Desert Water Features

Hello, all! I work in Egypt, and often in the desert far from the Nile, so a very arid climate. Many of my colleagues are very enthusiastic about including water features in some of the development projects we are doing, such as fish ponds and aquaponics systems. This prickles at my permaculture sensibilities. I was under the impression that any open body of water in a hot water scare region was generally an unsustainable design element, because of all the water lost through evaporation. I was hoping some of you dryland permies could give me examples of successful climate-suited water features, or alternatives to traditional water features you have implemented. I can't wait to hear from you!

If you enclose your water features in a greenhouse/shadehouse, you can retain moisture lost through surface evaporation, but keeping everything cool and recovering the water could be complicated -- or not. At least confine things in a high-walled courtyard to keep the wind off it. You could put your greenhouse/shadehouse in the ground, like a walapini greenhouse, properly sloped bare earth or breathing retaining walls might regulate both temperature and moisture. You could also take things completely inside a well insulated structure and use sun tubes to light the ponds or tanks.

I've a friend who works the oil and gas fields in the deserts of Egypt. He says the daily temperature fluctuations can be impressive, so going into the ground might be a good idea.

Egypt certainly needs some bright ideas to increase domestic food production. Best of luck to you and your colleagues ... and, please, stay out of trouble.

I think that walipini greenhouse fantastic! It could be project to keep the walls retained because the subsoil is so sandy here but it is definitely something to consider. Have you ever seen a fish pond inside one of these underground greenhouses?

I know I have seen fish ponds/tanks in greenhouses, regular and buried, but I will have to search for some new examples. In the meantime, here is a TED-like wishful-thinking presentation that could give you some ideas:

http://www.onecommunityglobal.org/aquapinis-and-walipinis/


Here is an aquapini youtube video:

Probably not the most informative or organized presentation. No pictures, just talking. He discusses the walipini beginning at 41 minutes.


For sandy soil, simple sandbags, gabions lined with geotextile, used tires (earthship) also would work.

I know that Dubai has a year-round ski resort even with the temp above 115F.
http://www.skidubai.com/

So a little water feature is much more normal desire, even if it unsustainable.

But we can help out.
Incoming water should be from a waste source e.g. community grey water from sinks/shower/laundry via a biological filter
Outgoing water should be recaptured e.g. placed inside of a greenhouse
Evaporation via sunlight minimized by shade
Evaporation via wind minimized by solid wind blocking structures
Water temp should be kept at 80F or cooler by using the mass of the earth at say 6ft down.

Check out these guys
http://gardenpool.org/