• Jase Keen, Senior Sales Engineer – Water Utility & Country Director, New Zealand, Grundfos

Grundfos is supporting the agricultural industry with reducing its carbon footprint by providing farmers with tools and technology to reduce unnecessary water use along with encouraging energy efficiency through solar pump solutions.

Why are agricultural emissions such a problem?

Agricultural emissions are an ongoing problem because they directly impact the environment and global warming. As global temperatures rise, New Zealand will continue to be divided by weather extremes – rain battering the west and south, and high temperatures bringing drought and fires to the north.

The country’s water supply and quality are also at risk of deterioration due to the growth of polluting activities.

Currently, 50 per cent of New Zealand’s gross emissions are made up of agricultural emissions, and although methane emissions from livestock make up the largest portion, this is not the only source. There are other energy intensive practices on farms that are contributing to the mix.

For example, the amount of water used, and the energy needed to run irrigation pumps are among some of the most significant expenditures in agriculture.  

Agricultural irrigation is an intensive operation – lifting and moving water around farms with pumping systems consumes plenty of energy, and many existing water pumps rely on fossil fuel to power their systems.

Worn or improperly sized pumps and fittings can also cause irrigation systems to use up more energy than necessary, for example, it is estimated that 26% of stock drinking water is lost as leakage.[1] 

There is a growing need for intelligent technologies that reduce water usage and energy consumption, manage the water source, and make irrigation more efficient across the board.

What is the bigger picture?

Supporting the reduction of emissions over the long term requires the agricultural sector to have the right tools and technologies to enable change. Without optimising systems on farms, there will be more pressure on our resources that are already stressed today. 

The demand on water resources will continue to grow as weather extremes affect the country and demand for food and produce increases. Irrigators are now even more obligated to improve resource efficiency and strive towards the environmental standards expected.

As the agricultural industry moves toward more automated and precise irrigation, solution providers must innovate to meet the needs of modern and high-potential farmers. By doing so, farmers can focus their time and energy on other areas of their farms that will help to drive efficiency and productivity.

Explain the role of technology in assisting with this

Increasingly, smart agricultural solutions aim to optimize productivity and meet the key challenges that farmers face. The increased use of Internet of Things (IoT) is projected to increase production rates for farmers by 70% by the end of 2050[2];  farmers are turning to smart technological devices to optimise their operations and to keep up.

Technology such as solar powered pumping systems present a cost effective, flexible and secure water supply solution using clean energy. Utilizing solar power not only cuts emissions to zero but saves on the costs of energy infrastructure.

IoT devices such as soil moisture sensors have also allowed farmers to access more accurate and granular data.

Leveraging such information along with the use of smart controllers means efficient and precise irrigation can be achieved.

How is Grundfos technology assisting the rural sector specifically?

In addition to lowering on-farm energy use and carbon emissions, Grundfos tools and pumps offer several benefits over traditional grid-based or diesel-powered pumping systems, including easy installation, low maintenance and low operating costs.

For example, Grundfos’ SQFlex Large pump provides reliable off-grid water supply for stock watering, irrigation, and agricultural water supply and transfer. The solar power solution includes a built-in frequency converter which ensures compatibility to power from any source, as the motor runs on both AC and DC from power sources such as solar panels and generators.

The Grundfos range also incorporates intelligent dry-run sensor protection – in the event the bore runs dry, the motor is protected and will stop running, restarting automatically.

Last year Grundfos also launched LC232, an industry first groundwater pump controller, that utilises smart technology to bring ease of use, monitoring capabilities and greater connectivity to farmers. The Bluetooth enabled solution allows users to monitor, control and schedule water use from their smartphone.

Grundfos continues to see climate smart farming tools and technologies making a difference by encouraging more efficient use of resources. Across the ditch in Australia, Grundfos has been able to demonstrate success stories when it comes to implementing more sustainable water management solutions on farms.

With similarly tough climate conditions like Australia, Grundfos wants to support the introduction of technologies here in New Zealand that encourage more productive and sustainable water use.

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[1]Dairy NZ. Smart Water use on farm

[2] Deloitte Review Issue 18. From dirt to data: The second green revolution and the Internet of Things