Trends and perceptions of rural household groundwater use and the implications for smallholder agriculture in rain-fed Southern Laos |
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| Authors: | Camilla Vote Jonathan Newby Khamphou Phouyyavong Thavone Inthavong Philip Eberbach |
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| Affiliation: | 1. School of Agricultural &2. Wine Sciences, Charles Sturt University, Wagga Wagga, NSW, Australia;3. Graham Centre for Agricultural Innovation, Wagga Wagga, NSW, Australia;4. School of Agriculture and Food Sciences, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, QLD, Australia;5. International Centre for Tropical Agriculture (CIAT), Hanoi, Vietnam;6. National Agriculture and Forestry Research Institute, Agriculture and Forestry Policy Research Centre, Vientiane, Laos |
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| Abstract: | In Laos, the extent of rural groundwater use is largely unknown. This paper presents results of a study conducted in Champasak province, Southern Laos, to examine rural household attitudes to groundwater use and management; and to gauge farmer perceptions of the opportunities/constraints of increased groundwater use for smallholder agriculture. Significant differences in groundwater use, total cash income and perceived groundwater quality were found. Further agricultural expansion was constrained by insufficient labour and the limited area of individual landholdings, not by the limited groundwater supply, which was the preferred source to fulfil increased demands for domestic/agricultural use. There were no groundwater regulations. |
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| Keywords: | Laos water resources development groundwater use perceptions smallholder agriculture |
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