Gross Margin and Cost Benefit Analysis of Rain-Water Harvesting Techniques Used in Olive Groves Using In South of Hebron Governorate

Abstract

In the southern parts of Hebron Governorate, as well as throughout Palestine, water resources available and allocated to Palestinians are not enough, not even for dommestic uses; therefore, there are no options for using supplemental irrigation or increasiing irrigated areas. Two Rain-Water Harvesting Techniques, Traditional Stone Walled Terracing Technique and Diamond Water Harvesting Technique, were investigated in a field pilot experiment of the land cultivated with the improved variety of fifteen-year-old Nabali olive trees in two sites in the southern parts of Hebron Governorate. The two techniques were evaluated in terms of yield per dunum, return to land and cost benefit analysis. Economic analyses were conducted only for the extracted olive oil in terms of gross margin and cost benefit analysis of olive oil for the different sites and technniques.