AI to help Abu Dhabi residents reduce water, power waste

Abu Dhabi: Abu Dhabi residents will soon be able to tell where exactly water and electricity are wasted in their house, which will prompt them to minimise resource consumption and save money, a senior official said.

“If you know who in which room consumes more electricity, who is wasting water and how domestic waste is generated, you can do something to stop wastage. Abu Dhabi will employ Artificial Intelligence (AI) for this purpose, which will help residents minimise consumption of all resources and play a key role in protecting the environment for our future generations,” said Dr Mohammad Yousuf Al Madfaei (pictured), executive director of the Integrated Environment Policy and Planning Sector at the Environment Agency – Abu Dhabi (EAD).

It is part of a broader strategy to achieve sustainable development through the UAE’s agenda of Artificial Intelligence and digital transformation, he said.

“We are looking for suitable technologies. It is in the early stages of planning. Hopefully by 2021, we will have something,” he told Gulf News at a recent workshop titled “The Future of the Environment in Abu Dhabi”, organised by the EAD to realise the environmental vision for the future of the emirate. The workshop reviewed the performance of organisations towards environmental initiatives and projects implemented in line with the Abu Dhabi Plan.

“Abu Dhabi has high carbon and water footprint and we want to reduce it,” the official said.

Carbon footprint is the amount of carbon dioxide or other carbon compounds released into the atmosphere as a result of the activities of a particular individual, organisation or community. The amount of fresh water used in the production or supply of the goods and services used by a particular person, group or community is called water footprint.

Abu Dhabi has one of the highest rates of per capita water and electricity consumption. According to UAE State of Energy Report 2015, residents use about 550 litres of water and 20 to 30 kilowatt-hours of electricity a day. Abu Dhabi has a slightly higher water consumption rate – 560 litres per day, according to the EAD. About 22.97 kilowatt–hour per day is the electricity consumption rate in the emirate, according to Abu Dhabi Government.

The official said the data generated by AI will help residents minimise waste generation. “We want to encourage recycling of waste. We want to stop recyclable materials from reaching the landfills,” he said.

“So we are looking towards incentive-based regulations to enhance participation of the community in protecting our environment and for our future generations,” Al Madfaei said.

The government aims to reduce overall consumption in goods services sector as part of wider environmental protection strategy.

“We want the businesses to use modern technology to help consumers minimise their consumption,” he said.

The EAD will use AI in monitoring and enforcement of regulations, issuing environmental permits etc. This will reduce time and effort involved in such transactions, which will enhance the efficiency of Abu Dhabi’s business sector.