Turning (salty) water into wine

Drought in western Victoria has reduced grape yields from an optimal fi ve tonnes per hectare to just one tonne. This has had a devastating effect on the profi tability of vineyards in the Pyrenees including Glenkara, one of the largest vineyards in the region.

Yet right beneath their feet lie enormous untapped ground water reserves that were first discovered in the days of colonial explorers and gold miners. Considered too saline for agriculture, this water was all but forgotten until 12 years of below average rainfall made primary producers desperate.

Deslan8 has come to the rescue at Glenkara where, following three months of trials, fresh water is now flowing from below to quench the vines.

Low energy, no waste

Desanl8 technology is ideal for this environmentally conscious business. Not only does each In Situ Desalination (ISD) unit produce sparkling clear water at a rate of 45 megalitres (ML) a year, it does it with one-third of the pumping cost of a conventional above-ground desalination plant. One-third of the cost translates into less energy usage and therefore less greenhouse gas.

Desaln8 requires far less maintenance and has no traditional above ground waste disposal costs using the natural properties of the aquifer to aid in the process of fresh water extraction.

“Because it operates in anoxic (no oxygen) conditions below the ground, the salts in the water do not precipitate out during the process,” says Desaln8’s Chris Dawson. “There is minimal scaling or biofilm. Solids are simply left in the aquifer in the same form.”

Conventional (above-ground) desalination plants bring saline water into contact with air, creating condensed solids and requiring treatments that have to be disposed of. These systems use signifi cantly more energy in pumping up the water and have huge waste disposal costs.

Easy duplication

The Desaln8 system is installed in a bore hole and can be duplicated by simply drilling new bore holes near the first one to access greater volumes from the aquifer. The rate of flow from the Glenkara bore is considerably higher than fi rst estimated which in turn means that the vineyard will not need as many bore holes as first thought.

Where excess water is extracted from the aquifer, it can be treated and returned below ground for storage. Because it has been desalinated it is less dense than the other water and sits on top making it easily retrievable when needed.

www.desaln8.com