Abstract
Irrigated agriculture consumes 60% of water resources in the UAE. As groundwater is the main source of irrigation water, exploitation of aquifer systems in excess of natural recharge has led to serious depletion and salinity problems.
Biosaline agriculture might contribute to integrated water-resource management because it enables the use of two marginalized resources; salt water and saline soils. If salt-tolerant crops were to grow using salt water in saline soils, additional food could be produced, and desert land could be counted as agricultural area. In this respect, local and foreign varieties of crops are being researched now to identify salt-tolerant species through the efforts funded by the International Center for Biosaline Agriculture (ICBA) in the UAE, which is a unique institution of its kind in the region.
Replacement of traditional irrigation methods by modern irrigation techniques such as drip, sprinkler and bubbles in 90% of farmlands in the country have saved considerable amounts of irrigation water and increased crop productivity. Sustainable farming of organic products is a promising alternative for conventional crops using considerable chemical fertilization because it meets the growing market needs and receives full support from the government.
The chapter discusses protected agriculture, the role of the ICBA in the UAE, aquacultures and hydroponics, environmental impacts of agriculture and agricultural policies.
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Alsharhan, A.S., Rizk, Z.E. (2020). Advanced Agricultural Technologies. In: Water Resources and Integrated Management of the United Arab Emirates. World Water Resources, vol 3. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-31684-6_21
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