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| To save water, plant this rice... | ||
| Growing the new strain invented by a Chinese researcher requires less water, and is a major breakthrough for Asia where rice is a staple | ||
KYOTO (Japan) - It may
not be able to do lunges and leg lifts, but a new strain of aerobic rice
could really stretch water resources in Asia, which uses up to 50 per cent
of its water to grow the thirsty crop.
'Rice uses three times more water than other crops like wheat and maize,' said Dr Bas Bouman, a water scientist at the International Rice Research Institute based in the Philippines. 'To produce one tonne of rice, it requires two Olympic-sized swimming pools.' To cultivate rice properly, it is planted in some 50 to 60cm of water for three to six months. Years of work in plant hybridisation to develop seeds which will grow in less water have helped Chinese researchers produce a low-water, high-air alternative to that cultivation system. The aerobic rice - known as han dao in Chinese, which literally means dry land rice - was invented by Dr Wang Huaqi of China Agricultural University. It was presented to the Third World Water Forum, which ended yesterday here, as a 'major breakthrough', particularly for Asia where rice is a staple food. Some 190,000 ha of north-eastern China have for the last two years been planted with the new aerobic rice, as have 120,000 ha in Mato Grosso, Brazil, the institute said. Test fields in Luzon province in the Philippines and in Uttar Pradesh in northern India have also been sowed with the new seeds. Other new techniques to improve cultivation of staple crops, including those that can tolerate salt water or even recycled water, have also come under the spotlight at the week-long forum. About 12,000 participants from 165 countries attended the forum to discuss the global sanitation and water crisis affecting 2.4 billion people. --AFP
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