Overall objectives:

According to the United Nations Codex Alimentarium "Organic Farming is defined as the set of agricultural production practices, subject to certification, based on the primary use of natural resources and raw materials, the minimal use of synthetic substances, whether in pest control, fertilization or in the correction of natural soil characteristics."
However careful and responsible, the organic farming practices may not always necessarily guarantee that products are completely free of any residues deriving from synthetic agro-substances, due to non-point environmental pollution, which will determine or influence the quality of agricultural produces. The externalities from diverse anthropogenic activities may impact organic farming through two main vectors, indeed vital resources, namely air and water.

This course will have as a main tenet the introduction of fundamental concepts in the field of hydrology, showing methodological alternatives for the use of water resources in agricultural production, and the demonstration of how environmental conservation policies, pertaining to water recycling and its sustainable use, can and should be the basis of all agricultural production.

Syllabus:

1) introduction of basic hydrology concepts;

2) considerations regaring site  selection taking into account the availability of water resources;
3) discussion of key challenges and factors responsible for changes in production quality  regarding the quality of water;
4) presentation and recommendation of the main analytical methodologies in most common contamination screening;
5) indication of viabilizadoras techniques and methodologies of conservation, recycling and optimization in the use of water in agricultural production;
6) storage and distribution systems to support the irrigation of agricultural crops;
7) water as a factor of integration and boosting agricultural communities.

Literature/Sources:

01) Principles of Organic Farming: Renewing the Earth's Harvest; Publ. by Navdanya; 2004; New Delhi, India

02) Water and Sustainable Agriculture; Iván Francisco García-Tejero; 2011; Springer

03) Thirsty Planet: Strategies for Sustainable Water Management; Constance Elizabeth Hunt; 2004; St Martin's Press, LLC, 175 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY

04) International Assessment of Agricultural Knowledge, Science and Technology for Development. Agriculture at a Crossroads: Global Report; Beverly D. McIntyre and others (ed.);  2009; Washington, D.C.; Island Press.

05) Buried Clay Pot irrigation; in Agricultural Water Management J. 48(2):79­ 88; Bainbridge, D.A.; 2001

06) Buried Clay Pot Irrigation Booklet; Bainbridge, D.A.; 2006

07) Constructed wetlands for grey water treatment; Avery, L.M. et al.; 2007

08) Characteristics of grey wastewater; Eriksson, E. et al.; 2002

09) Constructed wetlands for the Mediterranean countries; Masi, F. et al.; 2007

10) Wastewater treatment by a modular, domestic-scale reedbed system; Derry, C. et al.; 2015

11) Feasibility and sustainability of fog harvesting; Batishah, A.F.; 2015

12) Fog collection in the western Mediterranean basin; Estrela. M. et al.; 2008

13) Fog water collection in a rural park in the Canary Isles; Marzol Jaen, M.V.; 2002

14) Mechanical characteristics of Raschel mesh for fog collectors; Riverera, J.D. et al.; 2015

15) Prospective use of collected fog water in the restoration of degraded burned areas; Estrela, M.J. et al., 2009

16) Temporal characteristics and fog water collection during summer in Tenerife; Marzol Jaen, M.V.; 2008

17) Comportamento Hidráulico e Ambiental de Zonas Húmidas; Ph.D. Dissert. Engenharia do Ambiente; Galvão, A.F.; Univ. Técnica Lisboa; 2009

Assesssment methods and criteria:

The evaluation will be based on the presentation in groups of 2 or 3 students, of a water resources management project considering a case study.