Bench terraces covered with small stones
Type: Technologies
Creation: 2013-04-30 12:13 Updated: 2019-08-13 17:25
Compilers: ahmed algalal
Reviewers: David Streiff, Alexandra Gavilano
Country/ region/ locations where the Technology has been applied and which are covered by this assessment
- Country: Yemen
- Region/ State/ Province: Sanaa governorate
- Further specification of location (e.g. municipality, town, etc.), if relevant: Bani Ismail- Manakha District
- Map: View Map
Description of the SLM Technology
Short description of the Technology
Building terraces in steep areas for the purpose of reducing the slope, water harvesting and soil moisture conservation.
Detailed description of the Technology
Cutting and collecting stones for the construction of terraces on steep slopes of the mountains, structural measure to reduce the length and angle of the slope and the speed of runoff. This makes it easier to harvest water and reserving deposits. A wall terraces is built of stones where the height of a wall should be increased height of 1.8 - 3 m, a width of 1.5 - 4.3 m and the length from 8 - 14 m to keep the accumulated deposits. The cutting stones are brought from distant places for the purpose of building the walls. These terraces are similar to mountain terraces but the top soil surface can be covered with stones to protect it from heavy rain storms and prevent sheet erosion that results from raindrops hitting the bare top soil surface. The stone layer, also prevents evaporation and maintains soil moisture. The stones are arranged in a layer of about 0.25 – 0.7 m thickness over the entire surface of the soil except where to put the coffee trees with an average diameter of 1 m. It is difficult to use equipment in the process of building the terraces due to severe slopes. Therefore it is a labor intensive process of manually building terraces. Due to the slow process of construction it requires a lot of time. However, building terraces on steep slopes can lead to increased erosion in the absence of well maintaining outlets that allow draining the excess water from one terrace to another, avoiding breaking of terraces' walls. In any case, terraces need regular maintenance to ensure the sustainability of this technology. The landscape of the region is mountainous, bench terraces which are used for crop production exist in slopes exceeding 60%. The texture of the soil is silty loam and the depth of the terraces is moderate to deep. Due to small holdings and steepness of the terraces, the local implements are used for land preparation. The climate in the region is arid to semi-arid and annual precipitation ranges between 200 and 450 mm. The major crop in this area is coffee, which is cultivated because of its high economic value on the market.
Photos of the Technology
- 📍 Bani Ismail, Sanaa governorate- Manakha district
- 📷 Abdullah
- 📍 Bani Ismail, Sanaa governorate- Manakha district
- 📷 Abdullah
- 📍 Bani Ismail, Sanaa governorate- Manakha district
- 📍 Bani Ismail, Sanaa governorate- Manakha district
- 📷 Abdullah