Plant shut for illegally selling potable water

Ras Al Khaimah: The Municipality shut down and fined a desalination plant yesterday on charges of selling potable water to construction companies to be used at work sites.

The municipality permanently shut down the desalination plant and ordered the owner to pay a Dh10,000 fine.

Mubarak Ali Al Shamsi, Director General of the Municipality, said this was the third offence committed by this particular plant.

Al Shamsi said that after the first two violations, which were committed within the past couple of months, warnings were issued and the owner of the plant was ordered to sign an official pledge that he would not repeat the same violation, but the plant has not adhered to the undertaking.

Tankers filled

Al Shamsi said the plant has been loading big tankers with huge quantities of underground pot-able water to sell to construction companies.

He said that this plant was officially accused of endangering the emirate's subterranean water table.

According to municipal regulations, the construction companies can only be provided with water that is not fit for human consumption for use in the construction process, and the potable water should only be sold for drinking purposes.

The plant had already fixed a pumping machine to pump underground water to meet the increasing demand. The municipal inspectors seized the machine.