CIHEAM IAMB

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4. Land & Water Resources Management: Irrigated Agriculture

The Master Programme: One Academic Year  (60 ECTS)

The Master Programme in "Land and Water Resources Management: Irrigated agriculture" provides a one-year curriculum to graduate students, researchers or professionals in different disciplines:

Agronomy/Agriculture engineering; Civil Engineering (Irrigation and Hydraulics); Agricultural Economics; Computer and Communications Engineering; Eco-system Management; Environmental and Water Resources Engineering; Irrigation; Plant Science/Horticulture; Hydrotechnic Engineering; Farm management; Soil Science/Geology.

The main objective of the course is to enhance the scientific knowledge and technological know-how of candidates in water saving and land conservation issues especially in Mediterranean environments. The one-year programme is based on the completion of a series of specific one-week courses and the preparation of an irrigation project.  

The major topics are related to the following thematic areas: 

• Water use efficiency and water productivity; 
• On-farm irrigation systems performance;
• Large-scale irrigation systems performance and new technologies;
• Use of non-conventional water resources in agriculture;
• Integration and up-scaling of the above issues at the basin level;
• Sustainable use and management of Mediterranean soils;
• Economic aspects of Mediterranean agriculture. 

Most of the above-said topics take into account the impact of climate variability. Apart from the class lectures the modules include various training activities such as field works, practical and lab works, group and individual works.

The levels required to apply for admission to the Master Programme are:

• Three years of university studies (180 ECTS);

• Four years of university studies (240 ECTS);

• Four years out of five (240 ECTS), upon agreement between the sending University and CIHEAM Bari according to which the year attended at CIHEAM Bari is recognized as fifth year by the University of origin in order to graduate;

• Five years of university studies (300 ECTS);

• Professionals having a degree (3-4years) and at least 2 years of experience in a field related to the Master Programme.

The Master of Science Programme: Two Academic Years  (120 ECTS)

The Master of Science Programme in "Land and Water Resources Management: Irrigated agriculture" provides a two-year curriculum for graduates holding the title of agricultural or hydraulic engineers. 

Access to the 2nd year is only guaranteed to students who have successfully completed the first year and have met all the prerequisites set by the Institute (for first year please refer to the above mentioned programme).

The 2nd year is based on the “problem solving” approach and research themes are derived from specific and relevant problems for which a practical technical solution is sought. Applied research themes and experimental works are developed. In a rigorous scientific framework, works are targeted to innovatory solutions that are feasible in the integrated land and water system they are designed for. 

The main research topics for MSc theses in Land and Water management are:

• Eco-Efficiency analysis of irrigation
• Impact of treated wastewater use on the cropping pattern, irrigation management and hydraulic performance of irrigation network
• Generation of the discharge hydrograph in large scale irrigation system
• Modernization of an on-demand pressurized irrigation systems: Assessment of the flexibility impact on the cost effectiveness
• Formulation of a physically-based pedotransfer function to determine soil hydraulic parameters for an agro-hydrological model
• Energy and Hydraulic Performance-Based Management of Large-Scale Pressurized Irrigation Systems
• Actual soil erosion loss and sediment yield estimation in the Candelaro watershed of Apulia region in Italy using the G2 model
• Characterization, modeling and participatory simulations of water use and development strategies at the level of rural households and rural territories
• The impact of conversion from surface irrigation to drip irrigation on groundwater exploitation
• Combination of new sensor technologies, satellite navigation and positioning technology to manage irrigation, fertilisation and applying automated optical sensing to detect diseases undetectable by traditional means

During the second year, some students will be guided towards a PhD programme jointly carried out by Italian Universities and CIHEAM Bari.