Water – Green A&E

Water Infrastructure, Sanitation & Management

Smart Irrigation | Drought & Flood Prevention | Water Quality Monitoring | Sanitation in Agriculture

It’s claimed that agriculture is accounting for 70% of the world’s accessible freshwater use. Shockingly, 60% of the water used for agricultural purposes is wasted due to leaky irrigation systems, inefficient application methods and the cultivation of crops that are too thirsty for the environment in which they are grown.

Sanitation in agriculture

Circular sanitation systems have the potential to unlock significant economic social and environmental benefits for agricultural plantations and their local communities.

Sanitation systems have a material impact on agriculture – on the soil, on the water, and on the people who work and live on plantations. Improving sanitation in agricultural businesses will eliminate open defection and environmental contamination of soil and groundwater among other social benefits.

The Opportunity

Human waste is a valuable and currently undervalued resource. It contains nutrients, energy, water and even “data”.

Systems that capture “Toilet Resources” can produce feedstock to create organic fertilisers and energy, leading to cost savings for operations, cost recovery for initial infrastructure investments, even potentially new sources of revenue.

Polluting waste with multiple costs becomes a renewable resource with a value.

Impact and Benefits

Circular sanitation systems have multiple environmental and social benefits – reduced carbon emissions and water pollution, and potentially improved soil health and reduced fertiliser.

Smart sanitation approaches have the potential to capture data and information about the health of users through preventative health and disease monitoring.

Challenges and Risks

Biological (human) waste which flows back into agriculture as nutrients and clean water is used for growing food crops. Natural as this may be, the re-use in food production carries understandable real and perceived safety concerns.

Even if the real risks can be fully mitigated (and they can), the “yuk factor” may still prevail. Therefore, the circular approach remains a challenging proposition for workers and for food consumers.

Green A&E among other organisations is building evidence that the circular approach is technically and economically practical, as well as safe both for agricultural workers and food consumers.

Our Solution: Design, Supply, Implementation & Maintenance

Green A&E and its partners design and implement rural sanitation and toilet facilities for both male and females. Our systems prevent slurry and odours escaping into the environment and is non-touch which allows for a safer and more hygienic experience, especially for women.

Furthermore, Green A&E is able to collect undiluted urine and recovery a highly valuable dry fertiliser and further treat the effluent water to potable standards, which is then used for flush loo’s or low flush toilets in a closed-loop system which is completely automated, off-grid and extremely cost-effective.

The best part is the remote monitoring capabilities of PH levels, water levels, by-product outputs and potentially monitor any outbreak of diseases in your operation, allowing for a proactive approach.

Unfortunately we do not operate in the perfect world. We operate in the field, the harsh reality. And everyday we come across many practical problems. Most of them predictable, sometimes new ones.

While technical solutions are widely available and look “easy” in the brochure the “last mile” problem remains the same:

Proper implementation – this is least of our problems since it is a one time event which can be organised.
“Vandalism or abuse” – both may be unintentional but will happen. Instant, regular and preventative maintenance is a key requirement and therefore, something to include in the (budget) planning.
A “beautiful” toilet and washing facility may attract unwanted users/visitors….hence there is an additional security requirement.
Proclaimed self cleaning toilets do NOT exist. Have you ever came across one? Design (lots of stainless steal) can only reduce and mitigate (a bit) the level of accumulated filth. Regular cleaning remains another key condition.
The system needs power and water and perhaps connectivity – These requirements are least of our problems…actually not a problem at all.
Discharging and processing of “toilet waste” is a major issue. Except of just “dumping”, plenty of alternative, much better solutions do exist but they all require knowledge, investment, “minimal” input, processing facilities, consistency and proper management etc.
Moreover, it’s not about motivation, it’s all about discipline.

Off-grid Sewage Treatment

Off-grid sewage treatment refers to the sewage treatment method in the middle and low population density residential areas, as far as possible actively in the smallest unit of the source of sewage generation. For example, in individual farmers, farmhouses, home stays, villa areas, public toilets, schools, hospitals, hotels, residential communities, parks, urban villages, temporary construction sites, military barracks, border posts, sea pastures, islands and other domestic sewage source treatment after the standard discharge or reuse.

Through remote intelligent and low-cost operation and maintenance management, the automatic operation of sewage treatment facilities in urban and rural middle and low density residential areas is truly realized.

Water Quality Monitoring

Water quality is dynamic and constantly subject to fluctuation due to land use changes, business activities, weather patterns, and different environmental factors. These changes make continuous water monitoring essential, yet many communities struggle with implementing effective surveillance systems. Remote areas face severe challenges, traditional monitoring approaches cost thousands of dollars to set up infrastructure and maintenance fees alone can be very expensive.

Water quality monitoring is a fundamental way of ensuring safe (drinking) water for communities in underserved areas. Regular monitoring and testing helps protect public health from harmful chemicals, bacteria, and other pathogens. Regular surveillance also helps identify contamination points so that communities can take measures to prevent contamination from happening. This can further hold businesses that impact water sources, such as mining, accountable for any runoff or seepage that is deteriorating water quality.

(Satellite) IoT is an effective way of monitoring remote water sources, ensuring that communities have access to crucial water quality data, helping them make informed decisions about water consumption and usage.

Traditionally, water monitoring has always come with significant costs – installing cellular towers, regular visits for data collection and maintenance, and complex networking equipment. For remote areas, these expenses can make diligent water quality monitoring seem out of reach.

Mangosat-enabled solutions require only a sky-view and AA batteries to transmit data, eliminating the need for traditional infrastructure such as towers or an external power source. Our solutions make low-cost monitoring in remote locations possible. Using low-power satellite IoT technology our monitoring device can last in the field for 10+ years before needing a battery replacement, making advanced water management accessible and easily deliverable to all communities, regardless of their location or resources. Remote sensing allows issues to be addressed quickly and at large distances from the water source.

Precision Irrigation

Knowledge of real-time status of soil water content in a crop’s root zone enables farmers to make accurate irrigation decisions for the best yield while conserving precious water resources and reducing energy inputs. Precision irrigation systems deliver these results by monitoring on-site environmental (soil, plant, air, water) conditions, forecast future plant water needs and assist in automating irrigation operations.

Plant/tree available soil water is estimated with the use of advanced electronic sensors that are installed in open fields, grow tunnels or greenhouses. A robust wireless system transfers soil water data to our cloud-based applications that interpret and advise users on current status and future plant water requirements

Rainfall Monitoring

Region-wide monitoring of precipitation events is necessary for government agencies and researchers to understand and manage surface and groundwater systems

Soil Moister Monitoring

In addition to local sensors, Green A&E provides satellite moisture data with a resolution of 250m x 250m

How much water is at the surface level of your field.
How much water is at the root level (rhizome).

You can view both of these as curves on the same chart where precipitation, growth stages, and vegetation indices are displayed. This way you can see even more data correlating with each other, generating powerful insights on how to better manage your fields.

Page last modifed: Jan 24, 2025 @ 5:49 am