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A Technical Guide for Wine Producers
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RECENT ARTICLES | WYNBOER HOME
Irrigation of cash crops with treated winery wastewater
Mr A.R. Mulidzi
The availability of water in South Africa has been identified as one of the main factors that limit economic growth during the twenty first century.
Water is a scarce resource in rural areas and treated wastewater from wineries can be a viable option for the irrigation of cash crops.
The use of treated or partially treated effluent for irrigation of agricultural crops is an alternative to discharge into rivers or land. Wastewater from different sources represents a significant amount of water and in a dry country such as South Africa, the use of that water for a productive purpose, such as plant production is sensible. Wastewater can contribute nutrients required by the crops, thereby saving fertilizers that often represent a big portion of production cost.
ARC Infruitec-Nietvoorbij is conducting a project looking at the re-use of treated wastewater from constructed wetlands to irrigate cash crop production. The project is partially funded by WINETECH. The objective of the project is to determine the performance of various cash crops under irrigation with treated winery wastewater. The project is situated at Spier Wine Cellar.
Cabbage and lettuce were planted at the beginning of the season. Preliminary results had showed that treated winery wastewater with a COD of less than 1000 mg/l had no detrimental effect on the production of Cabbage and Lettuce. The harvested crops were also sent for tests in order to establish any health risks. The results had showed that these two crops are healthy for human consumption. The trial will still continue for the next three years and more crops will be evaluated.
For more information contact Mr Mulidzi at: 021 809 3070 or email: MulidziR@arc.agric.za
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