Abu Dhabi: Abu Dhabi is adopting renewable energy to power desalination plants and turning to treated water for agriculture and even domestic use to address water scarcity, a senior official said.
Having sustainable technology, policies and management processes will help mitigate water wastage and ensure optimum use, said Dr Mohammad Yousuf Al Midfa, the Executive Director of the Integrated Environment Policy and Planning Sector at Environment Agency-Abu Dhabi (EAD).
“If we were to look at global best practice, let’s look at one of the recipients of last year’s UN-Water Best Practices Award, Singapore, whose water situation has similarities to ours and who won for ‘best water management practices’,” he said.
The Singaporeans have pioneered a new approach, high-grade reclaimed water produced from treated used water which undergoes a stringent purification process using advanced dual-membrane and ultraviolet technologies, Al Midfa said.
The approach has passed scientific testing and exceeds the drinking water standards set by the World Health Organisation (WHO). Currently, this new approach can meet 30 per cent of Singapore’s daily domestic water needs, which stands at about 1.5 billion litres a day.
The official said the UAE and other Gulf states have to take similar steps to minimise the rate of water consumption, which is by far among the highest in the world.