Solutions from Ukraine: Ukrainian farmers implement new strategies to fight drought

Farmers will implement an innovative solution for preserving soil moisture and organic plant nutrition for the first time in the Kherson and Mykolaiv regions.

The Ministry of Agrarian Policy and Food of Ukraine reported this.

What is the problem?

On June 6, 2023, the occupying forces blew up the previously mined Kakhovka HPP.

Demolition of the Nova Kakhovka dam is a war crime under the Geneva Convention and has led to irreversible natural changes.

After all, the reservoir of the Kakhovka HPP was a crucial ecological environment and a source of fresh water for many species of plants and animals. They also supplied water for the irrigation of agricultural lands, particularly in the Kherson and Mykolaiv regions.

"If a huge sandy bottom opens, we will get a new desert with all the climatic consequences: a decrease in precipitation, dust storms, a rise in temperature in the region. And accordingly, there is a greater risk of drought in the fields of the center and south of Ukraine," "Let`s do it Ukraine" experts previously noted.

They stress that the lack of water in the Kakhovka reservoir will lead to the drying of the fields of southern Ukraine and further desolation.

What is the solution?

For the first time in Ukraine, farmers in the Kherson and Mykolaiv regions will implement an innovative solution for preserving soil moisture and organic plant nutrition.

They got this opportunity thanks to donors from Japan and the "United Communities" project, which is implemented with the support of the USAID AGRO Program, implemented by the All-Ukrainian Association of Communities.

How does it work?

According to the department, more than 125 farmers from the regions affected by the explosion of the Kakhovka HPP will receive 5,120 kg of sorbent free of charge.

This is a significant step in the development of agriculture and will help partially solve the problem of lack of water for irrigation.

^{Photo: Ministry of Agrarian Policy and Food of Ukraine}

The innovation involves utilizing a sorbent, which is an organic hydrogel material that:

• helps retain moisture in the soil;
• once it decomposes, it transforms into plant nutrients.

This solution is innovative for Ukrainian farmers but has already been successfully used in Japan, India, and the arid regions of the European Union and the United States.

^{Photo: Ministry of Agrarian Policy and Food of Ukraine}

The sorbent, called EF Polymer, is an environmentally friendly product made from organic waste such as fruit peels. Its hydrogel consistency allows you to retain moisture in the soil.

So:

• sorbent helps to reduce water use by 40% and up to 20% on fertilizer,
• the product is completely biodegradable, turning into fertilizers.

The sorbent is widely used in Japan and other countries and is applied to the soil during sowing. Its action consists of absorbing water 50-100 times more than its weight, keeping it in the soil longer, and slowly giving it to the plants.

This approach helps plants tolerate dehydration more efficiently and prevents soil erosion. After 180 days, the product decomposes, turning into organic fertilizer.

The results of applying this innovative solution in Ukraine will be studied by specialists of the Institute of Climate-Oriented Agriculture of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine and by the agrarians themselves from the Kherson and Mykolaiv regions.

For reference:

In the Zhytomyr region, there are plans to establish a cluster for the cultivation and processing of technical hemp on the site of a former flax factory in the village of Ryzhany. As part of this endeavor, a plantation will be established for growing plants, making it the largest in Europe.