Test bed Storsudret

Gotland has on several occasions in recent years suffered from acute water shortages. Above all, it is the southern parts of the island, Storsudret, that are most exposed. It is a problem both for those who live there, but also for the development of the region. The goal of the project is to make the area self-sufficient in water, and this week the research work to create a so-called test bed has begun.

Storsudret is an area with a lot of agricultural land and relatively thin soil layers, so it is difficult to get the water to stay in the ground and be available during dry periods. The problem is not that it does not rain on Gotland, but that the water does not stay in the ground, but instead flows into the sea. This is partly due to the fact that the soil layers are very thin on top of the bedrock of the limestone.

Another reason is that they previously dug out of the ground so that it would not flood in the spring during spring use. With the high temperatures we had, for example, in the spring of this year and such a long period of low precipitation, the result is that it is extremely dry in the ground and that the groundwater levels fall.

The test bed includes several local small-scale parts. Among other things, rainwater will be collected and infiltrated below the ground surface to create ponds and wetlands. The water can then be used for drinking water, irrigation or infiltrated directly into the groundwater.