Silt Curtain Market Size, Share & Industry Analysis, By Type (Type I, Type II, and Type III), and By Application (Erosion Control, and Construction), and Regional Forecast, 2024-2032

The global silt curtain market size was USD 7,765.7 thousand in 2019 and is projected to reach USD 10,271.8 thousand by 2027, exhibiting a CAGR of 3.8% during the forecast period. Asia Pacific dominated the global silt curtain industry with a share of 36.75% in 2019. Asia Pacific dominated the silt curtain market with a market share of 36.76% in 2019.

Silt curtains are aquatic structures built with geotextile. They have floats on top of the water table and a skirt that lies perpendicular to the surface of the water. They are built to monitor silt movement from aquatic environment activity, and these items consist of a closed cell chamber and a skirt that sits under the water surface. Instead of waves, tides, or tidal flow, the barrier is anchored to avoid movement. There are several important factors to consider when designing and constructing this product, including flow levels, water depths, temperatures, and length of the project.

SILT CURTAIN MARKET TRENDS

Growing Demand for Erosion Control Shall Foster Growth

Water is a primary source of erosion. Snow, rivers, streams, lakes and the ocean are slowly taking away bits of soil and sand that wash away the surface. Valley erosion is the mechanism by which flowing streams and rivers strip down their banks, forming ever wider valleys. Constructions of dams, bridges, and other near water bodies are increasing which are resulting in soil erosion. The rising oil & gas industry is also a major cause of soil erosion.

The spread of new infectious virus COVID-19 has impacted the construction and oil & gas industries, and subsequently affected the silt curtain market growth. Thus, the construction and oil & gas industry are expected to expand at a steady pace during the forecast period due to lack of availability of skilled and unskilled labours, raw material, and other such factors. Countries which have high erosion rates and a large share of agricultural land are particularly vulnerable. More than 70% of the arable land is undergoing extreme erosion in most Caribbean nations, Brazil, Central African nations, and parts of Southeast Asia. The soil erosion has a detrimental effect on water, air, and soil. This also causes a variety of negative knock-on effects; for example, farmers have to make up for the lack of natural soil fertility by increasing their fertilizer use. Since agriculture and forestry industries cannot work without soil, government in their countries are trying to counter erosion.

During erosion, pesticides and other chemicals get stuck in the soil, polluting streams and rivers. Soil erosion can also contribute to mudslides and flooding, adversely impacting buildings and roadways’ structural integrity. Over time, aggressive farming and agricultural tilling practices will lead to deterioration of the nutrient and the decline in soil quality. This erosion cycle depletes organic matter in the soil, making it less suitable for crop planting and harvesting, or for natural vegetation production.

Turbidity or silt curtains are versatile sediment control barriers that are designed for the prevention of the spread of sediment and silt in lakes and other bodies of water. They are normally used when some specific activities are carried out in the water, on or near the shoreline. They are made of non-permeable or permeable material which is suspended vertically in the water using flotation rope in the top pocket and a ballast chain in the bottom pocket. At building sites alongside rivers, a turbidity curtain is an important remedy that eventually suffers from flooding, turbidity, and excessive build-up of silt. This product is useful where the building on a lake or stream shore, and the coarse sediment, are a big issue. During building activities, it not only keeps the water from becoming muddy but will also remove the coarse sediment to the construction area. To minimize the risk of failure the curtain will block the flow as little as possible. Thus, growing soil erosion due to various reasons is anticipated to increase demand for the product.

SILT CURTAIN MARKET GROWTH FACTORS

The Growing Construction Industry is Driving the Market

The marine construction industry funds a variety of sectors of substantial economic importance and contributors to GDP across several countries. The offshore oil & gas industry is the largest and allows for the exploration, growth, and production of a significant proportion of the world's oil & gas reserves. Robust growth in the North American marine construction industry and the product's ability to minimize clogging by separating soil and sediments from water during construction activities are expected to boost product demand. In addition, increasing government investment to renovate old infrastructures, including bridges, docks, and dams, is anticipated to contribute to the growth of the market. Governments in several developed economies, including the U.S. and Germany, are using silt curtains in building activities close to water sources, which is projected to drive the market.

Increasing government policies about oil spills in Russia are driving the industry. Silt curtains are used for dredging, constructing bridges, constructing dams, and preventing construction waste from flooding into water bodies. COVID-19 is having a massive impact on construction projects. Several governments have also forced other businesses to stop operating. Thus, COVID-19 has result in the steady growth of the construction industry.

Silt curtains have been used across diverse construction and engineering projects. In addition to dredging operations, they are also used around ditches and spillways, on marine construction jobs like pile driving, outflows, highway and bridge across lakes, enclosing the discharge from a restricted disposal area, and others.

RESTRAINING FACTORS

Lack of Awareness is Likely to Hinder the Market Growth

Turbidity windows, silt or turbidity walls, gunderbooms, silt fence, bubble curtain and others are used for soil erosion protection on the land. These products are specifically designed to monitor the suspended solids and the turbidity caused by navigation and environmental dredging operations in the water column. A silt or turbidity screen is a flow-through filtering system created by dredging and dredged material disposal operations for monitoring the suspended material and turbidity in the water column.

Both screens are composites of solid material and permeable geosynthetic fabrics for filtering water and reducing the device's water pressure. A gunderboom is a system similar to a silt or turbidity panel, which was changed by incorporating adsorbent geotextile material to control oil spills. The key difference between the bubble curtain and silt curtain are precisely the bubbles, that is, the bubbles that actually cover geo-textile sheeting. This product is also used to monitor and the distribution of suspended sediment from dredging activities, but bubble curtains are seldom used in marine environments at a sediment control range. Silt fences are constructed of geotextile filter fabric that is connected to the ground-embedded supporting poles.

At construction sites, silt fences are usually designed to prevent sediment-laden water and surface run-off from flowing into and/or out of the construction site. The availability various product for the same application and usage of other turbidity barrier such as silt fence, silt wall, and others is likely to hamper the growth of the market during the forecast period.

SILT CURTAIN MARKET SEGMENTATION ANALYSIS

By Type Analysis

Type I Segment to be Leading Segment of the Market

In terms of type, the market is segmented into type I, type II, and type III. Type I segment accounted for major share of the market and is likely to maintain its dominance during the forecast period.

Form I curtains are constructed to prevent the various runoff or sediments in calm waters. Type I are ideally suited for the calm waters. Silt Barrier Type I curtains is a useful alternative when attempting to manage sediment in shallow or quiet areas.

Type II silt curtain is majorly used in moving water applications to contain silt and turbidity. They are made from high-strength fabric with heavy-duty tension parts, along with aluminium stress plates on the bottom corners of the skirts. They are widely used in dredging and marine construction areas experiencing mild movement of current, wind, and waves.

Type III are suitable for silt and sediment control in rivers, bays, and wetlands, with moderate current, wave and wind action, during the marine construction and dredging activities.

By Application Analysis

Construction Segment to Account for the Major Share

In terms of application, the silt curtain market is segmented into erosion control, and construction. Construction segment accounted for the major share of the market and is expected to expand at rapid pace during the forecast period. The product can be used in incidences when sediments or other hazardous materials enter an area. Building near aquatic environments usually results from silt. Implementing a silt curtain in these situations can prevent potential damage to the marine life. They can be used in several water bodies such as ponds,reservoirs, harbors, and inland coastal sites in a number of locations as they are important in protecting the marine habitats. Sediment dislodged, rocks and other material can damage plant and animal life during construction, demolition, and dredging. Cloudy or turbid water prevents regular sunlight from entering aquatic life and can cause more trouble to the aquatic animals while navigating. Increased stress results in higher mortality rates in fisheries over time.

REGIONAL SILT CURTAIN MARKET ANALYSIS

The market in Asia Pacific was worth USD 2,854.6 thousand in 2019. Asia Pacific held a major share of the global market. Increasing number of infrastructural development projects in countries such as China, India, Australia, and New Zealand will boost the construction industry. In Asia Pacific, the product is widely used in building projects along the river and lakeside as well as in dam and bridge maintenance and repair works is likely to drive the regional market.

In North America, the frequency of natural disasters such as hurricanes and storms has increased in the recent years. To restore the structures affected by those disasters is expected to boost the growth of the silt curtain market in the region

Increasing dredging activities for restoring and preserving waterways in France is likely to create opportunities for growth of the regional market. Increasing number of restoration projects under Voies navigables de France's (VNF) waterway modernization program, including the replacement of 29 manually operating dams based on Aisne and Meuse rivers with automated water-inflated dams, are expected to boost demand for the product.

Strong government coupled with a steady growth in GDP is expected to increase the country's exploration and development activities. This, in turn, is expected to have a positive impact on the application of this product in the oil and gas industry for preventing water pollution caused by the oil spills.

KEY INDUSTRY PLAYERS

Key Players Blending Strategies to Maintain a Formidable Position in the Market

The global silt curtain market has many main players including Nilex Inc., ACME Environmental, ABASCO LLC, GEI Works, and Elastec. Most of the businesses concentrate mainly on R&D activities to enhance product quality and reliability to meet specific market requirements as well as reduce the danger of new entrants.

Moreover, these companies are engaged in the manufacture of specialized goods for specific projects, depending on government legislation, project length, and the condition of the operating water body. In addition to this, primary players provide additional services as per customer requirements, such as production, distribution, design assistance, and project management. For example, Nilex Inc. provides creative approaches to address capital, civil, and environmental construction challenges. The organization is committed to offering new ways to assist its clients in the production of innovative products, as well as pursuing new business concepts.

LIST OF KEY PLAYERS PROFILED IN SILT CURTAIN MARKET:

• Nilex Inc.(Canada)


• ACME Environmental (U.S.)


• ABASCO LLC (U.S.)


• GEOFABRICS AUSTRALASIA PTY LTD (Australia)


• GEI Works, Inc. (U.S.)


• Agastya Buoyant (India)


• Ecocoast (Dubai)


• Elastec American Marine (U.S.)


• Murlac Limited (U.S.)


• Cunningham Covers (Ireland)


• Other Key Players

KEY INDUSTRY DEVELOPMENTS:

• February 2015 – Nilex Inc. acquired geosynthetics distributor GeoDynamics from Salt Lake City, Utah. This acquisition will assist Nilex in expanding in the markets of Utah, Idaho, and Nevada. This acquisition will help GeoDynamics to give its customers a broader variety of solutions while strengthening its presence in the field.

REPORT COVERAGE

The silt curtain market report provides a detailed analysis of the market and focuses on key aspects such as leading companies, product types, and leading applications of the product. Besides this, the report offers insights into the market trends and highlights key industry developments. In addition to the aforementioned factors, the report encompasses several factors that have contributed to the growth of the market over recent years.

Report Scope & Segmentation