This planning visit award will support two U.S. researchers, Dr. Assefa Melesse from Florida International University (FIU) and Dr. Gabriel Senay from the National Center for Earth Resources Observation Science (EROS), to travel to Ethiopia to strengthen their collaboration in ecohydrology with Dr. Woldeamlak Bewket from Addis Ababa University (AAU). Recent studies indicate that decreases in the Blue Nile River's discharge have been primarily attributable to siltation, poor headwater protection, expansion of croplands, overgrazing, and increased area under Eucalyptus plantations. This planning visit will enable the PIs to develop a research project that measures the impact of vegetation (e.g., different crops, Eucalyptus trees, native plants) on the spatiotemporal dynamics of soil moisture, identifies the temporal variability of the hydrologic response to vegetation, and integrates this information with other parameters to simulate soil water balance and river discharge as a function of vegetation cover in the Upper Blue Nile River Basin. During the visit, the PIs and their collaborators will design research protocols, identify the most appropriate research sites, assess research facilities, and identify related ongoing efforts in the region. The PIs also plan to meet with other scientists from Addis Ababa University, as well as from the Amhara Region Agricultural Research Institute (ARARI) Research Office and the Nile Basin Initiative (NBI) office.
The Blue Nile Basin in Ethiopia is characterized by poverty, rapid population growth, environmental degradation and frequent natural disasters. While the population in the basin is projected to increase significantly over the next 25 years, the water resources are projected to decline. Decreases in the river's discharge are also a transboundary political issue, because they influence the flow of the Nile River downstream in Sudan and Egypt. The visit will also extend and enhance U.S. partnerships in the region with AAU, NBI, NGOs and others working on complimentary projects in the basin.
