Fog-Harvesting Project Converts Mountain Fog into Water

Fog harvesting is a water-collection method that uses mesh nets to capture tiny water droplets from fog and channel them into storage or piping systems. In southwestern Morocco, a fog-harvesting network on Mount Boutmezguida supplies piped water to local homes in the Aït Baamrane region.

Location and Physical Setting

Mount Boutmezguida lies in the Anti-Atlas Mountains near the Sahara Desert in southwestern Morocco. The site is at an elevation of more than 4,000 feet and receives Atlantic fog, which provides the moisture used by the collection system.

Technology Used in Fog Collection

The project uses black polymer mesh nets and CloudFisher technology. CloudFisher nets are three-dimensional, food-safe structures developed with WaterFoundation and Aqualonis, and they are designed to withstand mountain wind speeds of up to 120 km/h without electricity.

Project Management and Community Use

Dar Si Hmad, a women-led Moroccan nonprofit organisation, manages the initiative. The organisation began pilot testing fog-collection methods in 2006, and the system now delivers water through gravity-fed pipes to households in nearby villages.

Important Facts for Exams

• Fog harvesting is also called cloud or mist water collection in arid and semi-arid regions.
• Gravity-fed water systems move water without pumps when the source is at a higher elevation.
• The Amazigh are an indigenous people of North Africa, including Morocco.
• The Anti-Atlas Mountains form part of the mountain system in southern Morocco.

Operational Features and Scale

Reports on the system’s output vary by date and installation size. Figures cited in 2025 and 2026 mention daily collection ranging from 6,300 litres to 37,000 litres, with coverage extending from five villages to 16 villages.

Research and Expansion

A Fog Research Center in the region monitors performance and trains local residents. Dar Si Hmad has also announced plans to expand fog-collection infrastructure to another region in southwest Morocco with technical support from Peter Trautwein, the industrial designer associated with CloudFisher.