The ManicaPost
Samuel Kadungure
Senior Reporter
GOVERNMENT is spearheading topography and drainage systems construction in communal areas to reduce topsoil and nutrients loss and restore productivity in affected areas in Manicaland.
The project is being funded through the Green Climate Fund (GCF) and focusing on contour pegging and construction in Chimanimani, Chipinge and Buhera districts following the introduction of a soil and water conservation blitz in June 2022 as part of efforts to attain Vision 2030 targets through food and nutrition security.
The intervention seeks to reduce all forms of soil erosion, increase agricultural productivity without damaging soil health, harvest surface run-off using structures such as contours with infiltration pits, control run-off through drainage and restore the productivity capacity of eroded land.
Soil and water are protected through the Environmental Management Act Chapter 20:27; the Water Act; Traditional Leaders Act as well as local authorities by-laws.
Manicaland Provincial Mechanisation Engineer, Engineer Nhlanhla Magama said in agriculture, drainage serves two purposes — first is for the removal of excess surface and subsurface water, and second to remove excess soluble salts with the (excess) water from the drained soil profile.
He said this latest move follows the formulation of a policy framework to protect soil and water quality, amid revelations that nearly 200 million tonnes of topsoil were being eroded and dumped into water bodies annually due to poor and negligent land use systems.
The soil and water conservation work is in line with National Development Strategy (NDS1), guiding the protection and management of land and water bodies in the country.
Soil erosion and siltation of water bodies are serious challenges in Manicaland, and if remains unchecked, will strip away all the valuable soil, negatively affecting the province’s water and ability to grow food, plants and animals.
“We are focusing on soil conservation because most of the water bodies in these areas are silted with soil from cultivated fields. We have teams on the ground dong the pegging and construction of contours in dry areas. This encourages infiltration of water, thereby contributing to climate smart agriculture.
“Water is stored longer in these contours, thereby contributing to ground water recharge. The pegging has already been done and construction is in progress,” he said.
“Most of the areas have no contours at all. Even though the communities are aware of the importance of having them, they are not putting them, citing their labour intensiveness. The farmers are testifying that they have been watching helplessly while the top soil is being washed away and are appreciating the intervention. The intervention ensures protection and management of water bodies, arable and non-arable land,” he said.
Engineer Magama also implored farmers to conserve soil and water which he said support humans, livestock, flora and fauna, as well as minerals.
He said the soil has to be used sustainably for the survival of current and future generations.
Stiffer penalties should be imposed on those found either cutting down trees, conducting stream bank cultivation and starting veld fires.
He said de-siltation of dams and rivers, gully reclamation and banning interference with wetlands must be made compulsory.
“We need to adapt and maintain the thrust of production and productivity by undertaking more of conservation, especially now that rain is now concentrated in a short period of time to sustain our agriculture and food security.
“If the fertile top soil gets washed away, then we cease to have nutritional soil to sustain cropping,” he said.
A recent research has shown that the country is losing an average of 50 tonnes of soil on arable land per hectare every year due to soil erosion.
Zimbabwe has four million hectares of arable land, and this means 200 million tonnes of top soil are being eroded and dumped in water bodies every year.
He said the degradation in land quality is responsible for the reduction in the national domestic product of up to eight percent every year.
The United Nations has predicted that by 2025, two thirds of the world will be living under water-stressed conditions — that when demand outstrips supply during certain periods, with 1.8 billion people experiencing absolute water scarcity.
Engineer Magama said soil loss results in streams, rivers and dams drying up, and in some instances, water is buried under the soil.
As a result, the communities are losing several dams, for instance, Save River, whose the surface is dry, but with plenty water underground.
“Look at Save River, where do you think all that soil in the river came from? It was eroded from the surrounding communities and dumped into the river bed. This makes siltation and soil loss fundamental issues that must be addressed, hence the envisaged soil and water conservation intervention,” said Engineer Magama.
