[ Perception des agriculteurs envers la réutilisation des eaux usées en irrigation : Cas des villes de Meknès, Khemisset, Tifelt et Sidi Allal Lbahraoui (Maroc) ]
Volume 29, Issue 1, April 2020, Pages 49–58
Najib Dahbi1 and Lahcen Messaoudi2
1 Department of Chemistry, University Moulay Ismail, Faculty of Sciences, Meknes, Morocco, Morocco
2 Department of Chemistry, University Moulay Ismail, Faculty of Sciences, Meknes, Morocco, Morocco
Original language: French
Copyright © 2020 ISSR Journals. This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
Wastewater is increasingly being used by farmers in developing countries. This use is mainly motivated by: (a) the increasing scarcity of water resources and the increasing tensions on these resources; (b) population growth and the resulting increase in food demand. These waters pose significant health risks when integrated with water sources used for irrigation. At this level, this work has targeted one of the largest known areas of wastewater reuse for irrigation in Morocco (Meknes, Khemisset area), and has set as its objective to know farmers' perception (knowledge, attitudes, and practices) of this phenomenon, using a questionnaire. The results of this study clearly show that farmers have a negative perception towards the reuse of wastewater for irrigation. The informal nature, the high level of illiteracy and the lack of training and awareness-raising programmes on good farming and farm safety practices could justify the negative perception of farmers who are not aware of the health risks to which this phenomenon is exposed. In addition, the majority of them using wastewater for irrigation come from a low socio-economic environment where poverty and high vulnerability prevail.
Author Keywords: Perception, wastewater, farmers, irrigation, vulnerability, waterborne diseases.
Volume 29, Issue 1, April 2020, Pages 49–58
Najib Dahbi1 and Lahcen Messaoudi2
1 Department of Chemistry, University Moulay Ismail, Faculty of Sciences, Meknes, Morocco, Morocco
2 Department of Chemistry, University Moulay Ismail, Faculty of Sciences, Meknes, Morocco, Morocco
Original language: French
Copyright © 2020 ISSR Journals. This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
Abstract
Wastewater is increasingly being used by farmers in developing countries. This use is mainly motivated by: (a) the increasing scarcity of water resources and the increasing tensions on these resources; (b) population growth and the resulting increase in food demand. These waters pose significant health risks when integrated with water sources used for irrigation. At this level, this work has targeted one of the largest known areas of wastewater reuse for irrigation in Morocco (Meknes, Khemisset area), and has set as its objective to know farmers' perception (knowledge, attitudes, and practices) of this phenomenon, using a questionnaire. The results of this study clearly show that farmers have a negative perception towards the reuse of wastewater for irrigation. The informal nature, the high level of illiteracy and the lack of training and awareness-raising programmes on good farming and farm safety practices could justify the negative perception of farmers who are not aware of the health risks to which this phenomenon is exposed. In addition, the majority of them using wastewater for irrigation come from a low socio-economic environment where poverty and high vulnerability prevail.
Author Keywords: Perception, wastewater, farmers, irrigation, vulnerability, waterborne diseases.
Abstract: (french)
Les eaux usées sont de plus en plus utilisées par les agriculteurs des pays en développement. Cette utilisation est motivée principalement par : (a) la pénurie grandissante des ressources en eau et les tensions de plus en plus fortes sur ces ressources ; (b) la croissance démographique et l’augmentation résultante de la demande en nourriture. Ces eaux posent des risques importants pour la santé lors ce qu’elles s’intègrent aux sources d’eau utilisées pour l’irrigation. A ce niveau, le présent travail a ciblé un des plus grands périmètres réputé de réutilisation des eaux usées en irrigation au Maroc (périmètre Meknès, Khemisset), et a fixé comme objectif de connaitre la perception (connaissances, attitudes, et les pratiques) des agriculteurs vis-à-vis de ce phénomène, en utilisant un questionnaire. Les résultats de cette étude démontrent clairement que les agriculteurs ont une perception négative envers la réutilisation des eaux usées en irrigation. La nature informelle, le niveau élevé d’analphabétisme et l’absence de programmes de formation et sensibilisation sur les bonnes pratiques en matière d’exploitation et sécurité agricole pourraient justifier la perception négative des agriculteurs qui ne sont pas conscients des risques sanitaires auxquelles ce phénomène expose. En outre, la majorité d’entre eux utilisant les eaux usées en irrigation sont issues d’un milieu socio-économique bas où règne la pauvreté et une forte vulnérabilité.
Author Keywords: Perception, eaux usées, agriculteurs, irrigation, vulnérabilité, maladies hydriques.
How to Cite this Article
Najib Dahbi and Lahcen Messaoudi, “Farmers' perception of the reuse of raw wastewater for irrigation : The cities of Meknes, Khemisset, Tiflet and Sidi Allal Lbahraoui (Morocco),” International Journal of Innovation and Applied Studies, vol. 29, no. 1, pp. 49–58, April 2020.
