Development of Plough Pan

Bunds

Wet Field /  Dry Field

Our field characterization supports previous modeling studies* that have shown the importance of bunds for irrigation return flow.   The low permeability plow-pan may not extend beneath bunds that are rarely plowed because they follow property boundaries.  Thus, bunds provide vertical conduits through the plow-pan for both water infiltration, and possibly gas exchange.   We have installed a network of sensors in a rice field to investigate the effects of rice-cultivation on the arsenic content of the soil.  This rice field is irrigated by groundwater with high concentrations of arsenic.

 

Construction of data logger tower above the elevation of Monsoon flooding

Installation of soil moisture probes and tensiometers