ABU DHABI // A two-year, Dh39 million project to upgrade the capital’s rainwater drainage system will commence in the third quarter of this year.
The emirate’s Department of Municipal Affairs and Transport said the project would modify the rainwater drainage system to make it more efficient and increase its capacity to prevent floods from occurring.
In March, severe thunderstorms wreaked havoc in Abu Dhabi, and the municipality received 860 reports of damages to properties and flooding.
In a 24-hour period, municipality workers deployed 117 tankers and many pumps and generators to remove 95 per cent of the floodwater away from local communities.
The rainwater drainage project is part of the stormwater master plan, which involves the works required for improving the operational conditions of the existing system, and fulfilling the needs of development up to 2030 as the project covers the entire peripheries of Abu Dhabi Island.
The scope of project works covers completing the construction of rainwater drainage networks along with the required pumping stations at various parts of Abu Dhabi, including Al Mussaffah, Al Maqtaa, Shakhbout City, Baniyas and Mohammed bin Zayed City.
The project will add to the existing infrastructure in Abu Dhabi city, which comprises 149,707 points for collecting and draining water, 57 pumping stations and 5,182 kilometres of sewage lines.
Following the completion of project works in mainland Abu Dhabi, the project will enhance the efficiency of the network and step up its ability to accommodate rainfall more efficiently.
The municipality is implementing the plan to cope with the sweeping development of Abu Dhabi while taking into consideration sustainable development.
newsdesk@thenational.ae
