Effect of Lake Basaka expansion on the sustainability of Matahara SE in the Awash River Basin, Ethiopia

Abstract

Matahara Sugar Estate (MSE) establishment nearly 40 years ago is experiencing effects of a rising GW table and salinity in some fields, and as the result the yield of certain fields is decreasing and a significant area of cultivated lands are abandoning The problem is believed to be the result of the expansion of saline Lake Basaka towards the plantation field. The objective of this study was to determine the extent of expansion of the Lake (area & shape) in the past 35 years period from Landsat images and assess its negative effects on the nearby sugarcane plantations’ GW dynamics & soil salinity. The result indicates that the lake expanded approximately 34 km 2 in the past 35 years. The GW table is very shallow in the Abadir extension areas and north section where the GW salinity is under severe condition