By 2020 Abu Dhabi will recycle and re-use all of its wastewater within the emirate, officials said.
As it stands now, Abu Dhabi currently reuses only five per cent of its treated wastewater while the emirate uses 60 per cent groundwater and 35 per cent desalinated water, Environment Agency-Abu Dhabi (EAD) revealed it in its “Environment Report 2017” in the capital.
Dr Mohammad Dawoud, Water Resources Advisor at the EAD, said: “Our target is to recycle all of the discarded water of the emirate and re-use it for irrigation purposes as 60 per cent of our irrigation water comes from water wells.”
“Over the last decade, the emirate’s overall groundwater level has continuously declined, particularly in the Eastern Region. The sustainability of the emirate’s precious groundwater resources is one of the greatest sustainability challenges that the UAE faces,” the report said.
More than 115,000 water wells lie within the emirate, of which, 80 per cent are being utilised.
Twenty per cent have dried up, said Dr Dawoud.
“We are rejuvenating the dried wells using the latest technologies,” he said. “Our future plan is to increase the re-use of treated waste water. More than 360,000 cubic metres of treated waste water will be recycled and reused to replace the use of ground and desalinated water.”
Three projects are underway to re-use the treated waste water. By 2020, the emirate will be able to recycle and reuse all the treated waste water of the emirate, he said.
At present, more than 460,000 cubic metres of waste water are generated annually in the emirate, which increases by eight to 10 per cent each year, he said.
“The government has put in plans to recycle and reuse all waste water by 2020 and we aim not to lose a drop of waste water, he said.
The report also highlighted major environmental themes that include air quality, soil, water, fisheries, forestry and waste.
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