For at least a decade, Mexican farmers have chosen solid rain as a solution to combat drought. What is it about?
For at least a decade the farmers of the Mexico they chose the solid rain as a solution to counter the. What is it about?
The solid rain is composed of a super absorbent, non-toxic and non-polluting polymer, which it can absorb water up to 500 times its original weight. This polymer is able to retain water in the soil for a whole year.
The story of solid rain - Solid Rain - began in the XNUMXs when the United States Department of Agriculture developed a super absorbent polymer that caught the attention of a Mexican chemical engineer, as this idea seemed to have all it takes to combat drought.
Starting from the idea proposed by the United States - which was born as an absorbent powder for baby diapers - Sergio Rico Velasco has developed and patented a new version of the super absorbent substance based on potassium which can be easily mixed with the soil to retain water. Solid rain has been used by Mexican farmers for years now. Thus they can ensure that there is water in the fields despite the drought.
10 grams of Solid Rain are enough to absorb up to 1 liter of water. The powder turns into a gel and retains that water it does not evaporate and does not disperse in the ground. come il it becomes a real water reserve for the roots of plants. According to Solid Rain, the company that sells the product in Mexico, solid rain is able to stay in the ground and retain water for up to 8 or 10 years.
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Studies have been carried out on solid rain and a study conducted by the Government of Mexico in the semi-arid state of Hidalgo revealed that fields where Solid Rain was used could boast a 300% increase in yields compared to fields in to which the product had not been applied. For example, for sunflowers the yield was 3000 kg per hectare, compared to 1000 kg for sunflowers grown under regular conditions. For legumes the difference was even higher, equal to 3000 kg against only 450 kg.
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It seems that solid rain has not yet spread throughout the world simply because it represents a still little known solution. Yet perhaps it could solve the problem of drought in other very arid countries where it is difficult to grow.
Edwin Gonzalez, vice president of Solid Rain, stressed that it is a natural product that does not damage the soils even if it is used for many years and that the solid rain is formed by bio-arylamide which guarantees its non-toxicity.
Solid Rain has been nominated for the Flobal Water Award twice and received theEcology and Environment Award of the Miguesl Aleman Foundation. However, there has been criticism from those who do not believe that solid rain can hold water in the ground for so long. Yet it seems that its concrete use in cultivated fields is really helping the farmers of Mexico since with this system the plants are able to absorb all the nutrients they need, including nitrogen.
What do you think? Could solid rain become a solution to drought and help farmers have better harvests?
Marta Albè
Photo font: Solid Rain
