The Problem

Over-irrigation is a blight on the farming community and the environment at large. A 2008 University of Nebraska study on the impacts of wet soil conditions due to over-irrigation (or flooding), has shown that excessive irrigation damages crops through nitrogen leaching and creating an environment favourable to weeds and disease. At the same time, 40% of water used by the agriculture industry worldwide is wasted due to outdated irrigation techniques. Therefore a good solution to over-irrigation would both maximise crop yield for farmers and help to protect the environment, which is where our product steps in. The need for efficiency in agriculture has never been more pressing than now, with worldwide poverty expected to increase, the global climate crisis, and the ever-increasing global population; widespread use of efficient irrigation techniques is imperative.

Our Solution

Our product is designed to allow farmers to gain a greater, in-depth knowledge about what exactly is going on in their soil. By allowing farmers to know exactly whether or not their soil is saturated with enough water, they are then less likely to over-irrigate and overextract ground water sources. The EcoMonitor will travel across farmland, prodding a soil-moisture sensor into the soil at different intervals using a rotary to linear motion mechanism which looks something like this:

This will then provide data that will transfer to the app installed on the farmer’s phone. The farmer now has access to more information about his farm without even stepping outside! This increase in environmental data should allow the farmer to make more rationa decision when irrigating their farm. This solution would work particularly well outside of the UK in areas such as the Middle East and North Africa - the most water scarce region in the world.

Here is our video:

The Team

Henry	Sophie	Nigel