Providing 1,400 wells in Abu Dhabi with devices to measure salinity and temperature

The Environment Agency Abu Dhabi confirmed its endeavor to preserve groundwater and regulate its use through projects and initiatives

Several specialize in managing, organizing and licensing groundwater affairs in the emirate, including the groundwater monitoring network, the well inventory project in Abu Dhabi, and the issuance of the first groundwater atlas in the region, noting that it has counted 117,938 wells in the emirate, and equipped 1,400 wells with devices to measure groundwater elements from levels. Salinity and temperature, in addition to measuring climate elements.

The Emirate of Abu Dhabi currently relies on 100% desalination for its drinking water needs, and the rate of groundwater extraction is rising at a rate exceeding natural recharge rates, leading to water depletion and increased salinity. The Authority is working to develop sustainable management practices for water resources, which is considered one of the most important… Natural resource, in light of the rapid social and economic prosperity in the emirate, through an integrated plan for water resources management, to be implemented within 10 years, as the plan includes three main water resources, and the consumption rate of each category is estimated at 61% of groundwater, and 30% of Desalinated water, and 9% recycled water.

The Environment Agency Abu Dhabi confirmed its endeavor to reduce groundwater extraction by an amount of up to 650 million cubic meters by 2030, in addition to an improvement in the groundwater quality index, locally and federally, and a decrease in the rate of water extraction versus the recharge rate from 24 times to 16 times by the same year. In addition to enhancing the use of recycled water from groundwater recharge in areas used for irrigation in terms of quality and quantity, noting that the depletion of groundwater reserves has resulted in an increase in its salinity.

The Authority’s efforts to monitor the use of groundwater in the emirate included launching new initiatives to assess long-term sustainability in the deep groundwater reservoirs in Abu Dhabi, as the groundwater monitoring program includes two monitoring networks, one for measuring water levels, and the other for quality, while the groundwater level monitoring network includes 441 monitoring wells, 97 wells operating in an automated manner with automated data measurement and transmission, 1,100 analyzes of water level measurements, and 225 additional measurements for wells other than monitoring wells were collected.

Groundwater constitutes 60% of the total water sources consumed in the emirate, and is used mainly to irrigate crops in the agricultural sector, and to a lesser extent to irrigate crops in forests and parks, noting that one of the most prominent challenges facing groundwater is the depletion of the reserve, such that extraction rates exceed recharge rates. Natural. This depletion causes a decrease in groundwater levels and a deterioration in its quality in several areas, as 79% of it has become high-salinity water, 18% of it is medium-salinity water, while only 3% of it is considered fresh water.

It is worth noting that the Emirate of Abu Dhabi will witness the delivery of recycled water to more than 1,600 farms in the emirate, as part of the emirate’s plan to expand the use of recycled water in agriculture, to reduce the depletion of natural water resources, as it is expected that groundwater withdrawal from about 4,850 wells will stop. This contributes to the conservation of non-renewable water resources.

Recycled water

The Environment Agency in Abu Dhabi has adopted a number of initiatives within its master plan for recycled water, including developing comprehensive strategies, developing a more robust, dynamic and flexible master plan equipped with appropriate technology for recycled water, and the smart expansion of recycled water networks, by ensuring compatibility at the planning level between… Prioritizing the use of recycled water, planning the expansion of the infrastructure network, expanding recycled water for new private developments using recycled water for landscape irrigation in both public parks and residential parks, as well as for other external uses, implementing performance-based contracts, and operating and maintaining water networks. Recycled, public domain irrigation management and zero waste water treatment plant to enhance the sustainability of wastewater treatment and recycled water production.

117,938 wells in the emirate.