Chile’s National Irrigation Commission visit Aqua4D project

After meeting recently at an industry event at the Swiss Embassy in Santiago, the National Irrigation Commission (CNR) were intrigued to find out more about how Aqua4D can help alleviate Chile’s growing water crisis.

Chile is amongst the nations with the highest water footprint and highest water stress. With consumption set to increase by 30% by 2050, this is placing huge strains on the country’s booming agriculture sector, with several successful but water-hungry crops. The country’s avocado industry is already busily innovating towards greater water efficiency. Such innovation drives include Aqua4D, a system which treats irrigation water, leading to greater efficiency and water savings of between 20-30%.

At the recent Swiss Embassy event, this came to the attention of the National Irrigation Commission. Curious to find out more and see the Aqua4D system in action, they were invited to visit a new Aqua4D installation at San Osvaldo, the biggest citrus grower in the Coquimbo region, with over 300 hectares.

San Osvaldo: over 300 ha of citrus crops

Present at the visit were Federico Errazuriz from the National Irrigation Commission, along with several regional directors, accompanied by Felipe Villarino, Aqua4D Chile representative and General Manager of IST Group.

“This technology hugely increases irrigation efficiency,” says Villarino. “We have had cases around the world where less water has been used and quality & production have been increased. This is the paradigm shift that we are now implementing in Chile.