From the outset of the project, the issue of water was seen as fundamental to its success. With the potential long-term presence of several hundred people on this place for short stays, and with other 100 to 200 people permanently, it was always clear that this required significant water consumption, and a carefully considered sustainable approach.
Since the first vision of the project in 2017, we have studied this subject in detail, and found some interesting and pioneer initiatives that could help to improve the water cycle on the land.
Sepp Holzer’s work, which is one of the initiatives that could potentially be adapted to our case, led us to get in contact with Zachary Weiss, founder of Elemental Ecosystems, who is easier to reach than his mentor Sepp Holzer.
In June 2019, with the owner’s agreement, we decided to organise a preliminary work week with him to study the soils on the land, to define whether the approach of creating lakes that fit naturally into the landscape could help make the project possible from a water management point of view, and also to benefit from his permaculture vision. This week in the field was extremely instructive, confirming the essence of our own research and projections. It confirmed that there is enough water on the land for the project we have in mind to be self-sufficient, in a responsible and realistic way, and that there are many areas where it is possible to create naturally sealed lakes, thanks to the sufficiently clayey soil and to the land’s topography.
With Zach’s help and with a local person, we studied the composition of the soil in 37 areas of the land in order to obtain a detailed map of the layers of the soil:
This was a very positive outcome and verified at least one viable approach to water management. Even if this approach to lakes was not the only one possible (and we will certainly be using a combination of methods), the fact that we have validated the feasibility of one approach in particular meant that we could move forward with confidence on the purchase of the land.
Artistic view of a lake integrated into the landscape:
We’ll be back soon with a follow-up article on the journey that led to the purchase of the land!
