Fog-water collection for community use

Fessehaye, Mussie; Abdul-Wahab, Sabah A.; Savage, Michael J.; Kohler, Thomas; Gherezghiher, Tseggai; Hurni, Hans (2014). Fog-water collection for community use. Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews, 29, pp. 52-62. Elsevier 10.1016/j.rser.2013.08.063

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Fog is a potential source of water that could be exploited using the innovative technology of fog collection. Naturally, the potential of fog has proven its significance in cloud forests that are thriving from fog interception. Historically, the remains of artificial structures in different countries prove that fog has been collected as an alternative and/or supplementary water source. In the beginning of the 19th century, fog collection was investigated as a potential natural resource. After the mid-1980s, following success in Chile, fog-water collection commenced in a number of developing countries. Most of these countries are located in arid and semi-arid regions with topographic and climatic conditions that favour fog-water collection. This paper reviews the technology of fog collection with initial background information on natural fog collection and its historical development. It reviews the climatic and topographic features that dictate fog formation (mainly advection and orographic) and the innovative technology to collect it, focusing on the amount collected, the quality of fog water, and the impact of the technology on the livelihoods of beneficiary communities. By and large, the technology described is simple, cost-effective, and energy-free. However, fog-water collection has disadvantages in that it is seasonal, localised, and the technology needs continual maintenance. Based on the experience in several countries, the sustainability of the technology could be guaranteed if technical, economic, social, and management factors are addressed during its planning and implementation.

Item Type:

Journal Article (Original Article)

Division/Institute:

08 Faculty of Science > Institute of Geography > Geographies of Sustainability > Unit Critical Sustainability Studies (CSS)
08 Faculty of Science > Institute of Geography > Geographies of Sustainability > Unit Land Systems and Sustainable Land Management (LS-SLM)
08 Faculty of Science > Institute of Geography > NCCR North-South Management Centre [discontinued]
10 Strategic Research Centers > Centre for Development and Environment (CDE)

UniBE Contributor:

Kohler, Thomas, Hurni, Hans

Subjects:

300 Social sciences, sociology & anthropology > 330 Economics

ISSN:

1364-0321

Publisher:

Elsevier

Language:

English

Submitter:

Users 124 not found.

Date Deposited:

06 Aug 2014 08:51

Last Modified:

05 Dec 2022 14:31

Publisher DOI:

10.1016/j.rser.2013.08.063

BORIS DOI:

10.7892/boris.46564

URI:

https://boris.unibe.ch/id/eprint/46564

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