Dr. Muhammad Hamid Al-Ghamdi
IS it necessary to stop growing fodder, wheat and barley? We are in desperate need of designing an agricultural policy that strikes a balance between water needs and the increase in agricultural activities. Water and food security should be a priority for us. If we do not have a national policy in place, we will lose a lot.
The increase in the number of agricultural activities, especially the growing of fodder, wheat and barley, should be controlled. We should not grow more than what we need. Some people plant too many palm trees, more than what is needed, and consume a large amount of groundwater.
Today, we face the problem of limited groundwater resources. Under no circumstances can we compensate for the shortage of groundwater. Therefore, any future agricultural policy should focus primarily on the issue of water. We should always remember that groundwater cannot meet all our needs. That is why we should stop exporting agricultural products because we do not have enough water.
Some are highly skeptical of the warnings and studies about nonrenewable groundwater. They have the right to be skeptical. But I would like to stress that the depletion of groundwater is just a matter of time in light of the excessive use of this important resource. Some accuse me of writing articles about the depletion of groundwater to scare people and say that I do not have evidence or proof to support what I say.
The problem has occurred because the Ministry of Agriculture and Water (known today as the Ministry of Agriculture) encouraged farmers to increase their agricultural activities without studying the consequences of such a move. Despite the decrease in the groundwater levels all over the country, the ministry has continued to uphold the same policy.
On the other hand, the Ministry of Planning has warned several times against the decrease in the levels of nonrenewable groundwater resources. The ministry continues to be concerned about this problem because the Ministry of Agriculture has ignored these warnings. Why this is the case I do not know.
As researchers, we rely on reliable information and numbers as well as indicators. If the concerned authorities do not have reliable information or are withholding it from us, we will rely on the indicators available to us. All indicators say that groundwater levels have decreased.
If groundwater continues to be depleted at this alarming rate, we only have 13 years before it disappears from sedimentary rocks. Are we prepared for that to happen?
