1. Introduction
The FAO/UNDP Regional Seminar on Reclamation and Management of Calcareous Soils was held in Cairo from 27 November to 2 December 1972 at the kind invitation of the Government of the Arab Republic of Egypt
In 1969 the FAO Regional Commission on Land and Water Use in the Near East recommended that FAO should start an applied research programme in the region concentrating on four central activities which cover the main problems having a detrimental or retarding effect on agricultural development in the region. These problems concern:
- Reclamation, improvement and management of salt affected soils, including where applicable the control of waterlogging; (FAO/UNDP Regional Seminar on Methods of Amelioration of Saline and Waterlogged Soils, Baghdad, Iraq, 5-14 December 1970);The main objective of the Seminar was to bring together senior government officials and high level experts to review and discuss recent scientific and technical activities in the field of reclamation and management of calcareous soils. Also to identify problems of regional interest and to suggest applied research programmes on calcareous soils within the framework of the Regional Applied Research project on land and water use in the Near East.- Reclamation, improvement and management of calcareous soils; (FAO/UNDP Regional Seminar on Reclamation and Management of Calcareous Soils, Cairo, Egypt, 27 November - 2 December 1972);
- Reclamation, improvement and management of sandy soils; (provisionally: FAO/UNDP Regional Seminar on Reclamation and Management of Sandy Soils, Nicosia, Cyprus, December 1973);
- Determination of the most economic use of irrigation water, taking into account consumptive use, application efficiency, crops and cropping patterns; (FAO/UNDP Regional Seminar on Effective Use of Irrigation Water at the Farm Level, Damascus, Syrian Arab Republic, 7-13 December 1971).
The Seminar was attended by 47 participants from 11 member countries of the FAO Regional Commission on Land and Water Use in the Near East, 17 participants from 8 FAO/UNDP projects in the region, 13 observers from non-member countries of the Commission and international and national organizations and several FAO staff from the Regional Office in Cairo and from Headquarters. The full List of Participants is attached as Annex 2.
This Report deals first with the invited papers on technical subjects concerned with the reclamation, improvement and management of calcareous soils, which form Chapter III. These are, in Chapter 17, followed by statements from country participants concerning conditions in their own countries and then as Chapter V there is a group of four supplementary papers on work and studies carried out on calcareous soils in countries either in the region or bordering it. Chapter 71 then deals with the recommendations made during the Seminar. The Agenda is attached as Annex 1.
2. Summary of Recommendations
The following main recommendations were made by the Seminar, that:-
(i) the information available on the effective use of calcareous soils be compiled and exchanged between the countries of the region;These recommendations will be presented to the Fourth Session of the FAO Regional Commission on Land and Water Use in the Near East which may possibly be held in December 1973 in Cyprus.(ii) the concept of calcareous soils be more precisely defined and that the description of these soils be expressed in standardized terminology-taking into account the amount, form and distribution of CaCO3 and its effect on the physical, chemical and mineralogical characteristics of these soils;
(iii) the survey of calcareous soils be pursued and in order to allow for an exchange of experience the classification system used for mapping be correlated;
(iv) the relationship between soil properties and their effect on crop growth and soil and water management practices be established under specific environmental conditions and be used for land use evaluation purposes at different levels;
(v) a comprehensive soil testing system be applied for recommending fertilizer applications and that the calibration of each test be checked under local conditions with special reference to calcareous soils;
(vi) further research on P nutrition and its economic application be carried out on the basis of new concepts of P supply to roots, and that research be conducted on the N balance under different cropping systems, on the supply, form, availability and toxicity of micronutrients, on the role of organic matter with regard to structural stability and availability of nutrients;
(vii) specific morphological and physical characteristics of calcareous soils be taken into consideration when irrigation is practised; irrigation methods other than the conventional ones be investigated with a view to determining the susceptibility of calcareous soils to salinization; field treatments be investigated to prevent the effects of surface crusting; the machinery needed for tillage operations be tested in relation to the soil properties and economy; crops and varieties be selected which are adapted to calcareous soil conditions;
(viii) extension programmes be strengthened and that research efforts be aimed toward the solution of practical problems;
(ix) the implementation of the above recommendations be carried out in the framework of the FAO/UNDP Regional Applied Research Programme for Land and Water Use in the Near East. The Seminar expressed the hope that this programme which is now in its first phase will be further developed with the support of the UNDP and further recommends that FAO use its good offices in expediting early action in this respect.
3. Acknowledgements
The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations wishes to express its gratitude to the Government of the Arab Republic of Egypt, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of Agriculture and Land Reclamation, the Arab Socialist Union and all other organizations and officials for their excellent cooperation and generous hospitality. FAO also wishes to express its thanks for the moat interesting field excursion which was organized by several institutions and officers concerned with agriculture in Egypt.
Special mention should be made of the United Nations and the United Nations Development Programme who contributed materially to the running of the Seminar.
FAO wishes to record its appreciation of the support given by the countries of the Near East who participated in the Seminar.
Finally, special thanks are due to His Excellency Dr. M.M. Elgabaly, Minister of Agriculture and Land Reclamation, who took such an active part in the Seminar, not only by opening it but also by delivering one of the main lectures; thanks are also expressed to the Director of the Seminar, Dr. Rifki Anwar, Head of the Egyptian Delegation, for the firm control and authority with which he guided the proceedings and to Dr. M. Bashir Choudri of Pakistan, Vice-Chairman of the Seminar and Chairman of the Drafting Committee.
