Rainwater catching by small watershed and water-saving irrigation in Taihang Mountains

The discharge, precipitation and utilizable quantity of rainwater resources were measured by H-type weir and rain gauge. The results show that catching rainwater by small watershed needs less investment and makes the best use of water resources which creates favorable conditions for economic development in Taihang Mountains. Rainwater resources in these areas are distributed mos tly from May to October. The total precipitation (up to 20mm/d) is 399mm in the year of 2000. The quantity of catchable water in this year is 249 thousand m³ in the studied watershed. Elevation difference between outlet of small watershed and lower reaches is from 30 to 100 meters. All of these supply a favorable basis for developing self-pressure micro-irrigation. Furthermore, water-saving irrigation, drip-irrigation, hole irrigation by plastic film, irrigating critical water, limited irrigation, and water-saving gravity irrigation and so on and should be expanded by adjusting measures to local conditions. Finally, the feasibility of developing water-saving irrigation in Taihang Mountains is analyzed.