Uso Comunitario del Agua y del Suelo para la Producción Sustentable de Pasturas

Milk livestock is the main system of production of the Andean communities of the Ecuador. Feeding of the animals is based with pastures, that every day is more difficult by the division of the lands "minifundios" and changes in rainfall cycles. However, to maintain a constant and sustainable production, small farmers implement community systems of sprinkler irrigation, which optimize the use of soil and water. The project aimed to study the land use, efficiency of systems of irrigation, quality, and health of soil as indicators of sustainability in the production of pastures. Surveys to water users were conducted to determine the use of the soil, the irrigation efficiency were evaluated at the level of main channel, distribution and in the plot, and representative soil samples were taken throughout in the territory. It was noted that there is a stratification of the land according to the size of farms, farm-level water use efficiency is low and the quality of soils varies with altitudinal belts. It is concluded that the production of pastures for cattle feeding is done on farms between 1 to 5 ha., in the altitudinal zones of 2,850 to 3,600 m. above sea level. The implementation of sprinkler irrigation systems and management of soil quality indices contribute to sustainable pasture production.