Soil & Tillage Research 78 (2004) 103–113 Mulching with composted municipal solid wastes in Central Negev, Israel: I. effects on minimizing rainwater losses and on hazards to the environment M. Agassi a,∗ , G.J. Levy b , A. Hadas b , Y. Benyamini a , H. Zhevelev c , E. Fizik a , M. Gotessman a , N. Sasson a a Soil Erosion Research Station, Soil Conservation and Drainage Division, Ministry of Agriculture, c/o Rupin Inst., Post 40250, Israel b Institute of Soil, Water and Environmental Sciences, The Volcani Center, Agriculture Research Organization (ARO), Israel c Department of Geography and Earth Science, University Bar Ilan, Israel Received 30 June 2003; received in revised form 26 January 2004; accepted 6 February 2004 Abstract Dry-land farming in arid and semiarid regions requires minimization of rainwater losses. Major causes for the loss of rainwater are: (i) runoff due to seal formation by raindrop impact, and (ii) evaporation from the wet soil surface. Mulching the soil surface is an effective way to prevent seal formation and water losses. We hypothesized that composted municipal solid waste (CMSW) could be used for mulching arable lands and minimizing rainwater losses without posing a hazard to the environment. Our objective was to study the effects of annual application of CMSW at the soil surface on rainwater retention in the soil, crop production and some hazards to the environment. The experiments were conducted during 1996–2000 in commercial rain fed wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) field of a xerosol (Calcic Haploxeralf) in the Central Negev, Israel. Amounts of 0, 100 and 300 m 3 ha -1 CMSW were added annually to the soil surface prior to the rainy season. Water content in the soil was determined four times, soil salinity, and sodicity were determined twice and heavy metals in the soil and the yield of wheat were determined once every year. Yield was determined at the end of each growing season. Application of CMSW increased available water in the root zone mainly due to reduction in evaporation, and almost doubled the yields. No considerable increase in salinity, sodicity and heavy metals was noted in the root zone following CMSW application. Our observations suggested that annual application of CMSW at the rate of 100 m 3 ha -1 was enough to significantly minimize rainwater losses and increase yield under dry-land conditions, without posing specific hazards to the environment. © 2004 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved. Keywords: Mulch; Compost; Municipal wastes; Evaporation; Infiltration; Runoff 1. Introduction Loss of rain and irrigation water to runoff and evaporation are of great concern especially in arid ∗ Corresponding author. Tel.: +972-9-898-8294; fax: +972-9-898-5563. E-mail address: menahema@moag.gov.il (M. Agassi). and semiarid regions. Significantly reducing loss of rainwater is becoming essential as water re- sources are depleted and water quality is deteriorat- ing in these regions. In addition to loss of potential plant-available-water, runoff can lead to poor wa- ter distribution in the field, less efficient leaching of salts (which accumulate in the root zone during the irrigation season), and increased peak stream flows 0167-1987/$ – see front matter © 2004 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved. doi:10.1016/j.still.2004.02.021