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One small tangent/addition is that the US exports alfalfa to Saudia Arabia as well. Alfalfa is an incredibly water-intensive crop that was actually banned in Abu Dhabi because of such and SA had been reducing domestic production. One of the US states that exports that alfalfa? Arizona.
Europeans Nuking Heroshima (and enslaving the Japanese Heritage & Legacy / Destroying their Off-Spring using After Surrender Politics) not conisdered land grabbing ⁉️ Of course I mean after europeans envasion to America and make Human Zoos for Cherokee families and make actual Americans as poor people using black enslaved manpower from Africa. ⁉️ What kind of concerns and lecture is this from? He is just afraid from future "concerns" that Arabs are willing in fact give access and help people we didn't bomb Heroshima and enslave Black People to invade Americans like your ancestors to be afraid from our future. Concerns arise when you have money cuz even money in your hands is a major concern previously cuz you made a weapon then went to Africa and enslaved manpower by force then went to america and grabbed everything then made a rocket and bombed another race too. Calculate your European odds not our African/Arab odds. 😂
Thank you . Circular farms; They often sell locally what they grow from various feeds to sheep, camels, goats and other animals. Another problem of deep artesian wells is that in some places the cultivated land turns into a salt land; and its solution is to participate in a convergent group of farms from one well and spread pipes to water neighboring farms, not as in the previous mistake, which is that each farm has a well . المزارع الدائرية؛ غالباً يبيعون محلياً ما يزرعون من أعلاف متنوعة للخراف والإبل والماعز و لحيوانات أخرى . هناك مشكلة أخرى من الآبار الارتوازية العميقة و هي أنها في بعض الأماكن تتحول الأرض المزروعة إلى أرض ملحية غير صالحة للزراعة؛ و حلها أن تشترك مجموعة مزارع متقاربة من بئر واحد و تمتد مواسير لسقيا المزارع المجاورة وليس كما في الخطأ السابق وهو أن يكون لكل مزرعة بئر .
As a Saudi, I’d like to add some key facts to this discussion. Yes, Saudi Arabia has tapped underground water for decades, but we’re also leading the world in desalination. With 33 desalination plants it’s 8 on the Arabian Gulf and 25 on the Red Sea. We produce over 5.6 million cubic meters of freshwater daily ~1.48 billion gallons/day. This water is delivered nationwide through an 8,000 km pipeline network ~4,970 miles and that is roughly the distance from LA, to NY or same as traveling from Lisbon, to Moscow, and then returning to Lisbon, the network includes massive projects like the Jubail-Riyadh pipeline (824 km long ~512 miles, serving Riyadh daily fresh water). We are drinking clean and fresh sea water in every home while preserving natural resources.
@ Actually, we already are! Saudi Arabia has the world’s largest solar-powered desalination plant, Al Khafji, launched in 2018, and projects like Jubail 3A are cutting carbon emissions by 60,000 tons a year with solar energy. Clean energy is already a key part of our water strategy-and the NEOM desalination project will take it even further!
@@Inero_01 تلميع ايش وانحياز ايش يا ابني شوف عنوان المقطع هم يبغون يعرفون ايش الدوائر اسألوا اللي سواها طيب وحتى لو تحقيق ومايبغون انحياز طبيعي انهم يسمعون من جميع الاطراف من باب الحياد وغير كذا مين هم عشان يحققون يمكن الرجل الابيض له مكانة عالية ببلدك بس هنا السعودية الابيض الاوروبي إما يكونون عمالة مثل ما وصفتهم ايميلات هيلاري، او مستشرق يتم البصق عليه من السعوديين من نجاسته رغم محاولات احتكاكه وتقربه للسعوديين مثل ما وصف الكاتب المصري محمد جلال كشك جون فيلبي وبالمناسبة تكتب اسأل مو اسئل
I didn't know about this circle crop/water issue. That ground water could have helped Saudi down the road. The 2nd part about investing agriculture elsewhere that has easier access to resources is more feasible. That'd be similar to buying wheat from US where it's mass producing it economically.
I feel like these questions could have easily been answered within a 10 minute conversation with a Saudi farming expert. Not everything deserves "deep dive investigations" as if circular farms are a part of major alien lizard conspiracy...
Let us see your videos about any subject before we criticize the good folks who brought this great video to us. Please mature more often. I beg your parents to do better next kid.
At the beginning of the video I thought it's going to be about saudi secret military bases or something because this video is trying so hard to present it like some high level investigative work. I can't stop laughing halfway when I found out it's just about saudi agriculture.
If I had a nickel for every time I watched a video where Cristophe investigates circles in a desert, I'd have two nickels…which isn't a lot, but it's weird that it happened twice.
How much would the pumping of deep underground water impact the rise in sea levels, since water is being added that wouldn't have usually been in the system.
Just a thought.When an Asian country delegates agriculture to another country it’s called …. land grab but when a western country does it …. What is it called? Helping poor countries
It’s dependent on how these deals are constructed, some of these deals clearly benefit mostly one party (e.g. UAE) whereas the other receives pittance in return (e.g. Sudan). Results in increased influence by an outside party that would do whatever to guarantee its investment (e.g. UAE’s support of the RSF’s banditry in Sudan to secure a larger cut of resources than otherwise possible). This kind of policy is straight out of the American playbook but that doesn’t mean other countries aren’t capable of replicating it as well.
I'm genuinely amazed at your talent for avoiding the direct answer while spending so much time exploring everything around it. Exploring every tiny detail about a topic without addressing the core question. Setting up interviews and acting as if you didn’t find the answer in the first two minutes of searching 'Why is Saudi Arabia covered in circles' is quite the performance!
Reading the comments saved me a lot of time. I thought it was some innovative technique. Groundwater irrigation has been used for decades in dry areas.
Saudi Arabia is much more advanced in water management than what your video suggests. The country has built some of the world's largest and most efficient seawater desalination plants, producing drinking water by removing salt and other impurities from seawater. These plants are more energy-efficient and advanced compared to conventional desalination plants in Europe, utilizing innovative technologies to reduce energy consumption and carbon emissions. Additionally, Saudi Arabia has constructed a vast pipeline network that ensures the distribution of clean and drinkable water across the entire country. This system is so efficient that Saudi Arabia is among the few nations where you can open the tap and safely drink water without the need for bottled water, just like in countries with abundant natural rivers. There is even a water pipeline system so extensive and well-engineered that it could theoretically supply water internationally, including reaching places like America. These remarkable achievements make Saudi Arabia a global leader in water management, despite being located in one of the driest regions in the world. Your video overlooks these critical advancements, which are essential to understanding Saudi Arabia's comprehensive approach to managing water resources.
I LOVE that you show us all of the tools you use to make these videos and do this reporting. A lot of these post-Vox journalism videos can sort of blur together, and that little detail makes this channel stand out so clearly to me. I’m thrilled that it’s part of your mission here!
اولاً حياك الله انت و زميلك في بلد مبارك يحكمه ملك عادل ، تمنيت لو جربتو التواصل مع احد المزارعين ملاك الحقول الدائريه و راح يوفيكم بكل ما تحتاجونه و يكرمكم ؛ لأنه تصويركم للحقول بدون التحدث لملاكها اشبه بتمهيد فكره للمشاهد انها كلها تابعه للحكومه ذا الشي يخليك بسهوله تشبه المملكة بأنها تستولي على الاراضي مثل ما تدعي ، ثانياً بخصوص الاستيلاء على الاراضي بغيت اسأل ايش تسمون التواجد الامريكي في افريقيا للتنقيب على الذهب و الالماس و النفط ؟ مساعدة للدول الفقيره؟
لا ياشيخ ، الكلام الي قلته في نوع من الصحه اولا كان فيه دعم على القمح فلذالك كانت الزراعة كثيرة ثانيا المياه الجوفيه مب محدودة لان اكتشفو انه هناك انهار تجري تحت الما فلا يضير انك تسحب الماء من تحت الارض بكميات كبيرة واخيرا هذولي اسمهن محوريات وهو رشاش ما يدور على مركز الدائرة وهو شي اساسي للزراعة بالسعودية ونقطه اخيره : ترت كان يمديك تسال اهل المزارع وبيرحبون فيك ويعطوك الجواب الكافي الشافي بدال هالتعب والمطرسة الفاضيه وشكرا❤❤
كلام لاغبار عليه، تسلم. لكن بعض الاخطاء الاملائية بتغير المعنى تمامًا للي بيستخدم مترجم قوقل، مثل: "مايضير" ، اعتقد قصدك "مايصير" ، ولو حطيتها بالمترجم بيقول لك "it would not hurt” وبالتالي بتوصل للشخص عكس مقصدك، وايضًا "رشاش ما يدور على مركز الدائرة"، اعتقد قصدك "رشاش ماء.." ، المترجم بيقول "it does not revolve…” عكس المعنى مره اخرى
He DID. multiple times he’s called out western countries for their crimes. Not everyone feels a since of duty in upholding their country’s propaganda I promise.
It would’ve been better if you had met a Saudi expert to get accurate and complete answers, but I’ll explain it to you instead. Water isn’t really a big issue for Saudi Arabia, as it’s the largest producer of desalinated seawater in the world. Also, rain isn’t as rare as some people think. The southern part of Saudi Arabia has green areas and a rainy climate, with plenty of farms growing all sorts of fruits and vegetables, some of which are exported abroad. And it’s not just the south-other areas also have farming. For example, in Al-Jouf up north, there’s the world’s largest olive farm, and in Al-Qassim and Al-Madinah, there are thousands of date farms, making Saudi Arabia the second-largest producer of dates in the world. And there are many other examples all over the Kingdom. So, there’s no real concern about water or farming. The reason Saudi Arabia has changed its strategies is to cut down on unnecessary costs, but it’s still pushing forward with its agricultural plans. We’ve launched several projects and initiatives as part of Vision 2030, the most important being the 'Saudi Green Initiative,' which aims to plant 10 billion trees, increase protected areas, reduce carbon emissions, and invest in renewable energy. We also launched the 'Middle East Green Initiative,' which aims to achieve these goals on a larger scale across the entire Middle East. And we’ve seen noticeable progress and major achievements, not only in the agricultural sector but also in various industrial, tourism, financial, and other sectors included in Vision 2030 Thank God 🇸🇦
You are fooling yourself into a self-induced euphoria of greenwashing bliss. Fossil water is a known geological phenomenal resource that cannot be replaced, and I was shocked to learn several years ago that Saudis were exporting wheat more than my homeland in Lagos, Nigeria with 7 months of rainy season annually. It was just an environmental madness. All that water for perishable consumable wheat and no trees left standing to rejuvenate the terrain and change the landscape.
This was really cool! I’m a farmer in the southern California desert, and we too have to be very diligent in our water usage. There’s a balance that needs to be had between food production and conservation of water. At the end of the video the gentleman used the term “exploit” to refer to the farmer’s use of water. I mean maybe they could of been better stewards of their water, but I really don’t think they were exploiting it. They’re using it to produce food, that’s one of the best uses for water.
It's not the best use of water when you're growing food in one of the dries regions of the world purely so that you can control the global oil market without fear of repercussions since you aren't reliant on trade to import crops. Saudi Arabia doesn't NEED to grow their own food, they WANT to grow their own food.
@@danieldevries1722 They can do whatever they want. But it's fair to criticize it as exploitation of a finite and rapidly diminishing resource. Now they're having to expend a massive amount of energy to get their drinking water through desalination because their groundwater aquifers have become so heavily depleted. That's fine right now because Saudi Arabia is an oil rich country, but there's no guarantee that'll last into the future. Then how will people get their drinking water when they aren't so wealthy? I just don't think it's a responsible use of resources. It hasn't even achieved the goal of making them more self sufficient, because on net they're importing more products to facilitate farming (namely fertilizer and farming equipment, which they do not produce domestically).
@@danieldevries1722 They can do whatever they want. But it's fair to criticize it as exploitation of a finite and rapidly diminishing resource. Now they're having to use a massive amount of energy to get their drinking water through desalination because their groundwater aquifers have become so heavily depleted. That's fine right now because Saudi Arabia is an oil rich country, but there's no guarantee that'll last into the future. How will people get their drinking water when the country isn't wealthy enough to run those de-salination plants? I just don't think it's a responsible use of resources. It also doesn't accomplish their goal of making the country self sufficient and immune to trade sanctions. It's actually made them more dependent on foreign imports because they don't domestically produce the fertilizer and farming equipment they rely on. So if Mohammed Bin Salman wants to keep slaying journalists and dissidents, suppressing basic human rights, funding terror organizations, and using debt bonded migrant laborers on government funded megaprojects with some of the world's worst safety records, they're still going to struggle to feed themselves when sanctions are imposed.
@@kylewolfe_ what's so wrong about a country securing their own food resources? So growing their own food is a power grab, and resourcing to other countries is land grab\exploitation? Do you just expect them to be completely dependant on other countries to survive?
The video was perfect until you spoke about violence at the end... what violence exactly? Yall can't speak about Saudi Arabia in any subject without mentioning "Saudi women" and "Saudi law"
@15:28 the conclusion of "land grab" is biased it is a purchased or rented land not stolen land like what Israel did and still doing ! and the said conclusion is shallow and has no scientific or economic ground! This should have been properly researched through communications with landowners/ agriculture ministries of those countries to understand the framework compinged with those deals before publishing. As a journalist you can do better
I had the same impression, they didn't even think about the opportunities these deal make, from jobs to experiences to the citizens of those countries, after the deal is done they can start making their own farms and grow better. Exactly like how oil was discovered in saudi Arabia and was extracted by an American country, but after a while, the government bought the company and started benefiting off of it.
How much of that money actually goes to the locals? How economically beneficial is it? All 3rd world countries have issues of administration where peopel sitting at the top are usually corrupt and keep all the foreign investments for themselves. Those corrupts sell/lease the land of the country as it was their private property. Locals would never allow such thing.
@ The documentary offers baseless accusation on the two sides corruption (the hosting country and the investing country), whenever nations aside the western meets to collaborate then it is definitely corrupted ! however looting the African nation's resources by EU for over a 100 years was development was it :)
As a Saudi citizen, whenever i had to use google Maps or google Earth apps, I've always been fascinated by these circles and always wondered what's the full story about them, so i truly appreciate that you guys made this amazing documentary video about it, it answer many of the questions I had. Thank you, and you're most welcome in our country ❤
Thank you so much for this amazing video! As a proud Saudi, I truly share your sense of awe when it comes to these massive agricultural circles. I remember discovering them on Google Maps as a kid, and the first time I saw them from above during a flight, I was completely mesmerized. Even now, every time I fly over them, I feel the same excitement and admiration-it’s a stunning sight that never gets old. Regarding your point about "shifting burdens to other countries," I think the comparison isn't entirely accurate. It's like saying a country poor in oil should become a major oil exporter, or that a non-agricultural country should be expected to export food. Saudi investments in underutilized agricultural lands abroad are not about exploitation-they’re part of an economic collaboration that benefits both sides. These investments create local jobs, improve agricultural infrastructure, and inject billions of dollars into the host countries’ economies. With global food demand increasing, optimizing the use of underutilized farmlands is not just a necessity but also part of the solution to feeding a growing population. Thanks again for bringing attention to this topic-your curiosity and storytelling are truly refreshing, and I appreciate you shedding light on something so unique and fascinating!
Did you know that the semi-tropical forests in Saudi Arabia constitute 15% of its area, which is a percentage larger than the area of some European countries, and is located in southern Saudi Arabia? Also, your talk about the drying up of groundwater is incorrect, as they discovered the existence of underground rivers that renew these lakes.
The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is considered one of the largest donors worldwide, often ranking among the top in providing development and humanitarian aid, especially when measured as a percentage of its GDP.
This technology was important from an Arizona agriculture engineer, they use spraying systems that are connected to underground water. It's not a secret, Americans are just oblivious to what happens outside their realm.
Born and raised in Saudi, and i've always been curious about these massive circular farms in the middle of the desert. But I always thought that the ground water saudi tapped into should be limited due to years of misuse. Glad you made a video as I can now know more about it.
I found these in egypt aswell when I was traveling down to Aswan. I was completely obsessed with them for a few days too. Nice to see you guys had the same :)
شكراً لك على الفيديو الجميل لاكن هناك بعض المفهيم الخاطئه حول موضوع الزراعة انا اعيش في هذي المنطقة وانا مزارع صحيح ان المياه الجوفية قليلة في المنطقة لاكن ليس بالشكل الكبير الذي تتصورونه السبب وراء ذالك هو انتاج الاعلاف الخطراء الخاصة للحيوانات وليس القمح الحكومة قامت بتقليص رخص الاعلاف الخضراء ولاكن القمح لا زال يزرع و الحكومة تشجع على زراعة القمح وتصدر الرخص بشكل سريع للمزارعين عكس رخص الاعلاف الخضراء التي تستهلك كميات اكبر من المياه عكس القمح تماماً وقامة الحكومة باستيراد معضم احتياجها من الاعلاف من الخارج وبخصوص المزارع المتوقفة كانت تلك لشركات الالبان تنتج الاعلاف وتم اصدار قرار إيقاف انتاج الاعلاف الخضراء لتلك الشركات والاعتماد على الاستيراد والان شركة الالبان مثل شركة المراعي تمتلك مزارع للاعلاف في افريقيا و امريكا الجنوبية لدعم احتياجها ورخص الاعلاف الخضراء تصدر للافراد بعد زراعة القمح لمدة عامين متتاليين هذي هي القصة باختصار اتمنى ان الصورة اتضحت لكم ❤
هو يعرف بس مايبي يسأل أصحاب المزارع مثلك ولا كيف بيكذب إذا أنت قلت الحق؟ أمثاله مايستاهلون شكر ولا سلام، مسوي فيها ينقالك يستكشف الأرض الغامضة هذي والموضوع أبسط من كذا، الإعلام الغربي وسخ اسحب عليه
Farmer here. Its amazing how they're turning literal sand in fertile farmland. Are they bringing in tons of organic matter or are they just irrigating insane amounts of water? Sand doesnt hold water, so you'd have to have a literal steady adding of water, not to mention the insane evaporation from the very hot, very dry air.
Sometimes called “precision agriculture,” this approach pumps water up from far underground and delivers it in rotation around a center point, creating a circular agricultural field. Vegetables, fruit, and grains grow abundantly within the circles.
Is there something specific you all leaned at Vox that makes y'all so good at reporting, story-telling and motion graphics? Johnny, Cleo, Sam and yourself were previously at Vox, and I love how in-depth and well-researched your videos are, and how well you design your motion graphics. Keep up the good work though!
It seems a lot more likely that those qualities and style is why they were picked to work for vox, then it was encouraged and developed throughout their time there.
@@samuelkimuhu1916right? I suspect they use a lot of the same resources, programs, and people to expedite and flesh out the videos as well. A network that was built over time, and not something you would give up just because you change jobs. Surely some of the techniques they did indeed learn thru vox, but I would imagine it easier to seek out people that already align with your vision than to start fresh. Maybe not necessarily easier, but faster I reckon is what I mean. Rather than stopping your projects or slowing them considerably to build a team to fit your vision, take a little time up front to gather some people that already show the same inclinations, then share with them the secret sauce to really make it pop.
From the video and comments, my take away is Saudi Arabia has been smart and strategic about the issues they face with fresh water and agriculture. When they learned the aquifers were depleting too fast, they immediately found new ways to get fresh water from the sea. And solved the lack of fertile farming land by buying and leasing land in countries with an abundance. Which helps the global economy.
You filming your research process and how you exactly you research brings a side of transparency but also education in how I can do research on topics that I’m interested in. Great work!!
While living in Saudi arabia, saw those in the national songs on saudi TV during my childhood during 90s. Later I saw them in real life near qaseem - riyadh area from the aeroplane. These are fascinating
You dont need the internet for storage. We still had digital cameras and disk drives in 1984. Some early sattelites even took images using photographic film and then let it drop to earth for it to later be processed. We even have images of earth from space from the 40s en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Timeline_of_first_images_of_Earth_from_space.
I think Saudi Arabia wasn’t late in moving away from using groundwater. They tackled the issue early on, considering the discoveries of groundwater in the Empty Quarter. Even the west part of the country has plenty, but farming’s tough there ’cause it’s all mountainous. They have been utilize the lands in the southern regions near the borders to grow mangoes, bananas, coffee, and other fruits because its rainy climate year-round. Also, there are companies have been established recently to increase the production process and It’s all part of Vision 2030 to become more self-sufficient and boost the economy.
I remember looking around on Google Earth a while ago and finding some of these farms in Saudi Arabia. I was so confused. I am so glad to finally see someone demystify these farms.
You didn't mention that Saudi Arabia owns land in Arizona, in the US (not a developing country!) and irrigates with water from the Colorado river... which is way over allocated. Other countries, like China, also own tracts of land in the US for water/food as well. And of course none of this will last much longer... the ecological footprint of a country like Saudi Arabia is huge, and they could never support themselves just using their own land. It's also worth mentioning the place we call Saudi Arabia used to have rivers, lakes, trees, etc. fed by the fossil water. Now that the fossil water is gone, that will never come back. Much of that water was millions of years old. Humans are at least partly to blame for the desertification of Saudi Arabia even before they were able to use the fossil water by pumping it. As the saying goes: forests precede us, deserts dog our heels.
Every few thousand years, parts of Arabia turns green and wet for centuries due to wobble of earth axis and the monsoon goes further north from the southern Arabian peninsula. Rivers and lakes are formed overtime and NASA satellite has shown that lakes were long enough that it may have once connected to the Euphrates.
native American lands you mean that you stole from them. you could never support yourselves using your own lands, thats why you stole someone else's, at least we bought those lands in the US fair and square, you stole them by force from someone else.
... It is just a desert ... did you even watch the video? Without all that water (of which they've already used 80% of it and it's non renewable) it will just go back to being a desert.
From the title I thought it was going to be a very straightforward answer, since you see similar areas like this in the US. However, the deep dive into their agricultural strategy was very interesting!
It's funny how you’ve never heard of certain things, and then suddenly, you start to see or hear about them from different sources. I was exploring maps of Egypt and noticed these circular farms. I wondered what they were, and within a week, I saw this video.
Great efforts, amazing reporting skills and even better editing. Enjoyable. However, points I would like to highlight: - As an unbiased channel, you must've hosted/interviewed a local Saudi farmer expert or researchers, the country is full of them and academics in agriculture and sustainability. - A country's strategy to secure its own demand doesn't have to be a violation to other less wealthy country. It is an investement, in a water rich country which grants finanical benfits
As a Saudi, let me share the latest update! Farming is back with 50% more efficiency, thanks to new policies from the Ministry of Environment, Water, and Agriculture. With advanced technologies like drip irrigation, we’re growing crops sustainably and supporting Vision 2030
"The Hour will not be established until wealth is so abundant and overflowing that a man will go out with his wealth to give alms but not find anyone who accepts it from him, and until rivers and meadows return to the land of Arabia."
I almost missed this video because of the channel name change. I'm not sure why it happened but you may want to make a post about it in your community section.
I have lived in Saudi for 20 years. They use Underground water from aquifers only for drinking. These are usually available as bottled/canned drinking water. For everything else, i.e. home use etc, desalinated water is used. For farming, they either use desalination or even recycled(clean) water from sewage plants. Most of the greenery along the roadside is watered using purified sewage water.
I live in AZ. You can see ton of these circles all over AZ and Nevada. Fun part, a lot of those circles are leased by Saudi Arabia and they do farming here in US soil
@@Baderasiri1 so arizona and Nevada are desert states that are dependent on the Colorado river that's currently drying out. farmers are planting alfalfa a water intensive crop (in a drought zone) that exists only to feed cattle in Saudi so foreign citizens can eat beef. selling out water in americas most drought ridden states will cause them to become ecologically dead forever. if the water runs out, California and Colorado will have worse forest fires and cities like phoenix and vegas will have to be evacuated permanently. the deal is a terrible one, especially given how much of the world can produce both beef and hay
@@Aloddff So you’re mad at Saudis for doing exactly what your own government and corporations allowed them to do? They didn’t steal the land or water-they bought it because your state sold it to the highest bidder without a second thought about the consequences. Blaming outsiders is such a lazy way to dodge accountability for the fact that your own leaders and businesses are the ones selling out your future for a quick buck. Maybe stop pointing fingers at foreigners and start questioning why your state prioritizes profits over its own people. The water crisis isn’t a Saudi problem-it’s your system’s greed and failure to protect its citizens. The state’s been dealing with bad water management for decades, and there are way bigger factors at play, like overpopulation and outdated policies.
Did you notice that we've moved from grain crops to less water consuming olive trees. If you've paid more attention to those circles you'll find that many of them turned into olive orchards and today we have the largest number of fruiting olive trees in the world cultivating a higher quality olive oil compared to oil from Jordan, Tunisia and Spain.
Yeah nothing new in this video just for clicks. I would like to see a video on Monsanto and blackrock and how they bought up all of europe farm land. but johnny harris is on their payroll so GL with that
It is wonderful that all countries, their governments and people, are preserving our planet and our environment, as they belong to everyone. Many initiatives have been put forward in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia to preserve groundwater and plant trees. Search for the Saudi Green Initiative and the Middle East Green Initiative in 2021. Love from Saudi Arabia ❤️🇸🇦👋🏼.
Saudi Arabia also had alfalfa farms in Arizona for the longest time. One of the four leases was terminated in October 2023 and the remaining three leases were not renewed when they expired in February 2024. All of them ended for environmental/political reasons.
Yes correct, and Arizona lost a huge business opportunity for political nonsense! The Saudi company has shifted to Brazil for new leases... Good for Brazilians :)
@Baderasiri1 Arizona is also dealing with a water crisis. Meanwhile these Saudi farms are pumping an unlimited amount of our own ground water just how they did to theirs.
the production quality of videos by all of you guys (Johnny, Search Party, and Tunnel Vision) is insane.. even some movies with multi million dollar budgets dont achieve this kind of quality.. and the content is really valuable.. the downfall of traditional media and there content quality leaves me hopeless, but channels like yours generate faith.. you guys will inspire the upcoming journalists, and the world really needs good journalism.. KUDOS!
you guys should form an association, pitch such quality journalism to some investors to raise money and fund upcoming journalists to produce such valuable content.. we need more journalists like you guys..
We've been creating massive farms in our deserts for 100 years. Columbia River Project irrigates nearly 1 million acres. Round shapes are from using Center Pivot sprinkler systems which we have used for over 50 years. Canals, Pumping Stations, Siphons, and more all in Central Washington State... cheers
So you are going to ignore all the initiatives and innovations in seawater desalination and all the millions of low water consumption trees being planted, all the innovation in irrigation systems to plant olive in the north that made Saudi Arabia one of the biggest exporter of olive oil. You are going to ignore the South of Saudi Arabia that is receiving rain daily. You are going to ignore all the dams built and you are going to talk about the wheat issue decades ago. Research your topics instead of making a fool of yourself.
He’s clearly talking about more water intensive crops like wheat that require irrigation to grow. He’s explaining why there are circles to begin with. Olives which are adapted to arid climates are not the main subject here man. And he isn’t saying anything necessarily bad about Saudi Arabia, he’s just explaining why these circles have come and gone with reference to policy changes. What exactly are you mad about lol. What exactly is he supposed to research about? The entirety of Saudi Arabia’s agricultural growth strategy to explain simple crop circles? Get a life.
Because most humans on the planet don't have a reference to a US state size. Yet this is still something that gets requested by you guys. There are other countries in the world...
I love this. I love hearing the story of obtaining the story. It feels like a new kind of journalism. Johnnie Harris on the ground giving the micro perspective and Cristophe giving the macro view. Two perspectives of the same story.
The fact that no Saudi Experts are hosted on this Video tells you a lot, funny that the Sponsor section is for a platform that gives you unbiased news, because this video is sure as hell biased into villainizing Saudi use of its resources.
The one question not answered is why did Saudi go into crops with pumped water they already knew was a finite resource? Sounds to me like a wasted investment (but maybe drilling and pumping is super cheap to do, I don't know and it sure would have been nice for this video to answer the question).
I think a big part of it was ignorance/inexperience. It says in the video, they started making changes after the global summit in the 90s. Remember Saudi is a relatively new country and it's good to learn from mistakes.
I look forward to seeing you explore something that will truly give you goosebumps: the artificial rivers in Saudi Arabia, powered by seawater desalination plants.
Interesting video, not really a big deal …but not a lot of people know about center pivot. I worked for the center pivot company responsible for this Saudi agricultural revolution…happy to talk!
المجنب من الاوادم ما يخلى هههههههههههه مابقى الا يعلمنا وش نسوي ب ارضنا ! انصح صاحب القناة بعمل فيديو عن مختبرات الاسلحة البيولوجية التي تراعها دولته في الدول الفقيرة
Great video as a Saudi this green circles always interested me, if you want another topic for a future video regarding Saudi maybe you can check out our water desalination plants where we managed to become the largest producer of desalinated water in the world, and FYI this topic is even more tricky and complex due to the sheer level of pumping required to transport the desalinated water to cities all around the kingdoms vast land, especially for the higher elevated cities where sea leaves reaches 3,000 m.
![How This Woman Transformed Desert Into Lush Forest! [PART TWO]](/img/n.gif)
Go to ground.news/tunnelvision to stay fully informed on every side of every story. Save 50% on unlimited access with their Vantage Plan through my link. It's their biggest sale of the year!
Christophe, you have an unhealthy obsession with repeating satellite shapes lol
One small tangent/addition is that the US exports alfalfa to Saudia Arabia as well. Alfalfa is an incredibly water-intensive crop that was actually banned in Abu Dhabi because of such and SA had been reducing domestic production. One of the US states that exports that alfalfa? Arizona.
Europeans Nuking Heroshima (and enslaving the Japanese Heritage & Legacy / Destroying their Off-Spring using After Surrender Politics) not conisdered land grabbing ⁉️ Of course I mean after europeans envasion to America and make Human Zoos for Cherokee families and make actual Americans as poor people using black enslaved manpower from Africa. ⁉️
What kind of concerns and lecture is this from? He is just afraid from future "concerns" that Arabs are willing in fact give access and help people we didn't bomb Heroshima and enslave Black People to invade Americans like your ancestors to be afraid from our future. Concerns arise when you have money cuz even money in your hands is a major concern previously cuz you made a weapon then went to Africa and enslaved manpower by force then went to america and grabbed everything then made a rocket and bombed another race too. Calculate your European odds not our African/Arab odds. 😂
NOPE
Thank you .
Circular farms; They often sell locally what they grow from various feeds to sheep, camels, goats and other animals. Another problem of deep artesian wells is that in some places the cultivated land turns into a salt land; and its solution is to participate in a convergent group of farms from one well and spread pipes to water neighboring farms, not as in the previous mistake, which is that each farm has a well .
المزارع الدائرية؛ غالباً يبيعون محلياً ما يزرعون من أعلاف متنوعة للخراف والإبل والماعز و لحيوانات أخرى . هناك مشكلة أخرى من الآبار الارتوازية العميقة و هي أنها في بعض الأماكن تتحول الأرض المزروعة إلى أرض ملحية غير صالحة للزراعة؛ و حلها أن تشترك مجموعة مزارع متقاربة من بئر واحد و تمتد مواسير لسقيا المزارع المجاورة وليس كما في الخطأ السابق وهو أن يكون لكل مزرعة بئر .
As a Saudi, I’d like to add some key facts to this discussion. Yes, Saudi Arabia has tapped underground water for decades, but we’re also leading the world in desalination. With 33 desalination plants it’s 8 on the Arabian Gulf and 25 on the Red Sea. We produce over 5.6 million cubic meters of freshwater daily ~1.48 billion gallons/day. This water is delivered nationwide through an 8,000 km pipeline network ~4,970 miles and that is roughly the distance from LA, to NY or same as traveling from Lisbon, to Moscow, and then returning to Lisbon, the network includes massive projects like the Jubail-Riyadh pipeline (824 km long ~512 miles, serving Riyadh daily fresh water). We are drinking clean and fresh sea water in every home while preserving natural resources.
Most of the planet lives in poverty while clowns spend billions watering the desert. Gluttony this extreme leaves one feeling a little 🤮
This is extremely promising, of course, but would be even more fantastic if it can be done using clean, renewable energy.
@ Actually, we already are! Saudi Arabia has the world’s largest solar-powered desalination plant, Al Khafji, launched in 2018, and projects like Jubail 3A are cutting carbon emissions by 60,000 tons a year with solar energy. Clean energy is already a key part of our water strategy-and the NEOM desalination project will take it even further!
@@Beastofbergen, One of the 2030 SA Vision project is AlKhafji Desalination Plant launched in 2018 will be fully working on solar (renewable energy)
Where is the salt being disposed?
ياعيال ذا يسوقها هو وخويه سألوا ودوروا بكل مكان وما جربوا يسألون مزارع او مسؤول سعودي والثاني يلعب بالدرون حقه ومسوين فيها محققين
😂😂😂 صادق مفروض سأل احد مسؤول عندنا بيلقى كل الاجابات عندهم
@ تفليم ودراما
هذا تحقيق ف يحتاج يسئل ناس ماعندها اي انحياز السعودي راح يحاول يلمع اوضاع بلده عشان مايشعر بلنقص ولكن البريطاني ماراح ينحاز لانو ميلك اي فايده
@@Inero_01 تلميع ايش وانحياز ايش يا ابني شوف عنوان المقطع هم يبغون يعرفون ايش الدوائر اسألوا اللي سواها طيب
وحتى لو تحقيق ومايبغون انحياز طبيعي انهم يسمعون من جميع الاطراف من باب الحياد
وغير كذا مين هم عشان يحققون يمكن الرجل الابيض له مكانة عالية ببلدك بس هنا السعودية الابيض الاوروبي إما يكونون عمالة مثل ما وصفتهم ايميلات هيلاري، او مستشرق يتم البصق عليه من السعوديين من نجاسته رغم محاولات احتكاكه وتقربه للسعوديين مثل ما وصف الكاتب المصري محمد جلال كشك جون فيلبي
وبالمناسبة تكتب اسأل مو اسئل
@@Inero_01 تعلم العربية أول بعدين تكلم
Im from saudi arabia and this is the first time I realize some people dont know about this, Ive always considered it a normal thing
same
I didn't know about this circle crop/water issue. That ground water could have helped Saudi down the road.
The 2nd part about investing agriculture elsewhere that has easier access to resources is more feasible.
That'd be similar to buying wheat from US where it's mass producing it economically.
I feel like these questions could have easily been answered within a 10 minute conversation with a Saudi farming expert. Not everything deserves "deep dive investigations" as if circular farms are a part of major alien lizard conspiracy...
True, Any Saudi farmer will tell you even more valuable information
Had the same though while watching, its a bunch of farms and they try to make it seem like a secret military base.
Ask a kid and he will tell u they are just farms water comes from underground yes water is running out so we gon international
Let us see your videos about any subject before we criticize the good folks who brought this great video to us. Please mature more often. I beg your parents to do better next kid.
Such an annoying presentation if I was a Saudi I’d tell them to stfu
As a saudi farm owner i couldnt stop laughing you made it way bigger of a deal than what it is
At the beginning of the video I thought it's going to be about saudi secret military bases or something because this video is trying so hard to present it like some high level investigative work. I can't stop laughing halfway when I found out it's just about saudi agriculture.
😂😂😂
you dont think wasting billions of cubic meter of water is a big deal? This world is doomed for real.
@@sadHorsey13 this method is less water consuming.and there is also food security prospective ,so i see no harm
@@sadHorsey13how this is "wasting"
You could’ve gotten in touch with Saudi experts on the topic, it’s ok we don’t bite
Literally
that wouldnt have made for as good of a clickbait video
For real he got a British and an Indian 💀💀
fr dude xd
منجد😂😂😂 يحسبنا ايش 😂
If I had a nickel for every time I watched a video where Cristophe investigates circles in a desert, I'd have two nickels…which isn't a lot, but it's weird that it happened twice.
Thanks for sharing your 2 cents 🪙 🪙
Wait when?? I’m stipid
How much would the pumping of deep underground water impact the rise in sea levels, since water is being added that wouldn't have usually been in the system.
That would be a whole 10pennies if you think about it
him and johnny talk at the same cadence.
Just a thought.When an Asian country delegates agriculture to another country it’s called …. land grab but when a western country does it …. What is it called? Helping poor countries
That is racist, we white people are good guys.
On point
That's what it's called when you own the media
It is what it is🤷♂️
It’s dependent on how these deals are constructed, some of these deals clearly benefit mostly one party (e.g. UAE) whereas the other receives pittance in return (e.g. Sudan). Results in increased influence by an outside party that would do whatever to guarantee its investment (e.g. UAE’s support of the RSF’s banditry in Sudan to secure a larger cut of resources than otherwise possible). This kind of policy is straight out of the American playbook but that doesn’t mean other countries aren’t capable of replicating it as well.
I'm genuinely amazed at your talent for avoiding the direct answer while spending so much time exploring everything around it. Exploring every tiny detail about a topic without addressing the core question. Setting up interviews and acting as if you didn’t find the answer in the first two minutes of searching 'Why is Saudi Arabia covered in circles' is quite the performance!
Thats their job dude. They’re selling you something simple for a price; your time.
Storytelling has to be like this, don’t nitpick :)
Reading the comments saved me a lot of time. I thought it was some innovative technique. Groundwater irrigation has been used for decades in dry areas.
Saudi Arabia is much more advanced in water management than what your video suggests. The country has built some of the world's largest and most efficient seawater desalination plants, producing drinking water by removing salt and other impurities from seawater. These plants are more energy-efficient and advanced compared to conventional desalination plants in Europe, utilizing innovative technologies to reduce energy consumption and carbon emissions.
Additionally, Saudi Arabia has constructed a vast pipeline network that ensures the distribution of clean and drinkable water across the entire country. This system is so efficient that Saudi Arabia is among the few nations where you can open the tap and safely drink water without the need for bottled water, just like in countries with abundant natural rivers.
There is even a water pipeline system so extensive and well-engineered that it could theoretically supply water internationally, including reaching places like America. These remarkable achievements make Saudi Arabia a global leader in water management, despite being located in one of the driest regions in the world.
Your video overlooks these critical advancements, which are essential to understanding Saudi Arabia's comprehensive approach to managing water resources.
allat and their sewage system sucks 😬
Thanks
where do they dump the salt/super concentrated saline?
He's focused on generating views not educating properly
@@RPGnerd1991 no I don’t think it is about the views, it is just the well known west media of lies
Saudi Arabia is one amazing country tbh , i was so impressed when i visited it
ارحب بسكان ابها
@@7s2q
شدراك انه من ابها ؟ عشانه كاتب ABH؟
اذا صدق ف ماله داعي الكذب من صاحب التعليق
I LOVE that you show us all of the tools you use to make these videos and do this reporting. A lot of these post-Vox journalism videos can sort of blur together, and that little detail makes this channel stand out so clearly to me. I’m thrilled that it’s part of your mission here!
I was born and raised Saudi, did a lot of flying. Always was fascinated by these, glad I wasn't the only one.
Same, i used to think it were jinn colonies😂😂😂
@@har00nsaeed93😂😂
Where did you fly?
@@NaifAlqahtaniRiyadh -> Medina
Makkah -> Riyadh
Riyadh -> Al- Qurrayat
These were my consistent routes
اولاً حياك الله انت و زميلك في بلد مبارك يحكمه ملك عادل ، تمنيت لو جربتو التواصل مع احد المزارعين ملاك الحقول الدائريه و راح يوفيكم بكل ما تحتاجونه و يكرمكم ؛ لأنه تصويركم للحقول بدون التحدث لملاكها اشبه بتمهيد فكره للمشاهد انها كلها تابعه للحكومه ذا الشي يخليك بسهوله تشبه المملكة بأنها تستولي على الاراضي مثل ما تدعي ، ثانياً بخصوص الاستيلاء على الاراضي بغيت اسأل ايش تسمون التواجد الامريكي في افريقيا للتنقيب على الذهب و الالماس و النفط ؟ مساعدة للدول الفقيره؟
بالضبط
الفقرة الثانية ههههههه ما أظن يقدر يرد عليها 😂😂😂😂😂
أحسنت
انا خابر ان الملك سلمان منو ذا عادل
@@mrbombastic8097 عمك
فخوره ببلدي يصنع المستحيل من اشد الظروف الصعبه والصحراء الواسعه الجافه🇸🇦🤍
لا ياشيخ ،
الكلام الي قلته في نوع من الصحه
اولا كان فيه دعم على القمح فلذالك كانت الزراعة كثيرة
ثانيا المياه الجوفيه مب محدودة لان اكتشفو انه هناك انهار تجري تحت الما فلا يضير انك تسحب الماء من تحت الارض بكميات كبيرة
واخيرا هذولي اسمهن محوريات وهو رشاش ما يدور على مركز الدائرة وهو شي اساسي للزراعة بالسعودية
ونقطه اخيره :
ترت كان يمديك تسال اهل المزارع وبيرحبون فيك ويعطوك الجواب الكافي الشافي بدال هالتعب والمطرسة الفاضيه وشكرا❤❤
تفهم
كلام لاغبار عليه، تسلم.
لكن بعض الاخطاء الاملائية بتغير المعنى تمامًا للي بيستخدم مترجم قوقل، مثل:
"مايضير" ، اعتقد قصدك "مايصير" ، ولو حطيتها بالمترجم بيقول لك "it would not hurt” وبالتالي بتوصل للشخص عكس مقصدك، وايضًا "رشاش ما يدور على مركز الدائرة"، اعتقد قصدك "رشاش ماء.." ، المترجم بيقول "it does not revolve…” عكس المعنى مره اخرى
مين الي اكتشف انهار تحت المياة الجوفيه وكيف؟
@@user-fo1cu6cn2d مدري بس على الاغلب انه يمكن زلزال خفيف سبب تكسر و طلعت المويه او يمكن التجويه و التعريه هي الي كسرت الاحجار فسببت خروج المويع
You just nailed it. 😂
What if the country was Britain or France, would you mention the issue of land grabbing or would you say it is support for developing countries?
Yes. We 1000 percent would.
He DID. multiple times he’s called out western countries for their crimes. Not everyone feels a since of duty in upholding their country’s propaganda I promise.
No you wouldn't lmao, that's why neo nazis and white supremacists exist in your country.@@michaelwalsh8053
no it's called neo-colonization and there are many critical studies about it. this report is quite fair on the situation.
It would’ve been better if you had met a Saudi expert to get accurate and complete answers, but I’ll explain it to you instead. Water isn’t really a big issue for Saudi Arabia, as it’s the largest producer of desalinated seawater in the world. Also, rain isn’t as rare as some people think. The southern part of Saudi Arabia has green areas and a rainy climate, with plenty of farms growing all sorts of fruits and vegetables, some of which are exported abroad. And it’s not just the south-other areas also have farming. For example, in Al-Jouf up north, there’s the world’s largest olive farm, and in Al-Qassim and Al-Madinah, there are thousands of date farms, making Saudi Arabia the second-largest producer of dates in the world. And there are many other examples all over the Kingdom. So, there’s no real concern about water or farming.
The reason Saudi Arabia has changed its strategies is to cut down on unnecessary costs, but it’s still pushing forward with its agricultural plans. We’ve launched several projects and initiatives as part of Vision 2030, the most important being the 'Saudi Green Initiative,' which aims to plant 10 billion trees, increase protected areas, reduce carbon emissions, and invest in renewable energy. We also launched the 'Middle East Green Initiative,' which aims to achieve these goals on a larger scale across the entire Middle East. And we’ve seen noticeable progress and major achievements, not only in the agricultural sector but also in various industrial, tourism, financial, and other sectors included in Vision 2030 Thank God 🇸🇦
You are fooling yourself into a self-induced euphoria of greenwashing bliss. Fossil water is a known geological phenomenal resource that cannot be replaced, and I was shocked to learn several years ago that Saudis were exporting wheat more than my homeland in Lagos, Nigeria with 7 months of rainy season annually. It was just an environmental madness. All that water for perishable consumable wheat and no trees left standing to rejuvenate the terrain and change the landscape.
This was really cool!
I’m a farmer in the southern California desert, and we too have to be very diligent in our water usage. There’s a balance that needs to be had between food production and conservation of water.
At the end of the video the gentleman used the term “exploit” to refer to the farmer’s use of water. I mean maybe they could of been better stewards of their water, but I really don’t think they were exploiting it. They’re using it to produce food, that’s one of the best uses for water.
It's not the best use of water when you're growing food in one of the dries regions of the world purely so that you can control the global oil market without fear of repercussions since you aren't reliant on trade to import crops. Saudi Arabia doesn't NEED to grow their own food, they WANT to grow their own food.
@kylewolfe_ anything else they shouldn’t do? Seems rather silly that, because they have oil, they shouldn’t also be allowed to grow their own food.
@@danieldevries1722 They can do whatever they want. But it's fair to criticize it as exploitation of a finite and rapidly diminishing resource. Now they're having to expend a massive amount of energy to get their drinking water through desalination because their groundwater aquifers have become so heavily depleted. That's fine right now because Saudi Arabia is an oil rich country, but there's no guarantee that'll last into the future. Then how will people get their drinking water when they aren't so wealthy? I just don't think it's a responsible use of resources. It hasn't even achieved the goal of making them more self sufficient, because on net they're importing more products to facilitate farming (namely fertilizer and farming equipment, which they do not produce domestically).
@@danieldevries1722 They can do whatever they want. But it's fair to criticize it as exploitation of a finite and rapidly diminishing resource. Now they're having to use a massive amount of energy to get their drinking water through desalination because their groundwater aquifers have become so heavily depleted. That's fine right now because Saudi Arabia is an oil rich country, but there's no guarantee that'll last into the future. How will people get their drinking water when the country isn't wealthy enough to run those de-salination plants? I just don't think it's a responsible use of resources. It also doesn't accomplish their goal of making the country self sufficient and immune to trade sanctions. It's actually made them more dependent on foreign imports because they don't domestically produce the fertilizer and farming equipment they rely on. So if Mohammed Bin Salman wants to keep slaying journalists and dissidents, suppressing basic human rights, funding terror organizations, and using debt bonded migrant laborers on government funded megaprojects with some of the world's worst safety records, they're still going to struggle to feed themselves when sanctions are imposed.
@@kylewolfe_ what's so wrong about a country securing their own food resources?
So growing their own food is a power grab, and resourcing to other countries is land grab\exploitation? Do you just expect them to be completely dependant on other countries to survive?
The video was perfect until you spoke about violence at the end... what violence exactly? Yall can't speak about Saudi Arabia in any subject without mentioning "Saudi women" and "Saudi law"
When you’re progressing and successfully people will do anything to pull you down. Nothing new
Because there's reason??
@@MaceWinduDuHuen which is?
I live here and no complaints about the law
The west want to see naked women! Degrading society!
Search about Saudi Arabia desalination projects. It'll blow your mind
@15:28 the conclusion of "land grab" is biased it is a purchased or rented land not stolen land like what Israel did and still doing ! and the said conclusion is shallow and has no scientific or economic ground! This should have been properly researched through communications with landowners/ agriculture ministries of those countries to understand the framework compinged with those deals before publishing. As a journalist you can do better
I had the same impression, they didn't even think about the opportunities these deal make, from jobs to experiences to the citizens of those countries, after the deal is done they can start making their own farms and grow better. Exactly like how oil was discovered in saudi Arabia and was extracted by an American country, but after a while, the government bought the company and started benefiting off of it.
How much of that money actually goes to the locals? How economically beneficial is it? All 3rd world countries have issues of administration where peopel sitting at the top are usually corrupt and keep all the foreign investments for themselves. Those corrupts sell/lease the land of the country as it was their private property. Locals would never allow such thing.
@ The documentary offers baseless accusation on the two sides corruption (the hosting country and the investing country), whenever nations aside the western meets to collaborate then it is definitely corrupted ! however looting the African nation's resources by EU for over a 100 years was development was it :)
As a Saudi citizen, whenever i had to use google Maps or google Earth apps, I've always been fascinated by these circles and always wondered what's the full story about them, so i truly appreciate that you guys made this amazing documentary video about it, it answer many of the questions I had. Thank you, and you're most welcome in our country ❤
ليتك ساكت
كفاية انبطاح
literally what I was about to comment
المقطع فيه معازف وهي حرام انتبه
@@user37642شدخل انبطاح ! عشان شكرهم على أنهم وضحوا للعالم شيء زي كذا
انتقوا الفاظكم
Thank you so much for this amazing video! As a proud Saudi, I truly share your sense of awe when it comes to these massive agricultural circles. I remember discovering them on Google Maps as a kid, and the first time I saw them from above during a flight, I was completely mesmerized. Even now, every time I fly over them, I feel the same excitement and admiration-it’s a stunning sight that never gets old.
Regarding your point about "shifting burdens to other countries," I think the comparison isn't entirely accurate. It's like saying a country poor in oil should become a major oil exporter, or that a non-agricultural country should be expected to export food. Saudi investments in underutilized agricultural lands abroad are not about exploitation-they’re part of an economic collaboration that benefits both sides. These investments create local jobs, improve agricultural infrastructure, and inject billions of dollars into the host countries’ economies.
With global food demand increasing, optimizing the use of underutilized farmlands is not just a necessity but also part of the solution to feeding a growing population.
Thanks again for bringing attention to this topic-your curiosity and storytelling are truly refreshing, and I appreciate you shedding light on something so unique and fascinating!
Agree
Did you know that the semi-tropical forests in Saudi Arabia constitute 15% of its area, which is a percentage larger than the area of some European countries, and is located in southern Saudi Arabia? Also, your talk about the drying up of groundwater is incorrect, as they discovered the existence of underground rivers that renew these lakes.
These aren't "UA-cam videos" anymore these are legitimate films. Impressive editing
The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is considered one of the largest donors worldwide, often ranking among the top in providing development and humanitarian aid, especially when measured as a percentage of its GDP.
This technology was important from an Arizona agriculture engineer, they use spraying systems that are connected to underground water. It's not a secret, Americans are just oblivious to what happens outside their realm.
Born and raised in Saudi, and i've always been curious about these massive circular farms in the middle of the desert. But I always thought that the ground water saudi tapped into should be limited due to years of misuse. Glad you made a video as I can now know more about it.
Is using water to grow plants misuse? Are you kidding?
Las plantas necesitan agua....
Love how at 15:02 it loosk like the farms just absorbed all the water...
Love might be the wrong emotion. Definitely a powerful visual of exactly the path this follows.
now im interested in that actually. Is that bc of climate change? is that normal for a huge lake to dissapear that fast
Solo se llevaron el agua
I found these in egypt aswell when I was traveling down to Aswan. I was completely obsessed with them for a few days too. Nice to see you guys had the same :)
As a Saudi Arabian, I would like to thank you for answering the question I've been asking myself ever since I saw them.
For scale, that one section of farms is the size of Yellowstone National Park.
شكراً لك على الفيديو الجميل لاكن هناك بعض المفهيم الخاطئه حول موضوع الزراعة انا اعيش في هذي المنطقة وانا مزارع
صحيح ان المياه الجوفية قليلة في المنطقة لاكن ليس بالشكل الكبير الذي تتصورونه السبب وراء ذالك هو انتاج الاعلاف الخطراء الخاصة للحيوانات وليس القمح الحكومة قامت بتقليص رخص الاعلاف الخضراء ولاكن القمح لا زال يزرع و الحكومة تشجع على زراعة القمح وتصدر الرخص بشكل سريع للمزارعين عكس رخص الاعلاف الخضراء التي تستهلك كميات اكبر من المياه عكس القمح تماماً وقامة الحكومة باستيراد معضم احتياجها من الاعلاف من الخارج
وبخصوص المزارع المتوقفة كانت تلك لشركات الالبان تنتج الاعلاف وتم اصدار قرار إيقاف انتاج الاعلاف الخضراء لتلك الشركات والاعتماد على الاستيراد
والان شركة الالبان مثل شركة المراعي تمتلك مزارع للاعلاف في افريقيا و امريكا الجنوبية
لدعم احتياجها
ورخص الاعلاف الخضراء تصدر للافراد بعد زراعة القمح لمدة عامين متتاليين
هذي هي القصة باختصار اتمنى ان الصورة اتضحت لكم ❤
Gracias
هو يعرف بس مايبي يسأل أصحاب المزارع مثلك ولا كيف بيكذب إذا أنت قلت الحق؟ أمثاله مايستاهلون شكر ولا سلام، مسوي فيها ينقالك يستكشف الأرض الغامضة هذي والموضوع أبسط من كذا، الإعلام الغربي وسخ اسحب عليه
@ مهما كان ماحبيت اكون هجومي بالرد احول احسن الظن وأوضح الصورة له بشكل اعمق لعل من يبحث عن اجابه صحيح ووقعية يحصلها بالردود الموجودة بالمقطع حقه 🤝
*CONGRATS, YOU SOLVED THE PUZZLE!*
Now we know where the missing parts of crop circles go.
عطاها وضعية المحنك وعطبها بالأخير
Peak level content by you and Johnny ! Had me hooked the entire time , it almost feels illegal to be able to watch this for free!
Keep it low, i just found a way to milk arabs money.! It is an Edge !
Johnny Harris just brought me here. HELLO!!! 👋🏽
Happy to have found you and look forward to learning from and sharing your videos!!! ❤😊
Farmer here. Its amazing how they're turning literal sand in fertile farmland. Are they bringing in tons of organic matter or are they just irrigating insane amounts of water? Sand doesnt hold water, so you'd have to have a literal steady adding of water, not to mention the insane evaporation from the very hot, very dry air.
Sometimes called “precision agriculture,” this approach pumps water up from far underground and delivers it in rotation around a center point, creating a circular agricultural field. Vegetables, fruit, and grains grow abundantly within the circles.
Is there something specific you all leaned at Vox that makes y'all so good at reporting, story-telling and motion graphics? Johnny, Cleo, Sam and yourself were previously at Vox, and I love how in-depth and well-researched your videos are, and how well you design your motion graphics. Keep up the good work though!
It seems a lot more likely that those qualities and style is why they were picked to work for vox, then it was encouraged and developed throughout their time there.
@philbert006 Oh, yeah, makes sense. So more of a correlation than a causation.
@@samuelkimuhu1916right? I suspect they use a lot of the same resources, programs, and people to expedite and flesh out the videos as well. A network that was built over time, and not something you would give up just because you change jobs. Surely some of the techniques they did indeed learn thru vox, but I would imagine it easier to seek out people that already align with your vision than to start fresh. Maybe not necessarily easier, but faster I reckon is what I mean. Rather than stopping your projects or slowing them considerably to build a team to fit your vision, take a little time up front to gather some people that already show the same inclinations, then share with them the secret sauce to really make it pop.
@@samuelkimuhu1916 Vox has become Trash though recently
Well, thry have a whole media like team
On a flight to India I crossed Saudi Arabia by day and I saw those circles and thought wondered. I’m really happy you uploaded this
From the video and comments, my take away is Saudi Arabia has been smart and strategic about the issues they face with fresh water and agriculture. When they learned the aquifers were depleting too fast, they immediately found new ways to get fresh water from the sea. And solved the lack of fertile farming land by buying and leasing land in countries with an abundance. Which helps the global economy.
You filming your research process and how you exactly you research brings a side of transparency but also education in how I can do research on topics that I’m interested in. Great work!!
While living in Saudi arabia, saw those in the national songs on saudi TV during my childhood during 90s. Later I saw them in real life near qaseem - riyadh area from the aeroplane. These are fascinating
What u mean google can provide images from 1984?????__ we didnt even have internet they were saving satelite images>> this alone deserves a video
If you head to Google Earth Engine, you can see these historical maps and a time lapse for yourself! Absolutely worth a try if you´re interested.
Satellite images, I assure you governments have images from the 60s, as for Google, they bought it from Nasa to build Google Earth app.
He means google earth engine to access satellite data and specifically landsat satellite data as its available back up to 70s
You dont need the internet for storage. We still had digital cameras and disk drives in 1984. Some early sattelites even took images using photographic film and then let it drop to earth for it to later be processed. We even have images of earth from space from the 40s en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Timeline_of_first_images_of_Earth_from_space.
I think Saudi Arabia wasn’t late in moving away from using groundwater. They tackled the issue early on, considering the discoveries of groundwater in the Empty Quarter. Even the west part of the country has plenty, but farming’s tough there ’cause it’s all mountainous. They have been utilize the lands in the southern regions near the borders to grow mangoes, bananas, coffee, and other fruits because its rainy climate year-round. Also, there are companies have been established recently to increase the production process and It’s all part of Vision 2030 to become more self-sufficient and boost the economy.
As a Saudi, I have no idea why you’d pick such a random topic 😂
مثل تعليقك
وش يعني ؟ @@Bn.sbe3
worldcup is coming..
Makes you wonder is it sponsored huh.Personally I do think it is
@ Sponsored by whom, though? It’s such a niche topic I can’t imagine who would even bother
I remember looking around on Google Earth a while ago and finding some of these farms in Saudi Arabia. I was so confused. I am so glad to finally see someone demystify these farms.
You didn't mention that Saudi Arabia owns land in Arizona, in the US (not a developing country!) and irrigates with water from the Colorado river... which is way over allocated. Other countries, like China, also own tracts of land in the US for water/food as well. And of course none of this will last much longer... the ecological footprint of a country like Saudi Arabia is huge, and they could never support themselves just using their own land.
It's also worth mentioning the place we call Saudi Arabia used to have rivers, lakes, trees, etc. fed by the fossil water. Now that the fossil water is gone, that will never come back. Much of that water was millions of years old. Humans are at least partly to blame for the desertification of Saudi Arabia even before they were able to use the fossil water by pumping it. As the saying goes: forests precede us, deserts dog our heels.
surprised he left that out.
Every few thousand years, parts of Arabia turns green and wet for centuries due to wobble of earth axis and the monsoon goes further north from the southern Arabian peninsula. Rivers and lakes are formed overtime and NASA satellite has shown that lakes were long enough that it may have once connected to the Euphrates.
native American lands you mean that you stole from them. you could never support yourselves using your own lands, thats why you stole someone else's, at least we bought those lands in the US fair and square, you stole them by force from someone else.
Not even joking I found these about 4-5 months ago and thought what the hell! Soon as I seen your thumbnail I clicked like omg it’s those things 😂
Your editing is so good. I feel inspired watching you every time and try to learn more for my own videos. Love from Brazil ❤
Jonny re-directed us here😂😂
people are discovering that Saudi is not just a desert and they can’t believe it 😂
Absolutely!
... It is just a desert ... did you even watch the video? Without all that water (of which they've already used 80% of it and it's non renewable) it will just go back to being a desert.
They discovered rivers running underground..
@@Alswat100 from coast to coast.
@@Alswat100 Then why did they stop pumping the groundwater? I think you misunderstood the video.
From the title I thought it was going to be a very straightforward answer, since you see similar areas like this in the US. However, the deep dive into their agricultural strategy was very interesting!
It's funny how you’ve never heard of certain things, and then suddenly, you start to see or hear about them from different sources. I was exploring maps of Egypt and noticed these circular farms. I wondered what they were, and within a week, I saw this video.
Great efforts, amazing reporting skills and even better editing. Enjoyable. However, points I would like to highlight:
- As an unbiased channel, you must've hosted/interviewed a local Saudi farmer expert or researchers, the country is full of them and academics in agriculture and sustainability.
- A country's strategy to secure its own demand doesn't have to be a violation to other less wealthy country. It is an investement, in a water rich country which grants finanical benfits
As a Saudi, let me share the latest update! Farming is back with 50% more efficiency, thanks to new policies from the Ministry of Environment, Water, and Agriculture. With advanced technologies like drip irrigation, we’re growing crops sustainably and supporting Vision 2030
The world: " This is impossible! "
Saudi Arabia: " Hold my tea! "
Just watched Jonny’s video and I just watched yours. I like that you guys put his clips in with yours. Nice collab.
A great video. I'm glad I took Johnny's advice to subscribe. Great video.
your editing of a video is insane! I love it!
"The Hour will not be established until wealth is so abundant and overflowing that a man will go out with his wealth to give alms but not find anyone who accepts it from him, and until rivers and meadows return to the land of Arabia."
I almost missed this video because of the channel name change. I'm not sure why it happened but you may want to make a post about it in your community section.
I have lived in Saudi for 20 years. They use Underground water from aquifers only for drinking. These are usually available as bottled/canned drinking water.
For everything else, i.e. home use etc, desalinated water is used. For farming, they either use desalination or even recycled(clean) water from sewage plants.
Most of the greenery along the roadside is watered using purified sewage water.
I live in AZ. You can see ton of these circles all over AZ and Nevada. Fun part, a lot of those circles are leased by Saudi Arabia and they do farming here in US soil
You should be happy cuz that's bringing $billions and jobs to your state... Other countries would beg for these leases
@@Baderasiri1 so arizona and Nevada are desert states that are dependent on the Colorado river that's currently drying out. farmers are planting alfalfa a water intensive crop (in a drought zone) that exists only to feed cattle in Saudi so foreign citizens can eat beef.
selling out water in americas most drought ridden states will cause them to become ecologically dead forever.
if the water runs out, California and Colorado will have worse forest fires and cities like phoenix and vegas will have to be evacuated permanently.
the deal is a terrible one, especially given how much of the world can produce both beef and hay
@@Aloddff So you’re mad at Saudis for doing exactly what your own government and corporations allowed them to do? They didn’t steal the land or water-they bought it because your state sold it to the highest bidder without a second thought about the consequences. Blaming outsiders is such a lazy way to dodge accountability for the fact that your own leaders and businesses are the ones selling out your future for a quick buck. Maybe stop pointing fingers at foreigners and start questioning why your state prioritizes profits over its own people. The water crisis isn’t a Saudi problem-it’s your system’s greed and failure to protect its citizens. The state’s been dealing with bad water management for decades, and there are way bigger factors at play, like overpopulation and outdated policies.
Did you notice that we've moved from grain crops to less water consuming olive trees. If you've paid more attention to those circles you'll find that many of them turned into olive orchards and today we have the largest number of fruiting olive trees in the world cultivating a higher quality olive oil compared to oil from Jordan, Tunisia and Spain.
California, Nevada, Arizona has a bunch these agricultural circles throughout their desert
Yes bc yall copied us ❤❤
Yeah nothing new in this video just for clicks. I would like to see a video on Monsanto and blackrock and how they bought up all of europe farm land. but johnny harris is on their payroll so GL with that
@@lukasalej5710 Yea, these videos have a hint of an infomercial...particularly with the uncritical eye. This is not investigative journalism.
This is quickly becoming one of my favorite UA-cam Channels
It is wonderful that all countries, their governments and people, are preserving our planet and our environment, as they belong to everyone. Many initiatives have been put forward in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia to preserve groundwater and plant trees. Search for the Saudi Green Initiative and the Middle East Green Initiative in 2021. Love from Saudi Arabia ❤️🇸🇦👋🏼.
Thanks for the video christofie
Saudi Arabia also had alfalfa farms in Arizona for the longest time. One of the four leases was terminated in October 2023 and the remaining three leases were not renewed when they expired in February 2024. All of them ended for environmental/political reasons.
I think those were owned by private Saudi companies not the government itself.
@@hamhead88 Is there much of a difference?
Yes correct, and Arizona lost a huge business opportunity for political nonsense! The Saudi company has shifted to Brazil for new leases... Good for Brazilians :)
@Baderasiri1 Arizona is also dealing with a water crisis. Meanwhile these Saudi farms are pumping an unlimited amount of our own ground water just how they did to theirs.
why saudi owns land in US? i don't know the exact reason
can someone explain in detail about this project
This was an awesome collaboration. The on the ground investigating mixed with online sleuthing made for a great contrast!
the production quality of videos by all of you guys (Johnny, Search Party, and Tunnel Vision) is insane.. even some movies with multi million dollar budgets dont achieve this kind of quality.. and the content is really valuable.. the downfall of traditional media and there content quality leaves me hopeless, but channels like yours generate faith.. you guys will inspire the upcoming journalists, and the world really needs good journalism.. KUDOS!
you guys should form an association, pitch such quality journalism to some investors to raise money and fund upcoming journalists to produce such valuable content.. we need more journalists like you guys..
We've been creating massive farms in our deserts for 100 years. Columbia River Project irrigates nearly 1 million acres. Round shapes are from using Center Pivot sprinkler systems which we have used for over 50 years. Canals, Pumping Stations, Siphons, and more all in Central Washington State... cheers
So you are going to ignore all the initiatives and innovations in seawater desalination and all the millions of low water consumption trees being planted, all the innovation in irrigation systems to plant olive in the north that made Saudi Arabia one of the biggest exporter of olive oil. You are going to ignore the South of Saudi Arabia that is receiving rain daily. You are going to ignore all the dams built and you are going to talk about the wheat issue decades ago. Research your topics instead of making a fool of yourself.
He’s clearly talking about more water intensive crops like wheat that require irrigation to grow. He’s explaining why there are circles to begin with. Olives which are adapted to arid climates are not the main subject here man. And he isn’t saying anything necessarily bad about Saudi Arabia, he’s just explaining why these circles have come and gone with reference to policy changes. What exactly are you mad about lol. What exactly is he supposed to research about? The entirety of Saudi Arabia’s agricultural growth strategy to explain simple crop circles? Get a life.
No way. Not watching two nerds geek out on the internet.
2:28 why would you chose 46 manhattans as a unit. What state fills that area?
Because most humans on the planet don't have a reference to a US state size. Yet this is still something that gets requested by you guys. There are other countries in the world...
He's from Brooklyn so I guess it's very relatable for him?
It was that or buses you pick lol
What happened to the good all standard units of measurement.
hoooooly intro. Christophe this is sick!
They also have a massive destallination plant plan
You know what else is massive?
This video was 16 minutes longer than it was needed
I love this. I love hearing the story of obtaining the story. It feels like a new kind of journalism. Johnnie Harris on the ground giving the micro perspective and Cristophe giving the macro view. Two perspectives of the same story.
Great point
I loved watching this, Christophe! Amazing work
15:00 What was that water body that dried up so quickly in Egypt?
Toshka lakes
these are old footage , they got filled again from lake nasser
I find this so interesting! Ty for sharing !
The fact that no Saudi Experts are hosted on this Video tells you a lot, funny that the Sponsor section is for a platform that gives you unbiased news, because this video is sure as hell biased into villainizing Saudi use of its resources.
Idk how many non arabs noticed this but ill mention it, what the vibes in Saudi Arabia is…. Peace
Man I am really glad you created your own channel and with Johnny Harris too!!
Oil production consumes water as well. I don’t know how significant it is, but I think it is worth researching.
Small note but 1984 was actually 40 years ago.
The river depleting in Egypt as the farms expand is very heartbreaking
The one question not answered is why did Saudi go into crops with pumped water they already knew was a finite resource? Sounds to me like a wasted investment (but maybe drilling and pumping is super cheap to do, I don't know and it sure would have been nice for this video to answer the question).
We have the biggest desalination plants
I think a big part of it was ignorance/inexperience. It says in the video, they started making changes after the global summit in the 90s. Remember Saudi is a relatively new country and it's good to learn from mistakes.
I look forward to seeing you explore something that will truly give you goosebumps: the artificial rivers in Saudi Arabia, powered by seawater desalination plants.
I thought this channel was called Tunnel Vision? Not Christophe
Interesting video, not really a big deal …but not a lot of people know about center pivot. I worked for the center pivot company responsible for this Saudi agricultural revolution…happy to talk!
المجنب من الاوادم ما يخلى هههههههههههه مابقى الا يعلمنا وش نسوي ب ارضنا ! انصح صاحب القناة بعمل فيديو عن مختبرات الاسلحة البيولوجية التي تراعها دولته في الدول الفقيرة
Great video.
2025: Maybe another video about music, like your "The sound illusion that makes Dunkirk so intense" ?
Great video as a Saudi this green circles always interested me, if you want another topic for a future video regarding Saudi maybe you can check out our water desalination plants where we managed to become the largest producer of desalinated water in the world, and FYI this topic is even more tricky and complex due to the sheer level of pumping required to transport the desalinated water to cities all around the kingdoms vast land, especially for the higher elevated cities where sea leaves reaches 3,000 m.
I saw this on a flight years ago and now my question is answered.