Hydroponic Water Requirements

About 70% of the earth is covered with surface water, but 97% of this is seawater. With only 3% consisting of freshwater, and less than 1% available to living organisms, hydroponic production can play an important role in reducing agricultural water usage, says Prof Gert Venter.

- Gert Venter

Irrigation farming makes up about 60% of all water usage in South Africa, while rural and urban municipalities (including household use) account for about 30% of water use, and mining 5%, according to the Department of Water and Sanitation.

South Africa’s average annual rainfall is only 492mm, which is about 50% lower than the global average. The recent drought came as a severe warning that South Africa is a water-stressed country.

As the volume of available water on earth remains largely constant and cannot be increased or decreased substantially, it is clear that water demand will escalate, due to urbanisation and industrial development.

In the long-term, such growth and development will have an adverse impact on the available water for crop production.

GREATER WATER EFFICIENCY