The irrigation system of Madeira

Abstract

On the southern coast of Madeira, which contains the greater part of the population and arable areas, the temperature up to about 400 m is suitable for the cultivation of tropical plants, but the precipitation is insufficient, especially during the long and period. Water is brought from other parts of the island where the annual rainfall is high and the dry period short by a complicated network of irrigation channels, levadas, built up over the centuries, together with different types of water reservoirs and other works. Detailed regulations exist regarding the distribution of the water to the in­dividual farms.