Ermolaev, M.N.: Modern Irrigation and Cotton Production in Egypt

Title

Sovremennoe oroshenie i khlopkovodstvo Egipta, Sankt-Peterburg 1910

Modern Irrigation and Cotton Production in Egypt

Keywords

Summary

The book is divided into thirteen chapters, accompanied by an introduction, a conclusion, technical drawings, and a map. In the introduction, the author provides a brief historical overview of Egypt’s irrigation systems and mentions that he visited Egypt in 1908, a journey that enabled him to write this book. During his stay, with the cooperation of British engineers, Ermolaev visited all the major hydraulic structures in Egypt, including the Aswan Barrage and the construction of the Nile Barrage. The author notes that there is very little Russian literature on Egypt, and his book addresses specialised hydro-technicians and agronomists, particularly those involved in the Russian cotton and paper industries. He cites works by Barois (Les irrigations en Égypte, Paris 1904) and Sir Willcocks (Egyptian Irrigation, London 1899) as his main sources. Chapter one provides a general overview of Egypt, including its population, agriculture, state administration, and transportation. Chapter two is devoted to the topography and hydrology of the Nile and the climate of Egypt. Chapter three examines the water of the Nile and the chemical properties of Egypt’s soil. Chapter four focuses on Egyptian agriculture, while chapter five presents general data on irrigation in Egypt. Chapters six and seven explore the irrigation of Upper and Middle Egypt, and Lower Egypt, respectively. Chapter eight is devoted to drainage and land reclamation. Chapter nine discusses irrigation canals, dams, and methods of canal sediment control, while chapter ten covers hydrotechnical structures and construction materials. Chapter eleven describes governmental and private initiatives for irrigation and the economic development of Egypt. Chapter twelve is focused on cotton production in Egypt, and chapter thirteen addresses the administrative and legislative organisation of the water sector in Egypt. In the conclusions, the author discusses the tasks of modern irrigation in Egypt, and comments on its transformation triggered by the British into a major centre of cotton production. In the final lines, he proposes Egypt as a model for the development of Russian cotton production and irrigation, suggesting that the Turkestan and Trans-Caspian regions could become the centres of Russian cotton cultivation.

Bio

Mefodii Ermolaev was a military engineer who graduated from the Nicholas Engineering Academy in 1899. He served as a staff officer in the Main Engineering Directorate and participated in World War I, reaching the rank of colonel. After the 1917 revolution, he joined the White Yugoslav Army and the Russian Army, continuing his service until the evacuation of Crimea. In March 1920, he oversaw the construction of fortifications in Sevastopol. He was evacuated from Sevastopol aboard the ship “Khersones”. After his exile, he settled in Yugoslavia, where died in 1927 in Podgorica.

Sources

V. Chuvakov, Nezabytye mogily: rossiiskoe zarubezh’e: nekrologi 1917-1997, t. 2, Moskva 1999, p. 500.

M.E.