Snow Harvesting: A Potential Water Source for Afghanistan
Abstract
Afghanistan has limited water sources, and the possibility of using a snow fence to concentrate, or "collect," snow to provide a supple-mental source of water, upon melting, in the Bamian region was examined. In Afghan villages, women and/or children often fetch water for their families. Improving water usage efficiency could improve agricultural pro-ductivity, reduce the number of trips to the nearest water source, and provide healthier daily nutritional intake. Snow fences are currently used to manage the distribution of snow for the purposes of supplementing water supply. Hence, the researchers determined the average amount of water required for sheep and cows per village using demographic data. Then, they compared this volume of water to the equivalent volume of snow that can be captured with a snow fence, based on current knowledge of snow fence function. Analysis of topographic and meteorological data indicated that many areas in Bamian are favorable for collection of snow for eventual water harvesting. A 100-m-wide "solid" fencing (e.g., rocks), approximately 3 m high, was estimated to be able to provide 16%-17% of a "typical" Bamian village's livestock water, whereas a highly efficient, 50% porous fence could provide approximately 47% of the livestock water. The research team's recommendation was to further assess implementation of the snow fence water-collection method as a supplementary water source in rural areas of Afghanistan that receive annual snowfall.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Aug 01, 2009
- Accession Number
- ADA507670
Entities
People
- Adam M. Chalmers
- Janet P. Hardy
- Karen S. Henry
- Kyle J. Thompson
Organizations
- Engineer Research and Development Center