Paper Title
ASSESSMENT ON TOTAL CROP WATER REQUIREMENT FOR SEDAWGYI IRRIGATED AREA
Abstract
This paper focuses on assessing the crop water requirement for the Sedawgyi Irrigated Area, considering various cropping patterns and crop types with distinct seasonal demands. The study evaluates the seasonal water demand for different crop types based on their net irrigation requirement, determined by evapotranspiration. The research objectives include determining water requirements and crop coefficients for existing agricultural crops. Growth stage durations for initial, development, mid, and late stages were determined. Microsoft Excel facilitated data analysis, while the CROPWAT 8.0 model estimated reference evapotranspiration. The findings indicate a total seasonal irrigation requirement of over 110 Mcm for the crops studied. During the initial, development, mid, and late growing stages, the water requirements were determined to be 40.35 Mcm, 82.44 Mcm, 110.66 Mcm, and 31.3 Mcm, respectively. Additionally, crop coefficients for paddy growth stages were computed as 0.51, 0.83, 1.29, and 0.52 for the initial, development, mid, and late stages, respectively. The relationship between the day of growth stage and crop coefficient was successfully modeled using a fourth-degree polynomial equation. Despite being based on data from a single season, the results provide valuable insights into crop-specific water requirements in resource-constrained regions.
Keywords - Crop water demand, cropping pattern, evapotranspiration, irrigation requirement, Sedawgyi irrigated area.