Saharan fruit-growing, foggara style
The Saharan desert seems an unlikely place to find wetlands, let alone a
thriving fruit-growing business. But Algeria's Ouled Saïd has both.
Ouled Saїd is a network of oases in southwestern Algeria — an
isolated island of green in a vast ocean of sand dunes. This human-made wetland
covers an area of 25,400 hectares, and is a centre of date production in
northern Africa. Over 100 varieties of date are grown here, serving as a food
staple for local 'oasiens'. The dates also contribute to the local economy, with
three varieties exported to Sudan.
Ouled Saїd relies on an ingenious and ancient system to capture and
distribute groundwater. This system, called foggara, works through a complex
network of underground channels and storage chambers that allow water to flow
within the oases. The water is then brought to the surface and distributed
according to an ancestral social organization via a tool called the kasria.
The kasria is like a cookie cutter: a plate measuring some 25cm wide and
150cm long with differently sized holes along its length. The kasria is inserted
vertically into the underground stream to bring water to the surface. This water
is then divided into channels of different sizes that run to individual gardens.
The amount of water is controlled by the size of the hole in the kasria, and
corresponds to the need of individual families as determined by a local
committee. In this way, the water is shared equitably for the cultivation of
date palms as well as cereals and vegetables.
The local oasiens are not the only beneficiaries of this important water
source. For birds migrating from Europe to Africa, the wetlands are a perfect
pitstop after their weary trip across the Mediterranean Sea. Seventy-one species
of migratory birds have been recorded in Algeria, including the spectacular pink
flamingo.
The foggara is an outstanding example of the wise use of water and wetlands,
as well as the cultural heritage of wetlands. But although all these principles
are embodied in the Ramsar Convention on Wetlands — a global treaty for the
conservation and wise use of wetlands and their resources — Ouled Saїd was not
included on the Ramsar List of Wetlands of International Importance until
February 2001. This listing was significant not just for Algeria's water
management, but also for rare wetlands such as oases, which are
under-represented in the Ramsar Convention.
Ingenious as the foggara is, however, it can't guard against the billowing
winds of the desert. Slowly but surely, Ouled Saїd is being overtaken by
sand. Only four months after the oasis became a Ramsar site, it was placed on
the Montreux Record: the official listing of Ramsar wetlands that are degraded.
But the Montreux Record is not meant to simply be a list of wetlands under
threat. The idea is that wetlands on this record receive priority attention for
conservation efforts so that they can be removed from the list as quickly as
possible.
A project to restore Ouled Saїd began in October 2001 with help from
WWF, the Algerian Forestry Division, and local people. The aim was that the
restoration work would be complete by this month, in time for the Ramsar
Convention meeting being held in Valencia, Spain, from 18–26 November. The
good news is that this deadline was met: an announcement will be made today in
Valencia to start the process of removing Ouled Saїdfrom the Montreux
Record.
One part of the restoration work involved growing drought-resistant plants,
which will eventually form a windshield on the edge of the oasis to stop the
sand dunes from encroaching. Oasiens – partly paid, partly working as
volunteers — have also woven date palm fronds into natural walls to help
protect the wetlands from wind erosion.
Algeria's oases support the food and water needs of thousands of people. They
are also important economically. In 2001, total revenue from date exports
totaled US$18 million — no match for the US$20 billion dollars earned each
year though oil, but nevertheless an important source of revenue in isolated
places such as Ouled Saїd.
The hard work involved in restoring Ouled Saїd will ensure that date
growing in the Algerian Sahara remains viable, protecting not just the food and
income of the people who live there, but also their culture and traditions. At
the same time, this work will help protect the country's precious water — a
finite resource in this arid part of the world. Ouled Saїd truly is a
model of "Wetlands: water, life, and culture".
More Information:
Article by Lisa Hasdeed. Reproduced with permission from WWF.
© 2002 WWF-- World Wide Fund For Nature. (Formerly World Wildlife Fund). All
rights reserved. Lisa Hadeed is Communications Manager at WWF
International's Living Waters Programme
Useful links:
LINK Action on Critical Water Problems
LINK Climate change - the missing
links.
LINK Water Wars: Are water
conflicts inevitable?
LINK Climate change: the
missing links
LINK Working for Water
LINK Wetlands could help combat
waterborne diseases
LINK Wetlands in water reclamation
LINK AFRICA: First-ever survey of underground
water resources
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