Why is water the most important subject for growers in the coming years?

Recently this video was published. It shows (on 14.24) how the drought border in North America is moving more and more to the West (and East). So in the future, we will have more and more challenges with water across the country. It is important to be prepared. In this blog, we will share our views. And last but not least. In this white paper, you can read some ideas to prepare your company for the water challenges ahead!

#1 Less water available

The average temperatures on our planet are rising. This causes the temperature in the atmosphere to rise, which in turn causes it to contain more moisture. This causes more water to evaporate, but only part of it returns through precipitation. At the same time, the salt water of seas and oceans is rising, reducing the available freshwater supply. While currently, only 3% of total water is fresh. And 0.0075% of that water is available as drinking water.

If you look at the Colorado River. The water lever has never been so low. (See video below, à 16.00)

#2 Dry periods

There are a lot of news articles about dry periods. Like these in the Los Angeles Times, The Guardian, or Fox News. Of course, most of the drought is in the West of the USA. But the border of the drought is moving more and more to the East. It will become worse in the coming years. Be prepared! Read our white paper to get some ideas!

There is also a map to see the drought status of the USA: https://droughtmonitor.unl.edu/

#3 Extreme rainfall

Recently we wrote a blog post about extreme rainfall. Were we mentioned: ‘ Over the past 50-100 years, we have experienced more extreme showers. This is a direct result of climate change, according to the EPA. And if the experts are to be believed, it will become more rather than less in the future. Read here more about the data.’

So, we need to prepare for this kind of rainfall! For example, you can hold water by using a layer of rock. Like in the picture below. 

#4 Water source challenging to reach

To get water, many growers are drilling wells. But those wells are deeper and deeper. It is difficult and expensive to reach quality water. Maybe you need to think of another way to accrue water. How could you reuse your water, or how could you collect the rainwater? Please think about it!

#5 Quality will be more important

Also, due to the warmer climate, more pathogens are entering the water stream, directly impacting water quality. Because of all this, less and less quality water is available (see UNICEF report), also for horticulture. This is an issue: after all, the water quality determines the risk of diseases, such as root rot, but also the final quality of the plant. In other words: the water quality determines the end result for you as a grower