Current situation

Salinity is one of the most important problems in rice cultivation, especially in coastal areas. It is due to the lack of moisture, the increased evaporation of soil moisture due to high temperatures and the irrational use of boreholes. As a result, seawater enters the water table and increases the concentration of salts in the paddy fields. If the salinity exceeds the limit of 3dS/m it causes inhibition of photosynthesis, chlorination and reduction of yields. To eliminate these adverse effects there are two practices: a) crop rotation with a much reduced yield and b) the continuous channeling of irrigation water to the rice fields (the most widespread) in order to wash away the salt, which due to its solubility easily moves towards the drainage channels.

Nowadays the identification of the salinity problem is done either empirically by visual diagnosis or by the use of electrical conductivity measuring instruments by the producers. The result is that it is done either late, since the salt has already reached toxic levels, or incorrectly even when there is no reason (chlorosis due to N deficiency). This practice results in the necessity of constant monitoring of the fields (increasing the movements of the producers) and many times the consumption of large amounts of water for no reason. This brings about effects, such as reducing production and environmental due to water wastage, increases energy consumption, increases production costs and also the environmental footprint of rice.

Implementation methodology

The pilot fields will be installed in areas with a salinity problem, where the autonomous electrical conductivity (HA) sensors developed at DIMITRA as part of the SmartPaddy and DEMETER programs will be placed. To this day, this technology is not applied by the rice producers, who cultivate in fields without accurate knowledge of their salinity. In the context of this project, the sensor will be differentiated, resulting in the change of the communication protocol, from a WiFi system to a GSM system, due to the expansion of the coverage of the mobile network in Greece.

With this change, the use will become more direct, friendly and flexible to use because it will be carried out using a platform where producers will be able to obtain the information via PC or Smartphone. In the pilot fields, the existing leaching practice will be compared with the proposed “Smart Rice” practice. In the latter, the producers will be informed in real time about the salinity levels and the height of the water of the paddy field in which the device is placed.

The system will be programmed to send automatic reports when the salt levels reach the alert limits established in agreement between DIMITRA and the group of producers (usually >3dS/m). At the end of the period, the yield and quality characteristics of the rice that determine producer prices will be checked and a techno-economic analysis will be carried out.