Doctoral Dissertation Research: Conservation Engineering and Cross-Slope Terracing in Mexico

墨西哥的联邦保护机构模仿古代和土著人民的作品，在山坡上修建土质梯田，以捕捉地表径流，抑制侵蚀，并改善农田土壤的水分渗透。博士生Matthew LaFevor将在德克萨斯大学奥斯汀分校地理系威廉·杜利特尔教授的指导下，研究其中一种梯田方法Zanja-Bordo在特拉斯卡拉北部农业领域保护水资源和提高土壤水分水平的有效性。开展这项研究的目的是更好地了解在气候变化背景下淡水短缺时作为缓解战略的土著水管理技术的机制和投资。这项研究将需要对Zanja-Bordo梯田进行体积土壤水分采样和测绘，以及与梯田农民和联邦保护官员的半结构化访谈。在特定的空间尺度上估计Zanja-Bordo和对照地块的水分水平将提供有价值的数据，这些数据将被用来检验关于其水文效益的现有假设。现场Zanja-Bordo露台的空间测量将允许它们与用于建造它们的联邦设计模板中指定的建筑形式进行比较。这些更具理论性的设计模型和实际现场测量之间的差异将对梯田项目的长期有效性产生影响。最后，对露台建造者和保护官员的采访将让我们深入了解Zanja-Bordo梯田项目的劳动力需求、所需维护和可持续性。这项实地研究将对墨西哥的一项主要环境发展倡议进行批判性评估。如果证明是有效的，Zanja-Bordo技术可以用来保护淡水资源，提高农业生产率，并改善世界各地干旱和半干旱地区小农的生计。在全球范围内，这项研究将为利用土著农业技术进行现代保护实践的有效性提供一个重要的视角，并将促进对集水技术和许多维持生计的社区所依赖的雨水灌溉农业系统的了解。这项研究的结果将通过为环境政策制定提供关键信息和方向，改善直接影响墨西哥农村地区超过75万农民的政府梯田项目。这个项目？S合作焦点将成为保护官员和当地社区之间加强沟通的渠道，当地社区中有许多是由土著群体组成的。最后，在美国和国际期刊上发表的研究结果将扩大人们对人类环境地理学的兴趣。

Imitating the works of ancient and native peoples, federal conservation agencies in Mexico build earthen terraces on mountain slopes to capture surface runoff, inhibit erosion, and improve water infiltration into agricultural soils. Doctoral student Matthew LaFevor under the guidance of Professor William Doolittle in the Department of Geography at the University of Texas at Austin will investigate one of these terracing methods, zanja-bordo, for its effectiveness at conserving water and increasing soil moisture levels in agricultural fields of northern Tlaxcala. The impetus for the research is to better understand the mechanics of, and investments in, indigenous water management technologies as mitigation strategies at times of freshwater deficits in the context of climate change. This study will entail volumetric soil moisture sampling and mapping of zanja-bordo terraces, as well as semi-structured interviews with terrace farmers and federal conservation officials. Estimating the moisture levels of both zanja-bordo and control plots, over specific spatial scales, will provide valuable data that will be used to test existing assumptions over their hydrological benefits. Spatial measurements of zanja-bordo terraces in the field will allow for their comparison with the architectural forms specified in the federal design templates used to build them. Variations between these more theoretical design models and actual field measurements would have implications for the long-term effectiveness of terracing projects. Finally, interviews with terrace builders and conservation officials will lend insight into the labor demands, required maintenance and sustainability of zanja-bordo terracing projects. This field study will provide a critical assessment of one of Mexico's major environmental development initiatives. If shown to be effective, zanja-bordo techniques could be used to conserve freshwater resources, increase agricultural productivity, and improve the livelihoods of smallholder farmers in arid and semi-arid regions around the world. More globally, this research will offer a critical perspective on the effectiveness of using indigenous agricultural technologies for modern conservation practices, and it will advance knowledge about water harvesting techniques and the rain-fed agricultural systems upon which many subsistence communities depend. Results of this study will could improve governmental terracing projects that directly affect over 750,000 farmers in rural areas of Mexico by providing critical information and direction for environmental policy-making. The project?s collaborative focus will serve as a conduit for increased communication between conservation officials and local communities, many of which are composed of indigenous groups. Finally, the publication of findings in both U.S. and international journals will broaden interest in human-environment geography.