Water storage under sports fields

Like many other football clubs with a natural grass pitch, soccer association Arnemuiden had problems with the grass last summer during the drought. As part of the Freshwater Testing project (Proeftuin Zoet Water), a trial will start with water storage and combined drip irrigation under the natural grass field of the soccer association Arnemuiden, in Zeeland, the Netherlands. The aim is to gain insight into the possibilities of collecting and storing rainwater in the subsurface of sports fields and using this water during dry periods in the summer months. The water can be used for sports fields via underground drip irrigation and sub-irrigation.

Acacia Water supervises the feasibility study, which consists of 3 phases: 1) an exploratory study into the subsurface, 2) a field study into the possibilities and 3) a test drilling. This is done in close consultation with the soccer association. If the results of the studies are positive, a managed acquifer system will be installed in the autumn or winter of 2019 to create a freshwater bubble in a deeper, saline soil layer below the main field. The freshwater bubble is used to maintain the level of soil moisture under the grass surface via drip irrigation. It will be assessed for each phase whether the trial will be continued. Indeed, there are still various uncertainties.

The trial is part of the Freshwater Testing Proefuin research program, in which the province of Zeeland and the Scheldestromen water board commissioned various studies aimed at developing knowledge to improve the freshwater situation in Zeeland. Fresh water is already scarce in Zeeland, and the expectation is that it will only become scarcer as climate change continues.

The Acacia Water project is in collaboration with Traas and Ovaa Sport B.V (https://www.traasenovaa-sport.nl/).. The municipality of Middelburg is the owner and manager of the soccer fields of VV Arnemuiden, they welcome the trial and contribute to the funding. Currently the costs for irrigation of sports fields with drinking water are too high and do not outweigh the temporary problems of natural grass pitches in the summer months.

No matter how hot and dry it will be in the coming summers, it would be great if the football matches can always take place with the new freshwater system.