SOUTH KOREA // The UAE has pledged to a major global conference its commitment to reduce its water use by a fifth within 15 years.
Dr Sultan Al Jaber, Special Envoy for Climate Change and Energy, made the commitment at the opening of the World Water Forum in Daegu and Gyeongbuk, South Korea.
“In the UAE, a nation in the arid region of the Arabian Gulf, access to water has always been a fundamental pillar of our own survival and our own development,” said Dr Al Jaber, also Minister of State and chairman of the Abu Dhabi clean energy company Masdar.
“Today we have set the ambitious target to reduce our water use by 20 per cent by 2030.”
UAE residents have been estimated to use an average of 550 litres a day each, compared with the global average of 250 litres. And Dr Al Jaber said the country’s demand for water was forecast to double by 2030.
He said the UAE would achieve the reduction in use through better resource management.
It would also reduce the environmental effects of producing water through new desalination technology that uses substantially less energy.
“With desalination responsible for supplying nearly all of our drinking water, we are dedicated to developing the next-generation of technologies that can transform an energy-intensive process into a sustainable, efficient and affordable operation,” Dr Al Jaber said.
On Monday, experts from Masdar will explain to delegates its plan to market energy-efficient desalination systems. The project involves building four small-scale plants in Ghantoot.
The forum was organised by the World Water Council and has attracted delegates from 160 countries. Its opening was attended by the South Korean president Park Geun-hye, the presidents of Hungary, Turkmenistan and Ethiopia, and other dignitaries including Jan Eliasson, deputy secretary general of the UN.
Prof Benedito Braga, the council’s president, said that for a region with scant water, rationing demand was just as important as adding new production.
“Demand management is extremely important. The more efficient you are, the less water you will need to do your work,” Prof Braga said.
He also addressed subsidies, saying that charging the right price for water was a vital step in ensuring responsible use.
UAE residents pay a fraction of what it costs to produce water, with the remainder covered by the Government.
As The National reported last year, the International Monetary Fund estimated that subsidies and transfers related to water accounted for 20 per cent of Abu Dhabi's annual budget.
“Water has to have the right pricing policy that would allow the utilities to operate properly, invest in the future supply. This does not mean that the poor would not have access,” Prof Braga said.
“The problem of access for the poor is a social and government question, and needs to be resolved separately from the operation of water supply and sanitation services.”
vtodorova@thenational.ae
