Somaliland has a hostile climate with unreliable rainfall, receding ground water supplies and drought conditions are becoming more frequent. These conditions are excellent for solar salt production, but to survive in them requires water and food.  The question is how do we get the water? The answer was provided by a Mr Charlie Paton decades ago when he conducted his trials of what became the Seawater Greenhouse. Today there are many variations on his system working successfully in many countries.

​

The directors of SG have taken a basic solar salt production proposal, which by itself is a stand-alone highly-profitable venture and intend to expand the concept to utilise the main function of the production system. Solar Salt is produced by nature’s power supply, sun and wind causing evaporation of sea water until only salt remains. Without allowing for seepage, the process evaporates 64 tonnes of sea water to produce 1 tonne of salt. For each million tonnes of salt produced, there is about 64 million tonnes of clean fresh water vapour available at no cost.  The atmosphere above the ponds is laden with moist air that normally will dissipate on the wind.

​

By utilising a similar system to that of Charlie Paton SG can “harvest some of the salt-free moisture”, by condensation of the moisture into water and create conditions that will grow many types of vegetation including food crops in greenhouse type structures. The location for the salt works is on land classified by a study,[1] as “unsuitable for agriculture”.

​

There is enormous potential for this methodology to be applied in this Somaliland region and indeed help to meet some of The Sustainable Development Goals of the World Bank Group. The Solar Salt production system will provide a continuous supply of fresh water as a by-product that can be used to feed hydroponics greenhouse production and irrigate crops in close proximity as did Mr Paton[2]. The land can be suitable for agriculture if the right methods are applied.

​

The salt works is one of the most environmentally sustainable industries imaginable, creating a wetland environment that provides a safe-haven for wildlife, creates conditions suitable for fishery and aquaculture, produces fresh water as a by-product and is financially profitable. A most remarkable aspect of solar salt production is the material supply is endless and up to 90 percent of the power required is provided by Nature.

​

The project is in a remote area of Somaliland, west of Berbera, and will require the establishment of all support infrastructure for industry including water, sanitation, electrical, communications, shipping facilities, airstrip, accommodation and community social facilities. A self-sustaining community modelled on the 1970s North West Australia remote mine sites.

​

Community Benefits

​

• Reduced Poverty and Economic Wellbeing. Salt production will employ a few hundred, mainly male workers, during construction; and about 450 in production. Greenhouse food crop systems are operated by mainly female workers due to their superior care and dexterity when completing delicate plant handling. Seawater Greenhouse Ltd (SGL) indicates that 500 hectares (5km^2) of greenhouse operations produces 150,000 tons of vegetables (sufficient to feed 1 million people @ 0.4kg/day[1]), employs 3,000 people mainly female and sequesters 8250 tons of CO2per year. When site works commence a greenhouse will be built to provide fresh vegetables to the workforce. This employment alone would support a population up to 24,000 people, taking into account family and extended family dependents; plus local enterprise will be encouraged to expand the greenhouse system with water supplied from the site. The export market for fresh fruit and vegetables can be supplied with air freight using the site airfield. 

• [1]WHO Recommended intake per person is 0.4kg per day.

 

• Zero Hunger. One of the outstanding greenhouse successes, is the fodder shed system of production for animal feeds. Manama University, Bahrain has completed studies that verify the system produces 100 to 200 tons per hectare of fresh green fodder every 8 days. A total possible green fodder yield of 5424 and 5000 tons per hectare per year can be achieved with hydroponics system (25 crops per year) for cow pea and barley respectively. The fodder shed system is in use in the arid region of South Australia to sustain stock during drought.  SG can replicate these systems and attain similar results on site. Local industry can be established to develop feedlot for livestock and lead to establishment of meat processing instead of live exports that provide very poor returns. The Water Supply system can facilitate the ongoing development of the livestock industry.

​

​

• Good Health and Wellbeing. A resilient livestock industry is important to the Somali people’s traditional lifestyle and animal-sourced foods, e.g. meat milk butter and eggs are energy dense and a rich source of micronutrients that are particularly important to pregnant women and babies. Hydroponics production of fodder can help reduce the risk of zoonotic animal disease that are harmful to humans. The FAO have spent years trying to improve livestock in the arid regions of Africa with drought destroying any success.

​

• ​Quality Education. Healthy food and improved nutrition have a positive effect on child wellbeing, learning ability and improved performances. The workforce for the salt works will require many types of skills and SG will train suitable applicants. The project could become a source of industry training for Government and NGO programmes, in both industries; expanding to salt production, aquaculture, agriculture as well as construction.

 

• Gender Equality. The horticulture production will improve the status of women by way of employment income for the household, and participation in health and social welfare.

​

• Clean Water and Sanitation.  The water provided by SG will be potable. Clean safe water will be available for the community to maintain health. Sanitation will be first world standard with treatment and disposal systems.

​

• Affordable Clean energy. The project will have a dedicated power supply that will provide base power to the community. Solar energy will be incorporated as the project develops to minimise use of fossil fuels. Alternative energy use will be a strategy the company will employ at all opportunities. As the community numbers increase a waste management regime will incorporate waste to energy systems.

​

• Decent Work and Economic Growth. In 2015 the number of unemployed people reached 197.1 million (ILO 2016). 470 million jobs are needed for new entrants to the labour market between 2016 and 2030 worldwide. (UNDG, 2013). The demand for animal protein drives the global food markets (OECD/FAO 2015), creating major business opportunities for the sector. The salt project’s water source, animal feed production and livestock value chain can create thousands of meaningful jobs both on and off-site. The greenhouse crop production in Europe and China employs many millions of workers.

​

• Industry, Innovations and Infrastructure. Low and middle income countries such as Somaliland are constrained by a lack of processing infrastructure such as abattoirs, tanneries etc. The same applies to crop produce with little or no value adding. SG will use a bottom up method of developing industries with appropriate infrastructure e.g. fodder production, to feed lots, to meat process plant for export. Fresh chilled meats by air freight facilities, frozen bulk meat export using the company port facilities. A fish processing plant established near the port can obtain finfish from the first ponds, brine shrimp etc. that are part of the process. Local fishing industry can develop by using the port and the cold store facility and obtain ice from the cold store to preserve the quality of the catch. The Gulf Countries have good markets for daily fresh produce within easy reach for cost effective air freight to be used for high quality greenhouse products. The basic infrastructure is required for salt production and shipping and can be designed to facilitate the development of other innovative activities.

 

• Reduced Inequalities. The largest share of the world’s poor live in rural areas, and half of the poor keep livestock (World Bank 2016 Robinson 2011). The SG Salt project has the capacity to provide water and feed to livestock in the surrounding region to create a market for the selling of stock thus generating a source of income that can provide a degree of security to the livestock owner.

 

• Sustainable Cities and Communications. The project could lead to the creation of a major urban development, if so the planners have a clean sheet to work with no existing headaches.

 

• Responsible Consumption and Production. All sectors of the SG project will be conversant with current and future regulatory requirements

 

• Climate Action. The production of Solar Salt is one of the world’s most environmental friendly industries with every tonne of solar salt produced that replaces processed salt removing a potential 1 tonne of CO2. The livestock industry will undergo improvements that can contribute to climate change mitigation.

 

• Life Below Water.  The integration of sustainable livestock and fish farming systems contributes to reduced pollution.

 

• Life on the Land. SG are well-aware of the desertification of the lands in Somaliland due to climate and overgrazing. The degradation of the soils is repairable with careful restoration methods. The system SG intend to use for crop production uses little or no soils. SG will be using biodiversity methods with animal manures and green bio waste, algae and mineral supplements from the salt process system.

 

• Peace Justice and Strong Institutions. The project will provide secure employment with a decent standard of living to the community. Development of local industries that are associated with the project will create many thousands of jobs including the livestock industry to improve farmers’ livelihood and reduce the root cause of many conflicts in the arid regions.

​

​

• Partnerships for the Goals. SG believe the SG Solar Salt project is a sustainable proposal with environmental credentials that are hard to match. SG is also aware that sustainable development needs to be a progressive consultation with the many sectors likely to be affected, including Governments, the community private sector and civil society to progress the project through dialogue, consultation and positive conclusion. Join us in this exciting project, creating profit for all shareholders and wellbeing to the stakeholders. A truly integrated approach to sustainable development.

 

[1] IUCN East Africa Programme, Somali Natural Resources Management Programme, An Ecological Assessment of the Coastal Plain of Northwestern Somalia (Somaliland) May 2000

[2] https://seawatergreenhouse.com/somaliland/