PL
Water reclamation is a set of procedures aimed at regulating water relations in the soil in order to improve its production capacity, facilitate cultivation, and protect agricultural land from flooding. Reclamation consists of draining areas from excess water and at the same time retaining water and irrigating areas in the event of drought.
History of reclamation – from antiquity to the present day
Reclamation in Europe developed already in the times of the Roman Empire, when the first drainage and irrigation systems were built to improve conditions for farming. The Romans used aqueducts and canals, which not only supplied water to cities, but also regulated its level in agricultural areas. In the Middle Ages in Western European countries, especially in the Netherlands, swamps and marshes began to be drained on a larger scale, using systems of locks and embankments. From the 16th to 18th centuries, land improvement was also used in Central Europe, including in the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, where riverbeds were regulated and wetlands were drained for agriculture. In post-war Poland, faced with the need to rebuild the economy and increase agricultural production, land improvement systems were intensively developed, primarily aimed at draining and drying areas. In order to obtain additional arable land, peat bogs were drained, by draining water from them using extensive systems of drainage ditches. The climatic situation was also different – Poland experienced long and snowy winters, which resulted in abundant spring thaws. At that time, the priority of water management was to quickly remove excess water to prevent, among other things, floods.
However, in the era of climate change and growing problems with lowering groundwater levels, more and more attention is being paid to irrigation systems to better manage water and counteract droughts. Today, land improvement in Europe is largely based on sustainable systems, which, instead of just draining, also allow for retention and effective management of water resources. This approach is used, among others, in Belgium.
Can land improvement support water retention?
The Water Law clearly states that water improvement consists of regulating water relations in order to improve the productive capacity of the soil and facilitate its cultivation. Land improvement devices include, among others: ditches with structures functionally related to them, drainage, pipelines, earthen fish ponds, dykes in irrigated areas, gravity and pressure irrigation systems.
In its traditional form, land improvement in post-war Poland was a tool for transforming wetlands into agricultural land. In the face of increasingly frequent droughts and extreme weather events, we are introducing a new, sustainable approach to land improvement – one that will allow for more effective management of water resources, instead of just removing excess water. Modern land improvement plays a dual drainage and irrigation role, regulating water levels in a balanced way, but also supporting its retention. Therefore, to answer the question posed in the title, we say: yes, land improvement can play a role supporting water retention.
Return to dual-function land improvement for sustainable resource management
In recent years, an urgent need has been noticed to modernize land improvement systems and implement solutions that increase water retention. In response to these challenges, the annexes to the drought effects counteracting plan (DECP) include a number of investments and activities covering the reconstruction of existing facilities, their modernization and the construction of new land improvement systems with an irrigation and drainage function. Our priority has become restoring hydrological balance by integrating retention systems with traditional water regulation methods. These activities are aimed not only at minimizing the effects of drought, but also at protecting biodiversity and improving the conditions for agricultural production.
In Annex No. 2 to the DECP (List of investment tasks related to increasing riverbed retention in catchments in rural areas – list B), 54 investment activities were selected, included in the Assumptions to the Water Resources Development Program (WRDP), aimed at increasing riverbed retention through the use of damming devices on rivers and canals and land improvement systems. These activities are aimed at restoring the original function in terms of retention and regulation of water flow, taking into account the requirements of maintaining biological continuity, among others, through the construction and reconstruction of gates, weirs, damming thresholds, stone partitions, or modernization of culverts with damming. In 2024, 73 maintenance projects were completed under WRDP, which contributed to increasing retention by approximately 2.6 million m3 on an area of approximately 6000 ha of agricultural land. As part of the above-mentioned projects the following were carried out: repairs of weir drive mechanisms, maintenance and repair of damming devices, and replacement of weir hoisting mechanisms, among others.
Annex no. 4 to DECP (Catalogue of activities to counteract the effects of drought) includes activities related to increasing retention, formal activities, and educational activities. Among the 27 activities, activity no. 8 Construction and reconstruction of water improvement devices to increase soil retention (from drainage to irrigation and drainage functions) was proposed.
How does a modern approach to land improvement improve the water balance?
A modern approach to land improvement should involve the use of intelligent water management systems. Instead of only draining water, systems are built to store it. This is done by building a system of gates and weirs on land improvement devices. They allow groundwater levels to be controlled depending on weather conditions. This allows water to be collected during rains and gradually released during periods of drought.
Land improvement systems with a drainage and irrigation function are solutions that allow for flexible water management
- Regulated drainage – instead of classic drainage systems that only drain water, systems with the ability to control the outflow are used. Throttles and gates allow water to be retained in the soil when needed and its excess to be removed in the event of heavy rainfall.
- Drainage ditches with impoundments – instead of draining water directly into rivers, impoundment gates are used, which slow down the outflow and allow water to percolate into the soil and store it for agricultural purposes.
- Subsurface irrigation – during droughts, drainage systems can be used to supply water to plant roots through infiltration from the level of drainage pipes.
This approach, based on retention and regulated water management, effectively improves the country’s water balance. Therefore, the future of drainage in Poland should be based on a sustainable approach, which not only protects agricultural land from excess water, but also helps retain it where it is most needed.
If you farm in agricultural areas where there are drainage ditches, remember that by installing thresholds or gates, you can, with the appropriate regulation of these devices, affect the irrigation of the soil you use. Thanks to these changes, you can independently act to improve the water balance in your environment. It’s a simple way to retain valuable water in the landscape rather than letting it drain away.
