Shaping of an agricultural landscape to increase water and nutrient retention

One of the most important phenomena, from the point of view of sustainable development of the countryside, is the worsening quality and diminishing quantity of water resources. The agriculture-induced pressure on ecosystems tends to increase while hunger and malnutrition of global population grows, expected to reach 2 billion persons by 2050. Moreover, there is no more land that could be utilized for this purpose. Widespread appearance of erosion, pollution of ground and surface waters and shortages of water resources is therefore expected. This seeks for an urgent need for a new approach to environmental management. For this purpose, not only technical measures, but also natural mechanisms, involving physical and biological processes must be used. This paper presents the results of investigations carried out in Wielkopolska (Poland) and in the Gumera (Gumara) catchment (Ethiopia) on climate and land use changes, and their impacts on water quantity and quality. Possibilities to counteract the worsening of water conditions are presented. Long-term investigations show that proper shaping of landscape structures, mainly by creation of shelterbelts, strips of meadows, land-water ecotones and small water bodies, and improving soil structure by increasing organic matter content, is one of the best tools for achieving this goal.