Land Degradation and Agricultural Productivity in Bangladesh

Land degradation occurs when land qualities are affected negatively due to natural causes or human interference. Natural degradation and hazards are conditions of the environment which lead to high susceptibility to degradation. Example may be flood, steep slopes, rains of high intensity, strong leaching in humid and droughty situation in the dry regions. This is very much true for Bangladesh. Direct causes of degradation are irrational land use and inappropriate land management practices. These vary with the type of degradation and include: O Deforestation of hilly land, unsuitable for sustained agricultural use O O O O O O O Shifting cultivation without adequate fallow periods Intensive cultivation of MV crops; primarily cereals Unbalanced fertilizer use Depletion of organic matter Non-recycling of crop residues, cowdung and organic wastes Plant nutrient deficiency Improper crop rotation

O Overgrazing O Absence of soil conservation management practices

O Extension of cultivation in lands of low potential or high natural hazards O Problems arising from improper planning and management of irrigation systems O Withdrawal of groundwater much exceeding the rate of recharge

Types and Extent of Land Degradation in Bangladesh In Bangladesh, active land degradation process is water erosion and loss of fertility due to physical, chemical or biological degradation of soils. Types of land degradation and extent is provided in Table A:

Types of Land degradation 1. Water Erosion - Bank erosion 2. Wind Erosion* 3. Soil Fertility Decline - P deficient (for HYV rice) - P deficient (for Upland Crops) - K deficient (for HYV rice) - K deficient (for Upland Crops) - S deficient (for HYV rice) - S deficient (for Upland Crops) Soil Organic Matter depletion 4. Waterlogging 5. Salinization 6. Pan formation 7. Acidification 8. Lowering of water table* 9. Active floodplain 10. Deforestation 11. Barind

Areas (in mha) affected by different degrees of degradation Light Moderate Strong Extreme 0.1 3.8 5.3 3.1 4.0 2.1 4.4 4.1 1.94 0.69 0.29 0.3 1.7 4.2 3.2 2.5 3.4 5.4 3.3 4.6 1.56 0.008 0.43 2.82 0.06 0.3 1.3 4.05 0.12 -

Total area (mha) 1.7 8.0 8.5 5.6 7.4 7.5 7.7 8.7 7.55 0.7 0.84 2.82 0.06 1.53 0.3 0.773

Table A. Different types/areas of land degradation and their extent in Bangladesh

Source: Land Degradation Situation in Bangladesh, Soils Division, BARC, 1999 * No quantitative estimate available Note: Estimates are based on currently available information. Light: The terrain has somewhat reduced agricultural suitability, but is suitable for use in local farming systems. Restoration to full productivity is possible by modifications of the management system. Original biotic functions are still largely intact. production loss is between 5-10%. Moderate: The terrain has greatly reduced agricultural productivity, but is still suitable for use in local farming systems. Major improvements are required to restore productivity. Original biotic functions are partially destroyed. Production loss is between 20-25%. Strong: The terrain is non reclaimable at farm level. Major engineering works are required for terrain restoration. Original biotic functions are largely destroyed. Production loss is between 60-75%. The terrain is unreclaimable and beyond restoration. Original biotic functions are fully destroyed. Production loss is more than 75%.

Extreme:

Water Erosion Various kinds of soil erosion such as sheet, rill and gully erosion, landslide, bank erosion and in some cases wind erosion are occurring in Bangladesh. Water erosion is the most widespread form of degradation affecting some 25% of agricultural land. Water erosion covers all forms of soil erosion by water including sheet and rill erosion and gullying. Human-induced enhancement of landslides, caused by clearing of vegetation, earth removal, road construction, etc., are also included. Accelerated soil erosion has been remarkably encountered in the hilly regions of the country which occupy about 1.7 million hectares (Table B). Though the loss of topsoil due to water erosion is evident in the vast floodplain areas, only a very limited research results are available for the quantification of soil loss. Soil loss has been estimated to range from 10-120 t/ha/yr (Table C). Besides soil loss, significant quantities of plant nutrients are also being depleted from the solum causing tremendous degradation of land quality (Table D).

Table B. Erosive areas in different hilly regions of Bangladesh due to different degrees of water erosion

Source: SRDI Report, 1975-85. Table C Soil loss due to shifting cultivation Location Khagrachai Manikchari Ramgarh Rangamati Raikhali Bandarban Teknaf Predominant slope 60% area under 60% slope 46% area under 40% slope 48% area under 40% slope 53% area under 40% slope 49% area under 40% slope 58% area under 60% slope 56% area under 20% slope Soil loss (t -/ha/yr) 10.1-67.0 12.0- 120.0 7.0-27.0 26.0-68.0 53.0-27.0 8.0- 107.0 -

Source: Farid, A.T.M, Igbal. A and Karim Z. 1992 Soil Erosion in the Chittagong Hill Tract and its Impact on Nutrient Status of soils. Bangladesh Journal of Soil Science Vol: 23 (122), Page 92-101.

Table D. Comparative nutrient status of eroded and non-eroded soils in some locations

Source : Land Degradation Situation in Bangladesh, Soils Division, BARC, 1999. River Bank Erosion River bank erosion is rampant in areas along the active river channels of the Ganges, the Jamuna and the Tista and in the coastal and off-shore areas of Bangladesh. In Bangladesh, bank erosion is caused mainly due to strong river current enhanced by mechanized river traffic and/or channel diversion during the rainy season. About 1.7 million hectares of floodplain areas are prone to river bank erosion. Burial of Fertile Land by Coarse Materials The soils eroded from the hills are usually deposited in the downstream areas. Burial of agricultural crop lands by sandy overwashes of the hills, breach of embankments etc. is a common phenomenon in areas adjoining to the active river channels and hill streams in Bangladesh. Table F shows the rate of silt deposition in different land types in the Sylhet district. Table F. Rate of silt deposition in different land types in Sylhet district of Bangladesh Land types Silt deposition (kg/ha/yr) Highland Medium highland Lowland Very lowland Source : Chowdhury (SRDI, undated) 2256 4120 6696 10417

The entire northern and eastern piedmont alluvial plains lying along the foot of the Shillong plateau and Assam-Tripura hills (bordering greater Sylhet and Comilla districts)

and Chittagong hill tracts are adversely affected due to the deposition of coarse materials brought down by the run-off water. The phenomenon is also dominant in the active floodplains of the rivers Jamuna, Brahmaputra, Tista and Meghna. Wind Erosion Wind erosion refers to the loss of soil by wind, occurring primarily in dry regions. In Bangladesh, some areas are affected by wind erosion mainly in the districts of Rajshahi and Dinajpur during the drier months of the year. Droughty situation leading to wind erosion and its impact on agricultural production has been documented by Karim et. al. 1990. No quantitative estimate is however available. Decline in Soil Fertility Decline in soil fertility is used as a short term to refer to what is more precisely described as deterioration in soil physical, chemical and biological properties. It occurs through a combination of lowering of soil organic matter and loss of nutrients. Whilst decline in fertility is indeed a major effect of erosion, the term is used here to cover effects of processes other than erosion. In Bangladesh, depletion of soil fertility is mainly due to exploitation of land without proper replenishment of plant nutrients in soils. The problem is enhanced by intensive land use without appropriate soil management. The situation is more grave in areas where HYVs are being cultivated using low and unbalanced doses of mineral fertilizers with little or no organic recycling. The main processes of soil fertility decline in Bangladesh are: -Depletion of Soil Organic Matter A good soil should have an organic matter content of more than 3.5 per cent. But in Bangladesh, most soils have less than 1.7 percent, and some soils have even less than 1 % organic matter. Considering the NARS data base, organic matter content of Bangladesh soils has been summarized and classified as shown in Table G. Table G: Organic matter status of Bangladesh Soils Class of soil organic matter Very low (<1.0%) AEZ No. Main Locations Dinajpur, Sherpur, Jamalpur, Rajshahi, Pabna, Kushtia, Bogra, Naogaon, Rangpur, Khagrachari, Bandarban, Chittagong Adjoining areas of Tista, Dharlus Chandpur, Lakshimipur, Noakhali, Bhola, Barisal Patuakhali, Narsingdi, Dhaka Total area (Mha) 4.05 % of NCA 44.5

1, 7, 8, 10, 11, 16, 25, 26, 27, 28,29,30 Low 2, 3, (1.0%-1.7%) 17, 18, 19

1.56

17.1

Medium 4, 12, (1.7%-3.5%) 9, 20, 22, 23 High (> 3.5%) 5, 6, 1, 13,14, 15, 21

Sirajganj, Mymensingh, Kishoreganj, Sherpur, Jamalpur, Sylhet, Moulvibazar, Feni, Cox's bazar Panchagaher, Natore, Naogaon, Khulna, Satkhira, Madaripur, Gopalganj, Munshiganj, Habiganj Sunamganj, Netrokona

1.94

21.3

1.56

17.1

Source: Land Degradation Situation in Bangladesh, Soils Division, BARC, 1999 It is believed that, the declining productivity of Bangladesh soils is the result of depletion of organic matter caused by high cropping intensity. In Bangladesh, crop residues are widely used as fuel and fodder and usually not returned to the soil. Even cowdung is widely used as fuel in rural areas. This results in a decrease in soil organic matter content. In Bangladesh, the average organic matter content of top soils ( high land and medium highland situations) have gone down, from about 2% to 1% over the past 20 years due to intensive cultivation which means a decline by 20-46% . Besides, the hot humid climatic conditions encouraging rapid mineralisation of OM is also responsible in enhancing the process. According to a recent study almost similar situation in depletion of organic carbon and total N depletion percentage are observed in different intensive cropping areas of Bangladesh during 1967-1997 (Table H). Highest depletion of organic C(>20%) was observed in Old Himalayan Piedmont Plain, Gangetic Floodplain, Brahmaputra Floodplain and Meghna River Floodplain areas of Bangladesh.

Table H.

Changes in total Carbon (%), total Carbon (t/ha) and total nitrogen (%) in the 015 cm layers of different soils during the Period 1967-97 in Bangladesh

OHP = Old Himalayan Piedmont Plain BF = Brahmaputra Floodplain MT = Madhupur Tract TF = Tista Floodplain CCP = Chittagong Coastal Plain MRF = Meghna River Floodplain

BT = Barind Tract SKF = Surma Kushiyara Floodplain NEPP = North Eastern Piedment plain GF = Ganges Floodplain Source : Land Degradation Situation in Bangladesh, Soils Division, BARC, 1999.

Degradation of Physical and Chemical Properties of Soils With intensive cropping in the same land year after year without proper soil management practices, both physical and chemical properties of soils are liable to degradation. Changes in particle size distribution in the top 15 cm of most soils of different physiographic units showed a wide variation over the last three decades. Changes in clay content showed a decline in all the physiographic units. The clay content declined in favour of the sand content of surface soils (Table I). The highest decrease in clay content was observed in the top 15 cm of Old Himalayan Piedmont Plains (OHP), Brahmaputra Floodplain (BF) and Meghna River Floodplain (MRF) (about 50%) followed by Tista Floodplain (TF), Barind Tract (BT), Madhupur Tract (MT) and Chittagong Coastal Plain (CCP) (30-40%). But in lowland situation, decrease in clay content in Surma Kushiyara Floodplain (SKF) is comparatively low (about 20%). Changes in pH showed a decrease of 0.15, 0.37 and 0.48 units within the upper 100 cm of Meghna River Floodplain, North-East Piedmont Plain and Madhupur and Barind Tracts, respectively during the period 1967-1997 (Table 17). Most soils showed a decline in the levels of exchangeable K, Ca, Mg and effective cation exchange capacity at the same time (Tables J-K).

Table I.

Changes in particle size distribution (%) in the 0-15 cm. layers of different soils during the period 1967-97 in Bangladesh

Table J.

Changes in pH, CEC, available P and S content in the 0-10 cm layers of different soils during the period 1967-97 in Bangladesh

Table K Change in exchangeable K, Ca and Mg content in the 0-10 cm layers of different soils during the period 1967-97 in Bangladesh

Reduction in the availability of Major and Micronutrients The areas of low fertility comprise about 60% of the total cultivable land of the country. Nutrient uptake by modern crop varieties is usually greater than that by the local varieties. Hence, in areas with increased cropping intensity coupled with the use of modern varieties, the net removal of major nutrient (N,PK,S) are high and ranges between 180 and 250 kg/ha/yr (Karim et al. 1994). Plant nutrient balance sheet is shown in Table L. Most of the soils under high land and medium high land situations are low in fertility level where especially N,P K, and S are deficient . Deficiencies of micro nutrients like Mg, Zn, B and Mo have also been detected in some areas. Imbalance in Fertilizer Application and Negative Soi Nutrient Balance

Removal of nutrients from the soil through crop harvest is substantially high exceeding inputs as natural replacement and fertilizer use. Negative soil nutrient balances have been found for all three major nutrients in Bangladesh . Potassium depletion trend in some soils where rice was cultivated over a period of 12 years indicated that, 90-95% more potash was removed than applied . Table L Plant Nutrient Balance Sheet of Bangladesh Input Supply Nutrients (`000 tons) Nitrogen (N) Phosphorus (P205) Potash (K20) Total: Source : Karim, et al. (1994). 1198 339 481 2018

Removal (`000 tons) 1322 362 1585 3269

Balance (`000 tons) (-) 124 (- 23) (-) 1104 (-) 1251

Of the total nutrients used in Bangladesh agriculture, nitrogen alone constitutes over 75 percent while the use of P and K -are limited to about 6.0 and 6.6 percent only. Recent data shows that the use of phosphatic fertilizers has remarkably fallen to about 6% in 1996 - 97 from 12% in1980-81.

The probable causes are high price and use of substandard phosphatic fertilizers available in the market. But the use of N-fertilizer has steadily increased which shows inappropriate/imbalance ratio of N,P205 and K20 (1:0.12:0.13). If this trend of fertilizer use continues along with intensive cropping of high yielding varieties, the productivity of our soils is bound to be seriously affected in future.

Build-up of Toxicities through Improper use of Fertilizers For fertilization of soils, farm-yard manure, municipal sewage sludge and chemical fertilizers of different types are used. All these materials contain some hazardous substances and heavy metals (e.g. Pb, Cd, As, Sb, Hg, Ni, Cr). In some countries of the world municipal wastes are increasingly applied to agricultural land. All phosphate ores contain traces of uranium, its radioactive decay products and a number of heavy metals. The threshold levels for Cd in Fertilizer products is now taken as 48 mg/kg P205. Fertilizer applications that supply nutrients in quantities far in excess of those and taken up by the plants can result in contamination of both surface and drainage waters. Nitrates and phosphates are the chemicals most often involved. Nitrate contamination can occur in both surface runoff and drainage waters, while excessive levels of phosphates generally occur only in surface runoff. Nitrogen and phosphorous in lake waters stimulate the growth of algae and other water loving plants in the lakes.

Application of fertilizer far in excess of plant uptake should be discouraged and the time of fertilizer applications should coincide with plant needs. In Bangladesh, excess amounts of N-fertilizers are usually applied in intensive vegetable growing areas during winter season. Recent studies showed that N03 -N content of some ground water samples ranged from 14 to 30 ug/g in intensively cropped areas of Comilla and Rangpur districts . Different kinds of sub-standard phosphatic and Zn-fertilizers are also being applied in soils. These fertilizers may add heavy metals (Cd,Pb etc.) to the soils, which may ultimately enter into the food chain through uptake by plants. Waterlogging Waterlogging is responsible for lowering of land productivity through rise in groundwater close to the soil surface. Also included under this heading is the severe form, termed ponding, where the water table rises above the surface. Waterlogging is also linked with salinization, brought about by incorrect irrigation management. In Bangladesh, about 0.69 million hectare has been protected from tidal surges by constructing coastal embankments. About 8000 hectares of waterlogged land in Khulna Jessore areas(popularly known as Bil Dakatia) is the result of human induced degradation due to faulty construction of embankment. Pan Formation About 3-5 cm firm ploughpan has been formed below ploughed layer due to cultivation of transplanted rice through puddling year after year using country plough. This firm pan restricts the proliferation of roots and utilization of sub-soil nutrients by the growing crops. Ploughpan formation has been observed in about 2.82 million hectares of Tista, Ganges, Brahmaputra, Meghna flood plains and Barind areas. Salinization Salinization here is used in its broad sense, to refer to all types of soil degradation brought about by the increase of salts in the soil. It thus covers both salinization in its strict sense, the builtup of free salts; and sodificiation (also called alkalization), the development of dominance of the exchange complex by sodium. As human-induced processes, these occur mainly through incorrect planning and management of irrigation schemes. Also covered in the definition is salinity intrusion, the incursion of sea water into coastal soils arising from over-extraction of groundwater and tidal flooding. In Bangladesh, salinization is one of the major natural hazards contributing towards land degradation. About thirty percent of the net cultivable area is in the coastal region of the country. Out of 2.85 million hectares of the coastal and off-shore areas about 0.84 million hectares of arable land are affected by varying degrees of soil salinity. The factors which contribute significantly to the development of saline soils are: tidal flooding during wet season (June-October), direct inundation by saline or

brackish water and upward or lateral movement of saline ground water during the dry season (November-May) and wilful inundation with brackish water for shirmp farming. The severity of salinity problem in Bangladesh increases with the desiccation of the soil. Recently, salinity both in terms of severity and extent has increased much due to the intrusion of saline sea water because of the diversion of the Ganges water in the dry season. Recent investigations of SRDI has revealed sporadic but increased development of salinity in new areas like Chandpur, Faridpur, Magura, Jessore etc. Further efforts are underway to make an in-depth analysis and to establish this fact. Distribution and extent of different categories of soil salinity in the coastal and offshore regions of Bangladesh is shown in (Table M).
Table M: Distribution and extent of different categories of soil salinity in the coastal and off-shore regions of Bangladesh (000 Hectares)

Note:

S, = 2-4 dSm'

S3 = 8-16 dSm'

S2= 4-8 dSm 1 Acidification

S4 = >16 dSm'

Most of the topsoils in the cultivated/deforested areas of the hills, terraces and other floodplains are acidified to variable extents . Very severe forms of acidification have been observed in the coastal areas in about 62000 ha of active acid sulphate soils (SRDI, 1963-75). As a consequence of drainage improvement, extreme acidity (pH 2-4) has developed along with aluminum toxicity and phosphate fixation through microbial oxidation of pyritic sulphides to sulphates and sulphuric acid. Potential acid sulphate soils are reported to occupy some 8000 ha in the adjoining young tidal lands. Intensive acidification is also identified in the heavy clays in the Sylhet Basin areas, Lower Atrai Basin, and in some broad valleys within the Madhupur and Barind tracts. Northern and Eastern hills have also undergone strong acidification upto a considerable depth. Lowering of Ground Water Table Lowering of the water table is a self-explanatory form of land degradation, brought about through tubewell pumping of groundwater for irrigation exceeding the natural recharge capacity. This occurs in areas of non-saline ('sweet') groundwater. Pumping for urban and industrial use is a further cause. In Bangladesh, extraction of ground water has increased many folds due to rapid expansion of irrigated agriculture during the past three decades (1967-1997). Among the 36 shallow ground water observation wells of BWDB, water level went to the lowest level in 17 wells in March 1995. The level was lower than normal in 14 wells in some years but higher than normal in 2 wells in previous four years. Excessive diversion of the Ganges water in the dry season has aggravated draw-down situation of ground water in the entire western part of the country.

Ferrolyzation Ferrolysis is a process of soil degradation of silicate minerals under alternate cycles of oxidation and reduction with removal of basic ions (plant nutrients) from the soil and eventually destroying the clay particles. As iron plays an important role in the process, it has been termed as ferrolysis. The process of ferrolysis is in progress in the wetlands of Madhupur and Barind tracts and, locally also, in the acidic soils of old floodplains areas of Bangladesh. Other Types of Land Degradation 1 Deforestation The extent of forest cover and annual rate of deforestation are the subjects of deforestation. The occurrence of deforestation is widespread and serious in Bangladesh. Presently, Bangladesh has a total 2.56 million hectares of forest area (Classified forest 1.49

mha, unclassified forest 0.73 mha and private forest 0.34 mha). Studies show that, annual deforestation is about 0.3 mha and the country is losing about 3% of her remaining forest areas annually. 2 Forest Degradation Forest degradation is the reduction of standing biomass and in extreme cases, potential for regrowth of areas which still remain as forest or woodland. Forest degradation results from the cutting of woody formations in excess of their capacity for regrowth. In Bangladesh, most degradation involve cutting of natural forests. Illegal clearance of forest plantations are also found.

3 Soil and Environmental Pollution Pollution control issues are relatively recent in Bangladesh. Bangladesh now has about 30,000 industrial units, of which about 24, 000 are small and cottage industries. Industrial production for all industrial groups has increased by 46% since 1981 with some sectors such as garment, leather products and industrial chemicals has increased production by 200 to 4,000 per cent over the last ten years. The Department of Environment (DOE) estimated that, the total number of industries generating waste water from production operations has gone over 1,200. With a few exception, Bangladeshi industries in general are not equipped with pollution control systems. All the Dhaka based industries discharge industrial waste water within the Dhaka Municipality. Over 300 industries lack any means of treatment of waste water generated by them. Management of hazardous wastes from industrial activities in Bangladesh is in a totally primitive state. The majority of hazardous wastes are deposited in low lying land, along road beds, or in the nearby vicinity of the industrial operations that produce the material. Tanneries of Hazaribagh have been operating over the last 35 years. Current estimates are that 40 tons of solid wastes are produced daily in the area and that about 50% is hazardous due to its high chromium content. The highly insoluble chronium is ubiquitious throughout the area. The rivers around Greater Dhaka City (Buriganga, Lakhya, Balu, Turag) are highly polluted (Table N) with heavy metals and organic pollutants. Recent revelation of Arsenic in ground water in over fifty greater districts of the country is a major public health concern and a threatening disaster for the country. The farmers around the rivers of Dhaka, Narayanganj, Gazipur are using this polluted river water and others are using contaminated ground water for their irrigation purpose in rice and vegetable cultivation. Uptake of the heavy metals by crops especially leafy vegetables may ultimately enter into the food chain and will create problems for several generations. Such hazardous situation may also be occurring to other rivers around industrial townships like Khulna, Chittagong, Narayanganj etc (Iqbal, 1999).

Table N. Concentration of Heavy Metals in Surrounding Rivers of Dhaka City

Note : ND Not detectable ** Environmental Quality Standards (EQS) for Bangladesh: DoE July 1991 Source: Dhaka, WASA 1997. Urban pollution is present in all common forms, as waste water and polluted surface waters, air emissions from vehicles and urban point sources, and solid wastes. Throughout Bangladesh, the needs of sanitation are only partially met, whether represented by improper drainage, solid wastes in the streets and inadequate latrine facilities in public areas or polluted waterways, traffic congestion and smoke in public thoroughfares and insufficient housing. Loss of Agricultural land and soil resources In Bangladesh, land areas under active floodplains (unstable char lands) and lands under sloppy situations are subject to moderate to heavy erosion. Further, a considerable area under peat, high hill and haors have limited land use potential. In addition, population expansion is engulfing much of the land resources in terms of settlements and other related

infrastructures. Change in selected parameters over the last twelve years has been shown in Table O. From the table it evident that, number of farms has increased by nearly 18% and due to fragmentation in land, there has been serious transformation in farm size; decrease in the large and medium farms and increase in small farms by over 33%. On the other hand, coverage under homestead has increased by nearly 37% resulting decline in the cultivated area by about 12%. In other words, roughly 220 ha of land goes out of cultivation per day which means, nearly 1% of the cultivable land is being lost every year. This has serious implication on the sustainability of agricultural development potential, food supply and food security of the country

Table O. Change in the selected parameters influencing land use and agricultural development Parameters Number of total farm holdings Small farm ('000) Medium farm ('000) Land farm ('000) Absolute landless ('000) Ag. labour holdings ('000) Homestead area (ha) Cultivated area (ha) Average farm size (ha) Irrigated area (ha) Farm holdings reporting use of fertilizer 1983-84 10,045,299 7066 2483 496 1198 5495 91087 8160957 0.81 16209381 6176100 1996-97 11,798,242 1 9423 2078 297 1815 6401 533771 7194874 0.61 3762514 97826851 Change over 83-84(%) +17.4 +33.3 -16.3 - 40.1 +51.5 +16.5 +36.48 -11.83 -24.7 +132.12 +58.40

Note:

a. Small farm: 0.02-1.008 ha b. Medium farm: 1.01-3.03 ha c. Large farm : 3.04 ha and above Source : BBS, Agricultural Census, Govt. of Bangladesh, 1983/84 and 1997

Understanding Land Degradation Situation The degree to which the land is presently degraded is estimated in relation to changes in agricultural suitability, in relation to declined productivity and in some cases in relation to its biotic functions. Three levels of degradation namely, light, moderate and strong are recognized.

In terms of the effects, the farmer is still using land with light and moderate degrees of degradation, but the boundary with strong degradation is the point at which land use has to be abandoned. It is uncommon for the farmers that they are not aware of the land degradation situation. Light degradation may not be clearly visible, but the farmer knows that yields or other agricultural productions are lower than they might otherwise have been or that additional inputs are necessary. Moderate degradation will often be visibly apparent, including stunted crops or sparsely vegetated rangeland and crop yields are clearly and substantially lower. By definition, strong degradation means that the land has to be abandoned and no longer has the potential for economically viable production. The moderate forms of land degradation, for example soil nutrient depletion, can be reversed by change in management, the resource is renewable and the degradation reversible. In case of severe forms of degradation, like salinization and waterlogging, land productivity can be restored by reclamation. In case of soil erosion, some of the effects may appear to be reversible. Arresting further erosion by soil conservation measures and restoring lost nutrients and organic matter are some of the measures. But where land has been lost by gullying, or severe sheet erosion has removed the soil down to a gravelly residue, degradation is clearly irreversible. Valuation of Land Degradation Natural resource accounting is a relatively new concept. The situation for soil and water resources is more complex. Several established methods are available out of which the lost production method has been found to work more satisfactorily under a wide range of conditions. An attempt is made to provide an idea on the production/economic loss due to degradation of land.

1 Lost production - This method is widely used and has the advantage of being applicable to all types of land degradation. Crop yields, or other output, are estimated for the non-degraded and degraded soil and then priced. The difference between the two figures equals the value of lost production. The two situations, with and without degradation, are assessed by normal methods of farm economics. 1.1 Water erosion An estimate has been made following production loss basis. In Bangladesh Approximately 1.7 mha are affected by different degrees of water erosion. About 50% of 1.7 mha are under cereal cultivation (upland rice/Jhum Cultivation), the loss in cereal production thus stands as follows: Light degradation Moderate degradation Strong degradation Total cereal production loss 10000 t/yr 75000 t/yr 975000 t/yr 1060000 t/yr

Note : Considering average yield of cereal as 2.0 t/ha.

Degree of degradation Light Moderate Strong

Current rate of erosion 10 t/ha/yr. 20 t/ha/yr. 50 t/ha/yr

1.2 Nutrient Replacement basis Light degradation Moderate degradation Strong degradation Total nutrient loss 20000 t nutrients/yr 120000 t nutrients/yr 1300000 t nutrients/yr 1440000 t nutrients/yr

It is assumed that eroded soil contains about 2% nutrients (mainly NPKS). On this basis, for Bangladesh, the annual loss of nutrients through water erosion is:

1.3 Estimate of Soil Fertility Decline by Replacement Cost basis Farmers with soils of declining fertility, frequently attempt to maintain yields by additional inputs, primarily fertilizers. Research results have shown that quite high rates of fertilizer (about 200 kg NPKS nutrients/ha) are necessary for HYV rice cultivation where the soil has been degraded (low fertility level) by prolonged cropping. For light type of degradation, an average input of 100 kg nutrients (NPKS)/ha will be required to obtain moderate yield of cereals. Area mha Addl. inputs (NPKS)kg/ha 100kg/ha 200 kg/ha Total Addl. Inputs (million ton) 0.38 0.84 -

Degree of degradation Light degradation Moderate degradation Strong degradation

3.8 4.2 -

Total 1.22

This is of the same order of magnitude as the estimate on a production loss basis. Fertilizer rates needed to maintain crop yields can, therefore be expected to increase with time, raising the cost. More fundamental measures are needed to restore soil fertility, particularly through the improvement of organic matter status. These measures also have a cost, for example the opportunity cost as lost fodder or fuel or returning crop residues to the soil.

1.4 Estimate of Soil Fertility Decline on Production loss basis Degree of degradation Area mha Relative Production loss 1.52 1.68 Total Assumptions : 1.5 Salinization Impact of salinization is more apparent than other forms of land degradation. This is partly because its effects are substantial and visibly apparent, partly because the degradation can be readily quantified. In Bangladesh, mainly rabi season crops (wheat, barley, maize, boro, mustard and vegetables) are affected due to different degrees of salinity. Production loss is estimated here for wheat considering an average yield of 2.0 t/ha. Degree of Degradation Area mha Relative Production loss Total Production loss (million ton) of wheat 4.27 Estimated Production loss of cereal in million ton 0.91 3.36 -

Light Moderate Strong

15% 50% 75%

a) Average yield of HYV rice = 4.0 t/ha with improved practices b) Rice area = 80% NCA of which 50% areas are with unbalanced fertilization

Light Moderate Strong

0.40 1.6 1.1

15% 65% 100%

0.12 2.1 2.2

Total

4.42

1.6 Acidification Loss due to acidification has been estimated in terms of relative loss in rice production assumming an average yield of 3.0 t/ha for HYV rice.

Degree of Degradation loss Light Moderate Strong

Area mha 0.06 -

Relative Production 15% 50% 100%

Total Production (million ton) 0.09 -

Total Table P provides a summary of provisional estimates of cost due to different types of land degradation in Bangladesh. Table P. Summary of estimates of the cost of land degradation in Bangladesh Nature of Physical quantity of lost output Taka Equivalent/yr Cost, degradation (Million) million US$/yr. Water erosion Cereal Prod.Loss = 1.06 mt/yr. Nutrient Loss = 1.44 mt/yr. 6613.84 25576.46 26641.48 21668.88 140.72 566.84 461.04

0.09

Remarks

Fertility decline Cereal Prod. Loss= 4.27 mt/yr. Addl.inputs = 1.22 mt/yr.

Salinization Acidification Lowering of water table Water logging

Total Prod. Loss= 4.42 mt/yr. Total Prod. Loss= 0.09 mt/yr. -

27577.25 561.51 -

586.75 11.95 Not assessed Not assessed

Note : mt = million tons Source : Land Degradation Situation in Bangladesh, Soils Division, BARC, 1999