At Infralobo, from now on, «when it rains, you don't water». The Smart Irrigation System (Intelligent Irrigation System) was presented this Wednesday and will be gradually implemented in the public green spaces of the resort of Vale de Lobo, until the end of the year, avoiding the unnecessary use of water. However, the idea is for this solution to be extended to other parts of the county.
The Smart Irrigation System is «differentiating both nationally and worldwide», according to Cláudio Martins, from Visualforma, an Algarve company that participated in the development of the solution. The system interconnects 300 irrigation stations and thousands of solenoid valves with wireless technology, through a radio frequency.
With this system, “we can predict when it will rain, as we have a weather station in Vale de Lobo. So, if it's going to rain in two hours, we won't water anymore, we'll wait for it to rain and, if it's needed, we'll complement the watering. Or, if it rained yesterday and the floor has too much water, we're not going to water it», explains Cláudio Martins.
Also, “if we have a leak, we can identify it [in the Smart Room] and if we have a clogged sprinkler, too. We were able to understand that xi cubic meters of water must have passed and they did not pass”, he adds.
Carlos Manso, chairman of Infralobo's board of directors, explains that the municipal company manages “22 hectares of public green spaces and, in our daily activities, we were concerned with reducing the use of drinking water in watering these spaces”.
From now on, «in Infralobo, you will not water when it rains. In the analysis we did, we realized that, almost everywhere in the world, when it rains, it is the plumbers who turn off the irrigation, so that water is saved, going to the various places. There is a high degree of logistical inefficiency associated with space management. Now, thanks to technology, it will be possible, instantly, to stop irrigation».
Carlos Manso explains that, in this first phase, the system will be implemented “in areas where the percentage of water consumed is more relevant. After this presentation, it will start operating in these places, which represent 12% of water consumption in our territory. By the end of the year, we have the full coverage planned. However, in the next two or three months, by implementing the system in the most relevant areas, we estimate that we will easily reach 65% of water consumption for irrigation».
The example given by Infralobo is good and Vítor Aleixo, president of the Chamber, wants to replicate it in the rest of the territory of Loulé. “It's an initiative to replicate. We are talking about the use of water and the municipal government defined for itself, in this mandate, three strategic axes: water efficiency, energy efficiency and housing. What we have here fits into water efficiency. Naturally, it will be replicated in other spaces in the county».
According to the mayor, «obviously there are territories that are better prepared to receive these systems, as is the case of Quinta do Lago, and in some places in Vilamoura. But the idea is, very quickly, to move in this direction, so that the good practices that exist in tourist resorts, regarding water or energy efficiency, are replicated in Loulé, Quarteira, Salir… wherever possible», he concluded.
Infralobo highlights that in addition to a saving of «between 20% to 40% in water costs», the Smart Irrigation System can allow a reduction between 10% to 30% in energy costs, «since the water pumps and the programmer will only work as necessary'.
The Smart Irrigation System, which integrates the project Smart Resort by Infralobo, represented an investment of 60 thousand euros, supported by Portugal 2020, with 80% in non-repayable funds.
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