Research Project

The conversion of cocoa land to other uses has recently shown an increasing trend. One of the main causes is the declining productivity of cocoa plants, which is largely due to land degradation caused by erosion. This occurs as soil fertility declines due to the loss of nutrients and organic matter, increased soil compaction and penetration resistance, reduced soil infiltration capacity, and a decreased ability of the soil to retain water. The impacts of erosion, in addition to lowering productivity, also include the reduction of groundwater recharge. Consequently, the decline in farm productivity directly leads to decreased farmer income and well-being. This, in turn, threatens the sustainability of cocoa farming.

To maintain the condition of cocoa land in Bone Regency, vegetative conservation methods using vetiver grass will be applied. Vetiver is selected because it is effective in controlling erosion. Moreover, vetiver grass has good economic value, which can potentially increase farmers\' income, thereby making the method more easily adopted by farmers. Since most of the cocoa land to be conserved is under shaded conditions, a study on the shade tolerance level of vetiver grass is necessary.

Therefore, the first year of the study will focus on the cultivation techniques of vetiver under cocoa canopy and its potential in reducing soil erosion. In the second year, cultivation will be carried out under appropriate shading conditions, taking into account the soil conservation function and the effectiveness of vetiver in fulfilling that function. The study will be conducted through field experiments based on several levels of canopy cover, followed by an evaluation of vetiver\'s effectiveness in controlling erosion.

In hydrologic study, the analysis of rainfall events in a catchments’ area is necessarily needed. The availability of water and its distribution in the catchments are determined by the rainfall events. Hydrologic abstraction in the MRB, that is flowed the water to the Bakaru HEP, needs also the presentation of rainfall with regard to the process of the occurrence of inflow in a river.

Rainfall events play a role in the process of erosion and sedimentation. The energy of rainfall can produce splash erosion at the beginning of the erosion processes. As the rainfall accumulated forming overland flow, the resulted energy is able to create sheet erosion, rill erosion and even gully erosion.

Analysis in this study is then differentiated based on annual, monthly and daily data. Data for the MRB were obtained from three climatologic stations, which are the Sumarorong, Minake and Mamasa rainfall stations. All the stations are situated along the Mamasa River.

The study of analysis of hydrology and sedimentation during flash flood events in Mamasa catchment is a part of project collaboration between the Faculty of Agriculture UNHAS and TEPCO-JICA Japan to develop Bakaru HEPP (Hydro-Electric Power Plant) through rehabilitation the structures of the HEPP for increasing the capacity of  the Garugu reserevoir, and introducing a new production system of hydro-electric avoiding the malfunction of a HEPP during swithing electricity from one to the other generators.

The energy produced by Bakaru HEPP tend to decrease from year to year. This is because the capability and capacity of  Garugu Reservoir decrease as the impact of erosion in the catchment and have been sedimented in the reservoir. The sedimentation in the reservoir has filled the dam and reducing the effective volume of the reservoir.

The study is focused to investigate the hydrological aspect of sedimentation in the catchment by measuring the suspended sediment during peak flow or flash-flood in a point along the river before entering the dam. Selee was selected as the place for measuring the debit by current meter producing rating flow graph and sampling the suspended sediment to be analysed in the Laboratory of Agricultural Technology Hasanuddin University.

The study focused on developing an Artificial Intelligence (AI) system designed to analyze the impact of various climatic factors on soil moisture content and their effects on plant physiological responses. The research was conducted using a sandy loam medium within a controlled greenhouse environment with chili plants. Data acquisition was performed using sensors connected to both Raspberry Pi and Arduino devices. The collected sensor data was processed through AI algorithms to evaluate the influence of climatic conditions on soil moisture levels and to assess subsequent changes in leaf physiology.

The conversion of cocoa plantations to other land uses has recently shown an increasing trend. This is due to the declining productivity of cocoa plants, primarily caused by land degradation from erosion and reduced soil moisture during the dry season. Under such conditions, the plants undergo dieback, making them more susceptible to diseases that lead to decreased yields and, in some cases, plant death. Sustainable agricultural development offers a solution to curb this conversion trend. Therefore, it is essential to implement cocoa cultivation technologies that align with the three pillars of sustainable agricultural development: providing economic benefits, improving environmental conditions, and being applicable by farmers. The zero run-off technology is one such approach that supports sustainable cocoa cultivation. To maximize its effectiveness in maintaining soil moisture throughout the year, it will be combined with the application of mulch.

Soil moisture is one of the two key factors that determine the success of cocoa cultivation. A lack of soil moisture can lead to reduced yields and even plant death, as such conditions make cocoa trees more vulnerable to diseases such as Vascular Streak Dieback (VSD), resulting in financial losses for farmers and threatening the sustainability of cocoa farming. One approach to mitigate these effects is the application of soil moisture conservation technologies to minimize the impact of drought. This research aimed to identify the optimal conditions for implementing kendi irrigation (porous clay pot irrigation) and litter management for soil moisture conservation. In general, the study was conducted in two locations: a cocoa plantation as the field experiment site and a laboratory. In the field, treatments involved varying the number of kendi pots and different levels of soil cover using organic litter. These treatments were designed to determine the optimal number of kendi pots and the ideal percentage of ground cover. Following this, the optimal conditions were applied in several plots to assess their reliability. Observations were also made to evaluate the effects of irrigation on cocoa plant growth and soil moisture distribution. In the laboratory, measurements included the hydraulic conductivity of the kendi pots, soil moisture content, and biomass accumulation.