Challenges Facing the Sustainability of Conventional Water Resources in the United Arab Emirates (UAE)

Ahmed A. Murad Department of Geology, UAE University, PO Box 17551, Al Ain, United Arab Emirates, ahmed.murad@uaeu.ac.ae ABSTRACT Groundwater relies on rainfall and its availability in the shallow aquifer of UAE is relatively small due to the heavy groundwater abstraction and the low amount of rainfall. Human activities have played a significant role in deteriorating the quality and reducing the quantity of groundwater. The increase of the irrigated areas has led to the increase of the level of nitrate (NO3-) in groundwater in different parts of the UAE, and the release of chloride in the groundwater. In addition, hydrocarbon contamination of the soil, surface water and later on of groundwater is observed in the field in the vicinity of the well due to the leakage of oil from diesel machines that were used to pump groundwater to the surface. Also, salinity of groundwater has developed over time and the development of seawater intrusion in some localities in the UAE is noticed. The deterioration of the quality of groundwater and the continuous depletion of groundwater levels have affected springs and falajes which connected to the groundwater hydrogeologically. Finally, population growth in the UAE has increased the stress on water resources and as the population increased the production of groundwater production decreased by 43.7% during years 2000 to 2006. Key words: United Arab Emirates, conventional water resources, sustainability, groundwater. INTRODUCTION The UAE is positioned to the south-eastern part of the Arabian Peninsula (Fig. 1). The arid zone, where the UAE is located, is characterized by low rainfall and high evaporation rate. The amount of rainfall varies from 60 mm in Liwa to about 160 mm in the mountainous areas of the eastern and northern parts of the UAE. The overall maximum amount of precipitated water received in the country was about 3000 mm which was recorded in Ras Al Khaimah Emirate in the northern part of the UAE from recording to April 2005 (Fig. 2) (UAE Yearbook, 2004). The year 1999-2000 witnessed 7 mm of rainfall, which was the lowest amount of rainfall received, while year 1995-1996 received 382.8 mm of rainfall which was the highest amount of rainfall precipitated in the country (MAF-currently MEW, 2005), while, the evaporation rate can exceed 2000 mm/year (Fig. 3) (Jones & Marrei, 1982). The rapid immigration to the UAE is evident from the increasing number of inhabitants. It reached about 5.06 million inhabitants according to the statistics of 2006 (Ministry of Interior, 2007). The population growth together with the accelerated economic growth requires a sufficient quantity of water.

The UAE is extremely dependent on groundwater production from major aquifers for water supply. The production of groundwater relies on the amount of rainfall, which is rare. The consumption rate of the water resources has exceeded the natural recharge. This condition of scarcity has created imbalance and resulted in quality deterioration of the groundwater and by the intrusion of the seawater in the coastal areas. Desalination plants have been established to meet the high demand of water for domestic, agricultural and industrial purposes. In addition, plants for wastewater treatment have been launched in different parts of the country to reduce groundwater production and pressure on the production of desalinated water. .
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Figure 3: Map of the Arab World showing the distribution of the evapotranspiration (from AQUASTAT/FAO website, spatial information, 2005). The UAE like other Arab countries is facing a crucial problem in having sufficient quantity of water to meet the demand of the development in the country. The huge economic development, the population growth and the growing standard of living during the last few decades, have resulted in an increase of groundwater production to meet the demand. Different human activities have limited water resources in the country and even deteriorated the quality of water by increasing water salinity. Continuing in this track without a proper management of water resources will lead to a

serious crisis in the country and economic development will be affected accordingly. This paper will highlight the current water resources and discuss the challenges facing the sustainability of conventional water resources, particularly groundwater in UAE. CONVENTIONAL WATER RESOURCES STATUS The availability of surface water in the UAE is limited because of the low rainfall rate and high evaporation rates. Therefore, the perennial rivers and lakes are totally absent in the country. The forms of surface water that exist in the UAE are seasonal floods, springs and falajes. Surface water might occur in the UAE in the southern part of the mountainous areas (Al-Rashed and Sherif, 2000) and the northern part of Oman Mountains in the eastern part of the UAE temporarily. Floods might occur in the eastern region near the mountainous areas during and after heavy periods of precipitation due to the luck of porosity and permeability of igneous and metamorphic rocks that characterize the region. The total surface water in the UAE is estimated to be about 39.6 billion gallon/yr (Al-Rashed and Sherif, 2000). The government built 114 dams of different sizes with an approximate capacity of 30096 million gallons (MEW, personal communication, 2005) to stock floods water and to increase the amount of groundwater recharge to the aquifers. Groundwater which presents in many different aquifers is the main conventional water resources in the UAE. Based on the renewability of the water, groundwater resources in the UAE can be classified into renewable resources and non-renewable resources. The renewable water resources are mostly in shallow alluvial aquifers, whereas nonrenewable water resources occur in deep aquifers. The amount of water in shallow aquifer is relatively small because it mainly depends on rainfall which is rare and its amount might differ from one year to another. Groundwater dependence is relatively high in the country which reflects the heavy use of groundwater for different purposes. The dependence on groundwater in the UAE is about 45% of the total annual renewable water resources (Kansoh, et al., 2003). The estimated use of groundwater in the country is 237600 million gallons, whereas the input to the aquifers is about 33000 million gallons (Uitto and Shneider, 1997). Four main aquifers are encountered in the UAE. These aquifers are the limestone aquifer in the north and southeast, the ophiolite aquifer in the east, gravel aquifers adjacent to the eastern mountain ranges on the east and west of the ophiolite aquifer, and sand dune aquifers in the south and west. The flow of groundwater is from mountainous areas in Northern Oman Mountains and Ruus Al Jibal in the north toward the east and west to southwest. Therefore, recharge occurs in the mountainous areas and discharges into the Gulf of Oman and the Arabian Gulf (Fig.4). Groundwater production in the UAE in 1996 was 34,692,21 million gallons, and it was produced by the Federal Electricity & Water Authority (FEWA), and the local Water and Electricity Authorities in Abu Dhabi, Al Ain, Dubai and Sharjah (Rizk, 1999). The total groundwater production in the country in 2006 was 20033.93 million gallons as compared to the 35557.25 million gallons in 2000. It is clear from the above values that groundwater is decreasing with time.

Figure. 4: Groundwater flow map for the United Arab Emirates (modified from Hutchinson, 1996). CHALLENGES FACING THE SUSTAINABILITY OF CONVENTIONAL WATAR RESOURCES The conventional water resources in the country are decreasing with time and the availability of these resources is limited at present time. There are many constrains facing the sustainability of conventional water resources in the country. The natural location of the country in the arid zone has negative impacts on the sustainability of groundwater. As evaporation increases, the loss of surface water will increase and this is evident in the precipitated water in which about 75% of precipitated water is lost due to evaporation (MAF-currently MEW, 2005). In addition, groundwater is subject to evaporation if the water level is close to the ground surface (Fetter, 2001) and this will reduce the amount of groundwater. Over the last few years, the quality of groundwater in the UAE has deteriorated significantly. Besides the harsh climatic conditions of the country, there are many reasons for the deterioration of groundwater quality. The reasons for this deterioration are the increase in water demand, which is related to heavy pumping of groundwater, in human activities and the low amount of recharge of main aquifers in the UAE. Groundwater salinity is one of the consequences of rapid development that harms the integrity of the water resources that have developed over time. The salinity of the groundwater is a limiting factor for different uses and this problem may also restrict the development and sustainability of water resources in the country. The sources of salinity are different from one location to another. The quality of the groundwater in

the UAE is changing and salinity is increasing with the elapse of time. The salinity of groundwater in Wadi Al Bih tripled and groundwater salinity in some locations of the Liwa Oasis rose to 3 - 5 times during the last 30 years. In Al Dhaid area, groundwater doubled during the last three decades, while in Bu Hasa area, the salinity of groundwater in the south-eastern part of the area has tripled during the period of 19851996. The increasing groundwater salinity in Bu Hasa area might be attributed to the disposal of oil-field brines in unlined pits (Alsharahan et al., 2001 and Rizk and Alsharahan, 2003). The continuous depletion of groundwater levels is another problem that might harm groundwater quality due to the imbalance between the annual recharge and the discharge. Currently, several wells in the eastern and northern parts of the country have gone dry due to the lack of sufficient groundwater recharge and the heavy consumption of water for all purposes during the last three decades. According to the data obtained from FEWA, most of the wells show a significant drop in the water levels from September of 1999 to February of 2000. For example, the water level in Kidnah, Sharah and Al Bidiyah wells in the eastern part of the UAE declined by 12.58, 11.58 and 7.1 meters respectively. This might be attributed to the heavy pumping of groundwater and the low amount of precipitation in the region. This imbalance causes declination in the water table and the introduction of seawater in freshwater and the uprising of highly saline formation. It is observed that the cone of depression ranges from 50 to 100 Km in diameter which exists in Al-Dhaid, Hatta, Al Ain and Liwa areas. Seawater intrusion can develop in many areas due to different possible sources. These sources include: salt-water intrusion from the sea in coastal areas and the lateral movement of saline water from sabkha areas or upwelling of saline water from lower stratigraphic units into shallow aquifers (Rizk and Alsharhan, 2003). Groundwater in most areas of the country is affected by salt-water intrusion such as in Al Ain area which resulted from excessive pumping of groundwater (Garamoon, 1996). The problem of salt-water intrusion existed in Ras Al Khaimah, Al Dhaid, Dibba, Kalba, Dubai, Jabal Al Dhanah, Madinat Zayed, Liwa and Al Ain areas (Rizk and Alsharhan, 2003 and Murad, 2004). The percentage of intrusion differs from one location to another because of many factors. These factors might be closeness to the seawater and sabkha areas, the disposal of oil-field brines, and the excessive pumping from shallow aquifers. Evaporation is one of the processes that affect water quality and increase water salinity because of the location of the country in an arid zone. Recent studies conducted by Murad and Krishnamurthy (2004) and Murad (2004) using stable isotopes of oxygen and hydrogen and also isotope of chlorine-36 showed that primary and secondary evaporation of precipitation and surface water are deteriorating water quality. Based on these studies, seawater intrusion has been determined to range from <1% to 4%. Also, different human activities and water usage for agriculture and industrial purposes are threats to the water quality through contamination. This contamination will limit the availability of freshwater which will provoke a serious. This might extend and harm our future generations if immediate action is not taken. The oil industry and agricultural practices are becoming key components in groundwater contamination in the region. The oil industry can deteriorate the water quality by increasing its salinity

because of the presence of oil-field brines, as in Bu Hasa area in the western region of Abu Dhabi Emirate. The occurrence of oil spills might contaminate groundwater and introduce hydrocarbon contamination to the environment with time. The UAE has faced events of oil spills that affected marine environment and might also reach coastal aquifers with time. These recent oil spills occurred on March 31, 1994; January 5, 1998; January 24, 2000; and April 6, 2001. As a result during some of those accidents, the desalination plants have did not function (Howari, 2004). Another source of hydrocarbon contamination of the soil, surface water and later on to groundwater is the leakage from diesel machines used to pump groundwater to the surface for irrigation purposes. These diesel machines are located within the vicinity of the well. The author observed leakage of oil from these machines directly into the hand-dug well (Figs. 5 & 6).

Figure 5: Photo showing a diesel machine pump used in old farms in the eastern part of the UAE. Note that these diesels are associated with dug wells (Photograph by Ahmed A. Murad, March of 2002).

Figure 6: Photo showing a diesel machine pump in the vicinity of a dug well in the eastern part of the UAE. Also, soil contamination is observed (Photography by Ahmed A. Murad, March of 2002). The agricultural activities are with time a major concern for the Untied Arab Emirates. Increase in the cultivated areas and the use of different types of fertilizers and pesticides have led to serious contamination of the groundwater. A high concentration of nitrate (NO3-) was observed Wadi Al Bih in the north of the country, the south of Dubai, Al Ain, Al Khaznah, Madinat Zayed and Liwa areas in the western part of the UAE. The concentration of nitrate in shallow groundwater in some localities in the UAE has reached 100 mg/l. Murad (2004) noticed that the concentrations of nitrate in eastern part of the UAE (Eastern Gravel Plain Aquifer) increased and this is supported by a positive correlation between the NO3- and K+ in groundwater in the area. The economic development of the country and the population growth require the availability of sufficient quantities of water. Continuous growth of the population, the rise in living standards and the development of industrial and agricultural sectors in the country have increased the demand of water significantly. Theses factors as well as the low amount of rainfall have created severe shortage in the quantity of groundwater and increased a demand for water for different purposes. It is projected that the demand for water in eastern and northern parts of the UAE will reach 584.8 and 606.1 million gallons/day by 2010 and 2015 respectively (FEWA, 2002). Population growth in the UAE has increased the pressure on water resources and as the population increased, the production of desalinated water increased by 106.8% and groundwater production decreased by 43.7% during from 2000 to 2006. The population of UAE increased from 3247000 in 2000 to 5065000 in 2006 (Ministry of Interior, 2007), while the groundwater production in the UAE decreased from 35557.25 million gallon in 2000 to 20033.93 million gallons in 2006 (Fig. 7). The production of desalinated water in UAE increased from 134412.8 million gallons in 2000 to 277942.14 million gallons in 2006 (Fig. 8) (ADWEA, 2007; DEWA, 2007; SEWA, 2007 & FEWA, 2007) to cover

the deficits of conventional water resources.

Figure 7: Relationship between groundwater production and the population in UAE.

Figure 8: Relationship between desalinated water production and the population in UAE. In order to cope with the limited water resources in the UAE, a national environmental strategy for water resources has been implemented. The main objective of this strategy is to plan and manage water resources through the implementation of the water management policy which covers all aspects of water use. The major elements of planning and management of water resources are the development of water policies and capacity building in water resources management. The management of groundwater can be achieved through conservation of groundwater and documentation and licensing of groundwater abstractions. In addition, desalination can be sustained

by conducting a research to assess the impact of increasing the desalination production on marine environment and by building a national capacity in desalination (FEA, 2002). It is obvious that water is one of the most critical natural resource issues in the Arabian Peninsula in general and UAE in particular. Great efforts and actions have been taken seriously by decision makers in the country to face the challenge of water shortage because the availability of water resources will disappear within the next 20 years unless the use of freshwater is reduced and water resources are properly managed. Saving the future generations and protecting the economic development of the country are main objectives of the government. To achieve these goals, water resources should be available in sufficient quantity and quality for different uses in order to attain sustainability. CONCLUSIONS The availability of groundwater in many parts of the UAE has been reduced drastically due to the lack of significant replenishment, intensive abstraction by an increase in municipal wellfields production and the increase in agricultural development. Rapid development activities such as infrastructures and urban/rural expansion have caused dramatic changes in the geomorphologic features of the region. These have caused reflective effect in water resources of UAE. Groundwater as a main source for supplying water for different uses has been reduced significantly due to reduction of the quantity of water in major aquifers and deterioration of the quality of groundwater. To meet the high demands, desalination plants and wastewater treatment plants have been established in many parts of the country. Launching more desalination and wastewater treatment plants will help to reduce the pressure on the conventional water resources. These plants might help increase the quantity of groundwater and improve its quality. The population growth increased the pressure on the water resources by increasing the production of desalinated water, which is costly, and decreasing the production of groundwater. The national water resources management has been improved and developed through the implementation of a water management policy. REFERENCES
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