Saline Irrigation for Agriculture and Forestry (World Academy of Art and Science, 4)

Ladies and Gentlemen, I would like to apologize on behalf of the Secretary General of UNESCO that he was not able to come personally because he is, at present, away from Headquarters on another important mission; as his Representative and on behalf of UNESCO in general, I wish to extend a very hearty welcome to the scientists of many countries who are gathered today here in Rome in order to study and contribute to the further development of the complex problern of irrigation with saline water. In Co-sponsoring this Symposium, the Department of Advancement of Science entertains a foremost interest in all matters relating to both the theoretical and practical progress in this highly important field. Within the framework of UNESCO's former major project on Arid Lands, careful attention was devoted to the complex relationship of soil, plant and water in arid and semi-arid regions, with special reference to crop-yields. Four !arge Meetings were devoted to an exhaustive examination of the theoretical aspects of the salinity problern in arid areas as weil as of the practical effects of man's effort for improvementin agricultural production: In 1958 salinity problems in the arid zone were analysed in detail at Teheran; In 1959, at Madrid, salinity was seen as one of the chief processes which determine the plant-water relationship in dry regions; In 1962 at Tashkent andin 1964 at Budapest, the dynamic interdependence of salinity, irrigation and alkaHne soils was brought to light. Preliminary reviews of research were discussed in these Symposia, and the proceedings of these were published in the UNESCO's Arid Zones Research publications. As regards UNESCO's role in sponsoring research and exchange of information in the salinity and irrigation field, I would like to stress that the great interest and competence of one of our sister Agencies, namely the United Nations Food and Agricultural Organisation, has been a continuous source of support for our own efforts in this scientific field. Front Matter....Pages i-xxiv Front Matter....Pages 1-1 Principles of Saline and Marine Agriculture....Pages 3-10 Germination Capacity of Seeds in Saline Soil....Pages 11-23 Utilization of Sea-water and Coastal Sandy Belts for Growing Crops in India....Pages 24-40 Nuclear Biology and Irrigation with Sea-water....Pages 41-52 Problems of Irrigation with Brackish Water in Italy....Pages 53-79 On Saline Irrigation Problems in Sicily Remarks to Professor Cavazza’s Report....Pages 80-82 Front Matter....Pages 83-83 Plantgrowing with Sea-water and Other Saline Waters in Israel and Other Countries....Pages 85-92 Agricultural Cultivation by means of Direct Irrigation with Undesalinated Sea-water....Pages 93-106 Forestry Trials with Highly Saline or Sea-water in Kuwait....Pages 107-132 The Desert Garden of Eilat....Pages 133-160 Irrigation with Saline Water in Puglia....Pages 161-167 Irrigation with Salty Water in Tunisia....Pages 168-186 Irrigation with Salt Water and Drainage in Tunisia....Pages 187-194 A New Way of Culture to Decrease Salinity....Pages 195-197 Vegetation under Saline Conditions....Pages 201-216 Front Matter....Pages 199-199 Saline Soil Problems with Particular Reference to Irrigation with Saline Water in India....Pages 217-233 Behaviour of Salty Soils under Irrigation in Puglia....Pages 234-240 Experiments in the Improvement of Saline and Alkaline Soils of the Zebra Plain (Morocco)....Pages 241-248 Freshwater Organisms in Biotopes Influenced by Sea-water....Pages 249-260 Front Matter....Pages 261-261 Economics of the Conversion of Saline Waters to Fresh Water for Irrigation....Pages 266-273 Front Matter....Pages 261-261 The Application of Nuclear Energy to Sea-water Desalination....Pages 274-288 Remarks on Some Agrarian Economic Questions Connected with Desalination....Pages 289-291 Back Matter....Pages 292-325