Challenges

In many parts of Iraq, farmers dilute the high concentration of salinity/salts in the soil by flooding great volumes of water onto the land (an estimated 250 m3 per donum) each season. This is a normal method to prepare land for farming and is a main trigger of water consumption. In addition, salt would accumulate on the terrain after the water evaporated, and the resulting soil damage leads farmers to neglect their lands.

Solutions

Burj al Iraq helps farmers reclaim agricultural lands through desalination, which is performed by installing perforated PVC pipes under the ground (approx. 3 meters deep) to wash out salinity/salts that accumulated due to wrong/inefficient irrigation and desalination methods. The innovation can also help in some contexts and areas to protect the agricultural land from saline groundwater, as the pipes wash out the saline water whenever the water table rises.

Burj al Iraq’s technology has been environmentally assessed by the Iraqi Ministry of Water Resources through reputable international firms, who concluded that the perforated PVC pipes can protect the groundwater from irrigation water, which is usually is mixed with salts (saline) and chemical fertilizers. The innovation’s viability was validated in several different areas and governorates in Southern Iraq and has proven its effectiveness to trigger a better yield of crops.