Case study Identity Card

Long title: Integrated and Participatory Water Resources Management towards effective agricultural system in Kali Pusur watershed
Geographical coverage of the case:Indonesia, Central Java, between Klaten and Boyolali Districts, Pusur River watershed (80 km²)
Case study team:Bruno Lidon (CIRAD, UMR G-Eau),  Hendri Sosiawan (IAARD,IAHRI Bogor), Bernard Triomphe (CIRAD, UMR Innovation), Mathieu Van Hoy (ISTOM student), Sari Virgawati (UPN Veteran University)
Years covered:2006-2014

Case study description

The innovation under study: Integrated water management in Indonesia, promoting new practices to avoid conflicts of use

In territories with limited water resources, numerous conflicts of use may arise. CIRAD and its partners, including the Danone Group, took action to prevent or resolve these conflicts. To do so, they conducted research and development from 2006 to 2014 in Java, Indonesia, in the Kali Pusur watershed, located on the slopes of Mount Merapi, an active volcano. Annual rainfall there is high (around 1 800 mm), but the sharing of water resources during the dry season is problematic: it concerns some 10 000 smallholders irrigating 3 500 ha of land, and two water companies, one public and one private.

In the dry season, the farmers who traditionally grow rice are faced with water shortages. In order to study the conflict situation surrounding this shortage, a multidisciplinary team of researchers worked with all stakeholders involved in the use and management of water resources: farmers/water users, local and regional institutions, and the public and private water companies present in the territory. This process encouraged the stakeholders to express their views, to identify the real sticking points behind the official positions and to find compromise solutions. Based on an accurate assessment of water resources, these collective efforts produced four innovations that are part of an integrated water resource management approach. The two organisational innovations entail increasing the capacity of user associations to manage water in irrigation schemes, while the other two technical innovations are aimed at improving the efficiency of water use and protecting natural resources.

A new type of association between users at the irrigated system level

The Kapilaler irrigation scheme, an area of 450 ha that was previously used for sugarcane production, is fed by a spring situated 15 km upstream, just a few hundred metres from the borehole used by Danone. The water therefore travels down a channel that crosses and feeds other irrigated plots upstream of the Kapilaler scheme.The upstream plots are mostly planted with rice, and those in the intermediate zone with maize or vegetable crops. The plots with inadequate conditions are all situated downstream and planted with maize or vegetables. Conflict situations have arisen between the many users, whether the village authorities in the different sub-districts, the farmers’ associations in the different schemes, or the various groups of farmers, as well as the other users (fish farmers, public and private water companies, etc.) also concerned. Faced with the complexity of this situation, the coordination forum for Kapilaler channel water users, which was created to prevent conflicts, proved inadequate.

The innovation consisted in transforming this forum into a coordinating body to manage the scheme, supported by existing irrigators’ associations, and extended to representatives of other stakeholders in the scheme. Its competences include coordinating irrigation, monitoring cropping calendars, controlling flow rates to plots, maintaining infrastructure, and resolving internal conflict situations. This was the first innovation to be developed, between 2006 and 2010.

Dialogue between water users at the Kali Pusur watershed level

The research programme helped to form a new basis for dialogue: in partnership with the stakeholders, especially water users and “experimental” farmers, a process for sharing analyses and knowledge was established, resulting in a new forum for dialogue. Within this forum, the stakeholders reached a consensus on the sharing of water resources. In turn, this consensus had several impacts: a freeze on increases in withdrawals by the local water management agency, better communication between stakeholders, and an increase in flows tapped by Danone thanks to new boreholes.

Technical innovations: more productive maize cultivation

Whereas rice monoculture during the three annual cropping seasons amplifies constraints on access to water in the dry season, shifting to maize cultivation helps to extend cultivated areas in the dry season without increasing demand for water. To encourage farmers to grow maize instead of rice during this season, the maize cultivation system had to be improved (organo-mineral fertilisers, tillage, seed treatments, varieties, responsible irrigation) to ensure its profitability was equal to or higher than that of rice.

Technical innovations: agricultural water conservation practices

In the dry season, water distribution to irrigation schemes depends largely on springs fed by groundwater. Ensuring the sustainability of this resource implies protecting its recharge and therefore limiting runoff. The serious degradation of cultivated areas in the upstream portion of their recharge zone led farmers to co-develop innovative agricultural practices: ridging – a tillage technique using embankments to limit erosion –, higher seeding rates, new crop combinations, and the protection of waterways. These practices are all aimed at ensuring the sustainability of agricultural activities, while minimising their impact on environmental degradation (runoff, erosion, landslides), which is the main factor limiting groundwater recharge.

Ten years of support for innovations

The story began for these four innovations in December 2005, when Danone Aqua, CIRAD and its Indonesian partners launched the first phases of the project. The development of these innovations was included in the priority actions identified by the stakeholders following the participatory analysis of constraints conducted in 2006. The first innovations were progressively implemented between 2006 and 2015.

The impacts of the programme confirmed by users

The impacts of these four innovations were characterised by indicators during a survey of around 40 users.

The creation of the forum for dialogue between Pusur watershed users clearly improved communication and cooperation between stakeholders, facilitating an increase in flows tapped by Danone (new borehole) and enabling a freeze on increases in withdrawals planned by PDAM, the local parastatal water utility company.

The creation of FK Padika, a new type of association to manage the Kapilaler scheme, improved the exploitation and maintenance of the network, ending illegal pumping and reducing conflicts. It had a positive economic impact, which varied according to farmers’ pumping capacity, and, indirectly, it improved Danone’s corporate image.

In areas with little irrigation, crop productivity was increased by using a productive maize cultivar and appropriate crop management techniques, and water use efficiency was improved. Farmers thus achieved a net margin 33% higher for maize cultivation than for rice, with no increase in irrigation.

The programme also resulted in the expansion of areas benefiting from supplemental pump irrigation in the Kapilaler irrigation scheme. Finally agricultural practices based on water and soil protection at the Gumuk site helped to reduce erosion, to increase crop productivity (maize, tobacco, vegetables), to increase farmers’ income and to disseminate improved crop management techniques in neighbouring villages.

Stakeholders

Stakeholders involved in the innovation process

Value chain stakeholders : Rice and Corn producers in the irrigated areas supplied by Pusur and Kapilaler Kanal, Corn producers in the upstream irrigated areas, mixed cropping-livestock farmers’ community of Gumuk (most upstream part of the ground water recharge area). Cargill grain Company;
Research stakeholders : MoA/IAARD/IAHRI Bogor, MoA/IAARD/BPTP Jogjakarta; UMR G-eau: CIRAD / IRD, CIRAD UMR Green UPR, CIRAD ex UPR Politiques et Marchés; UGM-PUSTEK, UGM-Dpt; Geohydrology,
Paris VI University (UMR Sisyphe)
Civil society stakeholders : Bina Swadaya NGO, Farmers associations of Ceper & Sudimoro villages, FK PADIKA, Village and sub-district Water User Associations,
Institutional stakeholders : Rural engineering Dpt of Klaten district, Agriculture Dpt of Klaten district, Forestry & environmental Dpt of Klaten district, Development planning agencies of Klaten and Boyolali districts, Municipalities (heads of village)
Others : Danone-Aqua, CSR Danone Klaten, PDAM Solo and Klaten

Stakeholders (mainly) impacted by the innovation process

Value chain stakeholders : Smallholder irrigator groups who have switched from rice mono-cropping to corn growing during the 2nd and/or 3rd cropping season (mainly Kapilaler area) , Smallholder irrigator groups have adopted improved corn growing package (Upstream and Kapilaler irrigated areas), Tobacco and vegetables producers located in the most upstream part of the watershed
Research stakeholders :Researchers from IAHRI, BPTP Jogjakarta
Others : Danone-Aqua, CSR Danone Klaten, PDAM Solo & Klaten