Due to the continuing lack of rain, the water on campus is scarce. University of Twente is located on higher sandy soils so our water supply is dependent on rainfall. At the moment there is not enough rainfall, so the Waterschap (Water Board) has banned the extraction of water from brooks, ditches and ponds. Normally, water from the ponds is used for irrigation. As this is no longer possible, UT now uses a water truck.
The water truck takes water from the Twente canal and transfers it to two red containers located on our campus. You can find these containers at the athletics track and on the event field. The water in the container at the athletics track is used to water sports fields. The water that is collected from the container on the event area is used for newly planted trees. Occasionally a load of water is used to replenish the ponds.
On designated days, the water truck drives back and forth between the Twente canal and our university. Frank drives the car: ''this car is normally used to transport manure, but today I transport water''. His 35,000 litres of water are pumped out of the Twente canal each time. It takes about 10 minutes to pump this amount of water into the container. One container with water is sufficient to irrigate the sports field for 45 minutes'', says Frank. The water truck drives back and forth 12 times a day. It depends on the drought how many days the water truck will be used this year.
