livestock

Providing water for livestock and crop production to a rural area in Bonaire using reverse osmosis

Abstract

Water scarcity is a serious issue on many smaller islands, with population growth and the predicted impacts of climate change as driving factors. Bonaire is a small island located in the Caribbean Sea that has rural areas without grid connections to electricity and water. Agriculture, both livestock and hobby crop farming, in the Punta Blanku region used to rely on groundwater pumped from wells. Groundwater usage had to be discontinued due to salt intrusion causing the water to become brackish. Water for a large chicken farm that supplies almost all eggs for Bonaire now has water delivered by truck, but it is not reliable due to transportation issues and costs. Reverse osmosis (RO) is recommended as a reliable way to provide water to the Punta Blanku region. Water production can be powered by renewable energy and be more economically feasible with windmill power as the electrical energy source for the RO system. Surface seawater and brackish groundwater samples were tested to determine the best water source for the RO system. Total dissolved solids and electrical conductivity values determine the total power pumping need for the RO system. Using sample results and IMSDesigns, a reverse osmosis model designed by Hydranautics, it was determined that brackish water reverse osmosis (BWRO) was preferred over seawater reverse osmosis (SWRO). With Bonaire wind speeds, FreshWaterMill can easily power 200 cubic meters permeate production per day with BWRO. Additionally, less fouling is expected for BRWO than SWRO due to prefiltration by soil.

Date
2023
Data type
Research report
Theme
Research and monitoring
Geographic location
Bonaire

Manual Identifikashon i Registrashon

Uso di marka di orea i e wepsait di I&R ta un ayudo importante pa drecha rasa.  Kada kunukero por tin akseso tur ora na tur informashon di kada bestia i tambe wak nan historia.

 

Manual for Identifying and Registering livestock.

This document gives all farmers the information they need to register and /or identify livestock in the official system.

Date
2022
Data type
Monitoring protocol
Theme
Governance
Education and outreach
Document
Geographic location
Bonaire