Alternative water sources save money

Farm manager Huw McCon-ochie says expansion of the dairy herd prompted him to explore alternatives to meet the 50,000-litre daily demand. “The existing system relied heavily on mains water and was simply not cost effective,” he says

“After failing to secure an adequate supply from bore holes drilled on the farm, we turned our attention to rainwater and water that is collected in two ponds on the farm.

Savings

“It means a saving of almost £22,000 a year when compared to the cost of drawing water from the mains supply and other farmers could also be making huge cost savings.”

The savings come from a combination of natural sources:

• The farm lake and stream is capable of providing 30 litres a minute of drinking water for the cows.
• Harvested rainwater provides enough water to wash down the milking parlour, collecting yard and handling pens every day (about 4 million litres a year).
• The remainder comes from a bore hole on the farm.

“The key to the system is storage, because even in Trawsgoed, it does not rain every day,” says Dr McConochie. “Harvested rainwater is being stored in a 30,000-litre tank ready for use, while drinking water from the ponds and bore hole are stored in a separate 28,000-litre tank.”

He estimates savings in the first year alone will cover the cost of setting up the system.

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