply of salts and water from beneath isscarce. However, in this region, irrigation and the thawing of ice in the soil, especially in early
spring, causes the groundwater level to rise. Moreover, soil moisture is kept in the soil layer
containing clay. In other words, the rise of shallow groundwater supplies the soil with saline frombeneath in the annual groundwater fluctuation. This should be a major factor causing soil
salinization, as the capillary action of the soil attracts the salts to the surface.
As for the unevenness of cotton growth that occurs in the same farmland, it was considered awaterlogging by inequality of ground surface during the planting period, partial difference of soil
© ISERD

23

IJERD – International Journal of Environmental and Rural Development (2011) 2–1

structure (soil layer including large amount of clay exists in comparatively shallow depth) anddeviation in fertilizer application could be the factors causing the same.
CONCLUSION
The influence of soil salinization on cotton growth in an arid area was observed. Based on the
results, in the bare areas, the EC of soil saturate extract exceeded the threshold value (8 dSm−1) for
survival at all points and depths. In the area where the growth of cotton was relatively even, the EC
values did not exceed the threshold value in 0–5 cm depth. In other words, it is clear that saline
accumulation influences cotton growth. On the other hand, it was suggested that the causes of
unevenness of soil salinization in the same farmland are soil composition (e.g. clay content) andmicrorelief (land elevation) on the farmland. Moreover, irrigation water was not a direct factor insoil salinization.
It is thought that soil improvement and the introduction of under-drainage in farmland would
be an effective solution for the problem of soil salinization, but this is difficult when cost is
considered. For realistic correspondence, it was suggested that crops are grown on furrow. Thisway should make saline matters beneath the plants move to the ridge direction. It is necessary toverify this hypothesis by further experiments.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
Xayar County Government, Xayar Water Management Agency and Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous
Region Water Resource Management Bureau supported this research.
This study is a part of the academic research (No.21405031) supported by Grant-in-Aid for
Scientific Research (B) from Japan Society for the Promotion of Science (JSPS), Japan.
REFERENCES
Jan van, S. (1994) Irrigation-a blessing or a curse. Agricultural Water Management, 25, 203-219.
Hou, Z., Li, P., Gong, J. and Wang, Y. (2007) Effect of different soil salinity levels and application rates ofnitrogen on the growth of cotton under drip irrigation. China. Journal of Soil Science, 38, 681-686.
Chen, W., Hou, Z., Wu, L., Liang, Y. and Wei, C. (2010) Evaluating salinity distribution in soil irrigatedwith saline water in arid regions of northwest China. Agricultural Water Management, 97, 2001-2008.
Soil Survey Division Staff (1993) Soil survey manual, Soil Conservation Service. U.S. Department ofAgriculture Handbook, 18, 108.
Yamamoto, T., Nagasawa, T. and Abudisalam. J. (2006) Irrigated agriculture and the environment in the
Tarim River watershed: Case study of the Shaya irrigation district in the Ugen River basin. Sustainable
Irrigation Management, Technologies and Policies, WIT press, 303-312.
Nagasawa, T., Yamamoto, T. and Abudisalam, J. (2008) Salinization of farmland in northern region of
Taklamakan Desert, Relationship of salinization and agricultural wateruse in semi-arid zone (1).
Conference Proceeding of Japanese society of Irrigation, Drainage and Rural Engineering, 808-809.

© ISERD

24

IJERD – International Journal of Environmental and Rural Development (2011) 2–1

Research article
erd

Soil Erosion Control by Coconut Husk Buffer Strip in
Bohol Island of Philippines
JULIAN TORILLO JR.
Graduate School of Agriculture, Tokyo University of Agriculture, Japan
Email: juliantorillo@yahoo.com

MACHITO MIHARA
Faculty of Regional Environment Science, Tokyo University of Agriculture, Japan
Received 9 December 2010

Accepted 9 February 2011

Abstract Soil erosion causes serious environmental problems in Bohol Island, Philippines.
Considering the agricultural socio-economic situation in the island, utilizing available
materials in the region to mitigate soil erosion particularly in the upland fields have been
focused. Thus, slope modeling experiments were conducted to evaluate the effects ofcoconut husk buffer strip on mitigating the losses of soil and nutrients. Based on theexperimental results, the coconut husk buffer was effective to trap transported soils,
however the nutrient losses from the plots with the coconut husk buffer were slightly
higher than that from control plot without any treatments in the initial stage of rainfall
events after the installation of coconut husk buffer strip.
Keywords coconut husk, buffer strip, trapping capability, soil and nutrient losses

INTRODUCTION
Parts of the land areas with 8-18% slopes in Bohol Province of the Philippines are covered withupland fields. Even in the mountainous areas with more than 18% in slopes, some portions havebeen exploited particularly for subsistence agriculture. Along with the higher intensity rainfalls in
the interior mountainous areas, upland fields and other less vegetated areas on slopes are
susceptible to soil erosion that causes rapid degradation of land (OIDC, 2006).
Upland fields with protruding stones and rocks on ground surfaces as well as abandoned
farmlands are now dominant particularly in the southwestern part of the island. Thus, the strategies
for rehabilitating and conserving these land resources are necessary where soil erosion is the prime
problem to be mitigated. This study dealt with the strategic soil erosion control by utilizing coconut
husk which is biodegradable, renewable and locally available material in the region. Considering
the agricultural socio-economic situation in the island of Bohol, economical and easy application
with high efficiency is also one of important scopes that should be focused. So, the objectives ofthis study are to observe the capability of coconut husk buffer to trap soil and nutrient losses withmeasuring the particle sizes that were trapped by buffer medium.
MEHODOLOGY
In order to evaluate the effects of coconut husk buffer on mitigating soil erosion, modelingexperiments were carried out in the laboratory with artificial rainfall facilities at Tokyo Universityof Agriculture, Tokyo, Japan. The soil with clay percentage at 63.8%, silt at 8.1% and sand at
28.1% obtained from abandoned corn field in Tiptip District, Tagbilaran City of Bohol was used in
the experiment.
Coconut husk was pounded by hammer to make it into a fibrous material and installed at thelower end of the slope model plots (130 cm long and 11 cm wide) in which around 7.5 kg of thesoil was filled. Three plots were prepared as Plot I, Plot II and Plot III as the plot of control, the© ISERD

25

IJERD – International Journal of Environmental and Rural Development (2011) 2–1

plot with 2 rows of husk buffer and the plot with 2 rows of husk buffer in addition to 25 cm husk
mulch, respectively as shown in Fig. 1. The prepared slope model plots were set up at 8 degrees inslope and simulated by artificial rainfall. Rainfall simulation was carried out for 2 hours at theintensity of 60 mm/h. The experiment was replicated 3 times in separate days. Surface water
discharge (Point 1) from each plot was measured and the surface water was collected at every 15
minutes for the first hour and at every 30 minutes for the second hour.

2plyHusk
huskbuffer
bufferPoint 3Husk
Huskmulch
mulch

Point 1

Point 2

Fig. 1 Stainless slope model plots and installation of
coconut husk buffer at slope toe
The amount of percolation water (Point 2) was measured and sampled after 24 hours from theend of each rainfall simulation. Both collected water samples at Point 1 and Point 2 were analyzed
for total nitrogen (T-N) and total phosphorous (T-P). Also, the amount of soil losses were measured
for collected water samples at Point 1. After the decomposition of water samples with sodiumhydroxide (NaOH) and potassium peroxodisulfate (K2S2O8), the concentrations of T-N and T-P
were measured by spectrometric method (Mihara et al, 2000). Oven drying method was used tomeasure the soil loss concentration in the suspended water of surface runoff.
For comparing the particle sizes of soils eroded from each plot, the wet sieving method wasapplied using 106, 250, 500 and 1000 μm sieves (Ghadiri et al., 2001). One liter of suspended
water was collected after passing through the sieves to determine the amount of <106 μm in
diameters. Then the collected one liter suspended water was sampled by pipette method then filled
into the weighing can and dried by oven together with the sieved soils from 106, 250, 500 and 1000μm sieves.
RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
Soil losses
As shown in Fig. 2, the amounts of soil losses at Plot I as control dramatically increased with therepetition of rainfall simulation compared to that at Plots II and III with husk buffer. Also, there
was a significant difference at 99% level between the amounts of soil losses at Plot I as control andthat at Plots II and III with husk buffer in the second rainfall simulation test. During the first,
second and third rainfall simulation tests, the 2 rows of husk buffer at Plot II could mitigate 36, 45
and 53% of soil losses at Plot I as control while the 2 rows of husk buffer with 25 cm husk mulch at
Plot III could mitigate 50, 61 and 54%, respectively.

© ISERD

26

IJERD – International Journal of Environmental and Rural Development (2011) 2–1

Third rainfall simulation

Second rainfall simulation

First rainfall simulation

250

250

A**

200

150
100
50

150

B**
B**

100
50

0
30

60
60

Time (min)

90
90

120
120

100

0
00

Plot I: controlled plot

150

50

0
00

250
200

軸ラベル

200

軸ラベル

Cumulative soil losses(g/m2)

It was clearly observed that the coconut husk buffer worked to mitigate about 50% of soil
losses. Meanwhile, the 2 rows husk buffered with mulch at Plot III had no significant difference inthe amounts of soil losses with the 2 rows husk buffered at Plot II.

30

60
60

Time (min)

90
90

120
120

00

30

60
60

Time (min)

90
90

120
120

Plot III: 2 rows husk buffered with mulch plot

Plot II: 2 rows husk buffered plot**significant difference at 99%

Fig. 2 Cumulative soil losses from Plots I, II and III in eachrainfall simulation test
First rainfall simulation

Second rainfall simulation

180.00120.00
90.00

60.00
30.00

Plot I
Plot II
Plot III

0.00

Particle size (µm)

150.00120.00
90.00

60.00
30.00

Plot I
Plot II
Plot III

0.00

Particle size (µm)

Soil loss (g/m2)

180.00150.00

Soil loss (g/m2)

Soil loss (g/m2)

180.00Third rainfall simulation
150.00120.00
90.00
60.00
30.00

Plot I
Plot II
Plot III

0.00

Particle size (µm)

Fig. 3 Particle sizes of eroded soils from Plots I, II and III
at first, second and third rainfall simulation tests

Coconut husk buffer strip trapping capability
The amounts of eroded soils from the plots in particle sizes of <106 μm in diameter weredramatically higher compared to the particle sizes of >106 μm (106 to 1000 μm) as shown in Fig. 3.
Although coconut husk buffer could mitigate only around 25% to 35% of eroded fine soils inparticle sizes of <106 μm, coconut husk buffer trapped 99% of eroded soils in particle sizes of>106 μm (106 to 1000 μm).
The experimental results showed the coconut husk buffer was highly capable to trap erodedsoils larger than 106 μm in diameter, however less capable to trap fine soils in particle sizes of<106 μm.
Total nitrogen losses
As shown in Fig.4, the amounts of total nitrogen (T-N) losses through surface discharge from Plots
II and III with husk buffer were slightly higher than that from Plot I as control in the first rainfall
simulation test. It showed that coconut husk set in the plots released total nitrogen components.
However, the amounts of total nitrogen (T-N) losses through surface discharge from Plots II and III
became lower than that from Plot I in the second and third rainfall simulation tests.

© ISERD

27

IJERD – International Journal of Environmental and Rural Development (2011) 2–1

0.60

0.40
0.20
0.00
0

30

60

90

120

Second rainfall simulation

0.80
0.60

0.40
0.20
0.00

0

30

60

90

120

Total nitrogen loss (g/m2)

First rainfall simulation

0.80

Total nitrogen loss (g/m2)

Cumulative total nitrogenloss (g/m2)

Higher amounts of total nitrogen losses through percolation were observed at the husk
buffered plots, particularly in Plot II (Table 1). The results clearly indicated that coconut husk set in
the plots released total nitrogen components not only through surface runoff but also throughpercolation. In addition, there was a tendency for the amounts of total nitrogen losses throughpercolation to decrease with the repetition of rainfall simulation.
Third rainfall simulation

0.80
0.60
0.40

0.20
0.00
0

30

60

90

120

Time (min)Time (min)Time (min)Plot I: controlled plot

Plot II: 2 rows husk buffered plot

Plot III: 2 rows husk buffered with mulch plot

Fig. 4 Cumulative total nitrogen (T-N) losses through surface discharge from Plots I,
II and III in each rainfall simulation test
Table 1 Total nitrogen losses through percolation (x10-2 g/m2)
First rainfall simulation
2.889
3.066
1.615

Plot I
Plot II
Plot III

Second rainfall simulation
1.561
1.983
1.235

Third rainfall simulation
0.955
2.500
1.209

Total phosphorus losses
As shown in Fig. 5, there was a tendency that the amounts of total phosphorus (T-P) losses
increased with the repetition of rainfall simulation. Also, the amounts of total phosphorus (T-P)
losses from Plots II and III with husk buffer tended to be lower than that from Plot I as control,
although a significant difference was not recorded.
As shown in Table 2, the amount of total phosphorus losses through percolation tended toincrease with the repetition of rainfall simulation, although some fluctuations in amounts of T-P
losses were observed.
Second rainfall simulation

0.03

0.02
0.01
0.00
0

30

60

Time (min)90

Plot I: controlled plot

120

0.04

Total phosphorus loss
(g/m2)

Total phosphorus loss
(g/m2)

Culmulative total
phosphorus loss (g/m2)

First rainfall simulation
0.04

0.03
0.02
0.01

0.00
0

30

60

90

120

Time (min)Plot II: 2 rows husk buffered plot

Third rainfall simulation

0.04
0.03

0.02
0.01
0.00

0

30

60

Time (min)90

Plot III: 2 rows husk buffered with mulch plot

Fig. 5 Total phosphorus (T-P) losses through surface discharge from Plots I, II
and III in each rainfall simulation test

© ISERD

28

120

IJERD – International Journal of Environmental and Rural Development (2011) 2–1

Table 2 Total phosphorus losses through percolation (x10-2 g/m2)
First rainfall simulation
0.039
0.052
0.031

Plot I
Plot II
Plot III

Second rainfall simulation
0.090
0.058
0.161

Third rainfall simulation
0.120
0.054
0.048

Relationship between soil and nutrient component losses
As shown in Fig. 6, the relationship between total nitrogen and soil losses changed remarkably
during the first to third rainfall simulation tests. During the first rainfall simulation test, theamounts of total nitrogen losses rapidly increased with the amounts of soil losses. In the second andthird rainfall simulation tests, the trend in the first rainfall simulation test became gentler, as theamounts of total nitrogen losses gradually increased with the amounts of soil losses.
The amounts of total phosphorus losses increased with the amounts of soil losses (Fig. 7). The
increasing tendencies of total phosphorus losses from each plot changed slightly during the first to
third rainfall simulation tests. However, there was a tendency that the amounts of total phosphorus
losses from Plots II and III with husk buffer became higher than that from Plot I of control,
especially in the first and second rainfall simulation tests. In the third rainfall simulation test, thedifference in the amounts of total phosphorus losses among plots became small.

0.40
0.20
0.00
0.00

100.00200.00

Cumulative soil loss (g/m2)
Plot I

Plot II

Cumulative nitrogen loss (g/m2)

Cumulative T-N losses (g/m2)

0.60

0.60
0.40
0.20
0.00
0.00

y = 0.0061x + 0.1292

y = 0.0061x + 0.1959

R² = 0.9691**

R² = 0.9212**

R² = 0.848*

100.00200.00

Cumulative soil loss (g/m2)
Plot I

Plot IIIy = 0.003x + 0.1038

Second rainfall simulation

0.80

Plot IIy = 0.002x - 0.0834 y = 0.0023x + 0.0271

R² = 0.9957**

R² = 0.9815**

Cumulative nitrogen loss (g/m2)

First rainfall simulation

0.80

Third rainfall simulation

0.80
0.60

0.40
0.20
0.00
0.00

100.00200.00

Cumulative soil loss (g/m2)

Plot IIIPlot I

Plot IIy = 0.0023x + 0.0489

y = 0.0012x + 0.0407

R² = 0.9396**

R² = 0.9795**

y = 0.0018x + 0.0242

Plot IIIy = 0.002x + 0.0009

R² = 0.9767**
R² = 0.9773***confidence* confidence intervalinterval at
at 95%
95%**confidence**confidenceintervalinterval at
at 99%
99%

Fig. 6 Relationship between T-N losses and soil losses

Second rainfall simulation

0.02
0.01
0.00

0.00

100.00200.00

Cumulative soil loss (g/m2)
Plot Iy = 0.0002x - 0.0007

R² = 0.9945**

Plot II

Plot IIIy = 0.0002x - 0.0018 y = 0.0003x - 0.0014

R² = 0.9917**

R² = 0.9713**

0.04

0.03
0.02
0.01
0.00
0.00

100.00200.00

Cumulative soil loss (g/m2)
Plot I

Plot II

Plot IIIy = 0.0002x - 0.0119

y = 0.0002x - 0.001

y = 0.0003x + 0.0004

R² = 0.9749**

R² = 0.9995**

R² = 0.996**

Third rainfall simulation
Cumulative phosphorus loss
(g/m2)

0.03

Cumulative phosphorus loss
(g/m2)

Cumulative T-P losses (g/m2)

First rainfall simulation
0.04

0.04

0.03
0.02
0.01
0.00
0.00

100.00200.00

Cumulative soil loss (g/m2)
Plot II

Plot IIIy = 0.0001x + 0.0015

Plot Iy = 0.0003x + 0.0003

y = 0.0002x - 0.0019

R² = 0.9959**

R² = 0.9943**

R² = 0.9595****confidence**confidenceintervalintervalat
at99%
99%

Fig. 7 Relationship between T-P losses and soil losses© ISERD

29

IJERD – International Journal of Environmental and Rural Development (2011) 2–1

CONCLUSION
In Bohol Island of Philippines, soil erosion causes serious environmental problems. Considering
the agricultural socio-economic situation in the island, utilizing available materials in the region to
mitigate soil erosion particularly in the upland fields have been focused. So, this study dealt withthe evaluation of the effects of coconut husk buffer strip on mitigating the losses of soil andnutrients.
The experimental results indicated that coconut husk buffer could trap 99% of eroded soils inparticle sizes of >106 μm (106 to 1000μm), however less capable to trap eroded fine soils inparticle sizes of <106 μm. In addition, the nutrient losses from the plots with the coconut husk
buffer were slightly higher than that from control plot without any treatments in the initial stage of
rainfall events after the installation of coconut husk buffer strip. It was considered that coconut
husk set in the plots released nutrient components.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
I would like to acknowledge the support of President Dr. Elpidio T. Magante of Bohol Island State
University for his meaningful guidance and advices.
REFERENCES
Hussein, J., Yu, B., Ghadiri, H. and Rose, C. (2007) Prediction of surface flow hydrology and sediment
retention upslope of a vetiver buffer strip, Journal of Hydrology, 338, 261-272.
Mihara, M. and Ueno, T. (2000) Nitrogen and phosphorus transfer in soil erosion processes, IAHS
Publication, No. 263.
Orient Integrated Development Consultants Inc. (2006) Bohol Agriculture Master Plan, CY 2006-2026.

© ISERD

30

IJERD – International Journal of Environmental and Rural Development (2011) 2–1

Research article
erd

The Social Economy - Key Element of Sustainable
Environmental and Societal Development in Asia
FABIAN THIEL
University of Applied Sciences, Frankfurt/Main, Germany
Email: bodenrecht@fabian-thiel.deReceived 10 December 2010

Accepted 8 January 2011

Abstract Cooperatives, associations, partnerships, non-profit organizations (NPOs) andnon-governmental organizations (NGOs) are core elements of the Social Economy. Social
Economy as an economic and societal development approach could support thesustainable rural and environmental management in South East Asian countries. Examples
for Social Economy enterprises are microlending institutions, fishing and rice cooperatives
in Vietnam and Thailand, pepper and pottery associations in Cambodia or rural and small
scale industry commodities and service associations. The Social Economy needs just andequal distribution of property, but also innovative property tax collection models in orderto guarantee sustainable financial support by the governments. The implementation faces
several challenges. Existing private property or leasehold rights and large agriculturalinvestment funds could lead to the exclusion of small and medium landowners, familybased farmers and to a lack of institutional support from higher political levels. A system
combining different forms of public and private property and good land governance may
be the means to bridge the gap between the private right to acquire natural resources andthe needs of the Social Economy. The division of agricultural land, natural commodities
and the means of production in a comprehensive and equal way between the people is offundamental importance for the Asian states.
Keywords social economy, property policy, secure land use rights, resource distribution, Asia

INTRODUCTION
The social economy serves as property policy, underlined by an interdisciplinary approach of good
governance, law, economy, and land use planning. Asian societies should provide its citizens with
opportunities to participate in community-oriented social economies. In developing andtransformation of Asian countries, the social economy seeks to empower individuals in taking partof the general economic growth, poverty reduction, and social development particularly in the rural
areas. Poverty reduction policies oriented towards sustainability and empowerment need a bottomup approach where the people own and manage their businesses or communities and where they
use the natural resources wisely. Hence, land and other non-renewable resources are essential andindispensable pillars of the social economy. But natural resources as the basic means for production
and for any economic activities are limited and getting scarce. Many projects under the wide
umbrella of the social economy, for instance the Federal Land Development Authority (FELDA)
which initiated the pro-poor land reform, land distribution and cooperative projects in thePhilippines, will have to contend with less suitable land for its cooperatives or infrastructure
projects.
Challenges for community-based, socially well-balanced rural development andenvironmental management still remain in several Asian countries until today. The majority ofagriculture producers are small and medium enterprises (SME). Respect for the vulnerable urban
and rural poor or landless people calls for the bottom-up community organizing approach as anempowering instrument of the social economy. Experiences from the Philippines, Thailand,
Vietnam and Cambodia showed that it takes approximately 10 years to organize people until they
have built up a democratic, autonomous and self-reliant local community. In this given timeframe,© ISERD

31

IJERD – International Journal of Environmental and Rural Development (2011) 2–1

the social economy enables people to understand the reality of the nature as well as the createdenvironment, to take steps towards effective changes for improving their livelihoods, and thus
liberate people from dependency, especially from donor money or monopolistic market participants
like agriculture product traders.
Theoretical regulatory framework for the social economy
Cooperatives, associations and independent organizations will be discussed whether these sectors
might be used for participatory community environmental and societal development. Thus, thispaper provides theoretical discussions and selected case studies of social economy projects. The
social economy requires a firm land use planning system, socially well-balanced distribution ofproperty rights and a fair, transparent property taxation to redistribute the revenues to the
population in equal shares, particularly in rural areas. In Cambodia, tax revenue from transfer,leasing and selling of land properties rose to 19.51 million USD in 2010. This increased revenue
could be used as subsidies for social economy companies or to support social initiative financials.
As an innovative land use modality, associations and producer cooperatives for common property
resources like land, forests, water and energy are additional instruments for securing existing land
tenure of the farmers and SMEs. Land use planning, public land management and property taxation
tools may be much more efficient if they are embedded within communal land ownership, landleasehold systems and similar bottom-up approaches to allow grass-root communities to empowercollective action in their societies. Hence, the social economy strengthens local communities where
people are enabled to share their knowledge and experience, for instance in agricultural extension
and marketing. Social economy enterprises should consist of steering committees that will facilitate
the framework of  business’  concepts and their strategy. In the case of operating on the local level,
community leaders/managers should call for meetings and moderate the general assemblies. They
have the task to communicate with the political authorities and sign documents or issue certificatescontaining legal registration processes. Moreover, the advantage of co-operation must be evident
for every stakeholder in such an enterprise (Ostrom, 1990).
DISCUSSION
Collective action of vulnerable individuals has been of crucial importance for the social economy
ever since (El-Ghonemy, 2010; Elsen, 2010). For instance, in the seventies, agriculture andproducer cooperatives achieved impressive results in Asian countries like Japan, the Philippines,
Sri Lanka, and Thailand, marking more than 400,000 cooperatives totalling 75 million members.
At present, cooperatives work as a central element of the Thai and Vietnamese economies. Social
economy sub-concepts and terminologies like social enterprises or social entrepreneurship are
attracting an increasing interest in Asia, especially in South Korea, Japan, Taiwan, and recently
Cambodia. Japan successfully adopted the cooperative idea and cooperative law from Germany in
its efforts towards socially-balanced economic growth. In contrast, the historical experience ofCambodia during the Khmer Rouge period (1975-1979) makes it a special case indeed. Due to a
private property-oriented, neoliberal land titling policy since 1995, attitudes towards the social
economy are still limited. Links among NPOs, NGOs, cooperatives, associations and foundations
engaging in rural development are weak in Cambodia. A significant amount of one billion USD as
development money for Cambodia in key sectors like agriculture, trade, education, and governance
was provided in 2010 by approximately 2,000 NGOs. Based on a lack of donor harmonization,
cooperation amongst these NGOs or development aid agencies is still remarkably rare.
Future profits within the Social Economy should be made at organisational, at commune aswell as individual levels. Cooperatives must be able to compete with other private market
participants and state enterprises. Flexibility of each cooperative organization and adaptability to
the changing market conditions as well as experienced, qualified leaders and/or managers areneeded. Due to its agricultural potential, Southeast Asia (in compare with regions in southern
Africa where numerous experiences with independent organizations exist) could serve as a role
© ISERD

32

IJERD – International Journal of Environmental and Rural Development (2011) 2–1

model for the worldwide making of the social economy in order to resemble cooperatives andsocial movements (Defourny and Develtere, 2009).
Key principles of the social economy
Social and health independent organizations, producer cooperatives, associations, and collective
entrepreneurs   create   the   “homo   cooperativus”.   They   open   a   third   way   in   using   of   land,  commodities, and manpower resources beyond either private property or the planning economy. As
an innovative land use alternative, (agricultural) associations and service/producer cooperatives orgroup rights on common property resources and collective entrepreneurship are additional andimportant instruments for secure land tenure (Olson, 1965). These entrepreneurs are part of social
land policies on global scale in view of the social economy and the people-centred development
context (Münkner, 1982; Elsen, 2010). Numerous social economy approaches like économia
popular y solidaria, community economy or the économie solidaire base on similar key principles
as listed below;• Strictly voluntary membership and exit options• Autonomy and solidarity (independent organizations as elements of subsidiarity)• Democracy  amongst  the  stakeholders  (principle  of  “one  member, one  vote”)• Independence from the state• Common public property for resources and other non-renewable means of production• Equal distribution of profits and• Self-organization
Public property or public enterprises which operate on state land are typical manifestations of
the social economy since they are suitable for land, commodities, energy facilities, industries,
service sectors such as banks or insurance companies. The transformation of private land property
into public land property in favor of public enterprises and utilities is legally permitted by the
majority of constitutions in Asian countries. Compensation for the loss of private property has to beprovided to the previous owner(s) but the compensation does not necessarily have to be based onmarket value, money or on similar incentives. Public social or medical communities, trust
arrangements, public funds, commons, public-private partnerships (PPPs) or cooperatives serve associal economy enterprises (see Figure 1 below).
Redistribution of land ownership through the social economy
Within the field of social economy, various definitions coexist like solidarity-based economy,économie sociale or social enterprises. Autonomous decisions about objectives, output, strategies,
marketing, sales, and management are their common guidelines. Social economy is not equivalent
to slow economy. Économie sociale is used due to the French understanding and should not be
confused with économie solidaire which aims exclusively at small, local and regional companies
working with a social performance (Jeantet, 2010). Cooperatives are widely distributed enterprisesof the social economy and are very successful entrepreneurs. Cooperatives may be suitable forlandless and land poor households for residential, rural and agricultural community empowerment.
They encourage independent groups, house construction and business communities, income
generation and agricultural extension including processing and marketing. Cooperatives andassociations can provide access to micro-credit institutions. The Grameen Bank in Bangladesh
serves as a highly influential business model. There are numerous cases and best practices ofsmaller and less known credit cooperatives in other developing countries in Asia, e.g. in Thailand.
Cooperatives could build up mortgage communities including long-term value chain businessstrategies or micro-insurance services. In particular, independent cooperatives which are strongly
supported and advised by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and the International
Labour Organization (ILO) rely on institutional arrangements and an environment of politicalcommitment, including financial support.

© ISERD

33

IJERD – International Journal of Environmental and Rural Development (2011) 2–1

Land use models using the concept of common property resources (CPR) or community-based
natural resource management (CBNRM) with regulations, participation and decentralization
strategies for avoiding a land-free-for-all-mentality are still underdeveloped in some Southeast
Asian countries like Cambodia and Lao P.D.R. Fair and transparent land distribution and socioecological land policies also need a firm land use planning system which is incomplete in
Cambodia and other Asian countries like the Philippines (Thiel, 2010). Agricultural associations
and   service/producer   cooperatives   or   group   rights   under   control   of   women’s   groups   on   common  property resources are additional instruments for secure, gender-equal land rights. They can be
combined with value chain business approaches. Agricultural extension services are the basis forfood security and poverty reduction in many Asian countries like Cambodia, Vietnam or Thailand
since about 80% of the population in these countries live in rural remote areas. Moreover,cooperatives and associations can provide access to fair trade systems and mutual public healthinsurance as the cornerstone of a social safety net. Preconditions for cooperatives, associations, andindependent organizations in Asia are;• Constitutional laws and related sub-laws (rule of law, consisting of land laws, business andcommercial enterprise laws, competition laws, cooperative laws etc)
• The creation of property rights, consisting of land as a primary public, local commodity but notas an open resource affected by unlimited and unregulated use
Innovative constitutional and sub-constitutional regulations arrangements for the social
economy need laws by the federal government to be finally implemented. The establishment ofpublic communal and collective private property and/or public enterprises for the building industry
and real estate as well as for energy like coal, water or geothermal energy, industries and banking
or insurance companies could be appropriate social economy strategies.
Social Land Policy“Homo Cooperativus”
Property Policy
Realization

Land Use

Social Economy“Social Investment”

Public Property

Sustainability

Private Property

Organizational
Structure

Cooperatives
Foundations
TrustsFig. 1 Policy structure and the organizations of the social economy
Challenges and perspectives for the social economy in Asia: The example of Cambodia
A viable formula for a socially equal distribution of land as of paramount importance for a just andsustainable planning and property system (pro-poor property policy) – the property basis of thesocial economy – has yet to emerge in many Asian states. Property policy does not only consist of
property rights and the attempts of the legislators to balance private and public interests. A system
combining different forms of property and governance may be the means to bridge the gap between
the private right to acquire which is easily exercised by those who understand the system and can© ISERD

34

IJERD – International Journal of Environmental and Rural Development (2011) 2–1

bear the transaction costs that legal private ownership entails. The needs and actions of real
government efficiency in order to divide land up in a comprehensive and equal way per capita is aneverlasting task for the social economy legislator (El-Ghonemy, 2010). Globalization induces
structural problems and negative effects mainly in remote rural regions in Asia as it does
worldwide. This development causes poverty in broad segments of the population and could lead tomigration into cities or urban bias, and may result in problems particularly for farmers and small
enterprises, especially due to insufficient resources and lack of access to financial services,
working equipment, sales, new technologies, and updated knowledge.
The importance of amending sub-constitutional regulations can be illustrated with the example
of Cambodia. An amendment of the existing legal framework – a Royal-Decree for agricultural
cooperatives – is currently projected towards the implementation of a modern Cooperative Law.
This law on cooperatives should form the basis to introduce successful models (e.g., purchase offarm inputs, bulk buying, marketing, credit and saving systems) to small-scale family farmers andother target groups like SME. Additionally, the law should help to increase the number of officiallyregistered agricultural cooperatives slowly and sustainably. As of July 2010, there were 175
producer cooperatives registered in Cambodia to provide strategic and technical assistance towards
the  formation  of  cooperative  federations  and  marketing  systems  like  worker’s  unions  (v.  Walther,  2010). However, the recently drafted Cambodian Law on Associations and Non-Governmental
Organizations   (“NGO-Law”)   established procedures for mandatory registration, operation andtermination of domestic associations as well as international NGOs. In particular, the law setsminimum numbers of founders or initiators (21 founders for associations and 3 initiators for NGOs).
Foreign NGOs will have to collaborate with Cambodian governmental institutions which can
examine the financial status reports and properties of associations and NGOs at any time.
Registration and reporting requirements are comprehensive and a lack of clarity on applications
and postponements or dissolution can be observed. In light of the registration procedures, theadministrative   “NGO-Law”   could   be   seen   as   a   contradiction   to   the   existing   Civil   Code   of  Cambodia which also sets rules and procedures for associations and communities.
The Kampong Cham experience of founding and running a pepper farmer cooperative also
shows that Cambodian farmers are strongly interested in organizing their own producer units. Since
November 2009, different meetings with local farmers’ groups were held to prepare the guidelinesand discuss  the   future   cooperative’s   role   and   its   function.   Pepper   fields   were   extended   from   450  hectare to around 550 hectare in 2010, equivalent to 1.1 million poles. The first assembly in March2010   established   the   “Dar-Memot   Pepper   Development   Agricultural   Cooperative”. The farmers
were trained on organic plantation; a cooperative shop supplies organic fertilizer and pesticides.
The cooperative was registered at the end of May 2010. Credits for poor pepper farmers were givenby the cooperative (Glatzel, 2010).
CONCLUSION
Land property, land use planning mechanisms, and social property policy as basic elements for thesocial economy in Asia as well as around the globe should include;• Just and equal distribution of property: different property forms and tenure securities for land
beyond the private property rights solution for the use of non-renewable natural resources andany immovable properties• Effective and efficient state land management with non-transferable public property• Leasehold tenure contracts, combined with innovative property taxation collection models(redistribution of the ground rent for the benefit of the people as an ‘add up’)
• Property steering function of the spatial/land use planning policy (property policy)• Reduced transaction costs for the access to fertile land, but avoiding the ‘tragedy of thecommons’
This review allows a number of final conclusions. How can better governance be achieved
through the social economy in view of uncontrolled land consumption, urban migration and a© ISERD

35

IJERD – International Journal of Environmental and Rural Development (2011) 2–1

socially still unbalanced distribution of property rights, in particular of land use rights? Neutral
land use planning – bare of private speculative interests – and property taxation can be achieved, as
mentioned above. Due to globalization, the bilateral and multilateral donor organizations involvedin the rule of law processes, those especially engaged in social economic reform activities indeveloping countries in Asia, are far more focused on the property rights reform than at any time inthe last half century.
In the year 2000, neoliberal interpretations of property models dominated and were seen as anecessary foundation for development according to the Washington Consensus. The concept of thesocial economy was hardly discussed in scientific publications. However, times and property
interpretations are changing rapidly nowadays because the private property rights orientation nolonger holds everywhere in the world (Barrera-Hernández, 2010; Riddell, 2008). There is lessagreement on how to resolve land and other natural resource allocation decisions and conflicts thanit was at the end of the previous decade when that neoliberal model of private property rights had
nearly universal acceptance (Riddell, 2008; Bromley, 2008). Today, social economy, pro-poor land
policy, public/private land property management, and land use planning policy need frameworkarrangements guaranteed by the institutions responsible for rural and urban development.
REFERENCES
Barrera-Hernández, L. (2010) Got Title; will sell: indigenous rights to land in Chile and Argentina. In:
McHarg, A., Barton, B., Bradbrook, A. and Godden, L. (eds.) (2010) Property and the Law in Energy
and Natural Resources, Oxford.
Bromley, D. W. (2008) Land and economic development: new institutional arrangements. In: Cornia, G. C.
and Riddell, J. (eds.) (2008) Toward a Vision of Land in 2015, International Perspectives, Lincoln
Institute of Land Policy, Cambridge/Mass., 217-236.
Defourny, J. and Develtere, P. (2009) The social economy: the worldwide making of a third sector. In:
Defourny, J., Develtere, P., Fonteneau, B. and Nyssens, M. (eds.) (2009) The Worldwide Making Of
The Social Economy. Innovations and changes. Leuven/Den Haag, 15-40.
El-Ghonemy, M. R. (2010) Anti-poverty land reform issues never die. Collected essays on development
economics in practice, London and New York.
Elsen, S. (2010) Social work and community-based social economies, reflections on the task of sociopolitical development. In: Sandu, D. (2010) European societies in transition: social development andsocial work, Berlin.
Glatzel, K. (2010) The Kampong Cham experience of establishing and running a farmer’s cooperative.
Presentation  at  the  “Summer  School”  of  the  Faculty  of  Land  Management  and  Land  Administration  at  the Royal University of Agriculture, 30 September 2010, Phnom Penh.
Jeantet, T. (2010) Economie Sociale, Neu-Ulm.
Münkner, H.-H. (1982) Ten lectures on co-operative law, Bonn.
Olson, M. (1965) The logic of collective action: Public goods and the theory of groups, Harvard.
Ostrom, E. (1990) Governing the commons. The evolution of institutions for collective action, Cambridge
Univ. Press, Cambridge.
Riddell, J. (2008) Toward a 2015 vision of land. In: Cornia, G. C. and Riddell, J. (eds.) (2008) Toward avision of land in 2015. International Perspectives, Lincoln Institute of Land Policy, Cambridge/Mass.,
307-323.
Thiel, F. (2010) Land Law and Planning Law in Cambodia: Problems and Perspectives. In: CambodianYearbook of Comparative Legal Studies, 1, 71-85.
Walther, H. v. (2010) Cooperatives and associations as innovative and successful mechanisms for ruraldevelopment and economic growth. Presentation at the “Summer   School”   of   the   Faculty   of   Land  Management and Land Administration at the Royal University of Agriculture, 30 September 2010,
Phnom Penh.

© ISERD

36

IJERD – International Journal of Environmental and Rural Development (2011) 2–1

Research article
erd

Effect of Land Use Agglomeration on Nitrogen
Concentrations in River Water in the Tokachi River
HIROMU OKAZAWA
Faculty of Regional Environment Science, Tokyo University of Agriculture, Tokyo, Japan
Email:h1okazaw@nodai.ac.jp

TOSHIMI MUNEOKA
Obihiro University of Agriculture and Veterinary Medicine, Hokkaido,JapanYUDAI KUDO
Docon Company Limited, Hokkaido, Japan

YASUSHI TAKEUCHI
Faculty of Regional Environment Science, Tokyo University of Agriculture, Tokyo, Japan
Received 10 December 2010

Accepted 9 January 2011

Abstract Since in the nineties, contamination of river water by nitrogen from cultivatedland has been an issue in major agricultural region of Hokkaido. This study examines theeffects of the ratios of cropland or forestland to the watershed area on the nitrogenconcentration in the river water, taking as its survey area the Tokachi River basin ineastern Hokkaido, Japan. The study also investigates the impact of cropland and forestland
agglomeration on the nitrogen concentration in river water. Survey samples were taken at
37 locations on the Tokachi River. Nitrogen concentrations in the river water were
measured at all locations in June, August, and October of 2007, when water levels werenormal. In addition, a GIS land use analysis was conducted using a land use map of theregion with a grid resolution of 100 m. This analysis determined that cropland andforestland accounts 90% of the total area in the study watershed. Moreover, spatial
continuity (SC) was calculated as an index of cropland and forestland agglomeration. SC
represents the average area of a contiguous patch of cropland or forestland in this study.
Based on the accumulated data, the followings were found; 1) nitrogen concentration inriver water are positively correlated with the proportion of cropland, but are negatively
correlated with the proportion of forestland. It is clear that the proportion of each land use
is a factor affecting nitrogen concentrations in the river water. 2) The correlation between
river nitrogen concentrations and SC values is positive for cropland, but negative forforestland. This indicates that nitrogen concentrations in river water likely decreases if theland use pattern is changed: scattering cropland to reduce its patch size, or connecting
forestland together to make the forest patch size larger.
Keywords cropland, forestland, land use, agglomeration, nitrogen, river, watershed

INTRODUCTION
It is known that in agricultural watersheds where cropland is abundant, there is a high correlation
between the proportion of cropland area and the nitrogen concentration in river water (Jordan et al.,
1997; Ahearna et al., 2005; Zampella et al., 2007). This correlation is reported particularly in many
agricultural watersheds in Hokkaido, the prefecture with the largest area of agricultural land inJapan (Tabuchi et al., 1995; Woli et al., 2002 and 2004; Okazawa et al., 2003 and 2010). As theresults, this high correlation between the nitrogen concentration in river water and agricultural land
use in watersheds in upland farming regions highlights the importance of managing land use toprotect the quality of river water (Okazawa et al., 2010).
© ISERD

37

IJERD – International Journal of Environmental and Rural Development (2011) 2–1

Table 1 Summary of data collected from different locations in the surveyed watershed*PointRiver nameLand use (%)

SC

T-N (mg/L)

NO3 -N (mg/L)

Area(km2 )①Cropland②Forest

①+②

Other

Cropland

Forest

③Mean

SD

④Mean

SD

④/③

1

Tokachi

632

1

88

89

11

33

3690

0.32

0.06

0.12

0.06

0.36

2

Tokachi

658

1

88

89

11

31

4125

0.36

0.15

0.21

0.07

0.59

3

Tokachi

801

2

88

90

10

41

2199

0.68

0.27

0.35

0.18

0.51

4

Tokachi

806

3

87

90

10

49

2136

0.42

0.14

0.20

0.04

0.47

5

Tokachi

840

5

85

90

10

75

1131

0.44

0.02

0.21

0.04

0.47

6

Tokachi

858

7

84

90

10

85

1009

0.63

0.17

0.28

0.02

0.44

7

Tokachi

1,289

15

77

91

8

151

352

0.82

0.12

0.56

0.12

0.68

8

Tokachi

1,531

19

72

92

8

195

242

1.15

0.18

0.65

0.15

0.56

9

Tokachi

1,777

21

70

91

9

225

223

1.07

0.14

0.73

0.13

0.69

10

Tokachi

1,798

21

70

91

9

225

214

1.47

0.32

0.82

0.16

0.56

11

Tokachi

2,669

31

60

91

9

393

123

1.49

0.14

0.97

0.25

0.65

12

Tokachi

2,683

32

59

91

9

386

122

1.69

0.25

1.10

0.10

0.65

13

Tokachi

2,686

32

59

91

9

377

122

1.92

0.37

1.20

0.00

0.63

14

Tokachi

4,479

32

58

90

10

367

117

1.85

0.51

1.23

0.25

0.67

15

Tokachi

5,098

36

54

90

10

418

99

2.94

0.52

2.33

0.21

0.79

16

Tokachi

8,224

30

61

92

8

219

142

1.90

0.24

1.43

0.23

0.76

17

Tokachi

8,982

30

62

92

8

207

148

1.85

0.21

1.57

0.21

0.85

A

Penkenai

23

0

98

98

2

1

2250

0.37

0.10

0.20

0.08

0.53

B

Penkenikorobetsu

48

1

98

99

1

9

2366

0.30

0.09

0.15

0.03

0.51

C

Penkenikorochin

72

1

98

99

1

10

7059

0.34

0.08

0.17

0.07

0.52

D

Sahoro

337

26

68

95

2

161

163

1.36

0.13

0.98

0.11

0.72

E

Memuro

210

38

56

94

6

248

80

1.28

0.08

0.98

0.11

0.77

F

Piuka

26

71

12

83

17

262

12

6.54

0.77

5.63

0.95

0.86

G

Bibaushi

35

79

19

97

3

301

31

1.69

0.79

1.30

0.82

0.77

H

Bisei

180

16

74

91

8

225

211

1.17

0.30

0.89

0.20

0.76

I

Shinobihiro

164

74

16

90

10

630

17

3.97

1.49

3.27

1.25

0.82

J

Shibusarabibaushi

33

53

43

96

3

1

56

1.17

0.28

0.83

0.18

0.71

K

Shikaribetsu

667

48

45

92

8

867

54

2.44

0.28

2.23

0.25

0.92

L

Otofuke

693

19

69

88

12

254

190

1.94

0.08

1.53

0.21

0.79

M

Satsunai

704

30

61

91

9

262

115

1.85

0.21

1.53

0.32

0.83

N

Obihiro

197

66

14

80

20

442

16

5.64

1.56

4.07

0.23

0.72

O

Shihoro

316

64

29

93

7

443

32

5.14

0.81

3.43

0.67

0.67

P

Tobetsu

127

79

13

92

8

494

13

4.65

1.27

4.13

0.85

0.89

Q

Sarubetsu

449

69

26

95

5

558

27

7.00

1.04

5.57

0.64

0.80

R

Toshibetsu

2,850

20

75

95

5

84

306

0.77

0.05

0.32

0.04

0.42

S

Ushisyubetsu

173

24

61

85

3

96

224

0.36

0.02

0.16

0.13

0.44

T

Rebunnai

66

43

51

93

6

97

82

1.35

0.41

0.93

0.15

0.69

*1 to 17 : Mainstream, A-T : Tributary

Since in the eighties, the water purification mechanism of vegetation found nearby rivers
called riparian buffers zone which are composed of forests and marshes has been drawn in attention.
Many studies have demonstrated that preserving forest areas near rivers helps keep the nitrogenconcentration in river water to a low level. Excess nitrogen compounds discharged fromagricultural land are captured and absorbed by riparian buffers, reducing the amount of nitrogen
released into rivers (Johnston et al., 1984; Lowrence et al., 1984; Hill et al., 2000). However, there
are only few studies with the same topic conducted in Asia which is distinguished by Asia
monsoon climate area (Okazawa et al., 2010).
It is believed that nitrogen concentrations in river water vary even among watersheds withidentical ratios of forestland and cropland, depending on whether the forests are concentrated nearrivers or distributed across the watershed. Such spatial distributions of land use are called land use
agglomeration. Not many studies have examined the relationship between land use agglomerationand nitrogen concentration in river water (Okazawa et al., 2009).
This study examines the relationship of nitrogen concentration in river water in agriculturalareas. In particular, the study demonstrates the relationship between the proportions of croplandand forestland in agricultural watersheds and the concentration of nitrogen, and the effects of theagglomeration of cropland and forestland on the nitrogen concentration.
© ISERD

38

IJERD – International Journal of Environmental and Rural Development (2011) 2–1

METHODOLOGY
Overview of watersheds
The Tokachi River basin located in eastern Hokkaido has a total area of 9,010 km2 (Fig.1), the sixth
largest river in the country and second in Hokkaido. More than 2,500 km2 of this area is mainly
consists of potatoes, beans, wheat, corn feedstuff, and sugar beets cropland.

Legend—— RiverPacific Ocean

Cropland
Forestland
OthersSampling point on mainstream (1-17)
Sampling point on tributaries (A-T)

Fig. 1 Map of the Tokachi River basin
The summary of the surveyed watershed areas is given in Table 1. There were thirty-sevenwatersheds chosen for this study. The proportions of cropland and forestland in each watershedarea varied significantly ranging from 0% to 79% and 12% to 98%, respectively. In all watersheds,
however, cropland and forestland areas accounting at least 80% of the total land area. Meanwhile,
the proportion of other land use patterns (such as residential or industrial) was small.
Water quality survey
Water quality was surveyed on sunny days to avoid the effects of flood. The field survey was
conducted three times in June, August, and October of 2007. Samples were taken from river waterat the downstream end of each watershed. Seventeen survey locations were chosen between the
upstream end (Sampling Point 1) and the downstream end (Sampling point 17) of Tokachi River’s
main stream, and 20 locations (A–T) along its primary tributaries. The samples were taken back to
the laboratory and their nitrogen concentration was analyzed using the Japanese Industrial
Standards (JIS) method.
The nitrogen concentrations of river water in respective watersheds (mean values obtained
from three survey results) are shown in Table 1. T-N ranges from 0.30 to 7.00 mg/L (mean: 1.81mg/L), and NO3-N from 0.12 to 5.63 mg/L (mean: 1.32 mg/L). The percentage of NO3-N
constituting T-N ranged from 33% to 92% (mean: 64%), showing that the majority of T-N iscomposed of NO3-N.
Land use analysis
Rivers and their respective watershed boundaries were determined by using 1:25,000 topographic
map. In addition, a land use map with a 100 m grid resolution, published by the Ministry of Land,
Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism was used to determine the land use system such as cropland© ISERD

39

IJERD – International Journal of Environmental and Rural Development (2011) 2–1

and forestland. Land use ratios and agglomeration were analyzed using GIS software (ArcGIS 9.1,
ESRI).
Two types of land use index were used in this study; the percentage of forestland or croplandin a watershed and the agglomeration of land use. Indices for the land use agglomeration include
those that showed how ‘joined’ or ‘clumped’ land use areas are, as well as the ‘spatial continuity’(SC) index of identical land use. In this study, SC which can be simply derived from GIS was
employed as the index for land agglomeration. SC was proposed by Tsunekawa et al. (1991). A
land use map with a grid resolution of 100 m was used to calculate SC.

 Forest
 Cropland River River
Step 1 Prepare vector maps of the watershed

Step 2 Plotting raster maps onto vector maps
















































































































































1























































2
 Cropland Others

Step 3 Extracting cropland grid cells

4
3

Step 4 Adding up the number of patches (4 patches).

Fig. 2 Method of calculating spatial continuity or SC
Vector maps of the investigated watersheds were prepared (Step 1). Then raster data maps ofeach investigated watersheds were plotted onto the vector maps (Step 2), and only cropland gridcells were extracted from each watershed (Step 3). To obtain an SC index, grids representing
cropland were grouped into ‘patch’ units (Step 4). Patch refers to a group of grid cells connected ina vertical, horizontal, or oblique direction. Referring to Fig.2, cropland of 100 grid cells evolve andare in four patches as in Step 4. The value of SC was obtained by using Eq. 1 as shown below.
SC = k / Cpatch(1)

Where k is the number of grid cells representing the cropland area in a watershed and Cpatch isthe number of patches represents the grouping of grid cells. In the example given in Fig.2, thenumber of grid cells representing cropland k is 100 (Step 3) and Cpatch is 4 (Step 4), so SC is equal
to 25. In other words, SC is equivalent to the average area of a patch in each watershed. The spatial
continuity for forestland was also calculated using the same method.
RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
The relationship between the proportion of cropland in each watershed and the concentration of TN in the river is shown in Fig.3. There was a significant positive correlation between the two© ISERD

40

IJERD – International Journal of Environmental and Rural Development (2011) 2–1

parameters. However, even in areas with a comparable cropland ratio, there were variations in the
T-N concentration. For example, the watersheds G and P both had a cropland ratio of 79% but thenitrogen concentrations were 1.68 mg/L and 4.65 mg/L respectively.
Fig.4 shows the relationship between the proportion of forestland and the T-N concentration.
In contrast to Fig.3, the larger the forest area, the lower the nitrogen concentration was. The
correlation was stronger than that of cropland area ratio and nitrogen concentration.
The relationship between SC for cropland or the agglomeration of cropland use and thenitrogen concentration is shown in Fig.5. A rise in SC was often observed with a rise in T-Nconcentration and a significant correlation (r2 = 0.48; significance level at 0.01) was found between
the T-N concentration and SC of cropland. This demonstrates that the nitrogen concentration ishigher in a watershed where croplands are contiguous but lower where croplands are scattered. In
other words, since the SC index of cropland represents the average area of a patch of cropland ineach watershed, therefore the larger the cropland’s patch area in a watershed, the higher thenitrogen concentration of river water and vice versa.

Fig. 3 Relationship between cropland
and total nitrogen

Fig. 4 Relationship between forestland
and total nitrogen

Fig. 5 Relationship between SC ofcropland total nitrogen

Fig. 6 Relationship between SC offorestland and total nitrogen

CONCLUSION
The effect of land use agglomeration on the concentration of nitrogen in river water in the TokachiRiver basin in Hokkaido, Japan was examined. The results indicated that in addition to the
proportion of cropland and forestland, their contiguity or SC had an impact on the quality of riverwater. This shows that decreasing the patch area of cropland or increasing the patch area offorestland could likely improve the quality of river water. However, the grid resolution of the land
© ISERD

41

IJERD – International Journal of Environmental and Rural Development (2011) 2–1

use data in this study was set at 100 m; reassessment of the appropriateness of the grid size may berequired in future studies.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
This research was supported by Grant-in-Aid for Young Scientists (B) from The Ministry of
Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT), Japan (No.22780223). We would
like to express our gratitude to Prof. Dr. Osamu Tsuji (Obihiro University of Agriculture andVeterinary Medicine). The authors are also grateful for the research assistance provided by thestudents of the Environmental and Rural Engineering unit, Obihiro University of Agriculture andVeterinary Medicine, and the laboratory of Hydro-structure engineering, Tokyo University ofAgriculture.
REFERENCES
Ahearna, D.S., Sheibleya, R.W., Dahlgrena, R.A., Andersonb, M., Johnsonc, J. and Tated, K.W. (2005) Landuse and land cover influence on water quality in the last free-flowing river draining the western Sierra
Nevada, California. Journal of Hydrology, 313, 234-247.
Hill, A.R., Devito, K.J., Campagnolo, S. and Sanmugadas, K. (2000) Subsurface denitrofication in a forest
riparian zone, interactions between hydrology and supplies of nitrate and organic carbon. Biogeo
Chemistry, 51, 193-223.
Johnston, C.A., Bubenzer, G.D., Lee, G.B., Madison, F.W. and McHenry, J.R. (1984) Nutrient trapping bysediment deposition in a seasonally flooded lakeside wetland. J. Environ. Qual, 13, 283-290.
Jordan, T.E., Correll, D.L. and Weller, D.E. (1997) Relating nutrient discharges from watersheds to land use
and streamflow variability. Water Resources Research, 33, 2579-2590.
Lowrence, R.R., Todd, R.L., Fail, J., Hendricson, J.O., Leonard, JR. and Asmussen, L. (1984) Riparian
forests as nutrient filters in agricultural watersheds. BioScience, 34, 374-377.
Okazawa, H., Inoue, T., Yamamoto, T., Nagasawa, T. and Unoki, K. (2003) Characteristics of stream water
quality during rainfall runoff on an upland field area of eastern Hokkaido, Japan. Transactions of theJapanese Society of Irrigation, Drainage and Rural Engineering, 227, 33-40 (in Japanese with English
abstract).
Okazawa, H., Takeuchi, Y. and Samura, I. (2009) Relationship between land-use agglomeration and nitrate
nitrogen concentration of river water in the Shari and Abashiri region of Hokkaido, Japan. Transactionsof the Japanese Society of Irrigation, Drainage and Rural Engineering, 259, 53-59 (in Japanese withEnglish abstract).
Okazawa, H., Yamamoto, D. and Takeuchi, Y. (2010) Influences of riparian land use on nitrogenconcentration of river water in agricultural and forest watersheds of northeastern Hokkaido, Japan.
International Journal of Environmental and Rural Development, 1-2, 1-6.
Tabuchi, T., Yoshino, K., Shimura, M., Kuroda, S., Ishikawa, M. and Yamaji, E. (1995) Relation between
land use and nitrate concentration of outflow water from watersheds of agricultural and forest area.
Trans. of JSIDRE, 178, 129-135 (in Japanese with English abstract).
Tunekawa, A., Lee, D.K., Yonemori, S. and Ide, H. (1991) Quantitative analysis methods of mixed land use,
Journal of Environmental Information Science, 20-2, 115-120 (in Japanese with English abstract).
Woli, K.P., Nagumo, T. and Hatano, R. (2002) Evaluating impact of land use and N budgets on stream water
quality in Hokkaido, Japan. Nutrient Cycle Agroecosystem, 63, 175-184.
Woli, K.P., Nagumo, T., Kuramochi, K. and Hatano, R. (2004) Evaluating river water quality through land
use analysis and N budget approaches in livestock farming areas. Sci. Total Environ., 329, 61-74.
Zampella, R.A., Procopio, N.A., Lathrop, R.G. and Dow, C.L. (2007) Relationship of land-use/land-cover
patterns and surface-water quality in the Mullica River basin. Journal of the American Water Resources
Association, 43, 594-604.

© ISERD

42

IJERD – International Journal of Environmental and Rural Development (2011) 2–1

Research article
erd

Ecological Management in Salt-affected Area of Northeast
Thailand: Monitoring Soil Quality
AUNG NAING OO
Faculty of Agriculture, Khon Kaen University, Khon Kaen, Thailand
Email:ano1972@gmail.com;chulee_b@kku.ac.th

CHULEEMAS BOONTHAI IWAI
Faculty of Agriculture, Khon Kaen University, Khon Kaen, Thailand

BUBPHA TOPARK-NGARM
Faculty of Agriculture, Khon Kaen University, Khon Kaen, Thailand
Received 10 December 2010

Accepted 20 January 2011

Abstract Soil salinity has become one of the major determinants of crop productivity inNortheast Thailand, and has an adverse impact on the physical, chemical and biologicalproperties of soil, as well as plant growth and yield. Ecological management of soil isessential to sustainable production. Soil microorganism may fulfill many important
ecological roles including decomposition and nutrient cycling in salt-affected area. This
study aimed to monitor the impact of salinity on soil properties under tree plantation at
Amphur Borabue, Mahasarakam Province, Northeast Thailand. The study area wasdivided into 3 zones followed by the plant community found in each area which correlatedwith the flooding situation and soil salinity. Soil samples were collected from threedifferent zones at the same depth (0-20cm) with three replications during the rainy seasonsof 2008 and 2010 in order to analyze soil physical, chemical and biological properties. The
results showed that biodiversity of soil biota and soil microbial activity in terms of soil
microbial carbon, soil microbial nitrogen and soil respiration after tree plantation was
higher than before. The EC, Na and K values were decreased, whereas pH, OM and N
were increased after tree plantation. It could be concluded that soil physical, chemical andbiological properties were improved after tree plantation. Therefore, this result would bevaluable for sustainable land resources improvement and rehabilitation.
Keywords salinity, ecological management, soil quality

INTRODUCTION
Awareness of the ecological and environmental health of ecosystems around the world has been
increasing in recent years. As a result, there has been a growing interest in sustainable agricultural
alternative practices. In Thailand, the agricultural society has been criticized for problems with soil
salinity, soil degradation, greenhouse gas release into the atmosphere, water pollution and a loss ofwildlife habitat. Tree plantation has been associated with an increasing quantity of environmental
and ecological benefits such as enhancement of microclimatic conditions, improved utilizing andcycling of soil nutrients, improved soil and water quality, creation of suitable habitats for insect andanimal species, protection from erosion, and protection from wind (Jose et al., 2004). Ecologicalmanagement such as tree plantation in salt-affected areas has the potential to alleviate salinity stresson farms for sustainable production.
Soils in Northeast Thailand are salt-affected due to salt bearing rocks (Department of Land
Development, 1991), particularly in Nakhon Ratchasima, Khon Kean, Roi Et and Mahasarakham
provinces (Department of Mineral Resources, 1982). Soil salinity has become one of the major
determinants of crop productivity in those areas, and might have an adverse impact on soil physicalproperties (Boivin et al., 2004), chemical properties (Sumner, 2000) and soil microbial© ISERD

43

IJERD – International Journal of Environmental and Rural Development (2011) 2–1

communities and activities (Zahran, 1997; Sardinha et al., 2003) and also influence on plant growthand yield (Marschner, 1995). Among them, changes in mineralization of C and N with increasing
salinity have been observed (Nelson et al., 1996; Pathak and Rao, 1998).
Salt-affected soils may be reclaimed by growing salt-tolerant tree species, which improve thephysical and chemical properties as well as biological activity in the soil (Garg, 1998).
Investigations carried out at various research locations in India have shown that salt-affected soil
can be improved by trees plantation. For example, incorporation of trees in the land can help inmaintaining the nutrient pool and enhance soil fertility (Young, 1997; Rao et al., 1998). Tejwani(1994) also reported that tree plantation is an excellent strategy for reclamation of salt-affectedsoils. Tree litter improves soil fertility not only through the release of nutrients in the soil bymineralization but by also adding soil organic matter. Thevathasan and Gordon (2004) also
reported that tree intercropping under temperate significantly enhanced the diversity of birds,
insects, and earthworms; increased soil organic carbon content and N cycling; and improved soil
quality. The objective of this study was to monitor the impact of salinity on soil quality under tree
plantation in salt-affected area of Northeast Thailand.
MATERIALS AND METHODS
Study area
This study was carried out at Ak-Kasatsuntorn water reservoir, Tumbon Borabue, Mahasarakam
Province, Thailand at latitude of 16° 01' N and longitude of 103° 05' E, and at an elevation of 178
m from mean sea level. The study area was divided into 3 zones followed by the plant community
found in each area where they are correlated with the flooding situation and soil salinity. The studysite has been established for three years with tree plantation (2710 plants of 17 species). Woody
plants such as common ironwood (Casuarina equisetifalia J.R. & C. Forst) and fruit plants such asmanila tamarind (Pithecolobium dulce) in salt-affected area were grown covering with native
grasses and weeds, i.e., torpedograss (Panicum repens L.).
Soil sampling and analysis
Soil was sampled from three random locations of each zone and unplanted soil near experimentalsite (control) at the depth of 0–20 cm during the rainy seasons of 2008 and 2010. The soils wereanalyzed to determine soil physical and chemical properties according to routine methods of theLand Resources and Environment section, Faculty of Agriculture, Khon Kaen University. Soil
texture was determined by hydrometer method. Soil pH and electrical conductivity (EC) were
determined in a 1:2.5 and 1:5 soil to water solution by pH meter and EC meter, respectively. Cationexchange capacity (CEC) was determined by 1 N ammonium acetate method. Total nitrogen (N)was measured by Kjeldahl method; available phosphorus (P) by the Olsen method, exchangeable
potassium (K) by 1 N ammonium acetate and flame photometry; and total organic matter (OM) byusing Walkley and Black method.
Microbial biomass C and N were determined in field moist subsamples immediately after
sampling by the chloroform fumigation extraction method. For microbial biomass C (MBC), 20 gof fumigated and unfumigated soil were extracted with 100 ml of 0.5 M K 2SO4. MBC in theextracts was determined after oxidation with K2Cr2O7. For microbial biomass N (MBN), 20 g ofsoil was extracted with 100 ml of 1 M KCl. Besides, non-fumigated samples were extracted
immediately after sampling. MBN was determined by the ninhydrin-reactive N method (Amato andLadd, 1988). MBC and MBN were calculated as the difference between fumigated andunfumigated values and employing kEC and kEN factors of 0.33 (Sparling and West, 1988) and 3.1(Amato and Ladd, 1988) to convert extracted organic C and N to microbial C and N, respectively.
Microbial activity was studied by soil respiration using titrimetric method (Zuberer, 1991). Thismethod was based on the determination of CO2 evolved from the soils. Field moist soil (200g) was
placed and incubated at 28°C in an airtight jar containing a vial with 15 ml of 1.0 M NaOH. After© ISERD

44

IJERD – International Journal of Environmental and Rural Development (2011) 2–1

incubation of a day, the NaOH solution was removed and the trapped CO2 titrated with 0.5 M HClafter precipitating the carbonate with excess 0.5 M BaCl2. Soil respiration, i.e., evolved CO2-C, wascomputed according to the equation (1) described by Anderson (1982) as shown below:
CO2-C (mg) = (B-V) NE(1)

where B is the volume (ml) of acid (HCl) used to titrate the alkali (NaOH) of blank (no soil), V isthe volume (ml) of acid used to titrate the soil sample, N is the normality of acid (HCl), and E isequivalent weight of CO2-C. The metabolic quotient qCO2 (Anderson and Domsch, 1986) of eachsampling period was calculated by using equation (2).
qCO2 = CO2-C / MBC

(2)

-1

-1

where CO2-C (mg kg soil) is soil respiration and MBC (mg kg soil) is microbial biomass C.
Statistical analysis: The data recorded was analyzed statistically using Statistix 8.0 softwareand Microsoft Excel software (2007) to compare each zone at 5% probability level.
RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
Soil physical and chemical properties
In this study, tree plantation covered with native grasses had a significant impact on soil physicalproperties of salt-affected soil. Soil texture of study area was sandy soil. Bulk density decreased
from 1.72 g cm-1 to 1.55 g cm-1 under tree plantation, whereas soil moisture content increased from
9.3% to 13.5%.
Several soil chemical properties of salt-affected area were influenced by tree plantation andtime (Fig. 1). Three years after planting (in 2010), decreases in the values of EC, Na, and K in thesoil became apparent in growing trees when compared with the first year after planting (in 2008).
Soil organic matter (OM) and total nitrogen (N) content in all zones by tree plantation increased
with time since 2008, which were from 0.53 % and 0.057% in the first year after planting to 0.73%
and 0.086 % in three years after planting, respectively. The increases in CEC, OM and N content
could be attributed to the addition of leaf litter and root decay, which improved microbial activity
in soil. The results confirm the findings of Mishra et al. (2004). Although there were no significant
differences in pH and available P between tree plantation and unplanted soil, there were slightincreases in all zones in year 2010.
Soil biological properties
The MBC and MBN values in 2008 and 2010 were significantly higher in tree plantation than in
unplanted soil, with the highest value being with zone 3 (Fig. 2). It might be due to theaccumulation of humus from decomposition of leaf litter and root decay, which increased soilorganic C. Soil respiration, as a good index of the activity of microorganisms, was consistently
lower in the unplanted soil when compared to tree plantation zones in both years 2008 and 2010.
These results are in accordance to other findings, which showed decreased soil respiration(Sardinha et al., 2003; Tripathi et al., 2006) in natural saline soils. The metabolic quotient (qCO2)
was higher in 2008, probably as a result of stress by salinity on soil microflora (Anderson andDomsch, 1993; Rasul et al., 2006), whereas it tended to lower in 2010. A low metabolic quotient
implies that the microbial populations were energetically efficient, i.e., allocating proportionallymore carbon to growth (biosynthesis) than to maintenance (Zak et al., 1994).
There was a significant negative relationship between EC and microbial biomass C, microbial
biomass N, basal soil respiration and metabolic quotient (Fig. 3). This relationship revealed the
detrimental effect that soil salinity had on the soil microbial activity. These results are in line withthe findings of Yuan et al. (2007). Increased soil microbial activity might be due to the ameliorative
effects of trees and consequently organic matter inputs. According to Rao and Pathak (1996),
carbon is an important factor influencing microbial activity in salt-affected soils.
© ISERD

45

IJERD – International Journal of Environmental and Rural Development (2011) 2–1

Biodiversity  index  (H′)  of  soil  biota  in  zone  1,  zone  2  and    zone  3  were  0.11,  0.63  and  0.71  in  the first year after planting and 0.23, 0.95 and 0.75 in three years after planting, respectively. The
results observed that biodiversity of soil biota after tree plantation was higher than before.

Fig. 1 Soil chemical properties of salt-affected soils after tree plantation(2008 is the first year after plantation and 2010 is three years after plantation;
Bars represent standard deviation)

Fig. 2 Soil microbial parameters of salt-affected soils after tree plantation(2008 is the first year after plantation and 2010 is three years after plantation;
Bars represent standard deviation)© ISERD

46

IJERD – International Journal of Environmental and Rural Development (2011) 2–1

Fig. 3 Relationship of microbial parameters with electrical conductivity of salt-affected soils(Regression equation, line of best fit and R2 were shown)

CONCLUSION
Monitoring in salt-affected soil grown with tree species indicated more efficient changes in termsof dropping EC and decreasing Na+ levels in the soil. In contrast, evidence of increased organic
matter and total nitrogen showed after tree plantation. Likewise, there was greater microbialactivity in salt-affected soil under tree plantation. It could be concluded that soil physical, chemicaland biological properties were improved after tree plantation covered with native grasses in saltaffected soil. Therefore, it is pertinent that tree plantation has a great scope and potential in termsof ecologically sustainable land resources improvement and rehabilitation.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
This  study  was  supported  by  the  Research  Project:  “Problem  Soils  in  Northeast  Thailand”, Khon
Kaen University, Thailand and the KKU Research Project “Improvement of Soil Fertility andBiodiversity in the Salt-Affected Lowland Area by Various Species Trees Pantation”.
REFERENCES
Amato, M. and Ladd, J.N. (1988) Assay for microbial biomass based on ninhydrin reactive nitrogen in
extracts of fumigated soil. Soil Biology and Biochemistry, 20, 107-114.
Anderson, J.P.E. (1982) Soil respiration, Agronomy monograph number 9, part II. Chemical and biologicalproperties, 2nd edition. American Society of Agronomy and Soil Science Society of America, USA,831-871.
Anderson, T.H. and Domsch, K.H. (1986) Carbon link between microbial biomass and soil organic matter.
Perspectives in microbial ecology, Proceedings of the 4 th international symposium on microbial ecology,
Slovenia, 467-471.

© ISERD

47

IJERD – International Journal of Environmental and Rural Development (2011) 2–1

Anderson, T.H. and Domsch, K.H. (1993) The metabolic quotient for CO2 (qCO2) as a specific activity
parameter to assess the effects of environmental conditions, such as pH, on the microbial biomass offorest soils. Soil Biology and Biochemistry, 25, 393-395.
Boivin, P., Saejiew, A., Grunberger, O. and Arunin, S. (2004) Formation of soils with contrasting textures bytranslocation   of   clays   rather   than   ferrolysis   in   ﬂooded   rice   ﬁelds   in   Northeast   Thailand.   European  Journal of Soil Science, 55, 713-724.
Department of Land Development (1991) Distribution of salt affected soil in the northeast region 1:100,000
map. Department of land Development, Thailand.
Department of Mineral Resources (1982) Geologic map of Thailand. Department of Mineral Resources,
Thailand.
Garg, V.K. (1998) Interaction of tree crops with a sodic soil environment: potential for rehabilitation of
degraded environments. Land Degradation and Development, 9, 81-93.
Jose, S., Gillespie, A.R. and Pallardy, S.G. (2004) Interspecific interactions in temperate agroforestry.
Agroforestry Systems, 61, 237-255.
Marschner, H. (1995) Mineral nutrition of higher plants. 2 nd Edition. Academic Press, United Kingdom.
Mishra, A., Sharma, S.D., Pandey, R. and Mishra, L. (2004) Amelioration of a highly alkaline soil by trees innorthern India. Soil Use and Management, 20, 325-332.
Nelson, P.N., Ladd, J.N. and Oades, J.M. (1996) Decomposition of 14C labelled plant material in a salt
affected soil. Soil Biology and Biochemistry, 28, 433-441.
Pathak, H. and Rao, D.L.N. (1998) Carbon and nitrogen mineralization from added organic matter in saline
and alkali soils. Soil Biology and Biochemistry, 30, 695-702.
Rao, D.L.N. and Pathak, H. (1996) Ameliorative influence of organic matter on biological activity of salt
affected soils. Arid Land Research and Management, 10, 311-319.
Rao, M.R., Nair, P.K.R. and Ong, C.K. (1998) Biophysical interactions in tropical agroforestry systems.
Agroforestry Systems, 38, 3-50.
Rasul, G., Appuhn, A., Muller, T. and Joergensen, R.G. (2006) Salinity-induced changes in the microbial use
of sugarcane  ﬁlter  cake  added  to  soil.  Applied  Soil  Ecology, 31, 1-10.
Sardinha, M., Muller, T., Schmeisky, H. and Joergensen, R.G. (2003) Microbial performance in soils along asalinity gradient under acidic conditions. Applied Soil Ecology, 23, 237-244.
Sparling, G.P. and West, A.W. (1988) A direct extraction method to estimate soil microbial C: Calibration insitu using microbial respiration and 14C labeled cells. Soil Biology and Biochemistry, 20, 337-343.
Sumner, M.E. (2000) Handbook of soil science. CRC Press, USA.
Tejwani, K.G. (1994) Agroforestry in India. Oxford and IBH, India.
Thevathasan, N.V. and Gordon, A.M. (2004) Ecology of tree intercropping systems in the North temperateregion: Experiences from southern Ontario, Canada. Agroforestry Systems, 61, 257-268.
Tripathi, S., Kumari, S., Chakraborty, A., Gupta, A., Chakrabarti, K. and Bandyapadhyay, B.K. (2006)
Microbial biomass and its activities in salt-affected coastal soils. Biology and Fertility of Soils, 42, 273277.
Young, A. (1997) Agroforestry for soil management. 2nd edition. Nairobi, Kenya: CAB International in
association with the International Centre for Research in Agroforestry.
Yuan, B., Li, Z., Liu, H., Gao, M. and Zhang, Y. (2006). Microbial biomass and activity in salt affected soil
under arid condition. Applied Soil Ecology, 35, 319-328.
Zahran,  H.H.  (1997)  Diversity,  adaptation  and  activity  of  the  bacterial  ﬂora  in  saline  environments.  Biology  and Fertility of Soils, 25, 211-223.
Zak, D.R., Tilman, D., Rarmenter, R.R., Rice, C.W., Fisher, F.M., Vose, J., Milchunas, G. and Martin, C.W.
(1994) Plant production and soil microorganisms in late-successional ecosystems: A continental-scale
study. Ecology, 75, 2333-2347.
Zuberer, D.A. (1991) Laboratory exercises in soil microbiology. Department of Soil and Crop sciences,
Texas A&M University, USA.

© ISERD

48

IJERD – International Journal of Environmental and Rural Development (2011) 2–1

Research article
erd

Risk Assessment of Pesticide Residues in Organic Waste inNortheast Thailand
JARUPONG PRASOPSUK
Faculty of Agriculture, Khon Kaen University,Khon Kaen, Thailand.
Email: ja.prasopsuk@gmail.com; chulee_b@kku.ac.th

CHULEEMAS BOONTHAI IWAI
Faculty of Agriculture Khon Kaen University,Khon Kaen, Thailand.
Received 10 December 2010

Accepted 25 January 2011

Abstract The objective of this study aims to monitor pesticide residues in organic waste inNortheast Thailand. Pesticides are widely used in agriculture and trade of agricultural
products to increase agricultural yield and to protect plants from diseases, weeds andinsect damage. The increasing use of pesticides has significantly increased crop
contamination and human health hazard. On the Thai markets, fruit and vegetables havehigh risk for pesticide contamination. Uneatable and unusable parts of these goods
transform to a fraction of organic waste. The quantity of waste in terms of solid wastefrom Northeast Thailand was 11,820 tons/day and over 50% was organic waste.
Composting (such as compost, biological fermentation fertilizer) and animal feed areconventional methods to manage waste from vegetables and fruit in Northeast Thailand.
However, the risk assessment of pesticide residue in organic waste should be studied andtaken into consideration for environmental safety and human health. A total of 22
pesticides from different chemical groups (organochlorine, organophosphate andpyrethroid) in the different organic wastes collected from the markets in Khon Kaen
provinces, in the Northeast of Thailand, were monitored in the rainy and winter season in
the year 2010 by gas chromatography with electron capture detector (ECD) and flame
photometric detector (FPD). Pesticide residues were found in organic waste. The mostfrequently found pesticides were cypermethrin followed by chlorpyrifos deltametrhrin andlambda-cyhalothrin, respectively ranging from 0.044 to 2.608 mg kg-1. Pesticide residue inorganic waste was found to be higher in the winter season than in the rainy season.
Pesticide residue was found higher in cabbages followed by kale, lettuce and corn peel,respectively. Therefore, a monitoring program for pesticide residues and a risk assessment
study  in  organic  waste  are  needed  for  protection  of  human’s  health  and  the  environment.
Keywords organic waste, biological waste, pesticide, pesticide residues, Northeast
Thailand

INTRODUCTION
Thailand is an agricultural country where agriculture is a very important part of the economy.
Thailand expanded exports of agricultural products and also imports fertilizers and pesticides
intensively. Pesticides are used widely in agriculture and trade of agricultural products to increase
agricultural yield and to protect plant from diseases, weeds and insect damage (Department ofAgricultural, 2010). The result from increasing pesticides uses has resulted in significant increased
crop contamination and human health hazard (Office of Epidemiological, 2009). The risk ofpesticide contamination in fruits and vegetables in Thai market often occurs. Pesticide residues inagricultural products such as vegetables and fruit were studied   in Northeast Thailand (Table 1)  (Office of Agricultural Research and Development Region 3, 2010; Office of Agricultural
Research and Development Region 4, 2010). Uneatable and unusable parts of agricultural products
transform to a fraction of organic waste. The quantity of waste in term of solid waste from© ISERD

49

IJERD – International Journal of Environmental and Rural Development (2011) 2–1

Northeast Thailand was 11,820 tons/day and over 50% was organic waste. Solid waste in Khon
Kaen province occurred about 800 tons/day (Pollution Control Department, 2010).
As agricultural production is vast worldwide, the increasing of waste and its adverse effects on
the environment are of great concern. Waste management takes an important role for maintaining asustainable environment. The organic waste management has been done in three main ways: 1)
organic waste can be used for soil improvement, 2) animal feeding, and 3) alternative source ofenergy (biogas) (Lardinois and Klundert, 1993; Pollution Control Department, 2009). Composting(such as compost, biological fermentation fertilizer) and animal feed are the conventional methods
to manage waste from organic waste in Northeast Thailand.
Composting is an important waste management strategy in Europe. The end product, compost,
can be used as soil conditioner and fertilizer, thereby recycling nutrients back to agriculture andhorticulture. However, compost may contain a wide range of organic pollutants (Kupper et al.,2008).
Therefore, using compost may be a case a hidden input of pesticides into the environment.
Once incorporated into the soil the fate of pesticides is not fully clear (Taube, et al., 2002; Hart andPluimers, 1996). The concern about the pollutants in the organic waste in Thailand has been
increasing.   However, most studies have dealt with the heavy metals contamination in the waste but
less research has been done on pesticides. Therefore, the risk assessment of pesticide residues inorganic waste were studied by monitoring pesticide residues in organic waste from the markets inKhon Kaen province in two seasons (rainy and winter season).
Table 1 Pesticide residues in vegetables and fruit in Northeast Thailand in 2009
Regionsamples

Upper
Northeast
Thailand

1,422

Lower
Northeast
Thailand

1,689

Pesticide residues foundNumber of Samples
Over MRL
394(27.7%)31(2.18%)605(35.8%)111(6.6%)

Pesticides foundchlorpyrifos,cypermethrin,
ethoprophos,deltamethrin,diazinon,cyfluthrin,
lambda-cyhalothrin, methidathion
cypermethrin, chlorpyrifos,
profenofos, lambda-cyhalothrin,
fenvalerate

MRL = Maximum residue limit
Source: Office of Agricultural Research and Development Region 3, (2010)
Office of Agricultural Research and Development Region 4, (2010)

MATERIALS AND METHODS
Chemicals
Hexane, ethyl acetate and acetonitrile (PR grade), sodium chloride (analytical grade), magnesium
sulfate anhydrous, primary secondary amine (PSA) and 1% acetic acid in acetonitrile were used forthe pesticide extraction process.
Sample collection
The selection of the samples was based on the typical composition of organic waste. The samples
chosen for analysis should match the fractions presenting a high percentage of the total organic
waste. The samples were collected from three main markets in Khon Kaen province, Northeast
Thailand in the rainy and winter season in 2010. Altogether, 3 samples of organic waste from eachmarket and 4 samples of organic waste based on the typical composition of organic waste(cabbages, lettuce, kale and peel corn) were analyzed in three replicates by using the QuEChERS
method (Anastassiades, et al., 2003).

© ISERD

50

IJERD – International Journal of Environmental and Rural Development (2011) 2–1

Extraction and clean up
To prepare the samples, 15 g of a previously homogenized food material sample was transferred
into a suitable vessel and filled with fifteen milliliters of acetonitrile. The vessels were capped
before mixing on a Vortex mixer for 1 min at optimum speed. Once the initial sample mixing wascompleted, 1 g NaCl and 4 g anhydrous MgSO4 were added and immediately mixed on a Vortex
mixer for 1 min. To separate the phases, the samples were centrifuged for 5 min at 4000 rpm.
Using an adjustable repeating pipette, 6.0 ml aliquot of upper acetonitrile layer was transferred into
a 15 ml centrifuge tube containing 900 mg anhydrous MgSO4 and 150 mg PSA sorbent. The
centrifuge tube was tightly capped and shaken on a Vortex mixer for 1 min before the extracts (orthe batch of extracts) were centrifuged for 5 min at 4000 rpm to separate the solids from thesolution. The solution was then transferred into a vial for Gas Chromatograph (GC) analysis.
Pesticide residues analysis
The samples were analyzed for 22 pesticides from different chemical groups (organochlorine,organophosphate and pyrethroid) using GC multi-methods with ECD and FPD detection.
Organophosphorus group were chlorpyrifos, diazinon, dicrotophos, dimethoate, ethoprophos,
fenitrothion, malathion, methamidophos, methidathion, mevinphos, monocrotophos, parathionmethyl, pirimiphos-methyl, prothiophos, triazophos. For organochlorine group were -endosulfan,
-endosulfan, endosulfan sulfate and pyrethroid group are lambda-cyhalothrin, cypermethrin,deltamethrin, fenvalerate, permethrin, cyfluthrin. GC-ECD used capillary column HP-5 5% Phenyl
Methyl   Siloxane  (30m   x   0.25mm   ID,   0.25   μm   flim   thickness)   with   helium   (2.0   ml   min-1) carriergas, splitless injection and used electron capture detector (ECD) for organochlorine group and
Pyrethroid group. GC-FPD   used   capillary   column   DB1701   (30m   x   0.32mm   ID,   0.25   μm   flim  thickness) helium (1.9 ml min-1) carrier gas, splitless injection and used flame photometric detector(FPD) for organophosphorus group.
RESULTS
The analyses revealed that most of the samples contained pesticide. Residues were found in 100%of the samples from mixed organic waste (Table 2) in three markets. Pesticide residues (mg kg-1)
were found in the different kinds of organic waste collected in Khon Kaen province (Table 3).
Pesticide residue in organic waste was found to be higher in the winter season than in the rainyseason. The most frequently found pesticides were cypermethrin followed by chlorpyrifos,
deltametrhrin and lambda-cyhalothrin, respectively ranging from 0.044 to 2.608 mg kg-1. Most
pesticides were recovered in the range of 70% – 110% with relative standard deviation (RSD)
usually less than 10%.
Table 2 Pesticide residues (mg kg-1) found in organic waste collected in Khon Kaen province
Rainy

Markets

Pesticide(mg kg-1)

Banglumphu

Winter

x

SD

%RSD

Pesticide(mg kg-1)

cypermethrin
lambda cyhalothrin

0.044

0.003

7.329

cypermethrin

0.086

0.003

3.076

0.054

0.004

7.955

chlorpyrifos

0.077

0.003

4.193

O-Jiracypermethrin

0.050

0.004

8.075

deltamethrin
cypermethrin
chlorpyrifosdeltamethrin

0.281
2.608
1.066
0.736

0.020
0.018
0.069
0.028

7.183
0.678
6.507
3.832

Srimuangthongcypermethrin

0.072

0.007

9.130

cypermethrin
chlorpyrifosdeltamethrin

1.667
0.742
0.761

0.045
0.042
0.060

2.716
5.629
7.898

x = Average, SD = Standard deviation, %RSD = Repeatability© ISERD

51

x

SD

%RSD

IJERD – International Journal of Environmental and Rural Development (2011) 2–1

Table 3 Pesticide residues (mg kg-1) found in the different kinds of organic waste collected inKhon Kaen province
Rainy

Organic
waste

WinterPesticide(mg kg-1)

x

SD

%RSD

cabbages

cypermethrin

0.059

0.005

7.685

kale

cypermethrin
lambda cyhalothrin

0.050

0.002

0.079

0.006

lettuceND

peel corn

ND

Pesticide(mg kg-1)

x

SD

%RSD

4.323

cypermethrin
chlorpyrifosdeltamethrin
cypermethrin

0.586
1.926
0.460
1.415

0.022
0.036
0.020
0.035

3.762
1.872
4.367
2.498

7.804

chlorpyrifos

0.129

0.002

1.187

deltamethrin
cypermethrindeltamethrin
cypermethrin
chlorpyrifosdeltamethrin

1.297
0.096
0.269
0.075
0.102
0.148

0.082
0.008
0.019
0.004
0.004
0.006

6.329
7.791
6.895
4.807
3.922
3.833

ND = Less than limit of detection, x = Average, SD = Standard deviation, %RSD = Repeatability

Table 4 The maximum residue limits (MRL) of pyrethroids and organophosphorous
pesticides in vegetables
Pesticides
cypermethrin

lambda -cyhalothrindeltamethrin

chlorpyrifos

Vegetables
cabbagescorn
leafy vegetables
cabbagescabbagescorn
lettuce, kaleleafy vegetables
cabbages
sweet Corn

MRL (mg kg-1)
1.00*
0.05*
0.70*
0.30**
0.10*
1.00*
0.50*
2.00**
1.00**
0.01***ACFS, Ministry of Agriculture and Cooperatives (2008)** FAO/WHO (2010)

CONCLUSION
The results from this study give information about the pesticide residues of the organic waste.
Biological waste contains a variety of pesticides and some of them were higher than the MRL. In
the composting process of organic waste, pesticides might be degraded or mineralized. However,they might also be persistent to biological degradation and still occur in the process. Althoughpesticide residues analyses in organic wastes are not legally required, a hidden and uncontrolled
input of pesticides to the soil environment might take place. Generally, organic waste products are
considered environmental friendly as they are one of the waste management solutions. However,
persistent pesticides introduced into this agricultural system might appear in the product and affecthuman health. Therefore, a monitoring program for pesticide residues and a risk assessment studyin  organic  waste  are  needed  for  protection  of  human’s  health  and  the  environment.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
The author would like to thank Khon Kaen University for the support, Department of Plant Sciences
and Agricultural Resources, Land Resources and Environment Section, Faculty of Agriculture, Khon
Kaen University, the Research Centre for Environmental and Hazardous Substance Management, Khon
© ISERD

52

IJERD – International Journal of Environmental and Rural Development (2011) 2–1

Kaen University, Thailand and Office of Agricultural Research and Development Region3, Departmentof Agriculture, Ministry of Agriculture and Cooperative, Thailand.

REFERENCES
Anastassiades, M., Lehotay, S.J., Stajnbaher, D. and Schenck, F.J. (2003) Fast and easy multiresidue method
employing acetonitile extraction/partitioning   and   “Dispersive   Solid-Phase   Extraction”   for   the  determination of pesticide residues in produce, J. AOAC Int., 86, 412-431.
Department of Agricultural (2006) Analysis report on toxic substance contamination in the biological
Fermentation, Thailand.
Dulac, N. and Scheinberg, A. (2001) The organic waste flow in integrated sustainable waste management.
WASTE, Netherlands.
Hart, D. and J. Pluimers (1996) Waste agriculture, The use of compost in urban agriculture. UWEP Working
Document 1.WASTE, Netherlands.
Lardinois, I. and Van de Klundert, A. (1993) Organic waste - options for small-scale resource recovery.
Urban Solid Waste Series 1, WASTE/TOOL, Netherlands.
FAO/WHO (2010) Pesticide residues in food and feed, CODEX Pesticides. http://www.codexalimentarius.
net/pestres/data/pesticides/.
Office of Agricultural Research and Development Region 3 (2010) Report monitoring pesticide residues in
the field GAP in upper Northeast Thailand 2007-2009. Department of Agriculture, Ministry ofAgriculture and Cooperatives, Thailand.
Office of Agricultural Research and Development Region 4 (2010) Report monitoring pesticide residues in
the field GAP in lower Northeast Thailand 2007-2009. Department of Agriculture. Ministry ofAgriculture and Cooperativs. Thailand.
Office of Epidemiological (2009) Annual epidemiological surveillance report 2009. http://www.epid.
moph.go.th/.
Office of Control Plants and Agricultural Material, Department of Agriculture (2010) Report importingchemical agricultural 2002-2009. http://www.as.doa.go.th/ard/stat.php.
Office of Natural Resources and Environment (2009) Solid waste management. http://www.khonkhaenmnre.
go.th/.
Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment (2010) Solid waste management, Pollution Control
Department. http://www.pcd.go.th/.
Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment (2004) The manual inspect contamination underground inlocation of solid waste. Pollution Control Department, http://www.pcd.go.th/.
Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment (2009) Guideline and fundamental rules reduce reuserecycle solid waste. Pollution Control Department, http://www.pcd.go.th/.
Taube, J., Vorkamp, K., Forster, M. and Herrmann, R. (2002) Pesticide residues in biological waste.
Chemosphere, 49, 1357-1365.
Ministry of Agriculture and Cooperatives (2008) Pesticide residues in Thai agricultural commodity and foodstandard TACFS 9002-2008. The National Bureau of Agricultural Commodity and Food Standards(ACFS), http://www.acfs.go.th/.

© ISERD

53

IJERD – International Journal of Environmental and Rural Development (2011) 2–1

Research article
erdFundamental Study on Nitrogen Removal from Paddy
Drainage Using Clinker Ash
HITOSHI YAMAMOTO
Graduate School of Agriculture, Tokyo University of Agriculture, Japan
Email: h1okazaw@nodai.ac.jp

HIROMU OKAZAWA
Faculty o Regional Environment Science, Tokyo University of Agriculture, JapanYUKO OHTAKA
Atsugi City Office, Kanagawa, Japan

YASUSHI TAKEUCHI
Faculty o Regional Environment Science, Tokyo University of Agriculture, JapanYOSHITAKA MURAKAMI
Fukushima Prefecture, Fukushima, Japan
Received 10 December 2010

Accepted 27 January 2011

Abstract Clinker ash is a kind of coal ash produced by the burning of coal at thermal
power plants. Recycling of clinker ash is highly desirable since most of it goes to landfills
at present. Because of its porous solid, clinker ash has high potential as a means ofpurifying contaminated water. On the other hand, nitrogen outflow by paddy drainage has
become a major problem in Japan. Therefore, this study examines the effectiveness of afiltering system using clinker ash for removing nitrogen from paddy drainage. A column
experiment was conducted in the laboratory to examine the nitrogen removal function ofclinker ash. Four types of filtering materials were prepared as the test samples. The
Sample I consisted only of clinker ash; the Sample II and the Sample III were a mixture ofclinker ash and paddy soil in the ratios of 3:1 and 1:3 respectively; and the Sample IV wascomprised of paddy soil only. Each sample was poured into PVC columns (44 mm indiameter; 350 mm in length). A solution prepared with NH4-N at a concentration of 10
mg/L and C/N of 12 was fed to the columns at a flow rate of 100 to 200 mL/d for 121
days. During the experiment, the columns were kept saturated at a room temperature of
24.4±1.3℃ and illuminated at 544±192 lux. The study showed that clinker ash has theeffect  of  removing  nitrogen.  However,  it  also  found  that  clinker  ash’s  removal  function  is  compromised when a large amount of paddy soil is mixed with clinker ash. In order toremove nitrogen from paddy drainage by using clinker ash, only a relatively small amountof paddy soil should be mixed with clinker ash.
Keywords nitrogen removal, clinker ash, paddy drainage, filtering system

INTRODUCTION
Water contamination due to agricultural activity is a global issue (Garnier et al., 2010). During
Japan’s rapid economic growth from the 1950s to 1970s, pollution issues relating to watercontamination surfaced across the country. The Water Pollution Law was introduced in 1970 as acountermeasure, and other laws and regulations followed in subsequent years. These days, watercontamination from point sources, such as factories and residential wastewater, has ameliorated
thanks to regulatory efforts; however, nitrogen and phosphorous water contamination arising fromfarmland and other non-point sources is not yet sufficiently resolved (Mishima. 2007).
© ISERD

54

IJERD – International Journal of Environmental and Rural Development (2011) 2–1

Many studies have reported nitrogen removal efforts on paddy fields, which account for 60%
of farmland in Japan (Ichino et al., 1998; Feng et al., 2004). It has also been reported that nitrogen
runoff from paddy fields is related to river water contamination, and paddy fields are thus identified
as a source of water pollution. In particular, discharge of high-concentration nitrogen is noted tooccur in paddy fields immediately after fertilizers are used (Yoshinaga et al., 2007).
Approximately 20% of Japan’s total energy is provided by coal-fired thermal generation. In
2003, thermal generation produced a total of 7,470,000 tons of coal ash, which is roughly
categorized into clinker ash and fly ash. Fly ash constitutes the majority of coal ash and is recycled
as construction material. Although as much as 220,000 tons of clinker ash is generated each year,
most of it ends up in landfills; thus recycling of clinker ash is an important issue to address (JETA
et al., 2005). Since the surface of clinker ash has numerous pores of 1-20 μm in diameter (Fig. 1)
and has a large specific surface area, it has good potential as a water purification material.
Nitrogen discharge from paddy drainage divided into seepage, surface runoff, denitrificationand vaporization. Especially, it is easy to take measure regarding with decrease of nitrogenconcentration in seepage and surface water using filtering system. In this study, a column
experiment was conducted using clinker ash as a filtering material in order to illustrate the nitrogen
removal performance of clinker ash when used against paddy field wastewater.
METHODOLOGY
A column experiment was conducted in the laboratory to examine the nitrogen removal function ofclinker ash as shown in Fig. 2. Four types of filtering materials were prepared as test samples.
Table 1 shows characteristics of each filtering material before the experiment. Sample I consisted
only of clinker ash; Sample II and Sample III were a mixture of clinker ash and paddy soil in theratios of 3:1 and 1:3 respectively; and Sample IV consisted of paddy soil only. Mixture samples
were assumed to be degraded by paddy soil.
The coefficient of permeability was 6.23×10-2cm/s in Sample I, and 1.20×10-4cm/s in Sample
IV. A rise in the ratio of paddy soil decreased the coefficient of permeability. While no amount of
nitrogen was detected from Sample I, 181.4×10-5kg/kg was found in Sample IV. The higher theratio of paddy soil was, the greater the amount of nitrogen.

Fig. 1 Photomicrograph of clinker ash
Each sample was poured into a PVC column (44 mm in diameter; 350 mm in length). A test
solution prepared with NH4-N at a concentration of 10 mg/L and C/N of 12 was fed to the columns
at a flow rate of 100 to 200 mL/d for 121 days. The drainage tube was lifted in the column upper
part to make it a saturation state. During the experiment, the columns were kept saturated at theroom temperature of 24.4±1.3 ℃ and illuminated at 544±192 lux. Water samples were taken every© ISERD

55

IJERD – International Journal of Environmental and Rural Development (2011) 2–1

day for the first 31 days. The sampling interval was then changed to once every 2 days until the 60thday, when it was again changed to once every 4 days until the 121st day.

Fig. 2 Schematic diagram of column experimentParameters used to measure the water quality were total nitrogen (T-N), nitrate nitrogen (NO3N), nitrite nitrogen (NO2-N), and ammonium nitrogen (NH4-N); these were analyzed using
ultraviolet spectrophotometry in accordance with the Japanese Industrial Standards (JIS). The
quantities of nitrogen and carbon were each measured using the CN coder (SUMIGRAPH NCH22F : Sumika Chemical Analysis Service, Ltd.) before and after the column experiment.
RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
Fluctuation of outflow nitrogen concentration as a function of time and cumulative flow
Fig. 3 shows the relationship between the number of days elapsed and the T-N concentration (Cout)in the outflow. Fig. 4 plots the relationship between the cumulative flow of the solution and the Coutin the outflow. The volume of the solution passing through during the experiment period of 121
days varied from sample to sample, due to the differences in the coefficient of permeability.
Samples I and II recorded the lowest nitrogen concentrations at 2.21 mg/L (1st day: 0.42 L)
and 3.24 mg/L (5th day: 1.27 L) respectively. From then on the concentration rose gradually,stabilizing at approximately 7 mg/L. Samples I and II both recorded lower concentrations of
nitrogen than that in the incoming solution throughout the experiment period, consistently
demonstrating the presence of a water purification mechanism.
Table 1 Physical and chemical properties of samples
SampleProportion
CA: soilSoil
textureCoefficient
permeability(cm/s)

Dry
density(g/cm3)

Void
ratio

T-C
(x10-5kg/kg)

T-N(x10-5kg/kg)

C/N
ratio

Sample I

1:0

S

6.23x10-2

0.94

1.34

441.1

0.0

ND

Sample II

3:1

LS

1.50x10-2

0.96

1.34

620.1

31.0

20.0

Sample III

1:3

CL

3.17x10-4

0.99

1.50

1259.6128.5

9.8

Sample IV

0:1

LiC

1.20x10-4

1.03

1.55

1497.0181.4

8.3© ISERD

56

IJERD – International Journal of Environmental and Rural Development (2011) 2–1

Samples III and IV, on the other hand, recorded the highest nitrogen concentrations, at 67.40
mg/L (3rd day: 0.25 L) and 98.72 mg/L (3rd day: 0.20 L), respectively. The concentrations gradually
decreased, with Sample III stabilizing at 11 mg/L and Sample IV at 16 mg/L. These values werehigher than those in the inflow, evidencing that Samples III and IV had no nitrogen cleansing effect.
The above results demonstrate that the ratio of clinker ash and paddy soil is related to theperformance of the mixture as filtering material.
Nitrogen balance in each column
The nitrogen balance in each column during the 121 days was calculated by using Eq. (1) and (2):Lout  Lin  SD  SP

(1)

SP  Psoil  Pvac

(2)

Where Lout is nitrogen discharge (mg), Lin is nitrogen supply (mg), SD is nitrogen discharge
from soil (mg), SP is nitrogen removed (mg), Psoil is nitrogen adsorbed (mg), and Pvac is microbial
decomposition of nitrogen compounds (mg), obtained by a subtraction based on (2).

Fig. 3 Relationship between days lapsed and Cout

Fig. 4 Relationship between cumulative flow and Cout
Table 2 shows the nitrogen balance in each column. The ratios of effluence (Lout /Lin) of
Samples I and II were respectively 0.74 and 0.64. This illustrates that when the nitrogen solution
passes through a column containing a larger proportion of clinker ash, the concentration decreases
by 26 to 36%. The values of Psoil and Pvac in Sample I were 43 mg and 17 mg, while those in
Sample II were 69 mg and 10 mg. From these it is inferred that nitrogen adsorption and microbial
decomposition occurred in Samples I and II.
© ISERD

57

IJERD – International Journal of Environmental and Rural Development (2011) 2–1

Table 2 Nitrogen balance
Sample

Lout
(mg)

Lin
(mg)

SD
(mg)

SP
(mg)

Psoil
(mg)

Pvac
(mg)

Ratio ofeffluence
Lout/Lin (-)

Sample I

169

229

0

60

43

17

0.74

Sample II

145

224

0

80

69

10

0.64

Sample III

183

135

83

35

0

35

1.36

Sample IV

195

77

165

47

0

47

2.52

Samples III and IV, on the other hand, recorded ratios of effluence of 1.36 and 2.52
respectively, demonstrating that nitrogen in the columns was released into the outflow. SD valuesof Samples III and IV were respectively 83 mg and 165 mg; it is assumed that nitrogen in the
paddy soil in the column was discharged.
CONCLUSION
The column experiment confirmed that nitrogen is removed by nitrogen adsorption of clinker ash
and microbial decomposition. It was further demonstrated that when the ratio of paddy soil toclinker ash rises in the mixture, the nitrogen removal mechanism fails to materialize, and thenitrogen contained in paddy soil is discharged. Thus, it is necessary to pay close attention to the
mixture ratio between clinker ash and paddy soil when developing a water purification systemusing clinker ash.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
This research was supported by the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science andTechnology (MEXT), Japan and Grant in Aid for young Scientists (B), 22780223, 2010. The
authors are grateful for the columns experiment assistance provided by students of the Laboratoryof Hydro-structure Engineering, Tokyo University of Agriculture, Japan.
REFERENCES
Feng, Y.W., Yoshinaga, I., Shiratani, E., Hitomi, T. and Hasebe, H. (2004) Characteristics and behavior of
nutrients in a paddy field area equipped with a recycling irrigation system. Agricultural Water
Management, 68, 47-60.
Garnier, M., Recanatesi, F., Ripa, M.N. and Leone A. (2010) Agricultural nitrate monitoring in a lake basinin Central Italy: a further step ahead towards an integrated nutrient management aimed at controlling
water pollution. Environmental Monitoring and Assessment, 170, 273-286.
Japan Environmental Technology Association, Japan fly ash association (2005) Coal Ash Handbook, (inJapanese).
Ichino, M. and Kasuya, M. (1998) Nitrogen removal in paddy fields: An option for water quality
improvement in rivers. Ecological Engineering, 10, 159-164.
Mishima, S., Taniguchi, S., Kohyama, K. and Komada, M. (2007) Relationship between nitrogen andphosphate surplus from agricultural production and river water quality in two types of production
structure. Soil Science and Plant Nutrition, 53, 318-327.
Yoshinaga, I., Miura, A., Hamada, K. and Shiratani, E. (2007) Runoff nitrogen from a large size paddy field
during a crop period. Agricultural Water Management, 87, 217-222.

© ISERD

58

IJERD – International Journal of Environmental and Rural Development (2011) 2–1

Research article
erd

Local Good Governance of Rural Infrastructure
Development Planning: Case Studies of Commune Councils
in Cambodia
YOUNG SOKPHEA
Regional and Rural Development Planning, Asian Institute of Technology, Thailand
Email: sophiabelieve@gmail.com

SOPARTH PONGQUAN
Regional and Rural Development Planning, Asian Institute of Technology, Thailand

SOPHAL EAR
Department of National Security Affairs, Naval Postgraduate School, United States of America
Received 10 December 2010

Accepted 30 January 2011

Abstract The research examines the application of local good governance (LGG) in theimplementation of rural infrastructure development planning (RIDP) and analyzes its
strengths and limitations. Two communes with longer and shorter working experience inthe application of LGG in RIDP, viz. Khnach Romeas (KR) and Prey Khpos (PK) in
Battambang province were selected. The study covered six elements of LGG: rule of law,participation, accountability, transparency, responsiveness and effectiveness andefficiency. The research revealed that the commune with relatively longer working
experience (KR) had achieved better performance on several key elements of LGG thanthe one with shorter working experience (PK). Better performance in LGG by KR than PK
commune was due to several factors, including better understanding and application of
LGG in RIDP, wider learning by doing in RIDP, more effective fundraising for project
implementation, stronger commitment among commune councils (CCs), better coaching
and mentoring support from district planning facilitators and authorities and more active
local participation. CCs and sampled households expressed relatively higher satisfactionlevels on rural infrastructure projects as a result of the use of LGG. Therefore, the LGG
performance in applying RIDP of the two study communes was significantly determinedby several institutional, economic, and social factors.
Keywords decentralization, rural infrastructure, rural development planning process,local good governance, commune councils

INTRODUCTION
The   Royal   Government   of   Cambodia’s   strategic   policy   framework, outlined in the Rectangular
Strategy Phase II, puts deconcentration and decentralization (D&D) policy to achieve good
governance (RGC, 2008). D&D policy was formally put into action in February 2002 (Romeo andSpyckerelle, 2003), when commune elections were held, following extensive piloting since 1996
by the donor-funded Seila Program of the Royal Government of Cambodia which aimed tomobilize aid and coordinate D&D reforms and to alleviate poverty in selected northeastern
provinces of Cambodia (RGC, 2000) through local governance reform and participatory planning.
Five years of Commune Development Planning (CDP) and annual Commune Investment Plan
(CIP) manuals were developed and endorsed for CCs in 2001, then revised in 2007 to improve theplanning process (MoI and MoP, 2007). The investment grant through a fiscal transfer from thenational budget to CCs for CDP implementation gives priority to rural infrastructure. The
arguments for this are that rural infrastructure creates favorable opportunities for production,
movement of goods, and market access and contributes to poverty reduction (NCSC, 2005).
© ISERD

59

IJERD – International Journal of Environmental and Rural Development (2011) 2–1

The enabling environment for local good governance is still weak. An unclear legal frameworkand fragmented application of local governance contributed to a lack of decision-making at local
levels; top officials have tended to exercise their power and control in local planning (ADB, 2000).
There is limited participatory local governance, as democratic decision-making is poorly
understood and internalized among the various committees of CCs (NCSC, 2005; Pellini and Ayres,2007). To some extent, CCs still have limited capacity in the application of LGG through existing
traditional and hierarchical decision-making structures (NCSC, 2005) that continue to affect the
emergence of an effective local development process in developing countries (Hop, 2009).
Specifically, there is poor participation in CDP and CIP, and limited engagement with the demandsof local people (Vuthyand Craig, 2008). Moreover, local officials who facilitate planning processes
lack experience in encouraging local participation in both planning and implementation (Charny,1999). Accountability of CCs to local people through CDP is still weak and difficult to establish(Rohdewohld and Porter, 2006). The ongoing public administrative reform has not yet built
effective systems for transparency and accountability (Sokha, 2005). Therefore, many aspects of
LGG are weakly developed or nonexistent: there is low participation, lack of transparency, weakaccountability, and low inclusiveness.
The research examines the application of local good governance (LGG) in the local planningand implementation process of rural infrastructure development planning (RIDP), and analyzes its
strengths and limitations in order to identify the challenges and prospects for further strengthening
LGG of RIDP.
METHODOLOGY
Rural Infrastructure Development Planning (RIDP), which is planned and implemented under the
CDP and CIP, was conceptualized in seven key stages: 1) plan formulation; 2) identification/reviewof needs and problems; 3) selection of the priority project; 4) district integration workshop; 5)
approval of the development plan; 6) project implementation; and 7) project monitoring andevaluation. Rural infrastructure projects studied in this research include rural laterite roads, box
culverts, and earth roads. Six key elements of LGG assessed in this study are rule of law,participation, accountability, transparency, responsiveness, and effectiveness and efficiency.
The study was based in two purposely selected communes with relatively different working
experience in RIDP, located in Battambang province. Khnach Romeas (KR) had longer experiencein decentralization, since 1996, and Prey Khpos (KP) became involved in 2002. Primary data werecollected by using two sets of standardized questionnaires designed for 60 CCs and committees,
and 110 sampled households. Checklists were used for focus group discussion, key informant
interviews, observation, and case studies on RIDP commune projects. Secondary data wasscrutinized from literature, related laws, policies and development plans, sub-decrees, declarations,manuals, books, journal articles, and papers. Both quantitative and qualitative techniques wereapplied. A weight  average  index  (WAI)  based  on  Likert’s  five  social-scale interval was applied toassess local perception of achievement and satisfaction of LGG applied in RIDP from CCs andcommittees, and sampled households.
RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
Analysis of application of LGG in RIDPThe application of LGG in RIDP was synthesized in both study communes and a comparison madeagainst each element of LGG (Table 1).

© ISERD

60

IJERD – International Journal of Environmental and Rural Development (2011) 2–1

Table 1 Synthesis of LGG applied in RIDP of KR and PK communes
Khnach Romeas (KR)Prey Khpos (PK)
Rule of Law
 Rule of law in terms of guidelines and manual on RIDP and project implementation was well applied by bothcommunes.
Participation
 Planning and Budgeting Committees (PBCs) participatedin preparing budget and development framework during
the initial stage of RIDP and reviewed local problems andneeds.
 Villagers, including women and vulnerable groups,
actively participated in meetings to identify and prioritize
their needs and identify locations for the project site.
 NGOs and line departments participated in technical andfinancial support of proposed projects presented by PBCs,
who were also active in exchanging ideas and explaining
RIDP to supporters.
 PBCs and CCs participated in decision-making to approve
RIDP.
 Local villagers were involved in the feasibility study. This
led to harmonious solutions on the land contribution andimpact assessment. Villagers were also involved in project
implementation, in site clearance for the convenience ofcontractors and labor contribution, in addition to their cash
contribution (10 percent of the project cost).
 Villagers participated in project M&E as well as
maintenance and gave comments on projects that were
well received by village headmen and on which actions
were taken.

 PBC members reviewed and prioritized problems andneeds.
 Villagers, including women and vulnerable groups,

participated in meetings to identify and prioritize local
problems, needs, and project sites. PBCs were unable tomobilize many of them to join in the activity. People did
not speak out and mostly listened to PBCs, who led thedecision-making.
 NGOs and line departments provided technical andfinancial support to proposed projects by PBCs, but the
PBCs were not so active in exchanging ideas andexplaining RIDP to potential supporters.
 PBCs and CCs participated in RIDP approval, but not all
were present.
 Villagers were involved in the feasibility study, yetproper action was not undertaken by CCs in order tosolve key issues such as land acquisition for the
infrastructure. Limited numbers of villagers participatedin site clearance for project implementation, but villagers
contributed cash (10 percent of project cost) for project
implementation.
 Villagers’   participation   in   project   M&E   was   weak,   and  comments from villagers were not acted upon by CCs
and M&E committees. Local participation in project
maintenance was not adequate.

Accountability
 PBCs were involved in annual District Integration  PBCs were involved in the DIW to finalize projects andWorkshop (DIW) to select infrastructure projects to be get endorsement from CCs, but persons to be in charge of
implemented, and to be endorsed by CCs.
this activity were not designated clearly.
 The procurement committee took responsibility for  The procurement committee did not prepare and handle
preparing bidding documents and handled bidding the bidding well, due to a lack of clarity andproperly.
understanding of their roles and responsibilities.
 The M&E committee mobilized public participation in  The M&E committee did not adequately mobilize people
project monitoring and evaluation, and reported on project to participate in project monitoring and evaluation, andprogress to all participants at the monthly meetings.
did not make proper reports about project progress to the Operation and maintenance groups functioned well.
monthly meetings.
 Operation and maintenance groups were not wellestablished and lacked clear responsibility.
Transparency
 Information on the RIDP was disseminated to local people,  Information on the RIDP was disseminated to local
line agencies, and NGOs.
people, line agencies, and NGOs.
 Bidding was conducted in a public place with participation  Bidding was conducted in a public place and withfrom all interested stakeholders. The bidding documents participation from all interested stakeholders. The
were accessible and the contract was awarded based on the bidding documents were accessible and the contract wasgiven criteria. Villagers were satisfied with the outcome. awarded based on the given criteria. Villagers were not
The result of bidding was announced publicly, and the satisfied with the contractors due to their unfavorable
contract was signed using a standard format.
reputation in the commune. The result of bidding was Reports on RIDP implementation and finances were announced publicly, and the contract was signed using a
posted on public information boards. Project information standard format.
was reported to the monthly meetings. Payment to  Reports on RIDP implementation and finances were notcontractors was based on consensus decision among CCs posted on the public information board. Project
and the M&E committee. RIDP evaluation was conducted information was not disseminated properly at the monthly
in a timely fashion. Financial auditing was conducted both meetings. Payment to contractors was not based oninternally and externally. Project signboards were not consensus decision-making among CCs and the M&E
erected at the project site, and thus political parties gained committee. Moreover, RIDP evaluation was not© ISERD

61

IJERD – International Journal of Environmental and Rural Development (2011) 2–1

Khnach Romeas (KR)credit by claiming that they had provided project support.
 Allocation of the commune fund to each village wastransparent, as it was given to prioritized projects in poor
villages.

Prey Khpos (PK)conducted on time and neither was the financial auditing.
Project signboards were not erected at the project site,
and thus political parties gained credit by claiming thatthey had provided project support.
 Allocation of the commune fund was not transparent, as
it was not given to prioritized projects in poor villages.

Responsiveness Villagers were satisfied with the project outputs, and CCs  Villagers were not satisfied with the project outputs, andwere accountable through the establishment of a CCs were considered to be weakly accountable, as no
maintenance committee that ensures the long-term use of maintenance committee had been established. The
project outputs. The identified infrastructure projects identified infrastructure needs were not met and the needs
solved the problems and needs of all groups of people in of all groups of people were not addressed.
the commune.
Effectiveness and Efficiency
 The project was implemented and finished per the given  Project implementation was delayed and therefore thetime line, and the objectives of RIDP have been achieved objectives of RIDP were not achieved.
in general.

Perception and satisfaction with LGG achievement in RIDP of communes
Based  on  the  WAI  values  shown  in  Fig.  1,  the  perception  of  CCs’  achievement  in  applying  LGG  in  RIDP in each commune was quite different. Overall, CCs in KR perceived a high level of
performance in all six LGG elements: rule of law (0.80), participation (0.79), accountability (0.84),
transparency (0.82), effectiveness and efficiency (0.90), and responsiveness (0.80). CCs from PK
commune perceived varying degrees of LGG achievement: high levels of effectiveness andefficiency (0.88), participation (0.66), accountability (0.72), and transparency (0.71), and moderatelevels of rule of law (0.60) and responsiveness (0.60).

Note: 0.00-0.20: Lowest, 0.21-0.40: Low, 0.41-0.60: Moderate, 0.61-0.80: High, 0.81-1.00: Very High

Fig. 1 Achievement of LGG in RIDP
Figs. 2 and 3 show the different degrees of satisfaction between the CCs and committees andsampled households in both communes. The CCs and committees and sampled households in KR
commune are mostly strongly satisfied with the levels of participation, accountability andtransparency; they also expressed satisfaction with the rule of law, effectiveness and efficiency, andresponsiveness of RIDP implementation. In PK commune, however, CCs and committees arestrongly satisfied with only two of the key elements of LGG, participation and accountability,
while for the remaining elements they are only satisfied. Interestingly, the sampled households inboth communes indicate they are satisfied with all LGG components.

© ISERD

62

IJERD – International Journal of Environmental and Rural Development (2011) 2–1

Strengths and limitations of the application of LGG in RIDP
Several key institutional, economic, and social factors contributed to the different perceptions ofsatisfaction with the implementation of RIDP. The key factors found in this study are contemplated
as strengths and limitations in both study communes and can be categorized into institutional,
economic, and social dimensions.

Note: -2: Strongly Dissatisfied, -1: Dissatisfied,
0: Neutral, 1: Satisfied, 2: Strongly Satisfied

Note: -2: Strongly Dissatisfied, -1: Dissatisfied,
0: Neutral, 1: Satisfied, 2: Strongly Satisfied

Fig. 2 Satisfaction of CCs and committees

Fig. 3 Satisfaction of sampled households

Some of the important institutional factors that contributed to LGG include the development ofrules and regulations, active participation by local people, coaching, mentoring and on-the-jobtraining, local/international NGO funding support, training in LGG, and exchanging and sharing
experience in LGG through exposure visits. Although these factors had a significant influence on
both study communes, in KR commune they were more significant. This led to higher levels ofachievement of the key elements of LGG in KR commune and they were perceived higher
satisfaction from CCs and committees. Economic factors also played an important role in theperceptions of LGG of RIDP. These included clear rules and fair commune fund allocation criteria(allocated funds to all villages and prioritized needs of local people); financial auditing and RIDP
evaluation, including but not limited to regular financial auditing from financial officers andexternal auditors, and evaluators; and ability to raise funds for additional infrastructure project
implementation. These factors were better developed in KR than in PK commune. Social factors
also affected the results in the two communes and include the degree of public awareness and its
spread, particularly among poor and more vulnerable groups; the presence of local leadership able
to generate and mobilize funds for RIDP implementation; and the regular monthly meeting of CCs
where interested people were invited to participate actively.
Lower levels of achievement in the application of LGG in RIDP were the result of several
institutional factors: the low levels of education, multiple responsibilities as a result of lack ofhuman resources, lack of small-scale infrastructure technical knowledge, and incompatibility ofroles and responsibilities among CCs who came from different political parties and had weak
deliberative processes to enable good decision-making. Moreover, these economic factors in bothcommunes were made worse by postponement of project implementation, inadequate amounts ofcommune funding, infrequent evaluation of RIDP and financial auditing, and low incentives andmotivation to perform the assigned tasks. In addition, a range of other social factors led to lowlevels of LGG implementation, including dissatisfaction with land compensation, reluctance of
local people to participate in planning processes, replacement of PBCs, inadequate levels ofparticipatory decision-making, lack of public information disclosure, and limited participation in
bidding processes of CCs. These factors had a significant influence on PK than KR commune.
These factors contributed to the different levels of performance in the application of LGG in
RIDP of both study communes.

© ISERD

63

IJERD – International Journal of Environmental and Rural Development (2011) 2–1

CONCLUSIONSKR commune had higher achievement in six major elements of LGG of RIDP than PK commune.
It appears that one of the main reasons for this is the longer time and higher levels of support thiscommune has had for decentralized planning.
The main areas of difference between the two communes are transparency (finance,
information dissemination, reporting), accountability (committees in charge of various project
activities), and effectiveness and efficiency (delivery of infrastructure projects), which need to be
improved by PK commune. KR commune demonstrated a greater understanding of the principles
and practice of LGG of RIDP. Its strength of LGG in RIDP came from higher levels of education
as well as longer practical experience implementing RIDP and learning by doing, strong
commitment of CCs and committees, more capable CCs that performed well in fundraising for
project implementation, significantly higher levels of coaching and mentoring from district
planning facilitators and authority, and higher levels of local participation. Despite theseachievements, both communes face key policy challenges. These include weak incentives toactively encourage local participation and develop good deliberative processes. There is limited
enforcement of proper compensation processes in land acquisition for infrastructure, and low
continued support for capacity building of the key local government-citizen interface, the CCs.
These factors all need to be addressed to help secure future progress of decentralization and local
governance in Cambodia.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS AND DISCLAIMER
The authors would like to extend their deepest gratitude to the CCs and villagers in the two study
communes, who gave their warmest welcome and provided valuable information. We also appreciate
the cooperation from the NCDD in Battambang province. Special gratitude is given to Mr. Young
Pheak for his kind assistance in data collection and facilitating local communications and contacts
during the field work for this research. The views expressed are solely those of the authors and do notnecessarily reflect the views of sponsoring agencies, funders, or the authors' institutions of employment.

REFERENCES
ADB (2000) Enhancing governance for sustainable development in Cambodia. ADB, Philippines.
Charny, J.R. (1999) Issues for decentralized planning and financing of rural development. Regional
Development Dialogue, 20-2, 176-192.
Hope Sr., K.R. (2009) Capacity development for good governance in developing societies: Lessons from thefield. Development in Practice, 19-1, 79-86.
Ministries of Interior and Ministry of Planning (2007) Inter-ministerial declaration on commune
development planning (CDP) and commune investment plan (CIP). Cambodia.
National Committee for Support Commune/Sangkat. (2005) Review of decentralization reform in Cambodia:
Policy and practices. NCSC, Cambodia.
Pellini, A. and Ayres, D. (2007) Community participation in local governance in Cambodia: Learning fromthe village networks approach. Development in practice, 17-3, 404-409.
Rohdewohld, R.J. and Porter, D. (2006) Independent study of donor support for decentralization anddeconcentration (D&D): Contributing to democratic development, Options for future donor support todecentralization and deconcentration. Cambodia.
Romeo, L.G. and Spyckerelle, L. (2003) Decentralization reforms and commune-level services delivery in
Cambodia. Asian Development Bank, UNCDF, Philippines.
Royal Government of Cambodia. (2000) Seila program document 2001-2005. Selia task force, Cambodia.
Royal Government of Cambodia. (2008) The rectangular strategy (Phase II) for growth, employment, equity
and efficiency, Cambodia.
Sokha, P. (2005) Decentralization and poverty reduction in Cambodia: experience and challenges. Regional
Development Dialogue, 26-2, 114-120.
Vuthy, H. and Craig, D. (2008) Accountability and planning in decentralized Cambodia. Working paper 39,
Cambodia Development Research Institute (CDRI), Cambodia.

© ISERD

64

IJERD – International Journal of Environmental and Rural Development (2011) 2–1

Research article
erd

Rural People’s Livelihoods - A Case Study in a Commune
at Mekong Delta, Vietnam
VO VAN VIET
University of Agriculture and Forestry, Ho Chi Minh, Vietnam
E-mail: vvviet@hcmuaf.edu.vn
Received 14 December 2010

Accepted 15 January 2011

Abstract Within the context of the Doi Moi period  in  Vietnam,  rural  people’s  livelihoods  are more diversified and also vulnerable depending on the policy and other factors. This
study seeks to understand the dynamic of rural people livelihoods in relationship with thechanges in social and economic context. The general objective of this study is to describe
the livelihoods system of rural people and identify the livelihoods strategies adapted byrural people and describe patterns/models of sustainable livelihoods options. This study is
descriptive in nature. In order to draw a comprehensive range of information, the study
make used of a variety of research methods. More particularly, the study used theparticipatory research method, combining both quantitative and qualitative techniques (i.e.,
secondary  data  collection,  interviews,  households’  livelihood  analysis  and  the  like).
Keywords rural people`s livelihood, sustainable livelihood, participatory, Mekong Delta

INTRODUCTION
Vietnam is an agriculture-based country with about 80 percent of the total population living in therural  areas  and  75  percent  of  the  nation’s  labor  force  is  in  agriculture.  Since  1986,  the  Vietnamese  Government committed itself to a policy of renovation known as the Doi Moi. The core objectiveof this policy is to liberalize and stabilize the economy using strategic policies towards all
economic sectors (i.e., state-owned business entities and nonstate-owned business entities). In orderto implement this policy, Vietnam opened its doors to foreign investors and successfully achieved
significant development. More attention is paid now to the expansion of all forms of businessenterprises. With the renovation process, Vietnam has undergone a dramatic transformation andvast changes in both social and economic aspects. The economic transformation from a centralizedplanned economy system to a market oriented economy led to profound changes in society. With
the   context   of   the   Doi   Moi   period,   people’s   livelihoods   are   more   diversified   and also vulnerable
depends on the policy and other factors. This study seeks to understand the dynamic of rural people
livelihoods in relationship with the changes in social and economic context. A community at
Mekong Delta was selected as a case study.
METHODOLOGYThis study aims to understand how people in a commune change their livelihood strategies. Thus, asimple descriptive case study design was applied. Data for the study have been collected andanalyzed simultaneously. More particularly, the study used the participatory research method. The
data that have been collected come from secondary and primary sources. The following techniques
were applied: 1. Semistructured interviews (SSI). This was conducted with 50 key informants.
With the use of interview guides, the researcher collected data on the commune, such associoeconomic characteristics, land use, socioeconomic infrastructure, development policies,
natural resources and sociopolitical structure; 2. In-depth interviews (IDI). This was conductedwith 30 households to generate understanding of household characteristics, particularly thedifficulties and opportunities related to livelihood and strategies employed to overcome the© ISERD

65

IJERD – International Journal of Environmental and Rural Development (2011) 2–1

difficulties; 3. Focus-group discussion (FGD). This provided information on current household
situations and helped in identifying the better off and worse off households. The FGD also helped
gather data on the difficulties and advantages encountered by people in their livelihoods.
RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
About the study site
As shown in Fig. 1, Long Thuan commune is located at northern part of the isle of Cai Vung riverin Hong Ngu district. Long Khanh A commune borders in the north, Phu Thuan A commune
borders in the south, Phu Thuan B commune borders in the east and An Giang province borders in
the west (Cai Vung River). The center of village is located about 5 km away from the center of the
district and 17 km away from Vietnam-Cambodia border.
Surface land area of the commune covers about 2,010 ha (Statistical data in 2003) occupies
about 6.05% area of the whole district. Of this, 78 percent is household-individual managed land,
22 percent is commune-managed land, and land devoted to economic and social institutions.
Households and individuals manage most of the agricultural land.
The commune is composed of five hamlets which are named Long Thanh, Long Hoa, Long
Hung, Long Thoi A and Long Thoi B. Long Thuan is strategically located in the isle. Therefore,
the commune has many favorable conditions for agricultural development.

Fig. 1 Map of Long Thuan commune
Livelihood strategies
From the last years, the livelihoods of the peasant households of the community were linked tobroader markets through an expanding group of rice-trading middlemen and rice-millers.
Production was almost exclusively devoted to rice among Long Thuan households while somefamilies engaged in both market oriented fruit growing as well as rice cultivation. Although relying
increasingly on a money economy for their livelihood, these households were sustained by patternsof subsistence production, using local food resources as a basis for household sustenance. In the© ISERD

66

IJERD – International Journal of Environmental and Rural Development (2011) 2–1

recent years, however, there was a shifting in pattern of livelihoods, people follows diversified
livelihood strategies that include both on and off farm activities. Productive assets such as
agricultural tools and machinery differ from household to household depending on the types of land
owned and used. On-farm activity diversification varies in terms of whether crops or livestock areraised, or have a mixed system. Off-farm strategy secures the income of many households. There
are significant differences occur in the percentages of income derived from on-farm and off-farmactivities. Those who have access to roads and market (physical capital), off-farm income plays animportant role and vice versa.
Many households earn some income from the farms but also earn substantial income fromother sources. Certain members of the households may have part-time or even full-time
employment off the farm, or engage in cottage industries at home part of the time. The principal
activity is small-scale farming while livestock serves to reduce risks. For some households,
livestock raising, particularly dairy cow, has become a reliable income source.
The   practice   of   diversifying   the   households’   occupation   into   various   nonagricultural   sectors  could be seen as a strategy of survival as much as status acquisition and maintenance. Nonetheless,the adaptation and the ability to diversify occupation and sources of livelihood of people in thecommune are very different for particular groups. Those who have more assets can diversify theirsource of livelihood from among the three economic sectors such as industry, services, agriculture,or a combination of these sectors. Thus, It can be stated that the better the ability to access capital,
the better the adaptation.
Research in the commune has brought to light cases of both successes and failures. In terms of
livelihood opportunities, landed households have a wide range of choices. They can either continue
to engage in farming with additional income from small services, or they can decide to sell land
and totally become nonagricultural households. Otherwise, they can sell part of the land and invest
the money in animal husbandry and intensively cultivate the land with new varieties and techniques.
In contrast, land-less households or lack of natural capital, in general, are unable to take advantageof this opportunity. Clearly, their livelihood depends, for individual households, on the ability of its
members to obtain other forms of livelihood.
New environment also provides new opportunities for households to move up. More jobs arebeing created in and around the commune. Nevertheless, new job opportunities are not being
created at a sufficient rate to provide employment for the expanding labor force in the commune
and the increasing income needed to support large households. Thus, migration to other areas insearch for work, especially manual work, becomes an option taken by a growing number ofhouseholds.
To obtain a secure livelihood, in the context of the commune, people are forced to choose a
livelihood strategy that combines agriculture and services sectors. Most, if not all successful
households or households with secure livelihood in this area, do not depend exclusively on
agriculture for their livelihood. Services and trading provide additional sources of earnings for local
residents. It should be noted that occupational diversification has a long history. The trend towards
occupational diversification within lower-income households more recently is the result of an
expansion   of   livelihood   possibilities   accompanying   changes   in   the   commune’s   economy.   It   is  important to acknowledge that the process of occupational diversification is one in whichhouseholds play an active part.
Non-farm and off-farm   activities  are   becoming   increasingly   critical  for   people’s   livelihoods.  
Moreover, non-farm and off-farm occupations often offer individuals and households better income.
It  constitutes  the  key  foundation  for  economic  advancement,  generates  different  effects  on  people’s  livelihoods, and determines to a large extent contemporary patterns of differentiation amonghouseholds. The availability and the accessibility of assets, tangible or intangible, basically regulate
the differentiation among households.
By analyzing the livelihood strategies of selected households, the study found that the successor failure of households in the commune depends on a composite of personal and nonpersonal or
institutional situations. On the personal level, it means the ability of the individual or household toacquire the basic necessities of life such as food, shelter, and clothing. On the nonpersonal level, itmeans the ability of the State and other socioeconomic institutions in providing assistance to people© ISERD

67

IJERD – International Journal of Environmental and Rural Development (2011) 2–1

in terms of access to education, vocational training, health, information (including labor market
information and urban planning information), job attainment and loans, among others. Good
personal ability combined with a favorable institutional situation would likely provide people with
better and more secure livelihoods and vice versa. The absence of one of these two components
would cause difficulties for households in obtaining a secure, sustainable livelihood.
In the process of adaptation to the new environment, there is a general pattern easily observedin the commune; that most farmers have low level of education, are of old age, and have notechnological skills so that they face more hardships. Occupational training for farmers in theprocess of transformation also has many difficulties. Interviews with KIs have shown that many
young people lack the education and skills needed to benefit from new economic opportunities.
Farmers are particularly ill-equipped for the new environment; the market economy.
CONCLUSION
Land is the principal economic asset of people, and the incomes of most agricultural households
depend largely on access to land. While human capital and social capital are of some importance,
the most significant capital is natural capital, more particularly, ownership and control of land.
Agriculture has, and continues to mainly contribute to the revenues of the commune, and this is
likely to remain in the near future. However, at the household level in the study area, the role ofagriculture in supporting livelihoods is slowly declining with the availability of other non-farm
opportunities. Also, the significance of agriculture in terms of its role in supporting household
livelihood  is  determined  by  the  capacity  of  the  households’  landholdings,  their  access  to  labor  and  capital inputs, and the market. When access to land, labor, and market is restrained and newopportunities from urban employment are obtainable, the role of agriculture is likely to be
weakened.
REFERENCES
Ashley, C. and Carney, D. (1999) Sustainable livelihoods: Lessons from early experience. Department forInternational Development, UK.
Barbichon, G. (1961) Adaptation and training of rural workers for industrial work. Organization foreconomic co-operation and development, France.
Brookfield, H. and Byron, Y. (1993) Southeast   Asia’s   environmental future. Oxford University Press,
Singapore.
Carney, D. (1998) Sustainable rural livelihoods: What contribution can we make? Department forInternational Development. Russell Press Ltd., England.
Coleman, J. (1990) Foundations of social theory. The Belknap Press of Harvard University Press, USA.
Dao T.T. (1996) The Peasant household economy and social change.  In  Viet  Nam’s  Rural  Transformation.  
Westview Press, USA, 139-164.
Dennis, A.F. (1956) Land reform and economic development. In land tenure. The University of Wisconsin
Press, USA, 44-49.
DFID (2000) Sustainable livelihoods guidance sheets. Department for International Development, England.
Ferder, E. (1971) Latifundia and agricultural labour in Latin America. In peasants and peasant societes.
Penguin Books Ltd., England, 83-97.
Franklin, H. (1971) The worker peasant in Europe. In peasants and peasant societies. Penguin Books Ltd.,England, 98-102.
Hudson-Rodd, N. and Nyunt, M. (2001) Control of land and life in Burma. Land Tenure Center, Universityof Wisconsin-Madison, USA.
Hoang, Viet. Van De So Huu Ruong Dat Trong Nen Kinh Te Hang Hoa Nhieu Thanh Phan O Viet Nam. Nha
Xuat Ban Chinh Tri Quoc Gia. (1999) Hoang, Viet. Issues on landownership in a multisector market
economy of Viet Nam. National Politics Press, Vietnam.
Johnson, V.E. and Barlowe, R. (1954) Land problems and policies. McGraw-Hill Book Co., USA.
Lane, M. (2001) Indigenous land and community security: A (Radical) planning agenda. University of
Wisconsin-Madison, USA.
Lastarria-Cornhiel, S. and Melmed-Sanjak, J. (1999) Land tenure in Asia, Africa, and Latin America: A lookat the past and a view to the future. Land Tenure Center, University of Wisconsin-Madison, USA.
© ISERD

68

IJERD – International Journal of Environmental and Rural Development (2011) 2–1

Lellis, F. (1998) Livelihoods diversification and sustainable rural livelihoods. In sustainable rural livelihoods:
What contribution can we make? Department for international development. Russell Press Ltd., 53-65.
Maxwell, D. and Wiebe, K. (1998) Land tenure and food security: Review of concepts, evidence andmethods. Land Tenure Center, University of Wisconsin-Madison, USA.
Nguyen T.C., et al. (2000) Social policy. In socioeconomic renovation in Vietnam. Institute of Southeast
Asian Studies, Singapore, 139-172.
O’Callaghan,  J.R. (1996) Land use: The interaction of economics, ecology and hydrology. England.
Parsons, K.H. (1956) Land reform and agricultural development. In land tenure. The University of Wisconsin
Press, USA, 3-22.
Pal, A.P. and Polson, R.A. (1973) Rural people’s   responses to change. Dumaguete trade area, Philippines.
New Day Publishers, Philippines.
Pham Xuan N., Be Viet B. and Hainsworth, G.B. (2000) Rural development in Vietnam: The search forsustainable livelihoods. In socioeconomic renovation in Vietnam. Institute of Southeast Asian Studies,
Singapore, 1-48.
Popkin, S.L. (1979) The rational peasant. The political economy of rural society in Vietnam. University ofCalifornia Press, USA.
Quan, J. (1998) Land tenure and sustainable rural livelihoods. In sustainable rural livelihoods: Whatcontribution can we make? Edited by D. Carney. Department for international development. Russell
Press Ltd., England, 167-180.
Ratcliffe, J. (1976) Land policy: An exploration of the nature of land in society, Great Britain.
Shearer, E.B., et al. (1999) The reform of rural land markets in Latin America and the Caribbean: Research,
theory, and policy implications. Land Tenure Center, University of Wisconsin-Madison, USA.
Chambers, R. (1995) Poverty and livelihoods: Whose reality counts. Environment and urbanization, 7-1, 173204.
Edgens, J.G. and Staley, S.R. (1999) The myth of farmland loss. Forum for applied research and public
policy, 14-3, 29-34.
Fine, B. (1999) The development state is dead-long live social capital? Development and change, 30-1, 1-19.
Fulton, W. (1999) Covering the land use story. The Quill, 87-8, 27-30.
Mittal, A. (2000) Land loss, poverty and hunger. The Ecologist, 30-6, 44.
Rakodi, C. (1999) A capital assets framework for analysing household livelihoods strategies: Implication forpolicy. Development Policy Review, 17, 315-342.

© ISERD

69

IJERD – International Journal of Environmental and Rural Development (2011) 2–1

Research article
erdCurrent State of Food and Agriculture Education(SHOKUNOU KYOUIKU) in JapanHIROKI INAIZUMIFaculty of International Food Studies, Tokyo University of Agriculture, Japan
Email:inaizumi@nodai.ac.jp
Received 14 December 2010

Accepted 31 January 2011

Abstract At the beginning of this century, the Japanese education system and associatedcurriculum dramatically changed, particularly concerning instruction related to acquiring a“Zest   for   Living”   through   food   and   agriculture   education.   Concomitant   with   these  revisions, numerous studies and activities have been conducted predominantly at theelementary level, with only a few performed at the university level. In attempt to counter
this trend, the Tokyo University of Agriculture (TUA) established the Food andAgriculture Education Theory Course (FAETC) in April 2007. In the present study, theeffectiveness of the FAETC was investigated by examining the relationship among
students’   daily   lifestyles,   particularly nightly sleeping time and breakfast consumption
custom, and their academic performance in this course. From the results of surveys
conducted over a three-year period, it was revealed that students who had a regular
lifestyle with respect to sleeping and eating trends exhibited superior academic
performance. However, it appeared that students with an irregular lifestyle also improved
their concentration levels. Therefore, these results suggest that a positive correlation exists
between lifestyle and concentration level, and student conscientization can be promoted bycontinuous encouragement in regular class. In other words, it is concluded that a large
possibility exists for the role of FAETC for conscientization by students in their daily
lives.
Keywords food and agriculture education, food and nutrition education, zest for living,
conscientization

INTRODUCTION
Since the Basic Law on Shokuiku (Food and Nutrition Education) was enforced on July 2005,
numerous activities have emerged, including seminars, publications, and a certifying examinationfor Shokuiku/Shokunou (Food and Agriculture) Education, among others. The rapid expansion ofthis program has been termed  the  ‘Shokuiku bubble’  in  Japan.
Along with this trend, the Tokyo University of Agriculture (TUA) has   begun   ‘Shokunou
Kyouiku’   (Food   and   Agriculture   Education   Theory   Course [FAETC]) in the Department ofInternational Bio-Business Studies, Faculty of International Food Studies from April 2007.
Background of the FAETC
According to the preamble of the Basic Law on Shokuiku, the Japanese Government clearly statedthe importance of Shokuiku as follows:“Above   all   else   ‘SHOKU’   (food/diet/eating) is important for children to cultivate richhumanity (i.e., develop into well-rounded and compassionate individuals), and to acquire theknowledge and means to live healthy lives. The Basic Law on Shokuiku formally makes Shokuiku
the foundation for living, and positions it as the base of intellectual (Chiiku), moral (Tokuiku) andphysical (Taiiku) education.”
Three years before the Basic Law on Shokuiku enforcement, the Japanese Ministry of
Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT) revised the National Curriculum© ISERD

70

IJERD – International Journal of Environmental and Rural Development (2011) 2–1

Standard  (NCS)  in  2002  by  introducing  the  brand  new  subject  ‘Period  for  Integrated  Study’,  which  was   aimed   at   the   ability   of   students   to   acquire   a   ‘Zest   for   Living’.   Subsequently,   many   people  thought Shokuiku and/or  other  food  and  agriculture  studies  were  the  key  contents  of  the  ‘Period  for  Integrated   Study’   subject.   Since   foods   are   a   prerequisite   condition   for   every   human   being,   this  subject would be a strong learning assistant tool if it contained suitable educational content thatwas presented properly. In other words, it appeared that Shokuiku had significant potential to allow
the acquisition of not only knowledge, but also mental and physical skills through individual
learning activities.
Theoretical framework
After revising the NCS and enforcing the Basic Law, numerous studies focused on the importanceof Shokuiku and/or food and agriculture education have been published in Japan. For example,
Kageyama (2006) concluded that breakfast behavior and varietal food intake are closely related toacademic performance in elementary school students, while Koshikawa et al. (2007) also describeda close relationship between diet and learning attitude/motivation. Moreover, Suzuki et al. (2007)
and Asaoka et al. (2010) pointed out that food and agriculture education has important functions forrebuilding human relations and revitalizing communication among local communities. However,most studies to date have focused on younger children or have presented complicated theoreticalarguments without clear conclusions. For studies involving children, it make sense that eating
habits   are   closely   related   to   children’s   daily   life,   but   those   children   cannot   be   considered  independent, as their behaviors are strongly affected by their parents and/or surrounding adults.
Moreover, in addition to dietary habits, academic performance may also be influenced byhousehold conditions (e.g. family structure, income levels, family norm, etc.). Therefore, it appears
difficult to evaluate direct relationships between eating habits and academic scores in children. For
those studies involving complex theoretical arguments, although the authors collected large
amounts of historical and current evidences on food and agriculture education/activities and have
put forth important efforts, a concrete theory has yet to be demonstrated.
Therefore, in the present study, an attempt has been made to establish another framework forfood and agriculture education and student performance. Specifically, an empirical study involving
university students was conducted for evaluating the educational effects of the FAETC in TUA.
University students were selected as they are generally considered more independent than primaryand secondary school students, which would allow the relations between their eating habits,
autonomous behavior (derived from their own conscientization), and academic performance to be
captured, and also fill the gaps of previous studies on food and agriculture education in Japan.
Research objectives
The main objective of this study was to evaluate the hypothesis that FAETC has a positive effectfor  achieving  conscientization  in  students’  daily  lives  and  the  integration  of  knowledge,  which  is  typically presented incoherently during early stages of their education.
In general terms, the two main objectives of this survey were to: 1) Compare student behavior
concerning breakfast consumption and hours of sleep with the guidelines of the Basic Program for
Shokuiku Promotion (BPSP) set by the Office for Shokuiku Promotion in the Cabinet Office,
Government of Japan in 2006, and 2) Evaluate the effects of FAETC on student lifestyle.
The three specific objectives were to: (1) Examine the current situation for breakfast
consumption behavior among target students and compare these findings with the latest National
average  and/or  National  projection,  (2)  Identify  factors  affecting  students’  breakfast  consumption  behavior,   and   (3)   Clarify   the   relation   between   students’ customs and their performance in thiscourse.

© ISERD

71

IJERD – International Journal of Environmental and Rural Development (2011) 2–1

RESEARCH METHODOLOGIESThe FAETC
In response to these stated objectives for the Basic Act of Shokuiku, TUA established the FAETC
for students who have an interest in food, agriculture, and environment. Table 1 shows a course
outline of the FAETC in 2009. The purpose of this course was to allow student to discover theeducational elements in agricultural activities.
To cover the areas of not only on food, but also more broad areas including agriculture andenvironment, TUA decided to adopt FAETC (Shokunou Kyouiku) and not Food and Nutrition
Education (Shokuiku), even though the Basic Law is named Shokuiku. For achieving the outlined
goals, several discussion sessions were offered as part of the course in addition to the normal
lectures.
Table 1 Course content of the FAETC in 2009
Theme of lecture
1. Background of the birth of Shokuiku/
Shokunoukyouiku, and current situation
2. Education

3. History of education and agricultural
education in Japan

4. Food, agriculture and education
Conclusion

TopicsCurrent situation of food and agriculture in Japan
Background of Shokuiku/ Shokunoukyouiku
What is education?
Examining educational history
Pre-modern age
Establishment and expansion of the school system
Agricultural panic and the birth of farmer training
centers
 Reformation after WWII Current situation
 Lessons learned from general educational theories
 Industrial education besides agriculture
Examining the educational factor in agriculture, introducing
the theory of comparison








Source: Web-syllabus of TUA (2009)

Survey methods
To  identify  the  factors  affecting  students’  lifestyle  habits,  particularly  the  daily  hours  of  sleep  and  breakfast consumption, data was collected from FAETC students over a three-year period.
Table 2 Background of participating students
2007(total=234)
Participants (per total students)
Male
GenderFemaleDomestic
Resident
International
Yes
Breakfast(total number)
No
CourseAverageperformanceSD(max=10)

Number
111
55
56
94
17
649
308
7.32

2008
(total=215)
%
47%
50%
50%
85%
15%
68%
32%

1.76

Number
63
42
21
52
11
524
126
7.29
2.00

© ISERD

72

2009(total=223)
%
29%
67%
33%
83%
17%
81%
19%

Number
70
46
24
65
5
543
198
7.14
1.54

%
31%
66%
34%
93%
7%
73%
27%

IJERD – International Journal of Environmental and Rural Development (2011) 2–1

To collect data, a survey was conducted by administering a small questionnaire at the end ofeach FAETC lecture between 2007 and 2009. The four-question questionnaire was distributed 15
minutes before the end of each lecture, filled out by students, and collected; typically, feedback
would be given at the beginning of next lecture. Moreover, students were asked each time for theirconsent concerning the use of their personal information for research. If a student was not willing
for their information to be utilized for research purposes, that data was eliminated from the analysis.
The course performance was combined final examination and homework scores into 0 to 10 scales.
The composition of students who participated in the survey is summarized in Table 2.
SURVEY RESULTS
Investigation of student background and their lifestyle with a focus on the daily hours of sleepand breakfast consumption
There are three majors (Management, Information, and Environment Sciences) in the Department
of International Bio-Business Studies at TUA which offer specific lectures and seminars for eachselected major. FAETC is one of the compulsory lecture courses in the Environment Major;
therefore, the number of participating students varies each year. Table 2 indicates the number ofparticipating students and their characteristics for each year during 2007-2009, as mentioned above.
As shown in the first column of Table 2, the total number of students in the department by
academic year was: 234 in 2007, 215 in 2008, and 223 in 2009. Of these, the number and portion ofparticipating students for FAETC was: 111 (47%) in 2007, 63 (29%) in 2008, and 70 (31%) in
2009, while the gender ratio (male: female) of participants was close to 7:3, with the exception of
2007, when the ratio was 5:5. The portion of domestic and international students was 85:15 in 2007,
83:17 in 2008, and 93:7 in 2009.
After compiling the collected student data related to lifestyle (Table 3), it was compared to thetarget figures of the BPSP.
Table 3 Average nightly sleeping hours and breakfast consumption

Hours of sleep
Breakfast
consumption
(%)

2007
Average
SD
5.92
1.492

2008
Average
SD
5.98
1.569

2009
Average
SD
5.91
1.552

3-year average
Average
SD
5.93
1.532

67.80

80.60

73.30

73.10

0.467

0.396

0.443

0.444

Table 3 shows that in the initial year that FAETC was offered (2007), the average breakfast
consumption rate was 67.8%, which was significantly below the national average of 73.5%
reported by the BPSP in 2006. However, the three-year average consumption rate by students inthis course (73.1%) was similar to national average reported by the BPSP and slightly higher thanthe value (71.9%) reported in the National Health and Nutrition Survey (NHNS) conducted by the
Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare in 2009. Although a peak breakfast consumption rate of
80.6% was observed in 2008, it appears that the BPSP target figure of 85% in 2011 may be difficult
to achieve.
With respect to the reported hours of sleep, the three-year average of FAETC students was
5.93 hours per day, which was close to the national average reported in the NHNS of 6-7 hours perday.

© ISERD73

IJERD – International Journal of Environmental and Rural Development (2011) 2–1

Factors influencing breakfast consumption
Among the factors evaluated in this survey, several were selected to examine their correlation withbreakfast consumption behavior (Table 4).
Table 4 Correlation of selected factors with breakfast consumption

GenderStudent
Sleeping time
Academic year

Correlation
coefficientSignificancelevel

F value

Cases

-0.10
-0.06
-0.01
-0.06

0.000
0.000
0.233
0.000

138.61
33.86
1.43
24.73

2348
2348
2348
2348

(male=1)(international=1)(hours)(2007-2009)

According to Table 4, a positive correlation with breakfast consumption behavior was only
shown   for   ‘academic   year’,   while   negative   correlations   were   detected   for   both   ‘gender’   and‘student’   background   (Japanese-International [Intl.]). As the student breakfast consumption
behavior gradually improved from 2007 to 2009, it suggests that breakfast consumption wasaffected by the series of educational activities promoted under the current   ‘Shokuiku bubble’   as  Shokuiku and/or Shokunou became popularized in society, and might also be good evidence for theefficacy of the National Campaign for BPSP. The   factor   of   ‘male   student’   showed   a   negative  correlation with breakfast consumption behavior, indicating that female students have a higher
tendency to consumption breakfast than their male counterparts. Intl. students also had a negative
correlation with breakfast consumption rate, suggesting that their behavior may have been affectedby the additional  cost  of  breakfast.  The  last  examined  factor,  ‘sleeping  time’,  was  positively,  but  not significantly, correlated with breakfast consumption behavior of the student participants.
Comparison of the hours of sleep between breakfast consumers and non-consumers
A   comparison   between   breakfast   consumers   (hereafter   ‘bf-consumers’)   and   non-breakfast
consumers   (hereafter   ‘bf-non-consumers’)   in   connection   with   average   sleeping   hours   by   FAETC  lecture number (Figures 1, 2) revealed a more stable trend in bf-consumers than bf-non-consumers.
Although it is possible that bf-consumers had already established independent life routines andactions (autonomous behavior), no significant correlation existed between breakfast consumption
behavior and hours of sleep against which the general public perceive.

2007(N=649)
2008(N=522)
2009(N=543)
average2007(N=300)
2008(N=126)
2009(N=198)
AverageFig.  1  Breakfast  consumer’s  average  sleeping hours by lecture number

Fig. 2 Breakfast non-consumer’s  average  sleeping hours by lecture number© ISERD

74

IJERD – International Journal of Environmental and Rural Development (2011) 2–1

Correlation between breakfast consumption behavior and academic course performance
As shown in Table 5, female students displayed good performance in the course, and course
performance also had a positive correlation with breakfast consumption behavior. Even though thesignificance level was not high, a definite positive correlation between breakfast consumption
behavior and FAETC performance was identified. This result displayed a similar trend with several
studies that have also identified a close connection between these two factors in younger children.
Table 5 Correlation of gender and breakfast consumption with course performance

GenderBreakfast(male=1)(consumption=1)

Correlation
coefficient
-0.16
-0.09

Significance
level
0.204
0.030

F value

Cases

7.711
-4.6162385
2348

DISCUSSION
In this study, several factors affecting student lifestyle habits, particularly the hours of daily sleepand consume of breakfast, and the correlation of their lifestyles with FAETC performance were
examined.
The present results confirmed that a positive correlation exists between breakfast behavior andcourse performance, which is similar to the findings of previous studies conducted at theelementary level. However, a clear difference among the two student groups was detected in termsof conscientization level. Although nearly all elementary students heavily rely on their parents fortheir life activities, many university students, particularly at the junior level, are more independentand in the process of establishing their own lifestyle. During this period, it could be quite useful tourge students to acquire awareness of their daily activities, not only those related to learning, butalso more ordinal ones, such as part time working, reading a book and taking an exercise. For
example, a clear difference in the trend of sleeping-hours was identified between bf-consumers who
advanced establishment on an independent lifestyle and bf-non-consumers. Thus, it could be statedthat the FAETC is an effective method to acquire a sense of conscientization.
Even before participating in FAETC, it was expected that the student participants would
possess a good attitude towards breakfast consumption behavior. However, the results revealed thatthe difference between the student rates of breakfast consumption did not significantly differ fromthe National Average. This was also the case for the daily hours of sleep. From these results, it isapparent that even for the students who have an interest in food, a well-organized approach is
required to improve their attitude towards healthy lifestyle choices.
It can be conclude that there is a need to offer FAETC for the early-twenties generation because
this group faces the most negative nutritional condition in Japan. Although improvements to
FAETC may   be   warranted,   this   course   has   the   potential   to   positively   change   students’   lifestyle  choices, such as breakfast consumption behavior, and improves total performance, even with its
current curriculum and methods are justified and numbered consecutively, with equation numbers
in parentheses flush right, as in Eq. (1). First use the equation editor to create the equation. A
sample equation is included here, formatted using the preceding instructions.
CONCLUSION
Students who have a regular lifestyle with respect to sleeping and eating habits tend to exhibit goodacademic performance. In addition, those students who improved their lifestyle also displayed
increased concentration levels. From the results presented here, it was demonstrated that acorrelation exists between lifestyle and concentration level, and that conscientization can bepromoted by continuous encouragement in regular class. In other words, it is considered that a large
possibility exists for the role of FAETC in conscientization by students in their daily lives.
© ISERD

75

IJERD – International Journal of Environmental and Rural Development (2011) 2–1

Even though improvements to the current FAETC curriculum may be warranted, for example,
evaluating the appropriateness of the stated objectives and addressing the confusion felt by somestudents between current Shokunou Kyouiku activities and the historical evidences from general
education, the data presented here may help to establish more comprehensive and suitable
Shokunou Kyouiku in the future through active discussions in academic societies and individuals
who have an interest in this topic conclusion might elaborate on the importance of the work or
suggest applications and extensions. Do not cite references in the conclusion as all points shouldhave been made in the body of the paper. Note that the conclusion section is the last section of thepaper to be numbered.
REFERENCES
Asaoka, Y. and Nomura, T. (2010) The Power of shokuiku. Kouseikan, Japan (in Japanese).
Basic Law on Shokuiku (2005) http://www8.cao.go.jp/syokuiku/about/law/law.html#zen.
Cabinet Office (2006) The basic program for shokuiku promotion (BPSP). http://www8.cao.go.jp/syokuiku/
about/plan/pdf/kihonkeikaku.pdf (in Japanese).
Kageyama,   H.   (2006)   Fostering   children’s   academic   performance   by   “sleep   and   wake   up   early   and   take  breakfast”. ShokuikuKatsudou (Activities on Food and Nutrition Education), Rural Culture Association(NOBUNKYOU), 3, 36-39 (in Japanese).
Koshikawa, E., Okuda, T. and Murai, Y. (2007) The relation of dietary life with learning attitude andmotivation in elementary school children. Bulletin of Osaka Kyouiku University, Section II, 55-2, 35-44(in Japanese).
Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare (2009) The national health and nutrition survey (NHNS). http://
www.mhlw.go.jp/houdou/2009/11/dl/h1109-1b.pdf (in Japanese).
NOBUNKYOU (1998) Shokunou Kyouiku (Food and Agric. Education). 1, 152 (In Japanese).
Suzuki, Z., Asaoka, Y., Kikuchi, Y. and Nomura, T. (2007) Regeneration of education by Shokunou.
NOBUNKYOU (in Japanese).
Web-syllabus of TUA (2010) http://sv1.all-campus.net/scl2/APM2P0201A.html?UPRM=tua (in Japanese).

© ISERD

76

IJERD – International Journal of Environmental and Rural Development (2011) 2–1

Research article
erdStudy on Evaluating the Hardness of the Sidewalk Pavement
MIE HIGUCHI
Graduate School of Agriculture, Tokyo University of Agriculture, Japan
Email: bamboo @nodai.ac.jp

YASUSHI TAKEUCHI
Faculty of RegionalEnvironmrnt Science, Tokyo University of Agriculture, Japan

HIROMU OKAZAWA
Faculty of RegionalEnvironmrnt Science, Tokyo University of Agriculture, Japan

KEN-ICHI SATO
Fukuoka University, Fukuoka, Japan
Received 15 December 2010

Accepted 27 January 2011

Abstract In Japan, some laws for the pavement, which took into consideration physicallyhandicapped people and senior citizens, were established. In those relevant laws, it isrecommended that safety and comfort for all users should be considered when the
sidewalks are designed. But the evaluation method of safety and comfort is not establishedwhen the sidewalk pavement are constructed. Therefore, the objective of this study is toestablish   the   simple   evaluation   method   of   the   pavement’s   hardness   that take into
consideration safety and comfort of users, especially for handicapped people. Moreover,
the SB/GB test and the Portable Falling Weight Deflectometer (PFWD) test were carriedout in this study. In SB/GB test, 1 inch steel ball in diameter and a golf ball were used tomeasure SB/GB coefficients that were calculated from the bounce height of each ball. The
PFWD was used to measure elastic moduli of pavement. In the previous study, Takeuchi etal. pointed out that the range of an elastic modulus took into consideration safety andcomfort of users that is 25-80MPa. However it is hard to obtain PFWD because of an
expensive device. By contrast, SB/GB test can be conducted easily by using a golf ball anda steel ball, moreover, it is widely used in Japan. Hence, to simplify the hardness
evaluation of sidewalk pavement, SB/GB coefficients were compared with the elastic
modulus. As the result, it was found that the range of SB/GB coefficients corresponding to
the range of 25-80 MPa in the elastic modulus were around 20-35% in SB coefficient andaround 45-65% in GB coefficient. The range can be used to evaluate a road surface bycheap, easy and convenient equipment.
Keywords sidewalk pavement, universal design, hardness, SB coefficient, GB coefficient,elastic modulus

INTRODUCTION
Japan is seeing its population rapidly aging and the idea of barrier-free access has become widely
accepted. It is also noted that paved roads in agricultural communities, which are primarily utilized
by resident pedestrians, are a facility that is fundamental to the operation of a broad range ofcommunity activities as well as to the determination of location and active use of social andmodernization infrastructure and service facilities in rural areas. The improvement of roads inagricultural communities allows a faster, smoother, and safer movement of goods and people,
thereby expanding socio-economic activities in the community and contributing to higher income
levels and a better living environment for residents.
In Japan, research efforts have been directed to produce pavement that is comfortable and easy
to walk on. Nabeshima et al. (2005) employed the paved surface hardness test (JIS A 6519) in order© ISERD

77

IJERD – International Journal of Environmental and Rural Development (2011) 2–1

to identify a suitable hardness for resilient pedestrian pavement. And it was found that a comfort
zone lies in the measured range of impact acceleration of roughly 80±10 G. Takeuchi et al. (2008)
used this range to pursue structural engineering designs for pedestrian pavement with resilience
performance based on the elastic modulus obtained in Portable FWD testing and the impact
acceleration from hardness testing of paved surfaces. The elastic modulus corresponding to theimpact acceleration within the hardness range that provides safe and comfortable for pedestrians,
including the elderly and wheelchair users, was shown to be from 25 to 80 MPa (Fig.1). The tests
used in the study (the Portable FWD test, which measures the elasticity as a parameter for theamount of physical strain caused by the pavement, and the hardness test of paved surfaces) are noteasy to perform due to their high cost. For this reason the present study employed SB/GB testing,which is popular in Japan. This simple-to-perform test uses a steel ball and a golf ball. However,the sensitivity of this test is limited, and it can show only rough value ranges for different types ofpavement (Fig.2).

Fig. 1 Relationship between impact acceleration and elastic modulus

Fig. 2 Relationship between SB and GB coefficient of each pavement
In order to create a pedestrian environment that is safe and comfortable for senior citizens andthe physically handicapped, there is a need to establish a simple testing protocol for pavement
elasticity. This paper reports on our SB/GB testing of different paving materials for pedestrian
traffic as well as Portable FWD testing for the purpose of developing a simple method to measurepavement resilience to evaluate the comfort level for pedestrians.
SAMPLE LOCATIONIn this study, 57 types of pavement were randomly selected as samples. The sample locations are
the Setagaya Campus of Tokyo University of Agriculture, the Nanakuma Campus of Fukuoka© ISERD

78

IJERD – International Journal of Environmental and Rural Development (2011) 2–1

University, Sakuragaoka Junior High School, Karasuyamagawa Ryokudo, Togasira Jutaku in
Ibaragi, and pedestrian pavements in their surrounding areas, as well as specialty paving in a track
field.
Table 1 Sample locations and pavement types
Type of pavement

Number of samples

Resilient
Concrete slab
Clay-based
ILB
Artificial turf
Asphalt

27
6
5
3
2
2

Type of pavement
Soil
Synthetic resin mixed
Tile
Wood
grass
Other

Number ofsamples
2
2
2
2
1
3

The types of pavement in those locations are shown in Table 1. For the discussion of test
results, the measurement data produced by the Pedestrian Pavement Sub-Committee, Pavement
Engineering Committee, Japan Society of Civil Engineers were also included.
TEST METHOD
SB/GB tests and Portable FWD tests were conducted for the purpose of measuring the resilience ofthe paved surface.
SB/GB test
A golf ball and a steel ball are dropped from a height of 100 cm (H) to the paved surface and theirrespective rebounding heights are measured. The free fall is repeated 5 times for each paving
material, and the three most similar rebounds are used to calculate the mean value for reboundingheights (H0). SB and GB coefficients are obtained using H0 in Eq.1. It is believed that the GB
coefficient reflects impact absorbance, while the SB coefficient represents rebound resilience. It is
widely held that the smaller these factors are, the less bodily impact a pedestrian would receive.
The tests were all performed in accordance with the instructions in the Handbook of Pavement
Survey and Testing (Japan Road Association, 2007).
Fig.3 and Fig. 4 show the schematics of the SB/GB tester and how the test was done.
SB coefficient and GB coefficient % 

H0
100
H

(1)



Fig. 3 SB/GB tester detail© ISERD

Fig. 4 SB/GB testing in situ

79

IJERD – International Journal of Environmental and Rural Development (2011) 2–1

Portable Falling Weight Deflectometer (PFWD) test
Portable FWD testing involves a load cell that is lifted up by hand and dropped to cause an impact
on the paved surface; the impact load and deflection are to be measured. With the loading radius (r)at 0.05 m and the weight at 5 kg, the test was conducted by changing the dropping height to 5
levels from 10 to 50 cm. For each height, the cell was dropped 3 times or more until three similar
peak deflection values were obtained. The elastic modulus, EPFWD [MPa], was calculated using Eq.2
based on the maximum deflection, D[m], and the maximum load intensity, q [N/m2], that wasderived from the maximum load, P [N] divided by the loading area, A[m2]. EPFWD refers to the rateof stress-dependent change of displacement. In the case of pavements that incorporate rubber chips,
measurements   didn’t   stabilize   before   the   load   level   reached   3000   N;;   their   EPFWD [MPa] were
calculated from the measurements obtained with the maximum load at around 4000 N. EPFWD[MPa], represents a value when the subsurface layers are deemed to be a single layer. In addition,
the Poisson ratio, ν, is assumed to be 0.4.
Fig.5 and Fig. 6 show the Portable FWD tester and actual testing.
EPFWD  1  2 r  q2 D106 

1  P 10
2

(2)

6

2 DrFig. 5 PFWD tester detailFig. 6 PFWD testing in situ

RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
The test data were plotted to show the relationship between SB and GB coefficients (Fig. 7).
Statistical analysis classified the data roughly into five groups. It was then decided to exclude thesamples where the paved surface is not consolidated, such as artificial turf and soil-based paving,
including those akin to clay-based paving and some tile pavements for which the data was rather
isolated in the Figures. These samples had uneven top layer surfaces, and test results showed little
stability and no correlation between the SB and GB coefficients. Data for the remaining pavement
samples were used to calculate the relationships between SB coefficient and elastic modulus (Fig. 8),
and GB coefficient and elastic modulus (Fig. 9). These Figures show that both SB and GB
coefficients have a linear relationship with elastic modulus in single-logarithmic plotting. Although
Takeuchi et al. (2008) did not find any correlations between SB coefficient and elastic modulus, thisstudy involved more varied pavement samples, which likely produced the linear relationships ofFigs. 8 and 9. The dotted line in each Figs. 8 and 9 represents an approximated curve, while thesolid lines depict the upper and lower limits of the 99% confidence interval.

© ISERD

80

IJERD – International Journal of Environmental and Rural Development (2011) 2–1

The upper limit, 80 MPa, and the lower limit, 25 MPa, of the elasticity range identified by
Takeuchi et al. (2008) as appropriate for pedestrian comfort from their hardness testing wereplotted on the horizontal axis and vertically extended in each chart to intersect the upper and lower
limit lines of the confidence interval to obtain the values of SB and GB coefficients at theintersecting points. In Figs. 8 and 9 the horizontal arrowed solid lines show the range on thevertical axis that corresponds to the range of elastic modulus values and within the confidence
interval. In SB and GB tests, results significantly vary depending on the surface condition of thepaving material due to the small mass of the measuring apparatus (steel and golf balls). It istherefore assumed that the statistical distribution of data should be taken into account in assessing
relationships between results of Portable FWD tests and SB/GB tests where load levels are not thesame. Thus the ranges of SB coefficient and GB coefficient to fit the comfort range of elastic
modulus were obtained at the confidence interval based on confidence levels of 90%, 95%, and99%. The measurements obtained in this study are considered to indicate that SB/GB testing ofpavements having resilience within the suitable range will produce measurements that fall within
the range described in Fig. 8, which has 20% to 35% in SB coefficient and 45% to 65% in GB
coefficient and overlaps partially with the range of polyurethane-based paving.

Fig. 7 Relationship between SB and GB coefficients

Fig. 8 Relationship between elastic
modulus and SB coefficient© ISERD

Fig. 9 Relationship between elastic
modulus and GB coefficient81

IJERD – International Journal of Environmental and Rural Development (2011) 2–1

Fig. 10 Indexes commonly used and range of proper hardness
CONCLUSION
The test results suggest the following:(1) Pavement resilience can be evaluated using only SB/GB tests because SB coefficient and GB
coefficient show correlations with elastic modulus.
(2) The appropriate range of elasticity indicated by SB/GB tests is 20% to 35% in SB coefficientand 45% to 65% in GB coefficient.
These values are, however, applicable only to those pavements containing resin and the like,since the data exclude clay-based materials. We intend to collect more data in order to investigate
the reliability of the SB/GB data further. We also plan to study the properties of clay-based
pavements in order to revisit the definition of the appropriate hardness range.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
We would like to express our gratitude to members of the Pedestrian Pavement Sub-Committee,
Committee on Pavement Engineering, Japan Society of Civil Engineering. The authors are also
grateful for the field assistance provided by students of the laboratory of Hydro-structure
Engineering, Tokyo University of Agriculture and of the Road & Geotechnical Laboratory of
Fukuoka University.
This research was supported by Grant-in Aid for challenging Exploratory Research(20658056) and Grant-in Aid for Scientific Research (B) (22360175) from the Ministry of
Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT), Japan.
REFERENCES
Japan Road Association (2000) Pavement performance rating system in separate volume, Rating system of
the performance index to determine as needed, 218-222 (in Japanese).
Japan Road Association (2007) The handbook of pavement survey and testing, the first volume, 126-129 (inJapanese).
Nabeshima, M. and Yamada, M. (2005) Range of proper hardness for aged about walkway pavement,
Official journals quarterly of the Japan Society of Civil Engineers, 788-67, 117-126.
Tanaka, K. and Uchida, K. (1989) Evaluation of comfortability and safety on pedestrian road pavement,
Annual report of Inst. Civil Engineering of Tokyo Metropolitan Government, 15-26.
Takeuchi, Y., Sato, K., Aoki, M. and Yaginuma, H. (2008) Hardness evaluation of the sidewalk pavement
using Portable FWD tester, the proceeding of the 64th JSCE Annual Meeting of the Japan Society of
Civil Engineers, (CD-ROMS).

© ISERD

82

IJERD – International Journal of Environmental and Rural Development (2011) 2–1

Research article
erd

Sustainable Development in Indonesian Environmental
Law; Lessons from Germany’s  Sustainable  Forest  Management Practices
SRI WAHYUNIIslamic University of Riau, Riau, Indonesia
Email: sri_wahyuni6969@ymail.com
Received 16 December 2010

Accepted 15 January 2011

Abstract The work examines the impacts of rampant illegal logging practiced in Riau
Province, which has placed the province ahead of other Indonesian provinces as having thehighest rate of illegal timber exports. In addition to the problem of illegal logging, the Riau
Province is also saddled with forest fires raging in Sumatra. These have been responsible
for extensive environmental disaster experienced in this part of Indonesia – such as thedestruction of biodiversity and their habitat and the release of atmospheric polluting gases.
The illegal logging activities and the forest fires expose the affected region to soil erosion
following heavy downpours experienced in the region. In Asia, for example, there arefundamental differences between the fire-related problems in India, China, Korea,
Mongolia and Siberia on the one hand, and South-East Asia on the other. Indonesia,
Malaysia, Myanmar, Laos, Cambodia, Vietnam and Papua New Guinea are experiencing
ever greater problems with uncontrolled forest fire outbreaks. Key connected factors
causing fires in land and forest use: First: The opening up and exploitation of forests toserve the wood industry is an important factor in that potentially. Second: The arrival of
the wood industry is followed by new settlers who use fire to clear the land for cultivation;
however, these settlers often lack a traditional relationship with the forests and thus haveno interest in preserving it. Third: Apart from this exploitation of the forests, anotherimportant factor is the large-scale transformation from natural forest to woods for industry
and oil palm plantations. This is highly profitable and was until recently even subsidized
by the state. The instrument of choice for doing this, although officially forbidden, is fire.
Keywords sustainable development, environemntal law, illegal logging, fire forest

INTRODUCTION
Indonesia's current forest transformation programmed is unrealistic without clearing by fire. This
leads to conflicts with the local population over land uses, which in turn are fought out with fire.
Both large and small-scale land speculation and the use of fire for other purposes in the forest (e.g.
illegal felling and hunting), together with carelessness and a lack of awareness of the problems
complete the complex picture of a network of causes in each case.
The work examines the impacts of rampant illegal logging practiced in Riau Province, whichhas placed the province ahead of other Indonesian provinces as having the highest rate of illegal
timber exports. In addition to the problem of illegal logging, the Riau Province is also saddled with
forest fires raging in Sumatra. These have been responsible for extensive environmental disaster
experienced in this part of Indonesia – such as the destruction of biodiversity and their habitat andthe release of atmospheric polluting gases. The illegal logging activities and the forest fires expose
the affected region to soil erosion following heavy downpours experienced in the region (Wahyuni,2006).
All of these problems above happen in Indonesia as one of the developing countries, and Riau
Province is one of from the 33 Provinces in Indonesia, that have a wide resources but it have thebig problems to manage their environmental resources. For example, every year, Riau Province© ISERD

83

IJERD – International Journal of Environmental and Rural Development (2011) 2–1

meets  the  flood  and  the  fire  of  forest.  That’s  why,  the  people  and the government of Riau Province
ask about the sustainable development to solve the problem above.
The genesis of the concept of sustainable development is commonly reported to the 1987
Brundtland Report, which contains the well-known   definition   of   “sustainable   development”   as:  development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future
generations to meet their own needs (Brundtland Report, 1987).
In an era of increasing economic globalization, the traditional environmental and social
challenges seem to have gained a new dimension which must be taken into account. However,pursuant  to  the  Johannesburg  Declaration,  “the  rapid  integration  of  markets,  mobility  of  capital  and  significant increase in investment flows around the world has opened new challenges andopportunities  for  the  pursuant  of  sustainable  development  (Massimiliano  Montini,  2008).”
The basic and traditional definition of the principle of sustainable development was partiallyreviewed and updated at the Johannesburg Conference. In fact, the Johannesburg Political
Declaration underlines that the principle of sustainable development is based on three:interdependent   and   mutually   reinforcing   pillars,   namely   ‘economic   development,   social  development and environmental  protection’,  which  must  be  collectively  promoted  and  advanced  at  local, national, regional and global levels.
The Federal Republic of Germany is located in Central Europe, bordering Poland and theCzech Republic to the east, Switzerland and Austria to the south, the Netherlands, Belgium,
Luxembourg and France to the west, Denmark, the North Sea and the Baltic Sea to the north. With
its  high  population  density  and  it’s  environmentally  detrimental  heavy  industry.
With its high population density and its environmentally detrimental heavy industry, Germany
is a country with a long tradition in air and water pollution control. Driven by a strong
environmental movement, the country was among the international front-runners in a number ofareas such as regulating emissions from large combustion plants (e.g. coal power stations) orintroducing car emission standards, later on also in the fields of climate protection and waste
management. At the beginning of the 1970s, Germany was already an early pioneer in strategic
environmental planning. At that time, a number of innovative institutional arrangements andmechanisms for setting long-term environmental objectives as well as concrete action goals (1971
Environmental Program) and for integrating environmental considerations into the decision makingof other sectors (notably   a   “Green   Cabinet”)   were   introduced.   However,   in   spite   of   these   early  achievements and an altogether relatively successful environmental policy at present Germany
seems to lag behind more pro-active European governments in its efforts to implement the more
recent concept of sustainable development. The fact that Germany will be one of the last OECD
countries to introduce a national strategy for sustainable development illustrates this point.
Similarly, at the international level, Germany has been active in promoting concrete environmental
initiatives, for example in the field of climate policy, rather than with regard to general issues ofsustainable development (Jänicke & Jörgens (eds.) 2000).
In terms   of   sustainable   development,   Germany’s high degree of industrialization and its
central location in Europe are factors generating high traffic volumes, which have increased
considerably due to the German reunification, the economic opening of Eastern Europe and thecreation of an internal European market.
METHODOLOGYThis workpaper is the first of its kind to address the similarities and differences in the role of theconcept of sustainable development and its central role in environmental regulation in theframework of forest fire management policies of Germany and Indonesia. It will help fill in theinformation  gap  of  how  Germany’s  experience  can  be  adapted  to  developing  country  contexts.  By  doing this, it will contribute to improve developing countries’  capacity  to  deal  with  the  global  issue  of forest fires and forestry management. In addition, it concerned a correspondence with the people
who live in the region that forest fire happened. These information and documents were very
valuable things. Methodically this study was so put on the fact that the qualitative and quantitative© ISERD

84

IJERD – International Journal of Environmental and Rural Development (2011) 2–1

Information, which from official side over forest fire, with which particularly by interviews. In
particular still the many thematic analyses could be mentioned, on the regional, national and local
levels are accomplished and by Correspondent completed. The moreover one a number of
institutions became visits in the context of this study, in which discussions and discussions withspecialists took place.
RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
In the developing countries, most of the environmental problems are caused by under-development.
Millions continue to live far below the minimum levels required for a decent human existence,
deprived of adequate food and clothing, shelter and education, health and sanitation. Therefore, thedeveloping countries must direct their efforts to development, bearing in mind their priorities andthe need to safeguard and improve the environment. For the same purpose, the industrializedcountries should make efforts to reduce the gap themselves and the developing countries. In theindustrialized countries, environmental problems are generally related to industrialization andtechnological development.
The natural growth of population continuously presents problems for the preservation of theenvironment, and adequate policies and measures should be adopted, as appropriate, to face these
problems. Of all things in the world, people are the most precious. It is the people that propel social
progress, create social wealth, develop science and technology and, through their hard work,
continuously transform the human environment. Along with social progress and the advance of
production, science and technology, the capability of man to improve the environment increases
with each passing day.
The United Nations Conference on the Human Environment, having met at Stockholm from 5
to 16 June 1972, having considered the need for a common outlook and for common principles toinspire and guide the peoples of the world in the preservation and enhancement of the humanenvironment.
In Germany, the rise of the concept of sustainable development challenges traditional policy
making in a number of ways. Access to information and public participation are essential building
blocks for sustainable development, preparing citizens to become informed decision makers,
offering a basis for stimulating creative solutions to environmental, social and developmental
problems, and providing a foundation for building consensus on critical priorities. Transparency
and public participation are the basis for elaborating and working towards more sustainable.
Transparency and public participation form the basis for an informed discussion as to how toaddress challenges relating to the intersection between economic developments on the one handand social aspects and environmental protection on the other.
Both aspects of man's environment, the natural and the man-made, are essential to his wellbeing and to the enjoyment of basic human rights the right to life itself. The protection andimprovement of the human environment is a major issue which affects the well-being of peoples
and economic development throughout the world; it is the urgent desire of the peoples of the wholeworld and the duty of all Governments.
Governments and institutions governed by transparency, openness, accountability andcommunity participation are more capable of reconciling the needs of present and future
generations, of balancing private and public interests, and harmonizing economic development withsocial and environmental needs. Thus, improved access to information and participation indecision-making will more likely lead to overall sustainable development.
Not only have access to information and participation been recognized as essential toachieving the goal of sustainable development, they have increasingly been recognized as humanrights.   All   of   these   developments   relate   to   a   more   general   trend   towards   promoting   “good  governance”.   All   attempts   to   define   the   notion   of   good   governance include the elements oftransparency, participation, and accountability.
Changes in the political decision-making process and the institutional framework required bythis concept relate to three main issues: the coherent integration of policies in the environmental,© ISERD

85

IJERD – International Journal of Environmental and Rural Development (2011) 2–1

social and economic spheres; the wide-ranging participation of civil society in decision making;and a long-term view of problems and resulting strategies.
Numerous international documents have affirmed the importance of transparency and public
participation, and the need to institutionalize these elements in the move towards sustainable
development. Much of the progress towards increased transparency and public participation so far
has been mad at the domestic levels. However, in an increasingly inter-connected world, somedecision-making is shifting from the national to the international level, and to institutions andprocesses that largely remain secretive and inaccessible to the public.
Environmental policy in general has also at a relatively early stage been connected to socialand economic aspects such as employment, technology and competitiveness. Here, a link can befound between German environmental policy and the broader international debate on sustainable
development. This could be the entry point to a broader definition of sustainable development. An
important driving force of environmental policy integration can be seen in the Social
Democrat/“Green”  government  coalition  with  its programm of ecological modernization, which isan innovation-oriented concept aimed at integrating environmental considerations into a wide rangeof different policies.
Important steps have been taken in the development and operationally of environmental
indicators. Since 1989, the Federal Statistical Office has been developing an Environmental
Economic Account, which integrates into the economic data environmental burdens such as
emissions, utilization of materials and energy and pressures on soils. In 1990, the Federal Ministry
for the Environment appointed a scientific advisory council to work on refining the Environmental
Economic   Account.   In   its   1998   draft   program   “Sustainable   Development   in Germany”,   the  Ministry for the Environment proposed the introduction of an Environmental Barometer. Its aim is
to create an environmental equivalent to the already-existing aggregate indicators in the economic
and social sphere, such as gross national product, unemployment rate or rate of inflation. The
environmental indicators included in the Environmental Barometer are intended to cover the mostimportant issues of environmental protection and align them with key environmental medium- andlong-term targets. Six indicators have been formulated for the fields of climate, air, soil, water, anduse of energy and raw materials. Environmental developments can be described and the success or
failure of environmental policy can be measured by means of a small set of widely known andeasy-to-understand indicators.
Germany has a complex network of organized interest groups in the environment sector.
Between 5 and 7 per cent of the population are organized in environmental NGOs. The number ofenvironmental groups is estimated at a total of 400. Environmental organizations have been astrong driving force, both for environmental policy integration and a German strategy forsustainable development. The BUND, the German section of Friends of the Earth (230,000
members), together with the umbrella organization The German Nature Conservation Council (5.2
million members) supported the idea of a German Environmental Policy Plan in the 1998 election
campaign.
In Germany, early Local Agenda 21 processes originated by and large from non-governmental
players such as environmental and development organizations, church and youth groups, and to alesser degree from local politics. Rather seldom were they initiated by business associations.
Among the main measures outlined in the coalition agreement are the elaborations of a nationalsustainable development strategy, as well as institutional innovations to promote and organize thedrafting of this strategy. In July 2000, the National Council for Sustainable Development was
created by Cabinet decision. It is designed as an independent and pluralistic advisory body onsustainability issues and will be composed of 17 individual members representing all major societalgroups and actors (e.g. industry, trade unions, NGOs, science) which – after some delay –wereappointed in February 2001. Among its tasks are the promotion of societal debate on sustainable
development at the national and international levels (stakeholder dialogue) and the development of
concrete projects for implementing a national sustainability strategy. The federal government may
assign further tasks to the Council and ask for statements on specific issues.

© ISERD

86

IJERD – International Journal of Environmental and Rural Development (2011) 2–1

CONCLUSION
The following lessons can be drawn from the German case study on governance for sustainable
development:
1. Communicate the results to the general public as well as to relevant interest organizations toraise the necessary awareness.
2. The sustainable development strategy should be an extension and step-by-step enlargement of
the environmental strategy, rather than replacing it, towards a broader understanding ofsustainable development.
3. As shown above, the key elements of this climate-protection strategy are: high-level politicalcommitment for the formulation and implementation of ambitious goals; integration ofenvironmental policy objectives into other sectors; voluntary agreements; pioneer activities of
local communities; and broad public participation.
4. Non-environmental policy sectors should be mandated to develop their own sectoral strategies.
The leading role of Cabinet – or  the   “Green   Cabinet”   – should be clear and accepted by all
ministries. This should include a critical evaluation of both the formulation of sectoral
strategies and their implementation. The Federal Environment Agency and the Ministry for theEnvironment should play an important, mainly supportive; role in this process (so far these
institutions have been rather cautious and have adopted a policy of “wait-and-see”).
5. At the local level, general orientation for Agenda 21 processes, for example in the form of acompetitive investment program for local sustainable development initiatives (as practiced in
Sweden), should be provided.
REFERENCES
Brundtland Report (1987) Report of the world commission for environment and development, our common
future. OUP, Oxford, 1-10, UK.
Weiss, B. (1999) Our rights and obligations to future generations for the environment. 84 AJIL 1990, 200220.
Jänicke, M. & Helge, J. (2000) Umweltplanung im internationalen Vergleich Strategien. 55-60.
Massimiliano, M. (2008) Sustainable development within the climate change regime. in sustainable
development in international and national law, edited by Hans Christian Bugge & Christiana Voigt.
Europa Law Publishing, Netherlands, 20-30.
Sands P. (2003) Principles of international environmental law. Cambridge University Press, 120-130.
Wahyuni, S. (2006), Dissertation, Rechtsprobleme der Tropenwaldbewirtschaftung in Indonesien,
Bundesverlag, 55, Germany.

© ISERD

87

IJERD – International Journal of Environmental and Rural Development (2011) 2–1

Research article
erdChanges in Surviving E.coli, Coliform Bacteria andGeneral Bacteria in Manure with Air Drying Treatment
YUTA ISHIKAWA
Graduate School of Agriculture, Tokyo University of Agriculture, Japan
Email: y.ishika@cronos.ocn.ne.jp

MACHITO MIHARA
Faculty of Regional Environment Science, Tokyo University of Agriculture, Japan
Received 16 December 2010

Accepted 20 January 2011

Abstract Approximately 87 million tons of dung is being produced annually from cattle
farms all over Japan. Considering the proper treatment of this waste product, applying
manure to farmlands has been focused from a viewpoint of popularizing organic
agriculture. However, pathogenic bacteria known as E.coli may be released from theimmature fermented manure that was applied in farmlands. So, the treatment for
decreasing E.coli should be considered. Although air drying is known as an effective
treatment for decreasing E.coli, it might affect beneficial bacteria as well as pathogenic
bacteria. So, this study dealt with the observation of the change in several microorganisms
such as E.coli, coliform bacteria and general bacteria under air drying treatment. In theexperiment, 3 types of cow manure such as fresh, 2 weeks fermented and 12 weeks
fermented were employed. Air drying treatment was carried out to observe the survival of
E.coli, coliform bacteria and general bacteria during 28 days. The experimental results
showed that the number of E.coli and coliform bacteria decreased with passing day of air
drying process. Also, the number of general bacteria decreased with time of air drying
process. However, it was considered that the decrease in general bacteria possibly affects
the decomposing process of manure. Therefore, it was concluded that air drying treatment
for fresh cow dung is not a proper way but is applicable to the manure fermented for 2
weeks or 12 weeks.
Keywords cow dung, air drying, E.coli, coliform bacteria, general bacteria

INTRODUCTION
In Japan, about 87 million tons of dung has been produced annually from cattle farms. From aviewpoint of promoting organic agriculture, a proper treatment of this product has been recently
focused. However, in a bulk production of manure, the unintended inclusion of immature
fermented manure is possibly happened. Thus, there might be pathogenic bacteria known as E.coli
surviving and remaining in the produced manure (Chun-Ming et al., 2005). Once, these manures
were broadcasted into farmlands, the release of E.coli may occur through surface runoff resulting ina broad contamination of the surrounding environment, particularly in the watersheds (Mishra etal., 2007).
Accordingly, treatment for decreasing E.coli should be considered. Many kinds of treatment as
the supply of lime nitrogen and hot air were executed (Minato et al., 2001). Especially, air drying is
known as effective and simple treatment for decreasing E.coli (Saito and Mihara, 2010). However,air drying treatment might affect beneficial bacteria as well as pathogenic bacteria.
So, the objective of this study is to observe the differences of survival rate of several
microorganisms such as E.coli, coliform bacteria and general bacteria under air drying treatment.

© ISERD

88

IJERD – International Journal of Environmental and Rural Development (2011) 2–1

METHODOLOGY
The materials used in the experiment were collected from Fuji Farm of Tokyo University ofAgriculture. As shown in Figure 1, there were three types of materials collected; the fresh cow
dung, the 2 weeks and 12 weeks fermented manure having water content at 82%, 76% and 74%,
respectively. In addition, organic matters constituted 88% in the fresh cow dung, 87% in the 2weeks fermented manure and 85% in the 12 weeks fermented manure. The colony-forming unit(cfu) of E.coli was 9×104 cfu/g for the fresh cow dung. However, E.coli was not observed in the
manure fermented for 2 weeks or 12 weeks. The colonies of coliform bacteria were 36×106 cfu/g
for the fresh cow dung, 6×104 cfu/g for the 2 weeks fermented manure and 32×104 cfu/g for the 12
weeks fermented manure. The colonies of general bacteria were 68×107 cfu/g for the fresh cow
dung, 43×106 cfu/g for the 2 weeks fermented manure and 3×106 cfu/g for the 12 weeks fermented
manure.

Cow dung
2 weeks fermented manure

12 weeks fermented manure

Fig.1 Cow dung and manure

Table 1 Properties of cow dung and manure
Periodfermented

E.coli(cfu/g)Coliform
bacteria(cfu/g)Generalbacteria(cfu/g)Watercontent(%)

Organic
matter
(%)

Cow dung

0 days9×104

36×10668×107

82

88

Manurefermented for 2weeks

2 weeks

0

6×104

43×10676

87

Manurefermented for 12weeks

12 weeks0

32×104

3×106

74

85

Air drying experiment was conducted for 28 days. At 4th, 7th, 11th, 18th and 28th day, sampling
and mixing of manure was carried out (Fig. 2).
The colonies of E.coli, coliform bacteria and general bacteria were evaluated through thelaboratory experiments. The analysis of E.coli and coliform bacteria was carried out with XM-G
agar medium as shown in Fig. 3. The analysis of general bacteria was carried out with general agar
medium (Fig.4).

© ISERD

89

IJERD – International Journal of Environmental and Rural Development (2011) 2–1

Fig.2 Situation of air drying experimentE.colii
Coliform bacteria

Fig. 3 Colonies of E.coli and coliform bacteria

General bacteria

Fig. 4 Colonies of general bacteria

Fig.2 Air drying process in experiment

RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
Figs. 5-7 show the changes in the number of E.coli and water content in each sample. In cow dung,water content decreased with passing day, and further decreasing water content was not observed
after 7 days passed. In addition, it was observed that the number of E.coli also decreased with
passing day of air drying process. Based on the results of variance analysis, there was a significant
difference between the number of E.coli of 0 day and that after 4 days passed. However, E.coli
could not be sterilized perfectly. In 2 weeks or 12 weeks fermented manure, water content
decreased with passing day, and there was no change in water content after 7 days passed as well asthat of cow dung. In addition, E.coli was not detected from 2 weeks or 12 weeks fermented manure.
Figs. 8-10 show the changes in the number of coliform bacteria and water content in eachsample. In cow dung, there was a tendency for the number of coliform bacteria to decrease with
passing day of air drying process. And then, the number of coliform bacteria became stable ataround 15×103 cfu/g. In 2 weeks or 12 weeks fermented manure, the number of coliform bacteria
decreased with passing day of air drying process. Moreover, the number of coliform bacteria was
not observed after 7 days passed.
Based on the results of variance analysis, there was a significant difference between thenumber of coliform bacteria of 0 day and that after 4 days passed. In 12 weeks fermented manure,
the number of coliform bacteria also decreased with passing day of air drying process. Also, there
was a tendency for the number of coliform bacteria to be stable after 11 days passed. Based on the
results of variance analysis, a significant difference was observed between the number of coliform
bacteria of 0 day and that after 4 days passed. Therefore, it was considered that air drying treatment
is an effective way for decreasing pathogenic bacteria as E.coli or coliform bacteria.
Figs. 11-13 show the changes in the number of general bacteria and water content in eachsample. In cow dung, there was a tendency that the number of general bacteria decreased with
passing day of air drying process. Based on the result of variance analysis, there was a significant
difference between the number of general bacteria before 7 days passed and that after 11 days
passed. In 2 or 12 weeks fermented manure, the number of general bacteria decreased with passing
day of air drying process as well. In addition, a significant difference was observed between thenumber of general bacteria of 0 day and that after 4 days or 11 days passed for 2 or 12 weeks
fermented manure, respectively. Accordingly, it was considered that air drying process may
diminish the number of general bacteria, which includes beneficial bacteria for decomposing cow
dung.

© ISERD

90

B**

80

B**

B**

B** 60

1E+04
104

40

1E+02
102

20

100
1E+00

0

0

2

4

5

7

8

11 14
18
11 14 17
Time (day)E.coli

20

28
26

23

100
100

100

8080

80

6060

60

4040

40

2020

20

00

0

2

4

5

7

11 14
18
11 14 17
Time (day)8

Water content

E.coli

20

0

28
26

23

Water content (%)

E.coli (cfu/g)

**
B** B

1E+06
106

E.coli (cfu/g)

100

1E+08
108 A**

Water content (%)

IJERD – International Journal of Environmental and Rural Development (2011) 2–1

Water content

The data followed by different letters differs significantly at **99%

80

6060

60

4040

40

2020

20
2

4

5

7

8

11 14
18
11 14 17
Time (day)E.coli

20

100
1E+00

60

2E+05
2×105

40

1E+05
1×105

20

B*

23

B*
28
26

Coliform bacteria (cfu/g)

3E+05
3×105

Coliform bacteria

20

1E+06 5
12×10

B*

B*

B*

1E+06
106

80
60

1E+04
104

40

1E+02
102

20

1E+00
100

0

0

2

4

5

7

11 14
8Time
11(day)14

General bacteria

18
17

20

20

23

28
26

0

Water content

80
60
40

4E+05
4×105

23

20

B**
0E+00 0

0

2

4

5

B**
7

B** B** B**
11 14
18
8 11 14 17 20
Time (day)

23

B**
28
26

0

Water content

28
26

Fig. 10 Changes in coliform bacteria andwater content in 12 weeks fermented
manure

1E+09
109 A**

100
**
B** B

B** B**

106
1E+06

B**

B**

100
1E+00

80
60
40

103
1E+03

20
0

2

4

5

7

11 14
8 11 14
Time (day)General bacteria

Water content

18
17

20

23

28
26

0

Water content

The data followed by different letters differs significantly at **99%

The data followed by different letters differs significantly at *95%

Fig. 11 Changes in general bacteria andwater content in cow dung

© ISERD

11 14
18
11 14 17
Time (day)

8E+05
8×105

General bacteria(cfu/g)General bacteria(cfu/g)

1E+08
108

8

Coliform bacteria

100
B*

7

The data followed by different letters differs significantly at **99%

Water content (%)

A*

5

100

Water content

Fig. 9 Changes in coliform bacteria andwater content in 2 weeks fermented
manureA*

4A**

The data followed by different letters differs significantly at *95%

1E+101010 A*

40

Fig. 8 Changes in coliform bacteria andwater content in cow dung

Water content (%)

Coliform bacteria (cfu/g)

0

Coliform bacteria

80

0

60

The data followed by different letters differs significantly at **99%

100

B* B*
B*
4
7
11 14
18
2
5
8 11 14 17 20
Time (day)

B**

20

Water content

4E+05
4×105 A*

B*

B**

B**

102
1E+02

Fig. 7 Changes in E.coli and water content
in 12 weeks fermented manure

0E+00 0

B**

1E+04
104

0

28
26

23

80

B** B**

Water content (%)

0

100

A**

1E+06
106

Fig. 12 Changes in general bacteria andwater content in 2 weeks
fermented manure

91

Water content (%)

00

1E+08
108

Water content (%)

100

8080

Coliform bacteria (cfu/g)

100
100

Fig. 6 Changes in E.coli and water content
in 2 weeks fermented manure

Water content (%)

E.coli (cfu/g)

Fig. 5 Changes in E.coli and water content
in cow dung

100

A*

General bacteria(cfu/g)

1E+08
108 A*

B*

1E+06
106

B*

B*

B*

B*

1E+04
104

60
40

1E+02
102
100
1E+00

80

20
0

2

4

5

7

8

11 14
18
11 14 17
Time (day)General bacteria

20

23

28
26

Water content (%)

IJERD – International Journal of Environmental and Rural Development (2011) 2–1

0

Water content

The data followed by different letters differs significantly at *95%

Fig. 13 Changes in general bacteria and water content
in 12 weeks fermented manure

CONCLUSION
This study aimed to observe the difference in survival rate of E.coli, coliform bacteria and generalbacteria under air drying treatment through air drying experiment for cow dung, 2 weeks and 12
weeks fermented manure.
Based on the experimental results, there was a tendency for the number of E.coli and coliform
bacteria to decrease with passing day of air drying process. In addition, there was a significant
difference between 0 day and after 4 days passed. It was considered that air drying treatment iseffective way for decrease of pathogenic bacteria as E.coli or coliform bacteria.
However, the number of general bacteria also decreased with passing day of air drying
process. It was considered that air drying process may diminish the number of general bacteria,
which includes beneficial bacteria for decomposing cow dung.
Therefore, it was concluded that air drying treatment for cow dung is not proper treatment, but
it is applicable to manure fermented for 2 weeks or 12 weeks from viewpoint of decreasing
pathogenic bacteria as E.coli and coliform bacteria and of decomposing manure sufficiently. For
manure fermented for 2 weeks or 12 weeks, it was proposed that air drying treatment for 10 days
may be enough to decrease the number of E.coli and coliform bacteria extremely and to sustain
certain population of general bacteria.
REFERENCES
Mishra, A., Benham, L. B. and Mostaghimi, S. (2007) Bacterial transport from agricultural lands fertilizedwith animal manure. Water Air Soil Pollut, 189-4, 127-134.
Gong, C., Koshida, J., Moriyama, N., Xiaodan Wang, Udou, T., Inoue, K., and Someya, T. (2005)
Occurrence and survival of coliform bacteria, Escherichia coli and salmonella in various manure andcompost. Journal of the Science of Soil and Manure, 76-6, 865-874.
Yagura, H., Tada, N., and Yasutomi, M. (2006) Nitrogen, phosphorus and coliform contamination of outflow
in cattle grazing land. Research Bulletin of the Kyoto Prefectural Livestock Technological ResearchCenter, 3, 71-73.
Minato, K., Tamura, T. and Maeta, Y. (2001) Effect of adding nitoroilime to composting of cattle manureand the impact on Esherichia coli. Bulletin of the Hokkaido Animal Research Center, 24, 11-16.
Minato, K., Tamura, T. and Maeta, Y. (2001) The effect of sterilized for Eschrichia coli in cattle manure bynitrolime adding. Bulletin of the Hokkaido Animal Research Center, 24, 21-24.
Saito, Y, and Mihara, M. (2010) Management of manure taking into account of E.coli loss from farmland.
IJERD-International Journal of Environmental and Rural Development, 1-1, 175-180.

© ISERD

92

IJERD – International Journal of Environmental and Rural Development (2011) 2–1

Research article
erd

Growth and Yield of Organic Rice as Affected by Rice
Straw and Organic Fertilizer
ANAN POLTHANEE
Faculty of Agriculture, Khon Kaen University, Khon Kaen, Thailand
E-mail:panan@kku.ac.th

ARUNEE PROMKHAMBUT
Faculty of Agriculture, Khon Kaen University, Khon Kaen, Thailand

SOMPOTH KAEWRAHAN
Faculty of Agriculture, Khon Kaen University, Khon Kaen, Thailand
Received 16 December 2010

Accepted 25 January 2011

Abstract The objectives of this research were to investigate the effect of rice straw
management and the application of different types of organic fertilizer on the growth andyield of transplanted rice grown under rainfed conditions. The experiment was conductedin  a  farmer’s  field  in  Khon  Kaen  province  in  2009.  A  Randomized  Complete  Block  Design  was used with four replications. The treatments consisted of (1) rice straw incorporation
into the soil, (2) rice straw combined with cattle manure, (3) rice straw combined with bioextracted fertilizer and (4) rice straw combined with cattle manure and bio-extracted
fertilizer. In the present experiment, the rice straw remaining in the paddy field wasincorporated into soil after the rice harvest in April. Then the rice was transplanted inAugust. The amount of rice straw and cattle manure incorporated into the soil were about
5.1 and 9.4 tons/ha respectively, which provided N 129 kg/ha, P 41 kg/ha and K 382 kg/ha.
A liquid bio-extracted fertilizer was applied into the soil during the incorporation of ricestraw at a rate of 30 liters per hectare which provided N 28 g/ha, P 5 g/ha and K 135 g/ha
and foliar application at 60 days after rice transplanting which provided N 1.11 g/ha, P
0.18 g/ha and K 5.4 g/ha. It was found that the application of different types of organic
fertilizer combined with rice straw had a significant effect on plant height, but did notshow any significant effect on leaf area and aboveground dry weight at 30 days after
transplanting and at panicle initiation growth stage. At harvest, total aboveground dryweight and panicle number were significantly affected by the application of different typesof organic fertilizer. The treatment of rice straw combined with cattle manure and bioextract fertilizer gave the maximum panicle number. The treatment of rice straw combinedwith cattle manure gave maximum grain yield, but did not show any significant difference
from the treatment of rice straw combined with cattle manure and bio-extracted fertilizer.
Keywords organic rice, organic fertilizer, cattle manure, bio-extracted fertilizer

INTRODUCTION
Northeast Thailand has 5.27 million hectares of rainfed lowland rice growing area, which is about
57% of the rice growing area in the whole country (Office of Agricultural Economic [OAE], 2006).
The average grain yield in this region is low (2.07 t ha-1) (OAE, 2009), due to unstable water
availability (Bell and Seng, 2004). With the current renewed focus on sustainable agricultural
efficient resources (rice straw) recycling may be an alternative method of soil fertility management
for Northeastern lowland rice producers. Straw management by incorporation into the soils is analternative method to avoid straw burning before land preparation. Cattle manure is commonly anorganic fertilizer available in the farms of the smallholder farmers. The bio-extracted fertilizers arealso can be produced by farmers themselves using organic material wastes available in the farm.
© ISERD

93

IJERD – International Journal of Environmental and Rural Development (2011) 2–1

Present studies were, therefore, undertaken to evaluate the effect of rice straw alone and incombination with various organic sources of nutrients on the growth and yield of organic rice.
METHODOLOGYThe  experiment  was  conducted  in  a  farmer’s  field in Muang Yai village, Khon Kaen province in2009. The soil physio-chemical characteristics before planting are shown in Table 1. Randomized
Completed Block Design with four replications was used. The treatments consisted of (1) rice straw
incorporation into the soil, (2) rice straw combined with cattle manure, (3) rice straw combinedwith bio-extracted fertilizer and (4) rice straw combined with cattle manure and bio-extracted
fertilizer. Rice straw was incorporated after the rice harvest. The amount of nutrients returned to thesoil by incorporating rice straw into the soil was calculated as in Eq. (1).
Rice straw dry weight (kg ha -1 ) x nutrient content (%)
100

(1)

The amount of nutrients in the cattle manure applied to the soil before transplanting two weeks
at the rate of 9,375 kg ha-1 was calculated as in Eq. 2.
Rate of application (kg ha -1 ) x nutrient content (%)
100

(2)

The amount of nutrients in the bio-extracted fertilizer applied to the soil was calculated as in
Eq. 3.
Rate of application (kg ha -1 ) x nutrient content (%)
100

(3)

The bio-extracted fertilizer (vegetable wastes and molasses; by-product of the processing ofsugar cane into sugar, fermented for 7 days) applied into the soil at the rate of 3,125 liter ha-1 two
weeks before transplanting, and foliar application at rate of 1,250 ml ha -1 at 60 days after
transplanting.
Two to three seedlings per hill were transplanted in the first week of July in the pattern of 25 x
25 cm hills. Rice cv. KDML 105 was used in this study. Hand weeding was done one at 60 days
after transplanting. No insecticide and fungicide were used in this experiment.
Five hills from each plot were measured to classify their height at 30 days after transplanting(DAT) and at panicle initiation (PI) growth stage. Five hills from each plot outside the harvestingarea were randomly selected to determine leaf area at 30 DAT and PI. The leaf area was measured
using leaf area meter. Again, five hills from each plot outside the harvesting area were randomly
selected and oven dried at 80 ⁰Celsius for 4 days to determine total aboveground dry weight at 30
DAT and PI. The numbers of panicles per hill in the harvesting areas were measured at harvest time.
For the same samples, ten panicles from each plot were randomly selected to determine the numberof filled and unfilled grains and calculated the percentage of filled grain per panicle. The grain
yield was taken from the 2 x 3 m harvesting area of each plot and calculated as kg ha -1 at 14%
moisture content. The filled grains were randomly selected from the grain yield sample todetermine the weight of 1,000 grains. The data were analyzed using analysis of variance proceduresand LSD was used to compare treatment methods when the F-test was significant.
Rainfall, maximum and minimum temperature were recorded at the Khon Kaen
Meteorological Station 5 kilometers from the site. Weekly rainfall, as well as the maximum andminimum temperature during the growing season is shown in Fig. 1.

© ISERD

94

IJERD – International Journal of Environmental and Rural Development (2011) 2–1

Table 1 Soil physio-chemical characteristics before planting of the experimental field
Soil characteristics
Physical properties1-Sand (%)
-Silt (%)
-Clay (%)
Texture classChemical properties-­pH2-EC (ms/cm at 25 ºC)3
-Organic Matter (%)4
-Total N (%)5
-Available P (ppm) 6-Exchangeable K (ppm) 7-Exchangeable Ca (ppm) 7

Values
83.09
7.60
9.25
Loamy sand
5.24
0.070
0.352
0.02139.20
54.65
485.00

1

Texture: Hydrometer method, 2pH: pH meter (1:1 H2O), 3 EC (1:5 H2O),4O.M.: Walkley and Black method, 5Total N:
Kjeldahl method, 6Extractable P: Bray II and Molybdenum-blue method, 7Exchangeble K and Ca: 1N NH4OAc pH7 and
Flame photometry method.

RESULTS
Plant height
The plant height is not a yield component in grain crops but it indicates the influence of various
nutrients on plant metabolism. It was found that incorporation of rice straw into the soil combinedwith application of cattle manure gave the maximum plant height at 30 DAT and PI stage. The
plant height, however, did not show any significant difference from the incorporation of rice straw
into the soil combined with the application of cattle manure and bio-extracted fertilizer treatment(Table 2).

Fig. 1 Weekly rainfall (mm), maximum and minimum temperature (⁰C) in thefield during growing season in 2009
Leaf area per hill
The leaf area (cm2 hill-1) was taken at the 30 DAT and PI stage. It did not show any significant
difference among the treatments. The leaf area per hill, however, obtained the highest in thetreatment of the incorporation of rice straw into the soil combined with the application of cattle
manure at 30 DAT and the treatment of incorporation of rice straw into the soil combined withcattle manure and bio-extracted fertilizer (Table 2).

© ISERD

95

IJERD – International Journal of Environmental and Rural Development (2011) 2–1

Table 2 Plant height, leaf area and total aboveground dry weight of KDML 105 as affected byapplication of rice straw, cattle manure and bio-extracted fertilizer at 30 days after
planting (DAP) and at panicle initiation (PI) in 2009
Treatments
Rice straw
Rice straw + cattle manure
Rice straw + bio-extracted
fertilizer
Rice straw + cattle manure+bio-extracted fertilizer
F-testCV (%)

Plant height(cm)
30 DAPPI
59.00 b100.75 ab
65.75 a110.35 a
57.65 b96.55 bLeaf area(cm2/hill)
30 DAPPI
525.181358.70869.251642.00
520.351367.80

Total aboveground
dry weight (g/hill)
30 DAP
PI
3.63
19.35
5.05
22.16
2.87
15.68

61.55 ab105.95 ab754.631767.00

4.41

20.27

*
5.05

**
4.17

NS
40.00

NS
4.17

NS
29.68

NS
19.64

Means followed by the same letter at the same column were not significantly different by LSD*,** significant at P<0.05 and 0.01, respectively and NS not significant

Total aboveground dry weight
The total aboveground dry weight (g hill-1) was taken at the 30 DAT and PI stage. It did not show
any significant difference among the treatments. The maximum total aboveground dry weight,
however, was obtained in the treatment of incorporation of rice straw into the soil combined withthe application of cattle manure at 30 DAT and PI stage (Table 2).
Number of panicle per hill
The number of panicle per hill or per unit area is the most important component of yield. The larger
the number of panicles, the more the yield will be. In the present experiment, incorporation of ricestraw into the soil combined with the application of cattle manure and bio-extracted fertilizer
produced the maximum number of panicle per hill (9.00), but did not show a significant difference
from the incorporation of rice straw into the soil combined with the application of cattle manure(Table 3).
Table 3 Grain yield and yield components of KDML 105 as affected by application of ricestraw, cattle manure and bio-extracted fertilizer in 2009
Treatments

Panicleno./hill

Rice straw
Rice straw + cattle manure
Rice straw + bio-extracted fertilizer
Rice straw + cattle manure+ bio-extracted fertilizer
F-testCV (%)

7.50 b
8.50 a7.50 b
9.00 a*6.60

Filledgrains
(%)
96.90
96.65
97.10
95.78
NS
1.58

1000 grain
weight
(g)
25.24
26.42
25.10
25.34
NS
4.12

Grain yield(kg/ha)3103.13 b
3820.31 a
3239.38 b
3796.88 a*
11.78

Means followed by the same letter at the same column were not significantly different by LSD* significant at P< 0.05 and NS not significant

Fill grain percentage and 1000- grain weight
In the present experiment, rice straw incorporation into the soil alone and combined with variousorganic fertilizers did not show any significant difference in filled grain percentage and 1000-grain
weight (Table 3).

© ISERD

96

IJERD – International Journal of Environmental and Rural Development (2011) 2–1

Grain yield (kg ha-1)
The results showed that grain yield was significantly different among the incorporation of ricestraw into the soil and rice straw combined with various organic fertilizers treatments. The ricestraw incorporated into the soil combined with the application of cattle manure produced maximum
grain yield (3820 kg ha-1) which did not make a significant difference from the treatment of ricestraw incorporated into the soil combined with cattle manure and bio-extracted fertilizer (3797 kgha-1) (Table 3).
Nutrient concentration in leaf
The incorporation of rice straw into the soil alone and incorporation with various organic fertilizers
had no significant effect on N and K, but it did significantly affect the P concentration of theleaves. The incorporation of rice straw into the soil combined with cattle manure gave themaximum P (0.219%) concentration (Table 4).
Nutrient concentration in stem
The incorporation of rice straw into the soil alone and combined with various organic fertilizers hada significant effect on the N, P and K concentration of stem. The incorporation of rice straw into
the soil combined with the application of cattle manure and bio-extracted fertilizer gave maximum
N (0.535%) concentration of the stem. The incorporation of rice straw into the soil combined withapplication of cattle manure obtained the maximum P (0.267%) and K (2.938%) concentration of
the stem (Table 4).
Table 4 Nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium content in leaves and stems of KDML 105 asaffected by application of rice straw, cattle manure and bio-extracted fertilizer atpanicle initiation in 2009
Treatments
Rice straw
Rice straw + cattle manure
Rice straw + bio-extracted fertilizer
Rice straw + cattle manure+ bioextracted fertilizer
F-testCV (%)

N (%)
1.614
1.580
1.603
1.645

Leaf
P (%)
0.165 b0.219 a0.176 b0.212 a

K (%)
2.381
2.514
2.389
2.548

N (%)
0.430 b0.484 a0.500 a0.535 aStem
P (%)
0.193 b0.267 a0.208 b0.259 aK (%)
2.510 b2.938 a2.756 ab2.859 a

NS
2.92

**
2.92

NS
3.56

**
3.72

**
9.41

**
4.73

Means followed by the same letter at the same column were not significantly different by LSD** significant at P< 0.01 and NS not significant

DISCUSSION
The rice straw incorporated into the soil after the rice harvest combined with the application of
cattle manure significantly increased the grain yield over the yields from incorporation of the ricestraw alone. But it did not show any significant increase in the grain yield over the treatment ofincorporation of rice straw into the soil combined with application of cattle manure and bioextracted fertilizer. In general, rice straw provided a higher supply of K, but a lower supply of N
and P than the other organic fertilizers (Javier et al., 2002). At crop maturity, the rice straw has
about 40% of N, 30-35% of P and 80-85% of K (Dobermann and Fairhurst, 2002). In the present
experiment, rice straw provided N, P and K in the soil at 25.7, 6.2 and 47.4 kg ha-1, respectively.
Rice  straw  improves  the  soil’s  physical,  chemical  and  biological  properties  (Mandal  et  al.,  2004).  
In the treatment of incorporation of rice straw into the soil combined with the application of
cattle manure, the rice crop received additional N, P and K from the cattle manure. In the present
experiment, cattle manure provided N, P and K at 103.7, 35.1 and 335.6 kg ha-1, respectively.
© ISERD

97

IJERD – International Journal of Environmental and Rural Development (2011) 2–1

Cattle manure applied to the rice crop increased root density and enhanced root growth to deeper
soil layers (Abe et al., 1995). Cattle manure-P is relatively more mobile than inorganic fertilizer-P
and promotes microbiological activities and P cycling (Parham et al., 2002).
In the present experiment, however, bio-extracted fertilizer combined with cattle manure
application did not show any significant effect on grain yield in comparison with cattle manure
application. This is probably due to the small quantity of N, P and K that bio-extracted fertilizer
provided to the rice crop. The concentration value of N, P and K was about 0.089, 0.014 and0.433%, respectively. This means that the bio-extracted fertilizer provided an additional small
quantity of the nutrients to the rice crop. Kaewtubtim (2008) reported that quantity of macronutrients in soluble bio-extracted fertilizer depends on the sources of materials fermented. He foundan N concentration range of 0.24-0.64%, a P concentration range from 0.2 to 0.62% and a K range
from 0.54 to 2.09% in soluble bio-extracted fertilizer fermented from 6 native fruits.
The sufficient N concentration in leaves at the PI stage was about 2.6-3.2% of dry weight(Mikkelsen and Hunziker, 1971). In this experiment, the N in leaves at PI stage was 1.580-1.645%
of dry weight of all treatments. This indicates that the N in soil was not adequate for plant growthat PI. The N deficiency at PI stage caused a reduction of grain numbers per panicle and filled grain
percentage (Dobermann and Fairhurst, 2000).
The sufficient P concentration value in leaves at the PI stage was about 0.17% of dry weight(Fageria et al., 1988). In the present experiment, P in leaves at PI stage was 0.165-0.219% of dry
weight of all treatments. This indicates that P in soil provided an adequate amount for rice growthat PI. Similarly, in case of K, the sufficient K concentration value in leaves at the PI stage wasabout 1.0-2.2% of dry weight (Jones et al., 1991). In the present study, K in leaves at PI stage was
2.381-2.548% and 1.770-2.017% of dry weight of all treatments. This indicates that K in soil
provided adequate amount for rice growth at PI.
In this study of the growth and yield of organic rice as affected by rice straw and organic
fertilizer it was found that rice straw incorporated into the soil after rice harvest combined withapplication of cattle manure produced maximum grain yield (3820 kg ha-1). It produced an 18.77%
higher yield over the treatment of incorporation of rice straw into the soil alone. However, it did notshow any significant difference from the treatment of incorporation of rice straw into the soil
combined with application of cattle manure and bio-extracted fertilizer. In the present experiment,
number of panicle per hill is the most important component of yield.
REFERENCES
Abe, J., Songmuang, P. and Harada, J. (1995) Root growth of paddy rice with application of organic
materials as fertilizers in Thailand. JARO, 29, 77-82.
Bell, R.W. and Seng, V. (2004) Rainfed lowland rice-growing soils of Cambodia, Laos, and Northeast
Thailand. ACIAR Proceedings, 116, 161-173.
Dobermann, A. and Fairhurst, T.H. (2002) Rice straw management. Better Crop International, 16, 7-11.
Dobermann, A. and Fairhurst, T.H. (2000) Rice: Nutrient disorders and nutrient management. International
Rice Research Institute, Philippines.
Fageria, N.K., Wright, R.T. and Buligar, V.C. (1988) Rice cultivar evaluation for phosphorus use efficiency.
Plant and Soil, 111, 105-109.
Javier, E.F., Marguez, J.M., Gnospe, F.S., Manucod, H.F. and Tabien, R.E. (2002) Three year effect oforganic fertilizer use on paddy rice. Journal of Crop Sci., 27, 11-15.
Jones, J.B., Wolf, B. and Mills, H.A. (1991) Plant Analysis Handbook: A practical sampling, preparation,
analysis and interpretation guide. Micro-Macro Inc., USA.
Kaewtubtim, M. (2008) Quantity of plant nutrients in soluble organic fertilizer from fermented native fruits.
Agricultural Sci. J., 39, 31-34.
Mandal, K.G., Misra, A.K., Hati, K.M. and Kali, K. (2004) Rice residue management options and effects on
soil properties and crop productivity. Food, Agriculture and Environment, 2, 224-231.
Mikkelsen, D.S. and Hunziker, R.G. (1971) A plant analysis survey of California rice. Agrichem., 14, 18-22.
OAE (Office of   Agricultural   Economics)   (2009)   The   survey’s   report   of   major   rice   crop   year   2007/08.  
Agricultural Statistics. Ministry of Agriculture and Cooperatives, Thailand.

© ISERD

98

IJERD – International Journal of Environmental and Rural Development (2011) 2–1

OAE   (2006)   The   survey’s   report   of   major   rice   crop   year   2007/08.   Agricultural   Statistics.   Ministry ofAgriculture and Cooperatives, Thailand.
Parham, J.A., Deng, S.P., Roun, W.R and Johnson, G.V. (2002) Long-term cattle manure application in soil.
I. Effect on soil phosphorus levels, microbial biomass C and dehydrogenase and phosphatase activities.
Bio Fertile Soils, 35, 328-337.

© ISERD

99

IJERD – International Journal of Environmental and Rural Development (2011) 2–1

Research article
erd

Awareness of Organic Vegetable Production Practices inWest Java and Bali, Indonesia
CHIFUMI TAKAGIInternational Rice Research Institute, Makassar, Sulawesi Selatan, 90213, Indonesia
Email: c.takagi@irri.org, takagich@msu.edu

MURARI SUVEDI
Michigan State University, Michigan, USA
Received 16 December 2010

Accepted 21 February 2011

Abstract One of the challenges in developing organic agricultural production in Indonesia
is  increasing  farmers’  awareness  of  organic  farming methods to grow high quality organic
products. Recognizing the need for research and development of organic agriculture, theDevelopment of New Bio-Agents for Alternative Farming (DNBAF) project establishedpilot farms in West Java and Bali in 2005 in order to field test the use of bio-pesticides andcompost. Since lack of extension is a constraint in developing organic agriculture inIndonesia,   it   is   important   to   understand   what   factors   determine   farmers’   knowledge   of  organic farming methods. The goal of this study was to determine the factors associatedwith awareness of organic vegetable production practices including bio-pesticides andcompost in West Java and Bali, Indonesia. The study tested the hypothesis that socioeconomic variables affect the farmers’   familiarity   with   bio-pesticides and compost. The
socio-economic variables examined were: respondent's location, gender, age, educationlevel, household size, number of family laborers, farming experience, farm size, distanceto the pilot farm, irrigation sources, land tenure status, net revenue of cabbage, tomato,
carrot production, exposure to the pilot farm and any information source groups (media,
extension, farmer and commercial groups). Data were collected using a face-to-face survey.
In the survey, a total of 627 households of vegetable farmers surrounding the pilot farms inWest Java and Bali constituted the population, and 210 farmers selected by a systematic
random sampling method were interviewed. The study hypothesis was tested by a binary
logit analysis. The binary logit analysis showed that the factors associated with awarenessof the practices included: location, gender, educational level, distance to the pilot farms,
exposure to the pilot farms, and information sources.
Keywords organic agriculture, bio-pesticide, compost, socio-economic, binary logit analysis

INTRODUCTION
Vegetable production is an important agricultural sub-sector in Indonesia. In recent decades, due toa rapid increase and diversification in demand for fresh vegetables, production of temperate
vegetables has drastically increased in the upland areas of the major islands including Java andSumatera. For farmers, growing temperate vegetables has great potential for increasing theirincome (Fujimoto and Miyaura, 1997).
Historically, the golden era of agricultural extension in Indonesia was the Green Revolution
program, and at this time agricultural extension played a pivotal role in increasing production ofrice (Mundy, 1992). Although the agricultural extension system played an important role in thedevelopment of agriculture, lack of sufficient management and the huge institutional inertia of alarge extension bureaucracy considerably weakened the system. Because of weakening financial
and technical support, extension services virtually collapsed (Sulaiman and Hall, 2004). In the
1990s, the Ministry of Agriculture moved toward decentralization to ensure effectiveness, increaseaccountability to farmers, and reduce costs to the central government. Many districts dissolved their© ISERD

100

IJERD – International Journal of Environmental and Rural Development (2011) 2–1

old extension systems and set up new extension structures based on the needs of regional farming
conditions (Zakaria, 2003). One result of this decentralization was the elimination of governmental
subsidies for chemical fertilizers and pesticides, which increased their cost to farmers, andconsequently decreased their use. This increased cost of chemical fertilizers and pesticides boosted
interest in integrated pest management and non-chemical alternative technologies, such as organic
agriculture* (Johnson, et al., 2008).
In 1997 the soaring cost of agricultural inputs precipitated by the monetary crisis induced
many farmers to switch to organic methods (Prawoto and Suyono, 2005). Following this organic
agriculture movement, the government issued the National Standard for Organic Food (SNI 016729-2002) adopted from the Codex CAC-GL 32/1999 in 2002. However, research anddevelopment activities related to organic agriculture in the country have been largely lacking(Prawoto and Suyono, 2005).
Recognizing the need for research and development of organic vegetable production, theDevelopment of New Bio-Agents for Alternative Farming (DNBAF) project established pilot farms
in West Java and Bali in 2005 in order to field test the application of biological insecticides (biopesticides) and the use of organic fertilizers (compost).
One   of   the   challenges   in   developing   organic   farming   in   Indonesia   is   increasing   farmers’  knowledge of organic farming methods to grow high quality organic products (Surono, 2007). As aresult of an agricultural extension process, farmers may adopt a new technology. The farmers willobtain enough knowledge of the technology through communication and education processes.
Through these processes, farmers will form an attitude toward the technology, and can decide
whether they will adopt the technology or not. If the farmers decide to adopt the technology, it will
be implemented (Rogers, 1995). Since lack of extension is a constraint in organic agriculture inIndonesia, at the first step, it is   very   important   to   understand   what   factors   determine   farmers’  knowledge of organic farming methods. However, until 2007, no systematic technology adoption
study of the organic conversion process had been conducted in Indonesia.
Since the DNBAF project is an example of organic conversion, this study investigatedfarmers’   knowledge  of   organic   farming   methods,  including   use   of   bio-pesticides and compost on
three vegetable crops – cabbage, tomato, and carrot. The three crops were the major vegetables
grown in the project sites. The study was conducted in two communities surrounding the pilot
farms: Sukagalih village, sub-district of Megamedung, district of Bogor in West Java and Bangli
village, sub-district of Baturiti, district of Tabanang in Bali.
METHODOLOGY
Data were collected using a face-to-face survey from July to October 2007. In the survey, a total of
627 households of vegetable farmers surrounding the pilot farms in West Java and Bali constituted
the population, and 210 farmers selected by a systematic random sampling method wereinterviewed. This study tested the hypothesis that socio-economic   variables   affect   the   farmers’  familiarity with bio-pesticides and compost. The socio-economic variables examined were:
respondent's location, gender, age, education level, household size, number of family laborers,
farming experience, farm size, distance to the pilot farm, irrigation sources, land tenure status, net
revenue of cabbage, tomato, carrot production, exposure to the pilot farm and any information
source groups (media, extension, farmer and commercial groups). These variables were identified
based   on   Padel’s   (2001)   organic   conversion   model   and   a   literature   review   of   organic   vegetable  production in Indonesia (Sudana, et al., 2003; Syaukat, 2003; Dadang, et al., 2005; Sumiartha, et al.,2005; Dadang, et al., 2006; Syaukat, 2006) . The study hypothesis was tested by a binary logit*

Organic agriculture is defined by the Secretariat of the Joint FAO/WHO Food Standards Program (Codex CAC-GL
32/1999) as “holistic   production   management   systems which promote and enhance agro-ecosystem health, including
biodiversity, biological cycles, and soil biological activity. It emphasizes the use of management practices in preference
to the use of off-farm inputs, taking into account that regional conditions require locally adapted systems. This isaccomplished by using, where possible, cultural, biological and mechanical methods, as opposed to using synthetic
materials, to fulfill any specific function  within  the  system”  (p.3).

© ISERD

101

IJERD – International Journal of Environmental and Rural Development (2011) 2–1

analysis, which is commonly used to analyze the factors influencing decision making in the field ofagriculture, such as adoption of new technologies (Cavane, 2007; Banerjee, et al., 2008; Zhou, etal., 2008). The statistical software SPSS was used for the analysis. Definitions of variables used in
the logit model are listed in Table 1. Two dichotomous dependent variables were:(1) familiarity
with bio-pesticides is a dependent variable if respondent is familiar with bio-pesticides = 1 and if
not familiar = 0 (F_BIO); (2) familiarity with compost is a dependent variable if respondent isfamiliar with compost = 1 and if not familiar = 0 (F_COMP).
Table 1 Variables definition in the binary logit model
Variables
Dependent Variables
F_BIO
F_COMP
Explanatory Variables
LOCA
GEN
AGE
EDU2
EDU3
EDU4
EDU5
HS
FL
EXPERIENCE
FARM
DIS
DIRR
DLAND
CNETREVTNETREVWNETREVEXPO
IFG_MEDIA
IFG_EXTENIFG_FARMER
IFG_COMMER

Definition
Familiarity with bio-pesticides (familiar = 1, not familiar = 0)
Familiarity with compost (familiar = 1, not familiar = 0)
Location of respondent (West Java = 1, Bali = 0)
Gender of respondent (male = 1, female = 0)
Age of respondent (year)
Education level of respondent (some primary school = 1, other = 0)
Education level of respondent (completed primary school = 1, other = 0)
Education level of respondent (completed junior high school = 1, other = 0)
Education level of respondent (completed high school = 1, other = 0)
Household size of respondent
Number of farming labor force in a household
Farming experience of respondent (year)
Area of the farm (unit: are; 1 ha = 100 a)
Distance  from  respondent’s  house  to  the  pilot  farm  (km)Irrigation dummy (have irrigation = 1, no irrigation = 0)
Land tenure dummy (secure land tenure = 1, unscure land tenure = 0)
Net revenue of cabbage production (thousand rupia / 0.5 ha)
Net revenue of tomato production (thousand rupia / 0.5 ha)
Net revenue of carrot production (thousand rupia / 0.5 ha)
Total  number  of  “exposure  question”  checks
Total  number  of  “information  source  question”  checks:  TV,  radio,  magazine/journal, internet (media information group)
Total  number  of  “information  source  question”  checks:  extension  agent,  NGO, university (extension information group)
Total  number  of  “information  source  question”  checks:  farmers’  group,  organic farmers, other farmers, family member, self-study (farmer
information group)
Total  number  of  “information  source”  checks:  market  people,  commercial  company/agricultural retail store (commercial information group)

Note: EDU variables compare familiarity with bio-pesticides relative to vegetable farmers with educational levelof no schooling (EDU1).

Explanatory variables include location of respondent (LOCA), gender of respondent (GEN),age of respondent (AGE), five dummies for education level (EDU), household size of respondent(HS), number of farming family labor (FL), farming experience of respondent (EXPERIENCE),
area   of   the   farm   (FARM),   distance   from   respondent’s   house   to   the   pilot   farm   (DIS),   irrigation  dummy variable if respondent has an irrigation = 1 and if no irrigation = 0 (DIRR ), land tenure
status dummy if respondent has secure land tenure = 1 and if unsecure land tenure = 0 (DLAND ),net revenue of cabbage production in Indonesian rupiah per 0.5 hectare (CNETREV), net revenueof tomato production in Indonesian rupiah per 0.5 hectare (TNETREV), net revenue of carrot
production in Indonesian rupiah per  0.5  hectare  (WNETREV),  total  number  of  “information  source  question”   checks   for   media   information   source   group   including   TV,   radio,   magazine/journal   and  internet   (IFG_MEDIA),   total   number   of   “information   source   question” checks for extension
information group including extension agent, NGO, university (IFG_EXTEN), total number of© ISERD

102

IJERD – International Journal of Environmental and Rural Development (2011) 2–1“information   source   question”   checks   for   farmer   information   source   group   including   farmers’  group, organic farmers, other farmers, family member and self-study (IFG_FARMER) and total
number  of  “information  source”  checks  for  commercial  information  source  group  including  market  people, commercial company/agricultural retail store (IFG_COMMER). In addition, variable of
exposure to the pilot farm was identified  as  total  number  of  “exposure  question”  checks  (EXPO).  
RESULTSThe coefficients, their standard errors, significance levels and odds ratio for bio-pesticides are listed
in Table 2. The likelihood ratio test suggests the estimated model had a good fit with a statisticallysignificant score of 192.15 at the 1 percent level. The McFadden R2, a pseudo R-square, was 0.294,
which  falls  in  the  range  0.2  to  0.4  that  is  considered  an  “extremely  good  fit”  (Hensher  and  Johnson,  1981). Prediction success statistics indicated that the model correctly predicted about 76.6 percentof the responses.
The results of Table 2 identified no significant influences of any variables except exposure to
the pilot farm (EXPO), educational level equaling completed primary school (EDU3), educational
level  equaling  completed  junior  high  school  (EDU4)  and  distance  from  respondent’s  house  to  the  pilot farm (DIS) for the probability of familiarity with bio-pesticides.
Tables 2 Estimated coefficients of the binary logit model for familiarity of bio-pesticide
Variables
LOCA
GEN
AGE
EDU2
EDU3**
EDU4**EDU5
HS
FL
EXPERIENCE
FARM
DIS*
DIRR
DLAND
CNETREVTNETREVWNETREVEXPO***
IFG_MEDIA
IFG_EXTENIFG_FARMER
IFG_COMMER
Constant

B
1.204
20.194
0.005
1.239
1.729
2.392
1.495
0.167
-0.1110.009
0.001-0.433-0.660-0.210
0.000
0.000
0.000
0.551
-0.029
0.003
0.191
0.244
-23.155

S.E.
0.733
11838.243
0.021
0.759
0.872
1.087
1.209
0.146
0.310
0.023
0.003
0.253
0.574
0.488
0.000
0.000
0.000
0.183
0.267
0.403
0.333
0.386
11838.243

Wald
2.697
0.000
0.054
2.666
3.930
4.846
1.531
1.301
0.128
0.163
0.244
2.938
1.322
0.186
0.332
0.127
0.918
9.026
0.011
0.000
0.328
0.400
0.000

Sig.
0.101
0.999
0.816
0.103
0.047
0.028
0.216
0.254
0.720
0.686
0.621
0.087
0.250
0.667
0.564
0.722
0.338
0.003
0.915
0.993
0.567
0.527
0.998

Exp(B)
3.332
589042554.824
1.005
3.453
5.637
10.938
4.461
1.182
0.895
1.009
1.001
0.648
0.517
0.810
1.000
1.000
1.000
1.734
0.972
1.003
1.210
1.277
0.000

Note:  Likelihood  ratio  test:  χ2 =  192.152  (d.f.  =  22);;  critical  χ2 = 33.92; p >  χ2: < 0.0001. McFadden R2 = 0.294.
The percent correct classification is 76.6 %. Number of observations = 210. ***, ** and * indicate statisticalsignificant P<0.01, P<0.05, and P<0.10, respectively. EDU variables compare familiarity with bio-pesticides
relative to vegetable farmers with an educational level of no school (EDU1). A positive sign on any of theeducational dummies would mean that farmers in that particular educational category had a higher probability of
being familiar with bio-pesticides than farmers with an educational level of no school.

Exposure to the pilot farm (EXPO) had a significant positive effect at the 1 percent level in themodel, indicating that vegetable farmers who knew about the pilot farm had higher probabilities ofbeing familiar with bio-pesticides than farmers who did not know about the pilot farm. In addition,© ISERD

103

IJERD – International Journal of Environmental and Rural Development (2011) 2–1

the positive coefficients of the educational level of completed primary school (EDU3) and theeducational level of completed junior high school (EDU4) were significantly different from zero atthe 5 percent level. The odds ratio of DEU3 indicated that farmers who had completed primaryschool had about six times higher probability of being familiar with bio-pesticides, compared to thefarmers who never went to school. Also, the odds ratio of DEU4 indicated that farmers who hadcompleted junior high school had about eleven times higher probability of being familiar with biopesticides, compared to the farmers who never went to school. Moreover, the negative coefficientof distance  from  respondent’s  house  to  the  pilot  farm  (DIS)  was  significantly  different  from  zero  at  the 10 percent level. This was interpreted to indicate that farmers who lived closer to the pilot farm
had a higher probability of being familiar with bio-pesticides rather than those who lived far fromthe pilot farm.
Table 3 shows the coefficients, their standard errors, significance levels and odds ratio forcompost. The likelihood ratio test suggests the estimated model had a good fit with a statisticallysignificant score of 209.116 at the 1 percent level. The McFadden R2, a pseudo R-square, was
0.218, which falls  in  the  range  0.2  to  0.4  that  is  considered  an  “extremely  good  fit”  (Hensher  and  Johnson, 1981). Prediction success statistics indicated that the model correctly predicted 72.6
percent of the responses.
Table 3 Estimated coefficients of the binary logit model for familiarity of compost
Variables
LOCA*
GEN*
AGE
EDU2
EDU3
EDU4
EDU5
HS
FL
EXPERIENCE
FARM
DIS
DIRR
DLAND
CNETREV*TNETREVWNETREVEXPO**
IFG_MEDIA
IFG_EXTENIFG_FARMER
IFG_COMMER*
Constant*

B
1.329
1.730
0.013
-0.317-0.263
0.853
1.598
0.010
0.090
-0.0160.001-0.029-0.316
0.213
0.000
0.000
0.000
0.464
0.163
0.430
0.143
0.644
-3.113

S.E.
0.710
0.898
0.020
0.664
0.731
0.920
1.197
0.143
0.284
0.021
0.003
0.224
0.584
0.482
0.000
0.000
0.000
0.216
0.284
0.411
0.340
0.359
1.640

Wald
3.509
3.716
0.399
0.228
0.129
0.860
1.782
0.005
0.100
0.552
0.043
0.016
0.293
0.195
3.514
0.843
2.604
4.616
0.332
1.092
0.178
3.206
3.603

Sig.
0.061
0.054
0.527
0.633
0.719
0.354
0.182
0.946
0.752
0.457
0.836
0.899
0.588
0.659
0.061
0.359
0.107
0.032
0.564
0.296
0.673
0.073
0.058

Exp(B)
3.779
5.643
1.013
0.728
0.769
2.347
4.944
1.010
1.094
0.984
1.001
0.972
0.729
1.237
1.000
1.000
1.000
1.591
1.178
1.537
1.154
1.903
0.044

Note:  Likelihood  ratio  test:  χ2 =  209.116  (d.f.  =  22);;  critical  χ2 = 33.92; p >  χ2: < 0.0001.
McFadden R2 = 0.218.
The percent correct classification is 72.6 %. Number of observations = 210. ***, ** and * indicate statisticalsignificant P<0.01, P<0.05, and P<0.10, respectively. EDU variables compare familiarity with bio-pesticides
relative to vegetable farmers with an educational level of no school (EDU1). A positive sign on any of theeducational dummies would mean that farmers in that particular educational category had a higher
probability of being familiar with compost than farmers with an educational level of no school.

© ISERD

104

IJERD – International Journal of Environmental and Rural Development (2011) 2–1

The results of Table 3 identified no significant influences of any variables except exposure to
the pilot farm (EXPO), location of respondent (LOCA), gender of respondent (GEN), net revenueof cabbage production (CNETREV), total   number   of   “information   source”   checks   for   the  commercial information source group (IFG_COMMER), and the constant on the probability of
being familiar with compost.
Exposure to the pilot farm (EXPO) had a significant positive effect at the 5 percent level in themodel, indicating that vegetable farmers who were exposed to the pilot farm had higher
probabilities of being familiar with compost than farmers who were not exposed to the pilot farm.
In addition, the positive coefficients of the location of respondent (LOCA) and gender of
respondent (GEN) were significantly different from zero at the 10 percent level. According to theodds ratio of LOCA, farmers in West Java had about a four times higher probability of being
familiar with compost than farmers in Bali. According to the odds ratio of GEN, male farmers had
about a six times higher probability of being familiar with compost than female farmers. Moreover,the positive coefficient of net revenue of cabbage production (CNETREV) was significantly
different from zero at the 10 percent level. However, the coefficients of CNETREV were zero
because their frequencies were small; thus there was no influence on the familiarity with compost.
The positive coefficient of total   number   of   “information   source”   checks   for   commercial  information source group (IFG_COMMER) was significantly different from zero at the 10 percent
level. This was interpreted to indicate that farmers who obtained information for their vegetableproduction from market people and commercial company/agricultural retail stores (commercial
information group) had higher probability of being familiar with compost than those who did not
obtain information from the commercial information group. Finally, the negative coefficient ofconstant was significantly different from zero at the 10 percent level, but this interpretation of theintercept might not have any real meaning (Gujarati, 1995).
DISCUSSION
The analysis showed that an educational level of at least primary school (EDU3 and EDU4) anddistance  from  respondent’s  house  to  the  pilot  farm  (DIS)  were  associated  with  increasing  farmers’  awareness of bio-pesticide (Table 2) but there was no significant influence of educational level onthe  farmers’  awareness  of  compost  (Table  3).  One  of  the  possible  reasons  for  this  disparity  is  that  use of compost might be recognized as a traditional technology and use of bio-pesticide might berecognized as a modern-new technology of organic farming by the vegetable farmers. For the
farmers, they might be able to learn a new technology easily from their experiences despite the lackof a higher educational background if it was based on a traditional technology because they might
have experience in using a similar form technology. However, if the new technology is a modernnew technology, it might be more difficult to learn because of lack of experience. To understandthe modern-new technology, farmers may need guidance by agricultural specialists, observableconcrete examples and basic knowledge of the technology.
Location of respondent (LOCA) and gender of respondent (GEN) were associated withincreasing  farmers’  awareness  of  compost  (Table  3)  while  there  was  no  significant  influence  of  the  location  on  the  farmers’  awareness  of  bio-pesticide (Table 2). One of the possible reasons for thisresult is that the uneven gender balance in the respondents between West Java and Bali. All
respondents in West Java were male. Most respondents in Bali (89.3 percent) were also male. Oneof the main reasons for the predominance of male respondents was that the study sites were in rural
Indonesia, where the societies are male-centered, conservative, and have heavy religious influencesfrom both Islam and Hindu faiths. When the researcher developed a list of respondents, all weremale heads of households in West Java, and male heads of households also predominated in Bali.
The  researcher  explored  who  was  really  involved  in  vegetable  farming  in  a  respondent’s  household  during a short conversation before the actual interviews, and this was what the actual collected data
showed.

© ISERD

105

IJERD – International Journal of Environmental and Rural Development (2011) 2–1

CONCLUSION
The results indicated no significant influence of any of the variables, except exposure to the pilot
farm (EXPO), educational level of completed primary school (EDU3), educational level ofcompleted  junior  high  school  (EDU4)  and  distance  from  respondent’s house to the pilot farm (DIS)
on the probability of being familiar with bio-pesticides; no significant influences of any variables
except exposure to the pilot farm (EXPO), location of respondent (LOCA), gender of respondent(GEN), and commercial information source groups (IFG_COMMER) on the probability of being
familiar with compost.
These findings imply that an educational level of at least primary school, distance to the pilot
farms, and exposure to the pilot farms would be the key factors in increasing  farmers’  awareness  of  bio-pesticides. Gender, exposure to the pilot farms, and commercial information source groups
would   be   the   key   factors   to   increase   farmers’   awareness   of   compost.   Especially,   exposure   to   the  pilot farms would be the most important factor  to  increase  farmers’  awareness  of  the  target  organic  vegetable production practices.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
We would like to express our appreciation to Dr. Akimi Fujimoto, who was a leader of DNBAF projectat Tokyo University of Agriculture in Japan. He provided the research opportunity for this study, andfinancial support for fieldwork in Indonesia.

REFERENCES
Banerjee, S., Martin, S.W., Roberts, R.K., Larkin, S.L., Larson, J.A., Paxton, K.W., English, B.C., Marra,
M.C and Reeves, J.M. (2008) A binary logit estimation of factors affecting adoption of GPS guidancesystems by cotton producers. Journal of Agricultural and Applied Economics, 40-1, 345-355.
Cavane,  E.P.A.  (2007)  Farmers’  attitudes and adoption of improved maize varieties and chemical fertilizers
in the Manica district, Mozambique. Ph.D. dissertation. Department of Community, Agriculture,
Recreation and Resource Studies, Michigan State University, USA.
Dadang, A. and Ohsawa, K. (2005) The effectiveness of plant extracts in reducing cabbage insect pest
population and their effect on natural enemies. Journal of International Society for Southeast Asian
Agricultural Sciences, 11-3, 142-149.
Dadang, G.S., Nawangsih, A.A., Syaukat, Y. and Tjahjono, B. (2006) Development of organic rice andvegetables in the district of Bogor, West Java, Indonesia: Development of new bio-agents for alternative
farming systems: 2005 Report. Academic Frontier Research Center, Tokyo University of Agriculture,
Japan.
Fujimoto, A. and Miyaura, R. (1997) Farm management appraisal of Tumpang Sari vegetable cultivation inhighland West Java, A one year study of farmers’ practices in Cipanas. Jour. Agri. Sci., Tokyo Nogyo
Daigaku, 41-4, 211-228.
Gujarati, D.N. (1995) Basic econometrics, third edition. McGraw-Hill, USA.
Hensher, D.A. and Johnson, L.W. (1981) Applied discrete choice modeling. Croom Helm, UK.
Johnson, G.I., Weinberger, K. and Wu, M.H. (2008) The vegetable industry in tropical Asia: Indonesia.
Tainan, Taiwan: The World Vegetable Center.
Mundy, P.G.W. (1992) Information sources of agricultural extension specialists in Indonesia. Ph.D.
dissertation. Department of Mass Communications, The University of Wisconsin, Madison, USA.
Padel, S. (2001) Conversion to organic milk production, The change process and farmers’  information needs.
Ph.D. dissertation. Institute of Rural Studies, University of Wales, Dyfed, UK.
Prawoto, A. and Surono, I. (2005) Organic agriculture in Indonesia, A wannabe big player in the organic
world. The Organic Standard, 49, 3-6.
Rogers, E.M. (1995) Diffusion of innovations. Free Press, USA.
Sudana, M., Temaja, I.G.R.M., Miyaura, R. and Fujimoto, A. (2003) Cultural practices and economic
analysis of organic and conventional vegetable farming in Bali, Indonesia. Journal of International
Society for Southeast Asian Agricultural Sciences, 9-3, 104-113.
Sulaiman, R. and Hall, A. (2004) Extension policy at the national level in Asia. Paper presented at the 4thInternational Crop Science Congress, Australia.
© ISERD

106

IJERD – International Journal of Environmental and Rural Development (2011) 2–1

Sumiartha, K., Susila, W. and Sudiarta, P. (2005) Effect  of  “Selasih”  (Ocimum tenuiflorum) plant oil on fruit
flies (Bactrocera dorsalis complex) in Long Chili. Journal of International Society for Southeast Asian
Agricultural Sciences, 11-3, 46-50.
Surono, J.I. (2007) Country case study of Indonesia. Power point document presented at the Regional
Conference on Organic Agriculture in Asia, Thailand.
Syaukat, Y. (2003) Factors affecting farmers in adopting low-input rice farming system in Tempuran Subdistrict, Karawang, Indonesia. Journal of International Society for Southeast Asian Agricultural
Sciences, 9-3, 90-103.
Syaukat, Y. (2006) Potential development of organic vegetables in Sukagalih Village, Megamendung
Subdistrict, Bogor, West Java. In Development of New Bio-agents for Alternative Farming Systems:
2005 Report, 194-205. Tokyo University of Agriculture, Japan.
Zakaria, A. (2003) Decentralizing extension to local government: Indonesia experience. Paper presented at
the Regional Workshop on Operational Zing Reform in Agricultural Extension in South Asia, India.
Zhou, S., Herzfeld, T., Glauben, T., Zhang, Y. and Hu, B. (2008). Factors affecting Chinese farmers’  decisions to adopt a water-saving technology. Canadian Journal of Agricultural Economics 56-1, 51-61.

© ISERD

107

IJERD – International Journal of Environmental and Rural Development (2011) 2–1

Research article
erd

Impacts of Micro-credit on Household Economics
SIVCHOU TENG
University of Battambang, Battambang, Cambodia
Email: sivchouteng@yahoo.com

SOKHAK PRIEN
University of Battambang, Battambang, Cambodia

NARA MAO
Royal University of Agriculture, Phnom Penh, Cambodia

BUNHOR LENG
Royal University of Agriculture, Phnom Penh, Cambodia
Received 17 December 2010

Accepted 25 January 2011

Abstract This research was conducted to investigate the impacts of micro-credit on local
household economics in Prek Norin Commune by focusing on people who took a loan
from microfinance institutions and continue to use it. This study mainly focuses on threeobjectives, socio-economic factors of households using credit, the status of using microcredit and effects of micro-credit on household economics. Data were collected via survey,
using face to face interviews with a hundred and forty two household heads. Simple
random sampling method was used to select the samples from two villages (Prektachreng
and Prek Krouch) in Prek Norin Commune, Ek Phnom district, Battambang province.
Therefore, the accuracy of the analysis heavily relies on the data provided by interviewees.
The result of this study revealed that those using micro-credit have better living standards
than before because of income and asset growth. In addition, using micro-credit also
creates more job opportunities and variety of economic activities, provides more jobs for
women,   and   improves   household   education,   women’s   status,   and   family   welfare.   It   also  reduces income inequality in the villages. However, micro-credit has negative impacts on
people’s  feeling  because  most  people  are  more  concerned  about  paying  back  the  loan.
Keywords impacts, micro-credit, economics

INTRODUCTION
Microfinance is a development program related to the provision of financial services to people with
low incomes; these services are credit, saving and insurance (Khan and Rahaman, 2007; Wanchoo,2007 and Bakhtiari, 2006). Microfinance is recognized as the most essential tool for poverty
alleviation in many developing countries (Brandsma and Chaouli, 1998; ADB, 2000; Emilia, 2005;
Posner, 2007 and Shastri, 2009), and microfinance is an effective instrument that can improve onmost  important  things  for  poor  people  such  as  households’  welfare,  education,  economics,  people’s  living standards and empowerment of women (Felix, 2007 and Singh, 2004). Even though some ofthe studies showed that microfinance can reduce poverty, people who used credit did not know how
microfinance could help to alleviate poverty (Khan and Rahaman, 2007).
Most of the research studies showed that microfinance could provide a lot of positive resultson peoples household economy such as creating more job opportunities, increasing householdincomes,   building   up   women’s   abilities,   improving household education and family welfare;however, microfinance could also be a heavy responsibility for people too. When people usedfinancial service, they could increase household income more easily than before, buy morehousehold’s   assets,   and   improve their living standards. Especially the group of poor households
who have used microfinance to change their daily livelihood by preparing their future plans such,© ISERD108

IJERD – International Journal of Environmental and Rural Development (2011) 2–1

as household investment and income, building and fixing their houses, improving family welfare
and education (Bakhtiari, 2006 and Felix, 2007).
In Cambodia, the number of Microfinance institutions (MFIs) has increased significantly,
especially in this last decade. A number of people borrowed funds from those MFIs to set up theireconomic activities, but up until now there has been no research study that shows how micro-credit
affects  people’s  lives.  Therefore,  this  study  was  conducted  to  find  out  the  impacts  of  micro-credit
on   people’s   living   status.   According   to   this   research   objective,   a   hypothesis was set that microcredit  provided  positive  results  to  the  people’s  way  of  living.
METHODOLOGY
Quantitative research was applied, so that structured interviews were used to interview a hundredand forty two households heads by selecting them from two villages, Prek Tachreng and Prek
Krouch, in Prek Norin Commune, Ek Phnom District, Battambang Province.
This study relied on two types of data; primary data and secondary data. Primary data whichwere collected from people through questionnaires was used as the most important data in thisresearch. Therefore, the questionnaires were pre-tested in order to correct some difficult questions.
A lot of documents such as the last research thesis, journal, and paper were used as secondary datato compare with the similar research all over the world.
The sample size was defined by using non-probability sampling method, selecting only thepeople who took a loan from institutions and continue to use it. Purposive sampling method wasused to select the research location and the simple random sampling method was used to selecthousehold heads using credit from the list given by both village chiefs.
Data collected from interviewees was coded and entered into Ms Excel and SPSS for analysis.
The data were analyzed in two ways, qualitative and quantitative data analysis. Descriptive andinferential statistics were used in data analysis, which were Time Series Regression, ANOVA, Chisquare Test, Gini Coefficient, Lorenz Curves, Graphic and Charts.
RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
Profiles of households using micro-credit
Interview status was focused on gender, age, marital status, education and time duration of living inthis study area and the main annual income of every household using micro-credit. The results inTable 1 showed that 93 percent of families using credit were women, and only 7percent were men.
The majority of credit borrowers were over thirty years old; besides this, they were in the age groupof eighteen to thirty years old. Among all borrowers, most of them did not have high education,
which 17 percent never having gone to school, 59 percent studied in primary school, 23 percent
studied in secondary school, and only 1 percent studied in high school.
In addition, the result showed that 23.50 percent of seventy-one households were the families
having a main job as doing business, 23.50 percent selling labor, 14.70 percent feeding animals,
10.30 percent rice farmers, and 11.80 percent having other jobs. The result of this study also
illustrated that 41 percent of household using micro-credit could earn incomes between 15 to 10
million riels in a year, and only 7 percent could earn incomes over 20 million riels per year fromhouseholds’  main  jobs.
Income distribution during 2008-2009
Fig. 1 indicated that household income distribution curve in 2008 moved away from the perfectequality; it means that income distribution of people in 2008 had inequality between group ofpeople having high incomes and low incomes. Whereas, the Lorenz curve represented for income© ISERD

109

IJERD – International Journal of Environmental and Rural Development (2011) 2–1

distribution in 2009 had moved toward the perfect equality line than in 2008; it showed that income
inequality of each household in 2009 was in low level. Moreover, Gini coefficient of incomes in2009 (Gini=0.3484) fell down by comparing with 2008 (Gini=0.3847). This fall also illustrated that
income inequality in 2009 was better than the last year, so micro-credit could help to reduceincome inequality of people living in this study area.
Table 1 General status of interviews
Variables
Gender (n=71)
Age

Education

Main jobs in family

Annual Incomes (Main jobs)

Categories
Male
Female18 to 30 years old
31 to 40 years old
Over 40 years old
Illiteracy
Primary school
Secondary school
High school
Doing Business
FarmerLabor selling
Animal feeding
Other jobs
1 to 5 million riels
5,000,001 to 10,000,000 riels
10,000,001 to 20,000,000 riels
Over 20,000,000 riels

Percentage
7.00
93.00
20.00
21.00
59.00
17.00
59.00
23.00
1.00
38.00
28.00
11.00
10.00
13.00
38.00
41.00
14.00
7.00

Income distribution during 2008-2009
The Fig. 1 represented that households income distribution curve in 2008 moved away from theperfect equality; it means that income distribution of people in 2008 had inequality between groupof people having high incomes and low incomes. Whereas, the Lorenz curve represented forincome distribution in 2009 had moved toward the perfect equality line than in 2008; it showed that
income inequality of each household in 2009 was in low level. Moreover, Gini coefficient ofincomes in 2009 (Gini=0.3484) fell down if comparing with 2008 (Gini=0.3847). This fall also
illustrated that income inequality in 2009 was better than the last year, so micro-credit could help toreduce income inequality of people living in this study area.

Fig. 1 Income inequality between 2008 and 2009

© ISERD

110

IJERD – International Journal of Environmental and Rural Development (2011) 2–1

Status of using micro-credit
The Fig. 2 indicated that the total loan size of those borrowers in this area had increased from 2005
to 2009 according to the function of time series regression: y = 23,240,000 x -46,581,806,000,
which x demoted the year, and y represented the total loan size in year x. The result displayed thatthe total loan size had grown up 23,240,000 riels per year, and this loan size had related to the year
significantly (ANOVA: p = 0.0066**), which this model could be used to forecast the total loan
size of sampling households to be 130,594,000 riels in 2010.

Fig. 2 Comparison of total loan size from 2005 to 2009
Impact on household’s  incomes
The study on impact of micro-credit on incomes was observed by the different important types ofmain jobs such as doing business, agriculture, labor selling and other jobs from 2006 to 2009. It
indicated  that  the  mean  of  households’  incomes  increased  consequently  during  this  period  (Fig.  3).

Fig. 3 Increase of income in different job sectors from 2006 to 2009

Fig. 4 Time series regression of increasing assets© ISERD

111

IJERD – International Journal of Environmental and Rural Development (2011) 2–1

Impact on household’s  assets
The  study  on  households’  asset  status  in  this  area  was  focused  only  on  the  important  assets  such as
TV, motorbikes, bicycles and telephones and the other assets. According to the time series
regression analysis of asset growth, it showed  that  the  amount  of  households’  assets  in  this  study  area had increased after using micro-finance until now. Through the function of time series
regression  analysis  on  households’  asset,  it could be estimated that the asset growth in 2010, which
TV would increase to 53, motorbikes to 60, bicycles to 65 and telephones to 63 (Fig.4).
Impact on household’s  job opportunities
The result in Table 2 showed that the job opportunities had changed a lot, starting from having only
one job to more jobs in each household after using micro-credit. In fact, during 2006 most ofpeople had one job, and only a few people had two jobs in their families. However, in 2009 themajority of households had two jobs in the family, and the minority households had three jobs.
Table 2 Comparison of job opportunities of people from 2006 to 2009
Year
2006
2007
2008
2009

Percentage of households
Two Jobs
25
36
49
62

One Job
70
56
41
21

Three Jobs
5
8
10
17

Impact on women, education and welfareThis study had shown that most of people using micro-credit were women who had right to makedecision  on  households’  problems.  In  addition,  all  of  those women had a lot of job opportunities,
and  had  been  involved  in  income  generating  activities  for  households’  living.  
The result also proved that using micro-credit could empower the level of education throughborrowing   loans   to   pay   children’s   school   fees and earning incomes for sending their children toschool. Surely, 72 percent of households brought up children to school and left opportunities forthem to get training. Furthermore, women also had more ability to supply food and nutrition forhouseholds’ daily living. Therefore, using micro-credit could not only helped to increasehouseholds’   income,   assets   and   job   opportunities,   but   it   could   help   to   empower   women   to   be  involved   in   society,   provide   household   members’   educational   opportunities   and   make   family’s  welfare better, too.
Impact on feelingAccording to the results of interviews, the interviewees had observed that 34 percent of them wereconcerned about repayment the loan such as, paying late and having not enough money on the due
date of the capital repayment. Some households were worried about confiscation of their lands,
houses and assets by microfinance institutions they borrowed from. Some of other household wereconcerned about getting sue by institutions when they had no abilities to pay the loan in order toreceive their mortgage-able things back. Moreover, most of those people did not want to beembarrassed or loss of reputation. All the above reasons revealed some negative impacts on
people’s feeling using micro-credit.
According to the result of hypothesis testing through ANOVA analysis on annual incomes, themeans  of  those  household’s  annual  incomes  had  increased  consequently  from  2006  to  2009  in  the  level of significant testing at 10 percent, which p=0.086*. This result indicated that using microcredit could help people to increase their incomes as the same as result of last researchers such as
Dieckman, (2007); World Bank, (1998); Yunus, (2006); Yunus, (1999); Doocy et al., (2003);© ISERD112

IJERD – International Journal of Environmental and Rural Development (2011) 2–1

Goldberg, (2005); Ottogenghi, (2008); Shetty, (2006); Rahman et al., (2009); Ghalib, (2007);
Pathirange, (2005); Rajat, (2007); Hassan, (2006).
The  testing  on  household’s  assets  by  using  time  series  regression  model  focused  on  only  the  very important assets of people using micro-credits. The result of analysis showed that the amountof televisions, motorbikes, bicycles and telephones increased strongly in statistic at
p=0.000***<0.001, which means that the increase of all above assets had strong correlation withthe year when those assets were bought. This revealed that after using micro-credits,  household’s  assets could increase, and it was the same as the findings of some last researchers such as ADB,
(2007); Kaboki and Townsend, (2002); Zaman, (2000).
Women

WelfareEducation

Affect FeelingMicro-credit
Increased Assets

Provided Job
Opportunities

Household’s Economics

Increased
Savings

Increased
Incomes

Increased Expense

Decreased Incomes
Inequality

Fig. 5 Summary diagram of impact of micro-credit on household’s economics
Furthermore,  the  study  showed  that  using  credit  could  improve  households’  living  and  other  expenditure abilities such as spending on medical treatment to be helthier, and this study was thesame as the result of Datar et al.,(2008), which indicated that microfinance had positive impacts on
livelihoods and welfare when income increased. Additionally, micro-credit also helped to provide
job opportunities for women, empowered women and provided educational opportunities forchildren, that was similar with the findings of Sayasene (2007); and Maldonado (2002).
CONCLUSION
According to the overall results of this study, it can be concluded that micro-credit was strongly
related to the improvement of household’s   economics.   In   addition, micro-credit had improved
household’s   living   to   be   better,   because   it   could   increase   household’s   incomes,   assets,   job  opportunities, the empowerment of women, education and family welfare to those people using
microcredit. However, data also showed that micro-credit created some negative impact such as thestress of borrowing. Despite this, we can say that microfinance is an effective tool for poverty
alleviation in Cambodia.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
We would like to give our regards to local authorities. The Prek Norin Commune leader, Prek Tachreng
village leader and Prek Krouch chiefs, who gave a lot of information and documents related to peopleusing micro-credit in this study area. Especially, we would like to say thanks to the people using microcredit in both villages who had spent their value time to give interviews for our study.

REFERENCES
ADB (2000) Finance for the poor: Microfinance development strategy. www.adb.org/documents/policies/
microfinance/financepolicy.pdf.
© ISERD

113

IJERD – International Journal of Environmental and Rural Development (2011) 2–1

ADB (2007) Effect of microfinance operations on poor rural households and the status of women. http://
www.adb.org/Documents/Evaluation/Management-Response/SES/MR-SES-Microfinance-perations.pdf
Bakhtiari, S. (2006) Microfinance and poverty reduction: Some international evidence. (IBER), 1-5.
Brandsma, J. and Chaouli, R. (1998) Making microfinance work in the Middle East and North Africa.
http://Worldbank.org/document/research/library.
Datar, M.S., Epstein, M.J. and Yuthas, K. (2008) In microfinance, clients must come first. Stanford social
innovation review. Leland Stanford Jr. University.
Dieckmann, R. (2007) Microfinance: An emerging investment to opportunity. Deutsche bank research.
Uniting social investment and financial returns, Germany. http://www.dbresearch.com/PROD/DBR_
Internet_EN-PROD/PROD0000000000269174.pdf.
Doocy, S., Norell, D., Teffera, S. and Burnham, G. (2003) Outcomes of an Ethiopian microfinance programand management actions to improve services. Journal of Microfinance, 1-7, 84-87.
Emilia, L. (2005) Fighting poverty with microfinance: The democratisation of finance-future directions for
microfinance: Utsikt motutveckling 25, Uppsala Universitet, 16.
Felix, O.O. (2007) Social and economic impact of Fondo Minga microcredit program. Master thesis,
Universidad Austral de Chile, Chile.
Ghalib, A.K. (2007) Measuring the impact of microfinance intervention, A conceptual framework of social
impactaAssessment. The Singapore economic review conference, 1-2.
Goldberg, N. (2005) Measuring the impact of microfinance, Taking stock of what we know. Grameen
foundation USA publication series. http://www.gfusa.org.
Hassan, M. (2006) Institutional transformation of poverty-focused microfinance institutes in Bangladesh,
Nepal and Malaysia. Universiti Sains Malaysia, 2-15, Malaysia.
Kaboski, J.P. and Townsend, R.M. (2005) Policies and impact, An analysis of village-level microfinanceinstitutions. Journal of European Economic Association, 3-1, Thailand.
Khan, M.A. and Rahaman, M.A. (2007) Impact of microfinance on living standards, empowerment andpoverty alleviation of poor, A case study on microfinance in the Chittagong district of Bangladesh.
Umea School of Business, Department of Business Administration, Sweden.
Maldonado, J.H. (2002) The influence of microfinance on human capital formation: Evidence from Bolivia.
The Ohio State University, USA.
Ottolenghi, D. (2008) The economic and impact of microfinance: Options for the mediterranean. 4th FEMIP
conference. www.eib.org/attachments/general/.pdf.
Pathiranage, T.D. (2005) Role of micro-finance in improving living conditions - A case study of Samurdhibank societies in SriLanka. Graduate school of regional development studies, Sri Lanka.
Posner, A.V. (2007) Green microfinance, A blueprint for advancing social equality and environmental
sustainability in the United States. Master thesis, Brown University, USA.
Rahman, S., Rafiq, R.B. and Momen, M.A. (2009) Impact of micro-credit programs on higher income
borrowers: Evidence from Bangladesh. Int’l. Business & Economics Research Journal (IBER), 119-123.
Rajat, W. (2007) Micro-finance in India: The changing face of microcredit schemes. MPRA paper, India.
Sayasene, C. (2007) Assessing credit needs of the rural poor in Lao PDR: A case study of two villages inThakhek district. Master research, School of Environment. ARCMDG Publication.
Shastri, R.K. (2009) Micro finance and poverty reduction in India (a comparative study with Asian countries).
African Journal of Business Management, 3-4. http://www.academicjournals.org/ajbm/abstracts/abs
tracts/abstracts2009/April/Shastri.html.
Shetty, N.K. (2006) The microfinance promise in financial inclusion and welfare of the poor: Evidence from
India. Research scholar centre for economic studies and policy institute for social and economic change,
India, 1-10.
Singh, S.K. (2004) Microfinance and empowerment of scheduled caste women, An impact study of SHGs in
Uttar Pradesh and Uttaranchal. BL centre for development research and action, India.
Wanchoo, R. (2007) Microfinance in India: The changing face of micro-credit schemes. UNSPE CIFIED, 2.
World Bank (1998) Using microcredit to advance women. PREM (poverty reduction and economic management) notes. http://www.worldbank.org/documents/research.
Yunus, M. (1999) Banker to the poor, Micro-lending and the battle against world poverty. Public affairs,
USA. http://nobelprize.org/nobel_prizes/peace/yunus-lecture-en.html.
Yunus, M. (2006) Nobel lecture. Norway. http://nobelprize.org/nobel_prizes/peace/yunus-lecture-en.html.
Zaman, H. (2000) Assessing the poverty and vulnerability impact of micro-credit in Bangladesh: A casestudy of BRAC.Office of the chief economist and senior vice-president (DECVP), World Bank. http://
www.worldbank.org/library/poverty.
© ISERD

114

IJERD – International Journal of Environmental and Rural Development (2011) 2–1

Research article
erd

Organic Rice Farming Systems in Cambodia:
Socio-economic Impact of Smallholder Systems in Takeo
Province
SA KENNVIDYRoyal University of Agriculture, Phnom Penh, Cambodia
Email: kennvidy@yahoo.com
Received 19 December 2010

Accepted 25 January 2011

Abstract Organic farming is recognized as an important system of agriculture and foodproduction, that is environmentally sustainable and can generate several positive impacts
to rural society. The development of organic farming in Cambodia is in its early stage.
Thus, the objectives of this research were to   identify   the   farmers’   perception on organic
rice farming and to analyze the economic effects of the system. Data collection was carriedout through a pretested interview schedule, two types of questionnaires and a personalobservation schedule while descriptive and inferential statistics were analyzed with the useof statistical package for the social sciences or SPSS software. The results showed that the
majority of farmers converted their farms into organic farms because of premium prices onorganic products and 15% increase from their farm incomes compared to conventionalfarms. Adapting organic rice farming is able to increase rice yields by 5% accounting from
2.46 to 2.59 tons per hectare. The increased amounts of rice production were equivalent to21%. Furthermore, organic farming systems could be more stable since the analysis of its
economic efficiency was higher than conventional farming system.
Keywords organic rice, farming system, potential, constraints, smallholder systems

INTRODUCTION
Rice production in Cambodia is considered as the dominant crop in the agricultural sector like theneighboring countries in Southeast Asia (Deichert and Yang, 2002) which provides food, income
and employment. Most Cambodians consume rice as staple food and over 80% of farmers cultivate
rice as the primary crop. Rice production accounts 9% of GDP (ACI, 2002) which directly
connected to about 65% of Cambodians (Deichert and Yang, 2002).
Takeo province is one of the main rice farming areas in Cambodia. From 85% to 90% of
population depend on agricultural sector. Rainfed rice cultivation is the main source of income of
the farmers (Sath et al., 2008). In this region, farm sizes are classified into 3 extents; as small scale
farming at an average of 0.8 ha, medium scale farming at an average of 2 ha and large scale
farming at an average of 4.5 ha. Although farmland areas are limited in the region, agricultural
cultivation method is still in a traditional way of farming (Saruth and Gee-Clough, 1998). Most
farmers use synthetic fertilizer to increase crop production. In 2000, farmers in Takeo province
initiated to use about 100% of inorganic fertilizers (Ieng et al., 2002, Pracilio et al., N/A).
According to the survey, using excessive amounts of fertilizer have only little effect on rice
yields. In addition, poor practices in the application of agrochemicals can affect directly to humanhealth, decline soil fertility and reduce aquatic resources (Mary et al., 2000).
An organic rice association (CEDAC) basing in Tramkok District, Takeo Province which
produced organic rice, supports local farmers on technical knowledge in organic farming andfacilitates marketing of organic rice products from the local farmers. However many farmers in theregion could not adapt organic rice farming possibly due to the lack of education on the benefits oforganic farming. Thus, the result in this study is expected that could contribute to the adaptation of
the local farmers in organic farming.
© ISERD

115

IJERD – International Journal of Environmental and Rural Development (2011) 2–1

The goal of this research is to analyze socio-economic impact of smallholder systems in
Tramkok district. In this connection, the objectives of this study are to (1) identify the difference on
production  techniques  and  farmers’  perception  of  organic  rice  farming in Tramkok district, Takeo
province and (2) analyze the economic performance between organic and conventional farming.
METHODOLOGY
The results presented in this paper are based on qualitative and quantitative methods of primarydata collection and inquiry. In order to study the differences of two rice farming systems, total of
60 farmers whom 30 farmers are dealing with organic farming and other 30 farmers fromconventional farming were subjected for the interview in this study.
Furthermore, qualitative and quantitative methods such as semi-structured and in-depth
interviews, identification of key-informants, and field visits were used to fulfill the necessary dataneeded in this study. Data was collected through a pretested interview schedule, two types ofquestionnaires and a personal observation schedule then descriptive and inferential statistics wereanalyzed with the use of SPSS software.
RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
Table 1 shows the differences between organic and conventional rice farming. It was observed thatorganic farming can save around 50% of seeds per hectare of rice field along with wider spacing onplanting of rice seedlings in organic farming than that in conventional farming. Regarding withfertilizers, big amounts of organic fertilizers are necessary to be applied into the field than that ofsynthetic fertilizers. However the price of organic manures is much cheaper, that cost 10 riel per
ton of cow manure than that of synthetic fertilizer that cost around 1600 riel per kg.
Table 1 Differences between organic and convention rice farming
Pre-cultivation

Cultivation

Post-harvest(1)(2)

Production Stage
Farm location
Seed / haOrganic farms
Near from the village
20 kg

Conventional farm
Disperse
More than 40 kg

Land preparation

2 or 3times

Cultivation method

Transplantation

2 times or lessDirect seeding /transplantation
More than 20 days
< 20 cm
Chemical fertilizers
50-100 kg
Hoes and Hands
No
RainfedSeedling age
Space between line and row
Fertilizers
Amount of fertilizers
Weed control
Pest control
Irrigation

12 - 15 days
25 - 30 cm
Organic fertilizers(1)3 - 4 tons
Hoes and Hands
No
RainfedStorage12-13% of moistureseparately with otherproducts

No restriction

Organic fertilizers including compost, animal manure such as cattle dung …    Farmers in the research area did not use pesticide or herbicides in their rice field.

Motivations on transforming to organic farming
According to the data collected through individual interview, farmers have different motivations intransforming to organic farming. Farmers shifted to organic farming in order to reduce the expenses
on synthetic fertilizers, to avoid the negative effects of synthetic fertilizers to health, to utilize the© ISERD

116

IJERD – International Journal of Environmental and Rural Development (2011) 2–1

available resources in the neighborhood, to conserve the environment as well as soil and water
quality and to acquire the beneficial prices on organic products.
Fig. 1 shows that the low cost production and high price of organic rice products are theremarkable reasons for converting the conventional farming to organic farming accounting for 63%
and 57% respectively. Meanwhile some of the farmers were encourage converting to organic
farming due to its increasing effects on rice yields which accounts 40% of the interviewed farmers
while 17% of them stated for health benefits.

Fig. 1 Farmers’  motivation  on transforming to organic farming

Perception of organic farmers
Farmers slowly realized the advantages on cultivating rice through organic farming which results
the increasing number of households along with the increasing area of paddy fields in rural villages
in the region. In addition, most of the organic farmers pursue to continue on carrying out organic
farming. As shown in Fig. 2, 80% of organic farmers were motivated to pursue organic farming due
to the higher net income from organic products. Also, the high market demand and high quality oforganic products was 57% and 30% respectively. Other farmers, constituting 15%, were favored tokeep the products for their own consumption.

Fig. 2 Perception of organic farmers

Perception of conventional farmers
Fig. 3 shows that 60% of conventional farmers were convinced to convert their rice field into
organic while the other 40% stated to remain the conventional method of rice farming.
Reasons from farmers who intend to shift into organic rice farming;
・Production cost is getting higher every year with the increasing prices of chemicalfertilizers
・More amounts of synthetic fertilizers needed to be applied into conventional rice fields
to maintain its production output© ISERD

117

IJERD – International Journal of Environmental and Rural Development (2011) 2–1

・Prevent the side effects of applying agrochemicals on human health・Economically favorable for them since they can produce compost by themselves
・Promote social relationship among local farmers through ideas and knowledge sharing
・Farmers can have a benefit of acquiring technical support on organic farming from
NGOs
Reasons from farmers who intend to continue the conventional methods on rice farming:
・High labor cost of transporting manures or organic fertilizers to the rice fields
・Excessive use of synthetic fertilizers results more rice yields
・Poor soil quality will be improved by using synthetic fertilizers.
・There is no enough labor to carry out organic rice farming.
・Rice cultivation is considered as the second source of income in their families
・Lack of understanding on the benefits of organic rice farming

Fig. 3 Proportion of conventional farmers to convert into organic farming

Economic performance in organic and conventional rice farming
Based on the data collected at the research site, it was found out that the gross revenue atconventional rice farming was 2,460,059 riel while at organic rice farming was 2,081,110 riel. For
clear comparisons of economic performances between organic and conventional farming, indicators
were used as follows; net revenue, total cost, break-even yield, net revenue/cash expense ratio.
The net revenue was calculated per hectare of the field and as shown in Table 2, it is clearly
indicated that organic rice farming was higher of net revenue at 21% than that in conventional rice
farming. This could be attributed to the higher yields and higher prices of organic rice products.
Total cost of production includes noncash and cash form. It was found out that conventional rice
farming had higher cost production for 45% than that in organic rice farming. This was due to thehigher cost of synthetic fertilizers accounting to 90% of cash cost. In this connection, to produce 1
ton of unmilled organic rice will cost 81,040 riel compared to conventional rice which will cost
147,061 riel. Break-even yield is the yield that will pay for the total cost variable cost. Since thetotal cost of production was mainly due to the higher cash cost of production, the break-even yield
was the highest in the conventional farm followed by organic farm. Organic fields could produce
212 kg per ha at a price of 950 riel per kg of rice compensating for the total cost of 201,071 riel.
Meanwhile, conventional fields could produce 343 kg per ha at a price of 848 riel per kg of ricecompensating for the total cost of 290,946 riel. Net revenue/cash expenses are the ratio between the
net return over the cost of production. Due to the high cash costs and the lower net revenue in theconventional farming, the net revenue/cash expenses values were lower than that in the organic
farming. The economic efficiency of organic rice farming was at an average of 19 higher than thatof conventional rice farming at an average of 9. Therefore, it was clearly indicated that the organic
rice farming is economically more beneficial than conventional rice farming.
According to these results, organic rice farming has become the priority for the development© ISERD

118

IJERD – International Journal of Environmental and Rural Development (2011) 2–1

in agricultural sector in Cambodia, especially for small scale farmers. Although, organic rice yields
increased only at 5%, its net revenue was higher than that in conventional rice farming. It was also
observed that organic rice farming saves up to 50% of rice seeds compared to conventional rice
farming by controlling the spaces between planting of rice seedlings.
Table 2 Economic performances between organic and conventional rice farming
Items
Gross revenue (riel)
Yield (t/ha)
Price (riel/kg)
Total cost (riel)
Noncash cost (riel)
Cash cost (riel)
Net revenue (riel)
Net revenue/cash expenses
Break-even yield (kg/ha)
Total cost to produce 1 ton of rice
Economic efficiency

Organic farm
2,460,059
2.59
950
201,071
82,494
118,577
2,258,987
19
212
81,04019

Conventionalfarm
2,081,110
2.46
848
290,946
53,959236,988
1,790,164
8
343
147,061
9

OF-CF

∆%

378,9490.13
102-89,875
28,535-118,411
468,82311-131-66,021
10

15%
5%
11%
-45%
35%
-100%
21%
58%
-62%
-81%
53%

Significant
level
**
n.s
*
**
*
*
**
**
**
**

n.s : no significant, *: significant at 0.05 level, **: significant at 0.01 level
OF : Organic farming, CF : Conventional farming∆% : Difference in percentage between organic and conventional farming

CONCLUSION
The findings presented throughout this study indicated that organic rice farming is not only
environment friendly but also gains more profit and economic efficiency than that of conventionalfarming with the use of high amounts of synthetic fertilizers. Farmers were also proposed to expand
the area of organic rice fields to increase organic rice production. Moreover, farmers became awareof the risks and effects of chemical pesticides and synthetic fertilizers, thus, most of theconventional rice farmers in the study area proposed to stop using agricultural chemicals.
In conclusion, with the positive perception of farmers in Tramkok District, Takeo Province onorganic rice farming, 60% of farmers adapted and converted their rice fields into organic farming.
Organic rice farming also contributed to the improvement of economic situation to the farmers
where its net revenue was higher than that on conventional rice farming.
REFERENCES
Agrifood Consulting International (2002) Rice value chain study: Cambodia, report prepared for the worldbank, Phnom Penh, Cambodia, 13-27.
Deichert, G. and Yang, S.K. (2002) Experiences with system of rice intensification (SRI) in Cambodia,
Cambodian Center for Study and Development in Agriculture (CEDAC), 01.
Mary, C., Vann, K. and Sun, V. (2000) Survey on environmental and health effects of agrochemical used inrice production in Takeo province, CAMBODIA, 9-17.
Pracilio, G., Bell, R.W., Cook, S., Ros, S. and Seng, V. (N/A) Mapping rice yield and its fertilizer response atprovincial-scale in Takeo, Cambodia.
Saruth, C. and Gee-Clough, D. (1998) Agricultural mechanization in Cambodia: a case study of Takeo
province, agricultural mechanization in Asia, Africa and Latin America, Tokyo, Japan, 51-56.
Sath, K., Borin, K. and Preston, T.R. (2008) Survey on feed utilization for cattle production in Takeo
province. Livestock Research for Rural Development. Volume 20, supplement.

© ISERD

119

IJERD – International Journal of Environmental and Rural Development (2011) 2–1

erd

International Society ofEnvironmental and Rural Development

Philosophy of ISERD:
Recently, in developing countries, subsistence agriculture is being converted to export-oriented mono-culture,and the amounts of agricultural chemicals applied to the farmland are increasing every year. The appliedchemicals in farmland cause serious environmental problems downstream such as eutrophication, unusual
growth of aquatic plants, decrease in dissolved oxygen and accumulation of bottom mud in water resources.
Also, there seem to be many cases in which people apply agricultural chemicals without understanding its
impact to health and food safety. Therefore, it is necessary to promote and enhance understanding ofsustainable rural development among local stakeholders including farmers.
Sustainable rural development aims to meet human needs while preserving the natural environment. As
it should cover not only social and economic development but also natural environment conservation, no
single organization can achieve sufficiently the aspirations of sustainable rural development. Collaboration
among international, governmental and non-governmental organizations, together with the academe andscientific sector, is indispensable.
The knowledge and intelligence accumulated in universities and research institutions are also expected
to make the programs facilitated by the international, governmental and non-governmental organizations
more adequately implemented and meaningful to societal development. However, these cases especiallythose implemented locally have been scattered without having been summarized well or recorded in annals
academic or scientific societies.
So, the International Society of Environmental and Rural Development founded in 2010, aims to discussand develop suitable and effective processes or strategies on sustainable rural development focusing on
agricultural and environmental aspects in developing countries. The ultimate goals of the society are tocontribute to sustainable rural development through social and economic development in harmony with thenatural environment, and to support the potential or capacity building of local institutions and stakeholders in
the rural area with academic background.
Purposes of ISERD:
The primary purposes of ISERD are to contribute to sustainable rural development through social andeconomic development in harmony with the natural environment and to support the potential or capacity
building of local institutions and stakeholders in the rural area with academic background.
In order to enhance the realization of the primary purposes of ISERD, the secondary purposes are;- to facilitate interaction among international, governmental, non-governmental organizations and local
communities,- to hold conferences or symposia on environmental and rural development,- to publish the International Journal of Environmental and Rural Development, and- to encourage and develop local awareness concerning sustainable rural development.
Membership:
There shall be two categories of membership.
(a) Individual(b) Organizational
An application for membership of ISERD shall be submitted to the secretariat of ISERD, Institute ofEnvironment Rehabilitation and Conservation (Japan) or Association of Environmental and Rural
Development (Thailand) by writing or by other appropriate means.
Council of ISERD:
The affairs of ISERD shall be governed and managed by the ISERD Council. The councilors are as follows.
President
Prof. Dr. Mario T. Tabucanon, United Nations University, Institute of Advanced Studies, Japan
Deputy President
Dr. Bunthan Ngo, Royal University of Agriculture, Cambodia

IJERD – International Journal of Environmental and Rural Development (2011) 2–1

Executive Secretary
Prof. Dr. Machito Mihara, Tokyo University of Agriculture, Japan
Editor-in-ChiefProf. Dr. Eiji Yamaji, The University of Tokyo, Japan
Managing Editors
Prof. Dr. Machito Mihara, Tokyo University of Agriculture, Japan
Dr. Yoko Mochizuki, United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, France
Dr. Muhammad Aqil, Indonesian Center for Food Crops Research, Indonesia
Dr. Lalita Siriwattananon, Association of Environmental and Rural Development, Thailand
Treasurer
Dr. Lalita Siriwattananon, Association of Environmental and Rural Development, Thailand
Regional Vice Presidents
Prof. Dr. Robert J. Martin, University of New England, Australia
Dr. Mom Seng, Royal University of Agriculture, Cambodia
Prof. Dr. Dieter Trautz, University of Applied Sciences, Germany
Dr. Siaw Onwona-Agyeman, African Program on Field Oriented Leaders in Environ. Sectors, Ghana
Dr. Muhammad Aqil, Indonesian Center for Food Crops Research, Indonesia
Dr. Hiromu Okazawa, Tokyo University of Agriculture, Japan
Prof. Dr. Elpidio T. Magante, Bohol Island State University, Philippines
Dr. Anan Polthanee, Khon Kaen University, Thailand
Prof. Dr. Murari Suvedi, Michigan State University, USA
Dr. Vo Quang Minh, Cantho University, Vietnam
ISERD Secretariats:
Institute of Environment Rehabilitation and Conservation (ERECON)
2987-1 Onoji Machida-Shi, Tokyo 195-0064, Japan
Tel/Fax: +81-42736-8972
E-mail: iserd@int-erd.org
Webpage: www.int-erd.org
Association of Environmental and Rural Development (AERD)
93/64 Moo.3, Sinsab village 2, Bungyeetho sub-district, Thanyaburi district,Pathum Thani 12130, Thailand
Tel/Fax: +66-2957-8064
E-mail: iserd@int-erd.org
Webpage: www.int-erd.orgůů ĂƌƚŝĐůĞƐ ĂŶĚ ƌĞƉŽƌƚƐ ƉƵďůŝƐŚĞĚ ŝŶ ƚŚŝƐ ũŽƵƌŶĂů ǁĞƌĞ ĂĐĐĞƉƚĞĚ ƚŚƌŽƵŐŚ Ă ƉĞĞƌͲƌĞǀŝĞǁ ƉƌŽĐĞƐƐ͘ ,ŽǁĞǀĞƌ͕ŵŽƐƚ ĂƌƚŝĐůĞƐ ĂŶĚ ƌĞƉŽƌƚƐ ƉƵďůŝƐŚĞĚ ŝŶ ƚŚŝƐ ũŽƵƌŶĂů ǁĞƌĞ ƉƌĞƐĞŶƚĞĚ Ăƚ ƚŚĞ ϮŶĚ /ŶƚĞƌŶĂƚŝŽŶĂů ŽŶĨĞƌĞŶĐĞ ŽŶŶǀŝƌŽŶŵĞŶƚĂů ĂŶĚ ZƵƌĂů ĞǀĞůŽƉŵĞŶƚ ƚŚĂƚ ǁĂƐ ĐŽͲŽƌŐĂŶŝǌĞĚ ďǇ hŶŝƚĞĚ EĂƚŝŽŶƐ hŶŝǀĞƌƐŝƚǇͲ/^͘