Chapter
8:
Case
studies
in
Wadi
Siham
In
parallel,
the
TDA
wanted
to
extend
the
Debashiya
canal
by
2,000m
in
order
to
reach
the
farms
previously
excluded
by
the
project.
Person
81
opposed
the
extension
of
the
canal
alluding
to
the
following
arguments:
-‐
The
design
proposed
that
the
canal
pass
through
his
land;
and
-‐
He
feared
the
amount
of
floodwater
available
for
his
fields
would
decrease.
Several
upstream
farmers
along
Debashiya
canal
were
initially
on
the
side
of
person
81,
also
fearing
the
canal
extension
would
significantly
decrease
their
water
supplies.
Eventually,
TDA
technicians
sent
to
discuss
the
issue
were
able
to
convince
all
upstream
farmers
except
person
81,
who
persisted
in
his
opposition.
As
a
result
of
the
blockage,
several
local
farmers
located
downstream
of
person
81
have
not
been
able
to
irrigate
the
from
Debashiya
canal.
Farmer
Hassan
Sagheer
(with
56
ma’ads
or
2.5ha)
could
not
irrigate
his
lands.
Two
other
farmers
and
several
of
their
collaborators
did
not
have
any
chance
emigrated
to
Saudi
Arabia
to
find
a
job.
According
to
Hassan
Naji,
a
local
guard
who
controls
and
maintains
person
81’s
water
gate,
at
least
20
farmers
would
gather
around
him
every
time
the
flood
comes
insisting
that
he
opens
the
canal
and
sometimes
verbal-‐clashes
occur.
Farmers
have
no
other
choice
but
to
rely
on
very
expensive
groundwater
as
the
diesel
price
skyrocketed
after
the
2011
revolution
and
is
often
even
unavailable
on
the
official
market.
According
to
Hassan
Sagheer,
cultivating
one
ma’ad
based
on
groundwater
irrigation
at
current
diesel
prices,
would
cost
him
around
76
50,000
Rial
and
the
return
would
be
around
40,000
Rial.
“We
can
only
survive
as
farmers
by
irrigating
from
the
flood
flow
and
person
81
has
cut
off
our
supply
of
flood
water.
We
will
not
cave
under
the
pressure
and
abandon
our
lands,
nor
will
we
sell
it
as
this
is
the
wish
of
the
people
who
push
us
to
get
to
this
by
depriving
us
from
our
rights
to
the
flood”
(Hassan
Sagheer).
8.2.2
C:
Dispute
regulation
mechanism
As
the
water
conflict
relates
to
a
WSIP
irrigation
structure,
farmers
so
far
have
almost
entirely
relied
on
the
TDA
to
solve
the
conflict.
According
to
the
customary
law,
a
newcomer
to
the
area
has
to
abide
by
the
following
set
of
rules:
- He
has
the
right
to
irrigate
accordin p