Securing the UAE's Water Future

Tim Elliott (0:00)

It's the Morning Drive, this is Mira Business FM. Water security becoming an increasingly urgent issue across the Gulf, with rising demand, population growth and a changing climate, putting pressure on limited natural water resources. The UAE is investing heavily in desalination, in water reuse, and new technologies as it works towards the goals of its Water Security Strategy 2036 So, joining us to look at what's driving the region's water race, if that's the phrase, and what it's going to take to secure the UAE's water future. And everything we need to know, really, is Dr. Abir Hamze, who is Assistant Professor at Canadian University of Dubai.

She specializes in environmental engineering, wastewater treatment, waste management and resource recovery.

Abir Hamze (0:50)

It's good to meet you. Nice meeting you.

Tim Elliott (0:52)

Lot to talk to you about, I think, Dr. Hamze. Welcome to the show. Big question to start with, and I'm going to phrase this this way specifically for a reason. What are the biggest water challenges facing the UAE today?

Abir Hamze (1:06)

That's a very good start. So let's start with what is water security as a problem? Water security is basically when we need to have a reliable source or enough quantity of water to fulfill all types of needs, whether in our daily life, for our industrial activities, for our recreational activities. So this is what is water security is, and this is what we are talking about. The problem is that in such region where we basically have high temperatures and very little rainfall, there is a problem in a natural scarcity phenomena which is taking place.

Water basically comes from two main sources, like surface water and ground water. And these are typically renewed naturally. And this is basically one of the main challenges happening here in the UAE. Naturally, there is little rainfall, so there is very little kind of renewable resources for this water.

Tim Elliott (2:09)

Okay. So I mean, energy dominates the headlines, right, in this region, but water security is maybe, you could probably reasonably say it's the most urgent strategic issue across the Gulf. So we've got these populations rising, we've got industrial demand, the natural aquifers are depleting, and then you have this incredible arid climate that you've mentioned, and the temperature. The natural water equation seems to be this, that you've got very few renewable freshwater sources, hypercapita consumption rates as well. We use a lot of water here.

So we're in a reasonably kind of, is precarious the wrong word to use, do you think? Is that unreasonable in terms of our position?

Abir Hamze (2:58)

First of all, energy and water are very well connected. Okay, they go just in parallel.

Yes, we do have that kind of population growth, urbanization, deforestation happening. But to be clear, water issues is a global problem. It's not only happening here in the Gulf. Yes, maybe we can feel it, and it becomes really like an urgent matter, simply because we have some natural phenomena in addition to whatever people are used to have. There is a huge consumption of water in our daily life.

Tim Elliott (3:37)

Okay, how is the nation rethinking the resource? Talk me through the UAE water security strategy.

Abir Hamze (3:47)

So basically, the main objective is to minimize up to 21% of the water demand, and to increase up to 95% from the treated wastewater. So speaking about the UAE, about 53% of water resources is coming from non-conventional resources. And non-conventional by that, I mean, other than surface water and ground water, which is basically water coming from desalination and water coming from reuse of wastewater.

Tim Elliott (4:22)

Right, okay.

Abir Hamze (4:23)

So within that strategy, there is a main objective to minimize that water demand up to 21%, minimize the per capita need, and to minimize what we call the stress coefficient, which is basically a very simple relation between whatever water is available compared to whatever people are using or are in need in their daily life.

Okay? So these are the main objectives of that strategy.

Tim Elliott (4:54)

Okay, how realistic are the targets? Because I know there are set targets for reusing, for reducing demand and increasing water efficiency, but are we going to get there by 2036?

Abir Hamze (5:08)

That's a very important question. Well, anything within the environment is an interconnected problem. Like, it's not only about governmental decisions. It's not only about having those kinds of desalination treatment plants.

It's an interconnected matter where, yes, the government has to play the role. Yes, we need to have those kinds of infrastructures, which are basically available, but we also need to rely on awareness and changing those kinds of habits that people and residents are having here.