Abu Dhabi water highly saline - study

A large portion of irrigation water in Abu Dhabi is highly saline and unfit for agriculture as per the standards of the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO), a recent scientific research has disclosed.

The level of salinity is also very high in irrigation water in Al Ain that further increases when added with soil. The study has rated just 3.77 per cent of the water as the good source for irrigation.

The FAO, a Rome-based UN specialised agency for worldwide agricultural promotion, has set a scale of water salinity and restrictions on its use. The research revealed that 88.7 per cent of irrigation water is classified as severely restricted for use according to the FAO standards.

Some 7.55 per cent of the water has been found slightly to moderately restricted. The data collected by the researchers indicated that most of Al Fujairah soil is non-alkaline.

The soil alkalinity represents about 33.3 per cent, 31.7 per cent, 27.3 per cent and 23.2 per cent of the tested soil in Ras Al Khaimah, Al Dahid, Al Ain, and Abu Dhabi, respectively.

The research was conducted by a team of experts, including Abdou A. Soaud, Fareed H. Al Darweesh, and Maher E. Saleh from the Department of Aridland Agriculture of the College of Food Systems, and Khaled A. El Tarabily from the Department of Biology of the College of Sciences at the UAE University.

The team took soil and water samples from 43 areas, including 11 each in Abu Dhabi and Al Ain and 21 in Northern Emirates.

The project was funded by Japanese Cooperation Centre for Petroleum (JCCP). An active support in soil, water and plant sample collection was also provided by the Department of Research and Agricultural Production at the UAE Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries, Abu Dhabi Municipality and Town Planning Department, and Department of Agriculture and Livestock in Al Ain.

The study said that productive agricultural soil in the UAE has great importance due to the scarcity of both good arable land and water resources. The availability of information on soil and water properties can help in sustainable improvement of soil fertility and productivity.

It can also help in protecting the soil degradation by salinity and alkalinity due to the arid climate. Very limited and scattered information is available on the chemical and physical properties of the old agricultural soil in Al Ain and Northern Emirates.

The first 18 months of the research project focused on the identification and construction of base information on the characteristics of soil and water resources in agricultural areas of the UAE. The information was later combined into a soil library that represents various types of the UAE soil.

The researchers said that this database will be considered as an important source of future projects, as well as for individuals and soil scientists, agronomists, farmers, departments of agriculture in the municipalities of Abu Dhabi and Al Ain and Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries.

The results of the research showed that about 54.4 per cent, 51.82 per cent, 42.86 per cent, 34.15 per cent, and 30.30 per cent of Abu Dhabi, Al Ain, Ras Al Khaimah, Al Dahid, and Fujairah soil is, respectively, considered as moderate to strongly saline.

The primary effect of excessive salinity is that it renders less water available for plants.

The water analyses also revealed that irrigation water in Ras Al Khaimah is the second highest saline water in the UAE, followed by Al Ain and Fujairah. Irrigation water in Al Dhahid is better than other areas as around 75 per cent of it is found to be slightly to moderately saline.

The results of the research indicate the importance of the application of elemental sulphur to the UAE agricultural soil not only as a source of one of the secondary major plant nutrient, but also to improve the alkaline conditions of soils and water.

This measure has especially been recommended for the fine-textured soil in Northern Emirates and Al Ain.