Affiliations: Scientific Department of Soil and Water, Agricultural and Natural Resources Research and Education Center of Guilan Province, Agricultural Research, Education and Extension Organization (AREEO), Rasht, Iran
Abstract: Loshan is a city in the Central District of Rudbar county, Gilan Province and has dry climate. Due to the low rate of precipitation (average 250 mm per year), irrigation of olive orchards depends on the quality of water obtained from different wells. On the other hand, water and soil management of agriculture pay great attention to Rudbar city because its water quality is affected by bedrock. Therefore, based on the different position and geological structure of that region the quality of water is of central importance. In the present study, in order to assess the water quality, 40 samples were collected from wells of olive gardens. The results showed that the salinity of 62.16%, and 27% of waters ranged from 700 to 3000 and more than 3000 microsiemens per centimetre, respectively. Based on Wilcox classification 13%, 60% and 27% of waters were located in c2s1, c3s1 and c4s1 class. Accordingly, it was distinguished that salinity in irrigation water of some wells was higher than normal, which caused salt accumulation and degradation of soil. Therefore, ignoring this subject will be a threat for the garden of the region and surrounding ecosystem.
Keywords: Agriculture, water quality, salinity, soil degradation
