THE harvesting of fog may offer an alternative source of water to lighten the burden of drought in the rural areas of Australia’s New South Wales state, according to Inga Henschell of the Gobabeb Research Centre near Walvis Bay.
Henschell, who is travelling in Australia, told people there about a water-gathering technique that is being practised with good results at the research centre, which is within Namibia’s 100-kilometre-wide ‘fog zone’. Fog harvesting was a new concept for the Australians whom she had spoken to, and they showed much interest in learning from Henschell.In an online report by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation, Henschell said that a number of private people within Namibia’s fog zone are already collecting fog on the roofs of their houses and then using it for washing and gardening.She said there are up to 80 nights in a year where fog could be harvested in the Namib.She was quoted as saying that, using a proper screen where fog droplets are blown through, up to 11 litres of water per square metre of this screen could be gathered.Much research is currently being done at Gobabeb in terms of fog harvesting, and though it is not being done commercially, it is a possible source of water for smaller communities within the fog zone.Small-scale agricultural projects are being tried where crops are grown from harvested water, according to another source at Gobabeb.”Fog harvesting is being done in other countries with much success,” the source told The Namibian.”We are also looking into how to make this practice more viable locally.”One of the challenges to harvesting fog on a commercial scale is the hot east-wind conditions that damage the screens used for collecting the fog droplets.Another problem is the accumulation of salt on the screens, which makes the water brackish.”There are challenges, and overcoming them is what the research is all about, but there is no doubt that fog harvesting could become an alternative source of water, especially for the smaller communities here,” the source concluded.Fog harvesting was a new concept for the Australians whom she had spoken to, and they showed much interest in learning from Henschell.In an online report by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation, Henschell said that a number of private people within Namibia’s fog zone are already collecting fog on the roofs of their houses and then using it for washing and gardening.She said there are up to 80 nights in a year where fog could be harvested in the Namib.She was quoted as saying that, using a proper screen where fog droplets are blown through, up to 11 litres of water per square metre of this screen could be gathered.Much research is currently being done at Gobabeb in terms of fog harvesting, and though it is not being done commercially, it is a possible source of water for smaller communities within the fog zone.Small-scale agricultural projects are being tried where crops are grown from harvested water, according to another source at Gobabeb.”Fog harvesting is being done in other countries with much success,” the source told The Namibian.”We are also looking into how to make this practice more viable locally.”One of the challenges to harvesting fog on a commercial scale is the hot east-wind conditions that damage the screens used for collecting the fog droplets.Another problem is the accumulation of salt on the screens, which makes the water brackish.”There are challenges, and overcoming them is what the research is all about, but there is no doubt that fog harvesting could become an alternative source of water, especially for the smaller communities here,” the source concluded.
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