UAE invests in innovation to address water scarcity

Dubai: In the last six years, the emirate of Dubai has saved nearly 6 billion imperial gallons (one gallon is equal to 4.54 litres) of potable water through conservation campaigns encouraging users to conserve the country’s most valuable resource.

On World Water Day, Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (Dewa) is once again hosting its Every Drop Matters campaign to remind its customers that water is precious and not to be wasted.

The campaign is part and parcel of a series of World Water Day events being held across the UAE.

“All year round, Dewa launches awareness programmes and innovative initiatives to encourage society to adopt a positive approach as part of their daily lives to reduce electricity and water use. Through this, 5.6 billion imperial gallons of water have been saved between 2009 and 2015,” said Saeed Mohammad Al Tayer, managing director and CEO of Dewa.

“Due to our strong belief in preserving natural resources, Dewa launched an awareness campaign under the theme Every Drop Matters. The campaign will make use of the best practices to limit water use, and lower the amount of water being wasted, to ensure sustainability for generations to come,” said Al Tayer

World Water Day will also see the UAE Water Aid Foundation inviting applications for its Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum Global Water Award worth $1 million (Dh3.67 million) announced earlier this month.

The award is presented by the foundation, under the umbrella of the Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum Global Initiatives, to find sustainable solutions to the issue of water scarcity, using solar energy to purify and desalinate water.

The UAE Water Aid initiative was kicked off in June 2014 to provide clean water to approximately five million people worldwide. Suqia, the UAE Water Aid’s campaign, raised Dh180 million to provide clean drinking water to seven million people around the world.

According to World Water Day organisers, a series of events are planned across the UAE.

At Safa British School in Dubai, teachers are teaching year 3 and year 6 students about the importance of water through an activity called Water: The Global Passport.

Carole Ansell, assistant head teacher at the school, told Gulf News that “students will take part in a number of mini workshops that highlight the plight of those who don’t have access to fresh water and how the students can assist.”

The lessons learnt will help save water for future generations.

“It is so important to teach our students to be conscious of their water footprint and how they can make an impact on reducing water use by educating others in their family. Exposing them to the reality of water inequities around the world offers the students the opportunity to take action both now and in the future,” said Ansell.

World Water Day in Sharjah will be observed through a social media effort by the Supreme Council for Family Affairs.

Council employees in Sharjah are demonstrating their commitment to water through posts on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram to share how water relates to their jobs.

Skyline College in Sharjah, in association with the Sharjah Investment and Development Authority, is hosting its World Water Day event at Al Qasba where families are invited to participate in a colouring competition, live quizzes, and activities from 4.30pm-8pm.

By the numbers

• The UAE is believed to contain around 4,052,000 million cubic litres of groundwater in aquifers or basins under the land.

* According to the report ‘Scarcity and Abundance: UAE Food and Water Security’ published in November 2014, for every litre of water that flows back into the country’s groundwater reserves from infrequent rainfall, 25 litres is withdrawn.

• Available groundwater is estimated to last between 16 to 36 years, according to a report by UAE University titled ‘The Challenges of Water Scarcity and the Future of Food Security in the United Arab Emirates’.

• A huge bulk of the UAE’s groundwater is used for irrigation, but this is also true globally, according to the UN, since agriculture is the biggest water intensive sector, accounting for 70 per cent of global water withdrawal.

• It is estimated that 20 per cent of the world’s aquifers are being over-exploited

• Global water demand is expected to increase by 55 per cent by 2050 because of growing demands from manufacturing, thermal power generation, farming and in homes.

• As many as 768 million people remain without access to an improved source of water and 2.5 billion remain without access to improved sanitation.

SOURCE: United Nations/Gulf News Archives