Free, downloadable report provides information and guidelines to help support the adoption of efficient practices in indoor farms and greenhouses
PORTLAND, Ore. (June 29, 2023) — Resource Innovation Institute (RII), the leading not-for-profit energy and water benchmarking organization for CEA producers, announced today the availability of its long-awaited Water Circularity Best Practices Guide for Controlled Environment Agriculture Operations. It can be downloaded from RII’s resource catalog at this link.
“This report is the result of a comprehensive, collaborative effort between equipment manufacturers, academia, regulators, utility providers and RII’s in-house experts,” said Derek Smith, Executive Director of Resource Innovation Institute. “It is the first comprehensive guide on water efficiency in CEA in North America and will prove invaluable to any operation working to implement efforts to reduce water consumption and increase efficiency.”
According to Smith, environmental sustainability is just one reason to implement water efficiency best practices. As reported in a 2016 study from Alberta, Canada, resource efficiency also makes a direct impact on a CEA facility’s bottom line. For example, the study found that recirculating irrigation water has been shown to reduce water consumption by 20-40% and fertilizer costs by 40-50%. The Water Circularity Best Practices Guide covers topics such as reducing irrigation water use in hydroponic and horticultural substrate culture, reducing the use of climate control water and process water, how to recapture water and other critical issues.
“Any size operation will be able to implement the best practices for reducing water consumption identified in this report,” Smith said. “Larger or more advanced facilities can apply the strategies for recycling and remediating multiple water streams using physical, chemical, and biological technologies, putting them on the path to become zero-discharge facilities. There really is a comprehensive focus to this guide that will be beneficial for everyone.”
Through actionable tips and tools on the operational benefits of adopting water-saving practices, the guide offers practical solutions to reduce, remediate and recycle a CEA facility’s water usage. It can be downloaded at this link from RII’s resource catalog.
About Resource Innovation Institute: Resilient harvests for the next hundred years
Resource Innovation Institute is an objective, data-driven non-profit organization whose mission is to measure, verify and celebrate the world’s most efficient agricultural ideas. We cultivate a better future for all of humanity with our vision of resilient harvests for the next hundred years. Our consortium of members brings perspectives from across the field—uniting architects and engineers, growers and operators, researchers and analysts. Founded in 2016 to advise governments, utilities and industry leaders on the resource impacts of indoor cultivation, an under-studied and resource-intensive market, we have since extended our research to other sectors in partnership with the United States Department of Agriculture. To take on the challenges of our changing world, we believe that food, medicine and other vital crops demand data-driven insights, securely shared with integrity. By nurturing the human connections in our complex and dynamic industry, we can build deeply restorative systems for people and the planet. Visit our website at ResourceInnovation.org. Follow us on LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
