Applying and scaling up of 'alternate wetting and drying' (AWD) for paddy rice in Vietnam

Dr. Vu Duong Quynh (IAE, IRRI, Vietnam)

Dr. Ole Sander (IRRI, CCAFS)

Michael Sheinkman (IRRI, CCAFS)

Greater Mekong Forum On Water, Food and Energy

21-23 October, Phnom Penh, Cambodia

Introduction

•  System of Rice Intensification (SRI) –  Adopted by MARD in 2007. Promoted in Red River Delta

•  1 Must do 5 Reduction (1M5R) –  Adopted by MARD in 2012. Promoted in Mekong River Delta.

•  Alternative Wetting and Drying (AWD) –  Important component of both SRI and 1M5R. –  Often not practiced accurately when scaled up

through policy interventions.

Objectives

The objectives of this case study are to: 1)  investigate the benefit of AWD in terms of economical

and environmental aspects

2)  explore experiences on applying and scaling up the AWD technology for paddy rice in Vietnam

3)  identify opportunities and barriers for large scale implementation of AWD in Vietnam

4) recommend the potential solution for up-scaling AWD in Vietnam.

Material and Methods Study sites

•  AWD case study was conducted in An

Luong village, Nam Sach, district, Hai Duong province

•  The SRI case study was conducted in

Phuoc Son cooperative, Tuy Phuoc district, Binh Dinh province

•  The first 1M5R case study was

conducted in Phu Hoa I hamlet, Chau Thanh district, An Giang province Tram I hamlet and in Trung Hung hamlet in Vinh Loi district, Bac Lieu province

Material and Methods Interviewing survey

The survey was conducted to interview 20

farmers from each of 3 selected study sites on:

•  The economical and environmental effects

of SRI/1M5R/AWD

•  The opportunities for scaling up SRI/1M5R/AWD

•  Barriers of applying SRI/1M5R/AWD and how to overcome the barriers to scaling up SRI/1M5R/AWD

•  Recommend plan for upscaling 1M5R/SRI/AWD

•  Better root development resulting increasing nutrient use efficiency and reducing ratio of lodging

•  Increase cold resistant ability (spring rice Northern provinces in VN

•  Reducing of organically toxic •  Reducing un-effective tiller •  Reducing pest and disease

Benefits of Alternate Wetting and Drying (AWD)

•  Reducing pumping cost •  Reducing labor cost for irrigation

monitoring •  Stable pan layer for using harvesting

machine •  Reducing lost after harvesting •  Reducing CH4 emission.

Additional Benefits of AWD

Barriers of applying/scaling up of AWD in Vietnam

•  Irrigation system is poor. •  Rice field is not flat •  Farm size is too small in the North

and Center of Vietnam (0.13 hectare/household)

•  High rainfall in end of summer autumn rice season (the South)

•  Different rice varieties and different sowing calendar

•  Weed and rat problem

• 

Additional barriers to applying AWD in Vietnam

•  Farmer get problem in applying AWD in sodic and ferric soil

•  Farmer awareness is not equal between farmer

•  Conflict on benefit between farmer and pumping station (pumping fee)

•  Rice income is low

•  Salary for irrigation station staff is also low

•  Consolidate small rice fields into a large field

•  Level rice fields using laser technology.

•  Suitable irrigation management strategy •  Improve irrigation system by supplying

drainage canal. •  Balance benefits between farmer and

pumping station, with local cooperatives acting as referee.

How to overcome barriers to applying AWD

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• Combine AWD in local extention work and convine farmer to apply AWD

• Scaling up AWD demonstration field

• Training

• Combine AWD in to 1M5R, larger rice field demonstration

How to overcome the barriers to scaling up AWD

Economical benefit of 1M5R (including AWD) in Bac Lieu

Winter spring (2011-2012)

Summer rice (2012)

Winter spring (2012-2013)

Winter spring (2013-2014)

1M5R control 1M5R control 1M5R control 1M5R Control Rice seed (kg/ha) 104 158 115 170 99 147 103 179 Total fertilizers (kg/ha) 456 477 645 545 424 462 415 483 Total number of pesticide spray (time/season)

6.8 9.2 5.0 8.0 6.4 9.1 8.0 10.9

Num of pumping (time/season) 5 7 3 6 6 9 6 9

Rice yield (tonne/ha(season) 7.13 6.91 6.23 5.83 7.13 6.63 8.04 7.58

Total input cost (millionVND đ/ha) 18.52 20.36 18.65 22.74 19.29 22.72 20,54 24,56

Total imcome (millionVND đ/ha) 40.08 37.57 31.15 29.15 38.05 35.21 43.23 40.76

benefit (millionVND đ/ha) 21.55 17.21 12.49 6.40 18.75 12.49 22.69 16.20

Increasing benefit compared to control + 4.3 +6.1 +6.3

+6.5

Economical benefit of 1M5R (including AWD) in An Giang

Winter spring (n=66) Summer autumn (n=76) Indicators 1M5R control Difference 1M5R control Difference

Seed (kg/ha) 115.4 191 75.6 109.0 181.7 72.7 Nitrogen Fertilizer (kg N/ha)

103.7 127.2 23.5 103.5 125.1 21.6

insecticide spray (time/season)

1.4 3.8 2.4 1.1 3.5 2.4

fungicide spray (time/season) 2.7 3.7 1 3.1 4.6 1.5

Water pumping (time/season) 7 8.5 1.5 6.4 7.7 1.3

Lodging (%) 4.9 15.9 11 6.8 17.7 10.9 Yield (tonne/ha) 7.6 7.4 0.2 5.9 5.7 0.2

Inputs cost (1000vnđ/ha) 2,490 3,134 644 3,418 4,053 635

Benefit (1.000 vnđ/ha) 21,371 17,129 4,242 12,876 8,570 4,306

Economical benefit of SRI (including AWD) in Binh Dinh

Indicators SRI Conventional practice

Reduction compare with convention practice (%)

Seed cost (100vnđ/ha) 1,821 2,126 16.7 Fertilizer cost (1000vnđ/ha) 6,483 6,824 5.3 Pesticide cost (1000vnđ/ha) 1,392 2,366 70.0 Labour cost (1000vnđ/ha) 10,248 11,146 8.8 Water pumping/season 9 8 25

Rice yield (tonne/ha) 8.2 7.6 7.4

Economical benefit of AWD in Hai Duong

Cultivation season Seed cost

Pesticide cost

Fer cost

Labour cost

Sum of cost

Rice yield

Sum of income

benefit

Spring rice

920 2.706 6.218 12.000 22.539 5530 37.836 15.296

Summer rice

943 3.439 6.110 12.500 23.673 5210 36.975 13.302

AWD

Average 931 3.072 6.164 12.250 23.106 5370 37.405 14.299 Spring rice

1.103 4.413 5.811 12.800 24.819 5103 32.577 7.758

Summer rice

1.060 5.103 5.232 13.000 25.386 4338 28.578 3.192

Conventional

Average 1.081 4.758 5.521 12.900 25.102 4720 30.577 5.475

The effect of AWD on rice plant development in Hai Duong

Cultivation Rice season

Effective tiller/m2  

seed/ flower

P.1000 seed (g)  

Potential yield (tạ/ha)  

Real yield (tạ/ha)  

AWD Spring rice 323 163 21.03 110.72 59.84 Convention Spring rice 280 160 20.35 91.17 52.92

Cultivation Rice season Root diametter (mm)  

Root deapth/ 0,1m2 (m/

0,1m2)

Root biomass (g/ 0,1m2)

AWD Spring rice 0.8 876 81

Convention Spring rice 0.8 724 67

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Conclusion

•  AWD, SRI and 1M5R reduced seed 41 -

90%; reduced 20 - 39% nitrogen fertilizer, reduced pesticide used 27-62%, save water used 35%, increased grain yield 5 - 15%, increased benef i t 15-40% in comparison with conventional farmer practice

•  AWD, SRI and 1M5R increase the rice resilience such as: reduce lodging, increase drought and cold resistant ability

•  AWD, SRI and 1P5G improve soil fertility and reduce 46-69% CH4 e m i s s i o n i n c o m p a r i s o n w i t h conventional practice

a

ab

bc

CH4 emission from paddy rice field

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Conclusion

Opportunity: if 1.14 million ha of rice in Red river Delta and 4.08 million ha of rice in Mekong river Delta applied by SRI (AWD) and 1M5R (AWD), respectively resulting in increasing rice productivity 3.01 million tones, and reducing 26.1 million tones of CO2 equivalent However, the rice area applied SRI and 1P5G is too low: The main reason are i) Irrigation system is poor ii) Different rice varieties and different sowing calendar leading to difficult to control water iii) Weed and rat problem iv) Farmer and some local authority staff awareness is limited v) Salary for irrigation station staff is also low

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Conclusion Solution for upscaling SRI (AWD) and 1M5R (AWD):

i) Need detail direction for upscaling SRI (AWD) and 1M5R (AWD) from National level to province, district and commune level

ii) Combine SRI (AWD) and 1M5R (AWD) in to larger rice field demonstration

iii) Improving irrigation system with good supplying and drainage canal

iv) re-distribution rice field for making bigger rice field and leveling rice field surface

v) Training, provide training materials, conduct more demonstration on AWD rice and media

vi) Increasing salary for irrigation staff

Thanks you for your attention !