Publisher's Synopsis
The chapters in this book summarise the results of a collaborative project between Chinese and Australian scientists to improve agricultural water use efficiency (WUE) and thereby increase agricultural productivity and sustainability in China and Australia. The project was externally funded by ACIAR with significant in-kind contributions from both the Chinese Academy of Science (CAS) and Australia's Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO). The study focused on three main regions: a) The North China Plain (NCP), where the main problem is reduced agricultural output due to soil degradation and falling groundwater tables, caused mainly by salinisation and inefficient water use; b). The Loess Plateau, where the main problems are lack of water availability for crops and soil erosion c) The Murray-Darling Basin (MDB) in southeast Australia, which includes the eastern part of Mount Lofty Ranges (also known as the Adelaide Hills) and the Upper Murrumbidgee catchment. The main problems here are salinisation, waterlogging and sodicity caused by rising saline groundwater.;This manual helps users to make good decisions, improves their understanding of the processes of waterlogging, and offers solutions to improve quality of their properties. Where the manual has been applied in the Mount Lofty Ranges area, degraded saline wet areas have been rehabilitated and erosion has been halted through measures such as realigning fencelines and revegetation.
