EcoStab

Frist impressions spring 2012 / dry season

First impressions 2012 / rainy season

Sand grabbers pulling the sand out from under their neighbors

And that's how it could be (not far away on the other side of the Niger)

Tracing out the first walls

Michel Courtaud, Africa director of Maccaferri is visiting for the opening of the Gabion works

Almost perfect after a few meters

.... one week later ....

... and a little time later. You can discover the gravel filter between the gabion and the soil

Demonstration of fascine work; in this cas with the branches of the indian Nem tree

placing the fascines

That's how it should look like (even though in this case it is on excavation spoil)

It shouldn't look like this

There were few successful sectors (and even there the angle of installation is not correct)

The situation was worse in sectors B and C. Immediately after the rainy season Henna and Jatropha were growing well and the Papaya did marvelously.....

....but one or two days of lowered guard and goats destroyed the site entirely

That's what happens to fences as soon as you look away

After the departure of KfW locals and members of the Gauff team voluntarily recondition sector A as it was planned

Here we see our hydrologist Sebastian Schöller at work

Fascines are installed anew and this time in the right angle

together with cuttings from local grasses taken from nearby natural stands

You can state the success after the rainy season: at least four different grass species are distinguishable on this photo

And that's the overview picture of sector A after the rainy season 2014