Soil Erosion has been a major issue in the past and will become an even greater issue in the future as population growth continues to expand and land resources are more intensively used, often to a point of destruction. Increased soil erosion means loss of land, reduced soil fertility, greater rainfall runoff, lower groundwater recharge, more sediment flows in river, higher contaminants in diminishing water supplies, lowered quality of drinking water, increased flooding, and diminished economic benefits and increased hardships to both rural and urban populations especially in developing countries, but also increasingly in developed countries too. If applied correctly the Vetiver System could be an important tool to reduce erosion (by up to 90%), reduce and conserve rainfall runoff (by as much as 70%), improve ground water recharge, remove pollutants from water, reduce the risk of flooding, and improve economic benefits to communities. Vetiver grass has been used (sometimes unknowingly) for these purposes for centuries in south India. In the last century the grass was taken around the world for use as an aromatic plant (root producing oil of vetiver); in some places such as Fiji, South Africa, and the West Indies it was grown as a hedge for soil conservation purposes. Since 1987 the use of vetiver for the latter purpose (grown as a narrow hedgerow across the slope of the land that slows down rainfall runoff velocity and filters out soil particles) has expanded significantly across the tropical and semi tropical countries of the world. Research and field results are well documented and can be found in the web site archives.
Compare Vetiver System for on farm soil and water conservation with engineered structures.


More like the above slide show:	Vetiver System for Land Rehabilitation
O CULTIVO DO VETIVER CHRYSOPOGON ZIZANIOIDES (L.) ROBERTY PARA A ESTABILIZAÇÃO DO SOLO E O CONTROLE DA EROSÃO.	Portuguese text and images from Paulo Rogerio - Brazil
Multiple Benefits of the Vetiver System and its Environmental Application in Ethiopia	A thoughtful and interesting paper by HABTEMARIAM ABATE AND BELAY SIMANE on the growing application of the Vetiver System in Ethiopia for environmental improvement.
Comparing Vetiver System with engineered soil conservation	This fact sheet prepared by Elise Pinners. compares the differences in design and function between Vetiver Hedgerows and constructed terraces. recommended as an informational hand out hand out
New Zealand Vetiver	Paul Truong visits New Zealand and meets John Greenfield and Wendy Hamilton Gates. His visit notes and photos shows that VS does a pretty good job in the North Island
	Lake Naivasha, an important Great Rift Valley Lake in Kenya is in trouble. It is polluted by silt, agrochemicals, and urban effluent. Unless a solution is found the Lake will die. All the land and water problems within its large catchment area show up in the lake: waste water from Naivasha town, agro chemicals from nearby intensive export crop businesses, and soil erosion throughout its 2,500 sq km watershed attributed to small scale and very intensive unprotected farming. Community and technical solutions are required to avert disaster. The Vetiver System can provide part of the solution in all the problems areas. For more see
	Ethiopia Vetiver Netwok (ETVN) Newletter #1 ETVN is developing into a well organized Network. Read more ....
	Vetiver System Application - Technical Reference Manual - in English, French, Spanish, Swahili, Vietnamese, and Mandarin can be downloaded FREE. The English, French, Spanish, and Swahili versions can be purchased as hard copy from TNVI's E Store.
Newsletter from Madagascar	This is an occasional newsletter about Vetiver System applications in Madagascar submitted by Yoann Coppin.
Vetiver System for Soil and Water Conservation	Powerpoint: Watershed Restoration by Using Vetiver Grass Systems (VGS) for Downstream Water Quality Improvement in Southern Guam. By Mohammad H. Golabi Associate Professor of Soil and Environmental Sciences; Clancy Iyekar Graduate Student, College of Natural and Applied Sciences, University of Guam; Dwayne Minton, Ecologist, US-Forestry Division in the Pacific; and David Limtiaco, Forestry Div., Dept of Agriculture.
TVNI NEWSLETTER #3	This newsletter has never been published on our site before. It is the first complete Vetiver Newsletter published in 1990. It contains some very relevant information, particularly about soil and water conservation and results from research in India (3.2MB)
	Kenya National Vetiver System Workshop - Summary. Picture to left: participants lining up for Vetiver slips!
	Ethiopia workshop proceedings index with links to powerpoints and abstracts
	Ethiopia workshop summary
	Vetiver System: Ethiopia - Soil and Water Conservation. (movie)
	Vetiver System: Ethiopia - Hassan Ali - Vetiver System Farmer of Excellence. (movie)
	Vetiver System: Ethiopia - Ground Water Recharge - Ano Farm (movie)
	Vetiver System: Ethiopia - Wetland Restoration - Wichi Wetland. (movie)
	Madagascar Vetiver Network - Newsletter #2
FOR SWAHILI READERS IN EAST AFRICA	Vetiver System Applications - A Technical Reference Manual - is now available in Swahili (full color version). It can be either purchased as a hard copy at amazon.com or can be downloaded for free.
VETIVER SYSTEM - EROSION CONTROL - FEED BACK	I have dug out of our archives five papers of interest relating to Vetiver Systems erosion control programs in Ethiopia, India, Indonesia, and Thailand. They are of importance because of the upcoming workshop in Ethiopia and the general need for VS as a tool in dealing with the current world food crisis. An underling feature of all the reports is that adequate technical advice, farmer training, proper application and prolonged effort is required to assure long term success. The reports are: Ethiopia 1; Ethiopia 2; India; Indonesia; and Thailand.
	Vetiver System for Soil Erosion Control in Ethiopia. A slide show put together by Alemu Mekonnen in 2000 gives quite a good idea of the soil erosion and soil loss that Ethiopian farmers are faced with, and how the Vetiver System can help mitigate the problems. Since 2000 VS applications have extended to many other parts of the country. A paper describing this work provides a good background this slide show.
VETIVER SYSTEM BIO FUEL	Vetiver Grass - A new potential energy plant in Saxony - Anhalt. R.Hommel et al. This is an interesting paper relating to growing vetiver in Germany and its potential as a fuel source for bio gas methane production. (Proceedings of Narossa 2008, 14th International conference for renewable resources and plant biotechnology. June 2008, Magdeburg, Germany) Learn more...
	The Vetiver System - "key technology" for East Bali Poverty Project in Indonesia. VIDEO This video, produced by Sarah Matthews of Saffyshine Production as part of a Brock Initiative and the East Bali Poverty Project, is a training video that shows how the Vetiver System is a vital component of the East Bali Poverty Project and how it has had an impact on children and their families. The video (32 mins) includes animations, film and narration by people intimately connected to the project. The narration is in Indonesian with English subtitles. Learn more about the East Bali Poverty Project at project website and at TVNI gallery.
	Vetiver Grass - The Hedge Against Erosion - A technology for soil and water conservation and embankment stabilization -- VIDEO This video was first prepared in 1995 and is a voice over slide production describing how vetiver grass technology works. Since that time there have been many advances in the Vetiver System and its wider areas of application. However the basic technology remains very much the same, and the video provides a useful entry point for a new user. (28 mins)
	Best Practices in Natural Resource Management - Multiple Uses of Vetiver Grass -- VIDEO This documentary shows how 17,000 Ethiopian farmers used the Vetiver System to halt erosion, increase crop yields, reduce insect damage, improve ground water and rehabilitate degraded wetlands. Additional uses included thatch, forage, and for important social functions. The technology is spreading to farmers in adjacent districts. The documentary was funded by Swedish SIDA.
	Land Pays... (an example of best practices in Ethiopia) -- VIDEO This documentary describes best practices introduced to farming in western Ethiopia. Focus is on improved crop and livestock practices, but behind it all can be seen vetiver grass hedgerows. The Vetiver System provides the land stability that enabled many of the new agricultural practices to flourish. Funding for the documentary was provided by Swedish SIDA.
	Coral reef protection using VS. Don Miller of New Zealand has been working in Vanuatu (South Pacific island) for some years and demonstrates in this slide show how vetiver hedgerows can be used as an essentail part of reforesting badly eroding landscapes to prevent sediment reaching the sea and destroying coastal coral reefs and fisheries. Don's work can be replicated throughout most island ecologiies where eroding sedimnt flows are effecting coastal habitats in the tropics
Vetiver for Mali	COMPTABILITE NATIONALE ET PROJETS ENVIRONNEMENTAUX : CAS DU PROJET VETIVER AU MALI by Claude NJOMGANG & Abdoulaye TRAORE
	Vetiver System for Agriculture and Related Uses [including soil and water conservation] Read more (html w/ images) This technical handbook was extracted from "The Vetiver System - A Technical Reference Manual" by Paul Truong, Tran Tan Van and Elise Pinners. Quick download and in full color.
	Le ‘Vetiver’ – un herbe pour les jardins, décoration, et les espaces vert. A picture abundant french translation on both the creative AND practical uses of vetiver. Read More
	L’utilization de Vetiver dans l’agriculture et El’arboriculture An excellent french translation that overviews the vetiver system's many practical uses. Read More
	KENYA: Mseto Environmental Self Help Group Vetiver Grass Project Located in a rather dry area of Kenya on the Voi River this group is using vetiver for a number of applications including river bank stabilization and soil conservation. Read more
	VETIVER SYSTEM: THEORY AND PRACTICE A new publication by China Vetiver Network. China Vetiver Network published "Vetiver System: Theory and Practice" in January 2008. The book is a summary of research and applications of the past 20 years consisting of 37 articles written by scientists, totaling up to over 240 pages. Read More
	ISLAM, THE ENVIRONMENT AND THE USE OF VETIVER GRASS This is a thoughtful article by Tony Cisse of Senegal reflecting on the link between Islam and the environment, and how Vetiver grass technology might meet Islamic needs. English version French translation: Islam, environment et usage du Vétiver
	Ethiopia workshop proceedings index with links to powerpoints and abstracts. These Proceedings include all aspects of VS including soil and water conservation and agricultural uses. 21 power points in total.
	Ethiopia workshop summary Summarises the findings of the workshop - endorsed by majority of participants
	Vetiver System: Ethiopia - Soil and Water Conservation. (movie) A short movie on the application of the Vetiver System for soil and water conservation in Ethiopia; shows cut and uncut hedgerows, and natural terrace build up.
	Vetiver System: Ethiopia - Hassan Ali - Vetiver System Farmer of Excellence. (movie) Describes the activity of master farmer Hassan Ali, how he has benefited from VS and how he passed the information to 70 other farmers.
	Vetiver System: Ethiopia - Ground Water Recharge - Ano Farm (movie). This short movie shows a commercial farm using VS on an intensive basis - 500 ha protected by 250km of vetiver hedgerows. As a result crop yields have improved significantly and groundwater has been recharged resulting in renewed spring flows.
	Vetiver System: Ethiopia - Wetland Restoration - Wichi Wetland. (movie) Community based watershed Vetiver System applications on a large scale have resulted in the restoration of wetlands to their original state.
	The Vetiver System for Agriculture: Download the Vetiver System for Agriculture, aomplete handbook on how VS can be used for agriculture. Includes soil erosion control, other agricultural uses, and handicrafts. Hard copies may be purchased from Amazon.com
	The Vetiver System for Soil and Water Conservation: Download the Vetiver System for Soil and Water Conservation, a complete handbook on how VS can be used for erosion control. This book is a modification of John Greenfield's "Vetiver Grass - A Hedge Against Erosion" and contains colored images to match the original line drawings that depict detailed application of the technology. Hard copies may be purchased from Amazon.com
	Coral Reef Protection Using VS: Don Miller of New Zealand has been working in Vanuatu (South Pacific island) for some years and demonstrates in this slide show how vetiver hedgerows can be used as an essentail part of reforesting badly eroding landscapes to prevent sediment reaching the sea and destroying coastal coral reefs and fisheries. Don's work can be replicated throughout most island ecologiies where eroding sedimnt flows are effecting coastal habitats in the tropics
	Best Practices in Natural Resource Management: Multiple Uses of Vetiver Grass VIDEO This documentary shows how 17,000 Ethiopian farmers used the Vetiver System to halt erosion, increase crop yields, reduce insect damage, improve ground water and rehabilitate degraded wetlands. Additional uses included thatch, forage, and for important social functions. The technology is spreading to farmers in adjacent districts. The documentary was funded by Swedish SIDA.
	Land Pays... (An Example of Best Practices in Ethiopia) VIDEO This documentary describes best practices introduced to farming in western Ethiopia. Focus is on improved crop and livestock practices, but behind it all can be seen vetiver grass hedgerows. The Vetiver System provides the land stability that enabled many of the new agricultural practices to flourish. Funding for the documentary was provided by Swedish SIDA. A supporting article from the New Agriculturist has an interesting section on vetiver for soil and water conservation.
	Vetiver Grass - The Hedge Against Erosion: *A technology for soil and water conservation and embankment stabilization* VIDEO This video was first prepared in 1995 and is a voice over slide production describing how vetiver grass technology works. Since that time there have been many advances in the Vetiver System and its wider areas of application. However the basic technology remains very much the same, and the video provides a useful entry point for a new user. (28 mins)
	Rural Poverty Alleviation and Natural Resource Protection in Minority Mountains of Guangxi Province of China: The EED funded Vetiver and Agroforestry Technology for Rural Poverty Alleviation and Natural Resource Protection in Minority Mountains of Guangxi Province of China has been launched. The project aims at helping local farmers develop economic trees for 48700 seedlings and 40 mini-irrigation systems. Meanwhile, vetiver system and agroforestry technology will be introduced and over 3 million vetiver tillers will be planted in order to conserve nature resources and provide farmers with multiple products and materials. Besides, various training courses will be organized and different publications will be produced and widely distributed to extend the project. Learn More
	Urban Gully Control and Rehabilitation: In the Democratic Republic of the Congo there are serious social and economic problems caused by large ravines cutting back into urabn areas. A USAID funded community program in the town of Kikwit got the community involved in reshaping the gully and protecting it with vetiver grass, under the leadership of Alain Ndona. See More
	Vetiver Activities in North Africa and the Mediterranean: Read More
The slide show below put together by Alemu Mekonnen in 2000 gives quite a good idea of the soil erosion and soil loss that Ethiopian farmers are faced with, and how the Vetiver System can help mitigate the problems. Since 2000 VS applications have expanded.

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