IS WATER-HARVESTING IN VALLEY FLOORS A VIABLE OPTION FOR INCREASING CEREAL PRODUCTION IN HIGHLAND BALOCHISTAN, PAKISTAN

Preparation of small catchment areas on rainfed valley floor soils in highland Balochistan, Pakistan, is a low-cost method of generating run -off and increasing crop yields within the cropped areas. The effect o f different proportions of water catchment area to cropped area were i nvestigated by comparing a control treatment with the entire area plan ted to the crop (traditional rainfed agriculture); a 1:1 treatment, wi th one half of the area used for water catchment and one half for plan ting; and a 2:1 treatment, with two thirds of the area used for water catchment and one third for planting. Results from six seasons of tria ls using wheat (Triticum aestivum) showed chat the 1:1 treatment had 2 3% higher net benefits than the control, with a 19% reduction in the c oefficient of variation. The 2:1 treatment had 29% lower net benefits than the control and reduced the variation in net benefits by 8%. By c ontrast, four seasons of trials using barley (Hordeum vulgare) showed that the 1:1 treatment yielded 25% lower net benefits than the control but increased by 4% the variation in net benefits. Treatment 2:1 had 36% lower net benefits than the control and 18% more variation. Even t hough the gross revenue from wheat under the 1:1 treatment was less th an that from the control, the reduction in total costs in the 1:1 trea tment resulted in larger net benefits than the control. Water-harvesti ng in the valley floors is not a net yield-increasing technology. Land suitable for cultivation is limited and the increases in yields in th e cropped area resulting from water-harvesting are offset by the oppor tunity costs of the catchment area. However, wheat grown in a 1:1 rati o of cropped to catchment area can increase farmers' income and decrea se its variation. For barley, farmers are better off using their tradi tional management practice than giving up part of their cropped area t o create water catchments.