Cotgrave Community Garden is a community project which grows food for the local community.
Having collected rainwater, 2,600 litres of it in IBCs, staff were shocked to find that it has all disappeared, they say the containers are not faulty and cannot explain where it has gone.
A spokesperson said in an appeal for help:
‘We are 100% reliant on rainwater at the garden- no mains available to us on site and we’re super proud of the sustainable water system we’ve put in place over the last three years.
‘We had the capacity to collect and store 2,600 litres and did a great job of maxing our capacity over winter ready for another dry, hot summer.
‘Unfortunately, a few weeks ago we had to relocate our IBC tanks and lost the ability to harvest rainwater.
‘But volunteers at the garden don’t let much stop them growing and they quickly came up with a new way to collect water- off the polytunnel!
‘So we have 2,600 litres of water stored and a new way to collect rainwater… all good. Right!? Right!???
‘Wrong… somehow our two IBCs which were full to the brim of water three weeks ago are now empty!
‘And this is where the mystery lies… the IBCs are intact and the taps and valves are off so where has our water evaporated to?
‘More importantly… how are we going to water the veg!?
‘We have about 300 litres left on site and no rain in the forecast – even after so much work over winter increasing our storage capacity and ensuring we’ve got enough water to last we’re already at crisis point!
‘Can you help? Do you know anyone in Nottinghamshire that has access to lots of water that could help us fill even one waterbutt?
‘Are you local to #cotgrave and could bring us a bucket/bottle/boot full of water?’