U.S.-Financed Irrigation and Drainage Research: Applications for DevelopingCountries

摘要

The report reviews irrigation and drainage research conducted in the UnitedStates and analyzes its relevance for developing countries. The review covers irrigation research projects in federal, state, university, and private sector programs, as well as A.I.D. research-related assistance to 14 irrigation projects in 11 countries overseas. More than a third of the research surveyed involved irrigation agronomy. Other major categories are research projects dealing with environmental aspects, system control, performance assessment, on-farm application, and hydrology. The report concludes that, since irrigation projects are heavily influenced by local conditions, U.S. irrigation research is of dubious relevance to developing countries; most directly relevant is domestic U.S. research on fundamental topics such as plant/water/soil relationships, solute movement, and salinity. Although carrying the risk of redundancy, localized applied research, emphasizing problemsolving, is best suited to developing countries' needs.