Addressing India’s food needs with modern PE micro-irrigation systems [PE]

Keywords : Food supply, micro irrigation, water scarcity, polyethylene compound. India’s population is growing rapidly and today it is the second most populous country in the world. Over 80% of its scarce water supply is used to irrigate crops, mainly by inefficient flood irrigation methods fed by open water channels. Modern micro irrigation systems are far more water efficient as they deliver water directly to the plant through a network of pipelines – main lines and lateral lines with emission points along their length, which results in increased yields whilst using considerably less water which is essential if India is to feed its growing population. As plastics raw material suppliers Borouge and Borealis are working with machine manufacturers, irrigation system producers and installation specialists to develop a single PE compound to replace different mixtures of materials used in the production of the different types of micro-irrigation pipes. This will enable high quality systems to be consistently produced at higher output rates resulting in less scrap, lower inventory and lower overall costs for the producer and ultimately higher lifetime for the farmer making the systems a more attractive investment. In India Borouge is also supporting low cost, low energy drip systems manufactured by a NGO for small and marginal farmers under their “Water for the World” activities.