A Pond Built to Hold Every Drop: Ocean HDPE Liner and PET Geotextile at Nuh, Haryana

In a water-scarce district, a pond only earns its cost if it keeps the water it collects. Nuh, in the Mewat region of Haryana, is semi-arid and short of fresh groundwater, so a storage pond there has to be watertight and built to last.

On this project, Ocean Non Wovens supplied two products that work as a single lining system. A PET non-woven geotextile went down first as the protection and cushion layer, and a 500 micron HDPE liner was installed over it as the impermeable barrier.

Project Snapshot

Why Geosynthetics Are Used to Line Ponds

For most of the last century, the way to stop a pond leaking was compacted clay, brick or concrete. None of these is fully impermeable, and each fails in its own way:

• Clay cracks as it dries between fillings and still seeps even when well built.
• Concrete and masonry are rigid and brittle, so they crack at joints and settlement points.
• Every crack becomes a leak that is hard to find and expensive to repair.

A geomembrane replaces all three with a continuous, effectively impermeable sheet that installs quickly over a prepared surface. A thin liner is only as safe as the ground beneath it, which is why it is paired with a protective geotextile.

The Two-Product System: How They Work Together

Each layer has one job.

A 500 micron (0.5 mm) liner is strong but thin. Laid directly on a subgrade with stones, roots or sharp edges, it can be punctured under the weight of the stored water. The geotextile spreads those point stresses so they do not pierce the liner.

Ocean Non Wovens manufactures both products, so it supplies the liner and the geotextile as a matched pair, with grades selected for the ponding depth and the subgrade conditions.

Product Specifications

Ocean HDPE Liner, 500 micron

Ocean Non-Woven Geotextile (PET), 1 mm

Why This System Over Conventional Lining

The traditional alternatives did not suit a water-conservation pond in a dry district.

A thin, flexible liner stops the seepage that clay and concrete never fully stop, and the geotextile gives it the puncture protection it needs on a natural subgrade.

Engineering Challenges at Nuh

The site presented several conditions that shaped the design:

• Uneven subgrade: Stones and sharp fragments in the bed and slopes created a real puncture risk for a thin liner.
• Water scarcity: The pond has to hold water through long dry spells with minimal loss.
• Uplift: When the pond is drawn down, groundwater and trapped gas beneath the liner can push upward.
• Slope exposure: Side slopes face wave action and changing water levels.
• Intense sun: Strong ultraviolet radiation attacks any uncovered liner.
• Tight timeline: The works had to be completed within a limited construction window.

How the System Performs

• Seepage control: The HDPE liner is a continuous impermeable barrier that stops almost all downward loss of stored water.
• Puncture protection: The geotextile cushion spreads point loads so the 500 micron sheet is not pierced.
• Slope protection: The system resists erosion and scour on the water-facing faces.
• Settlement tolerance: The flexible liner stretches over minor ground movement instead of cracking.

The Technical Basis

Three mechanisms explain why the system works.

Impermeability. The density of the HDPE gives a permeability so low that seepage through an intact, properly welded sheet is negligible.

Puncture protection. The geotextile absorbs the concentrated stresses from the subgrade, a property tied to its puncture resistance (ASTM D6241) and grab tensile strength (ASTM D4632).

Hydrostatic containment. The anchored liner resists the pressure of the stored water column. HDPE stretches a long way before it breaks (GRI-GM13 sets a minimum break elongation of 700% for smooth sheet), so it absorbs settlement and thermal movement without tearing.

Turning many panels into one continuous barrier depends on sound seaming. Double-track wedge welds are tested by air pressure in the channel between the tracks (ASTM D5820), and extrusion welds by vacuum box (ASTM D5641).

Installation Sequence

1. Prepare the subgrade: Trim, compact and clear the bed and slopes of stones and sharp debris.
2. Lay the geotextile: Roll out the PET fabric across the bed and slopes with the specified overlaps.
3. Deploy the liner: Roll out the HDPE panels over the geotextile, positioned to minimise field seams.
4. Weld and test: Join the panels by hot-wedge and extrusion welding, then test every seam.
5. Anchor and secure: Fix the lining in a perimeter anchor trench, ballast against wind, and leave slack for thermal movement.

Common mistakes to avoid:

• Poorly prepared subgrade left with sharp points
• Under-lapping or skipping the geotextile
• Weak or untested welds
• Leaving the lining exposed to the sun for too long

Ocean Non Wovens helps customers match the liner and geotextile grades to the subgrade and ponding depth, so the installed system performs as designed.

Long-Term Performance

The system is built for decades of service:

• UV resistance: The liner is carbon-black stabilised against sunlight.
• Stress-crack resistance: Tested to ASTM D5397, it resists slow crack growth under sustained stress.
• Chemical resistance: HDPE resists the dissolved salts and soil chemistry a pond is exposed to.
• Cyclic durability: It holds up under repeated wetting, drying and thermal cycles.
• Low maintenance: The system needs periodic inspection of exposed slopes and anchor trenches.
• Lifecycle cost: A thin section, fast installation and long life usually make it cheaper over time than clay or concrete.

Sustainability Benefits

• Water conservation: By preventing seepage, the lining saves water in a district short of fresh groundwater.
• Lower carbon: A thin membrane and light fabric replace bulk clay or concrete.
• Reduced transport: There is far less heavy material to haul to site.
• Faster construction: The build window is shorter, with less site activity.
• Longer life: The pond needs fewer rehabilitation cycles over its lifetime.

Where This System Is Used

The same geotextile and HDPE liner combination is used for:

• Irrigation and farm ponds
• Drinking and raw water reservoirs
• Canals and channels
• Rainwater harvesting structures
• Aquaculture ponds
• Effluent and sewage lagoons
• Industrial process ponds
• Landfill barrier layers

Supply by Ocean Non Wovens

Ocean Non Wovens supplied 15,200 square metres of PET non-woven geotextile and 15,050 square metres of 500 micron HDPE liner for the Nuh pond.

As an Indian manufacturer and supplier of HDPE liners, non-woven and woven geotextiles, geocells, geogrids and geobags, the company produces materials tested to Indian and international specifications. It supports water resources and environmental engineering, irrigation and pond lining, highways, railways, industrial developments, airports and defence infrastructure across India.

For pond and reservoir lining, Ocean Non Wovens can supply liner and geotextile grades matched to your site conditions and ponding depth.

Related: HDPE pond liners · non-woven geotextiles · Port Blair water storage pond case study