Soil and Water Management & Crop Nutrition

Last Updated: June 2002

Our work assists national programmes to use nuclear techniques to develop integrated strategies for improving the efficiency of nutrient and water use by crops within selected ecoregions, while preserving soil fertility and protecting water quality. The overall aim is to promote food security by increasing or sustaining crop productivity through better management of soil and water resources.
Currently we are mainly involved in:

development of integrated plant nutrient systems (IPNS) for increasing the fertility of impoverished soils and thus increasing crop yields; included here is monitoring of fertilizer use efficiency under the Special Programme for Food Security (SPFS)
management of scarce water resources for maximizing crop productivity
development of soil conservation practices for maintaining crop production and for environmental protection.

The adoption of innovative strategies by collaborating National Agricultural Research Systems (NARS) and assistance in formulating and implementating strategic, applied and adaptive research activities is pursued through Research Networks, Technical Co-operation Projects and Training Courses conducted in collaboration with FAO's Land and Water Development Division (AGL), relevant International Agricultural Research Centres (IARCs) of the CGIAR system and with the International Board for Soil Research and Management (IBSRAM). Our activities are supported through research, training and other services from the Soil Science Unit at the FAO/IAEA Agriculture and Biotechnology Laboratory, Seibersdorf and we promote information sharing among national and regional research organizations through symposia, seminars and expert consultations, and by dissemination of the results of our activities via publications in national and international journals, and through manuals and newsletters.