Emerging Technology- An Answer to Water Issues in the Middle East: Nellie Swanepoel | |
Staff Writer |
Water infrastructure, including dams and wells that have enabled human development globally, were considered disruptive solutions for thousands of years. However, such technologies are now aging and losing relevance, especially in water-stressed regions such as the Middle East.
The 2023 Water Scarcity and Climate Change Enabling Environment Analysis for Global Water, Sanitation, & Hygiene (WASH) Middle East and North Africa report by the Stockholm International Water Institute (SIWI) and United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) stated that in 2018, the majority of the most water-stressed countries globally were located in the region, with 14 out of 17 falling within this category, including the top six.
Today in 2023, it is sad to report that all of these outlooks reported are accurate.
It is important to note that the level of water stress does not provide information about a country’s readiness to manage water stress impact. The assessment of readiness is actually structured using the Sanitation and Water for All (SWA) enabling environment building blocks (SWA, n.d.): “Policy and Strategy.”
“Institutional Arrangements,” “Financing,” “Capacity Development,” and “Planning, Monitoring and Review” are led by technological innovation whereby new and emerging inventions should see human civilisation through the 21st century and, with any luck, the next 10,000 years.
In an exclusive interview with Nellie Swanepoel, CEO and President and CEO of JDCExec International, also known as ‘The Water Lady,’ about the region's water challenges, she said, “Water will continue to be available, but not necessarily in the form and place we require it to be.”
Despite the world's population reaching 8 billion, the overall quantity of water available remains constant over time due to the natural cycle of evaporation, condensation in the clouds, reuse, and dissipation of water.
“However, climate change has created a shift as the same amount of water is not accumulated in the same place. Some areas receive less water than expected, while others receive more. The Middle East is one of those areas receiving even lesser water today.
“What we are seeing now is that even in the Middle East, population growth is increasing at a fast pace. With this population growth, we need more industries and food networks.”
The Middle East mainly uses desalination technology for its freshwater needs. The energy-intensive produces substantial carbon emissions and, potentially, environment-harming waste called brine (made up of concentrated salt and chemical residues), which is discarded into the ocean, injected underground or spread on land.
However, even with new technologies available, according to the WHO, 1.6 million people (globally) will continue to die each year from diarrheal diseases caused by no access to safe and clean drinking water.
“According to statistical analyses, 48% of the world's desalination happens in the Middle East. Although technology has improved so much, it is still a challenge. Looking back into that original thermal desalination, it is important to note that for every three litres of seawater, one generates one litre of drinking water while the other two litres are released back into the ocean as brine. It is also high in energy demand. However, today Reverse Osmosis is a widely utilised membrane technology for seawater desalination that produces more freshwater and minimizes the brine concentrate produced.
I've recently read an article about new graphene membranes that are being tested. This new technology will use considerably less electricity; from three litres of seawater, one can generate almost two litres of drinkable water.
Yet, desalination has an impact on the ocean life in the region. And when we look at sustainability, I really believe that we need to look at the full circle. The Middle East region still requires enough water. However, with rapid implementation of new and disruptive solutions, we can reduce and minimise the impact on the oceans,” she said.
Maskam Water, a firm that provides water and wastewater solutions, represented by Nellie Swanepoel, uses Blue Lagoon UV-C Saltwater technology. Blue Lagoon UV-C technology is an environmentally friendly and safe way to purify water. UV-C breaks down chloramines that cause the unpleasant odour of chlorine and helps prevent physical symptoms such as red eyes, skin irritation and breathing difficulties.
It also protects bathers against pathogens such as moulds, viruses and bacteria. It's the most efficient purification technique to add to spa, hot tub and pool filter systems.
It is specially developed for saltwater and seawater pools.
By rethinking what we are doing, we need to reduce our water consumption, retain water and wastewater onsite and reuse the wastewater onsite.
Traditional thinking is the linear approach. Potable water, sewage water and recycled sewage water are sent through three different pipe distribution systems.
The new thinking resulted in reducing desalination by reusing wastewater onsite. It is called the circular approach.
Swanepoel said, " The Fusion and Blue Lagoon UV offers onsite wastewater treatment using UV light as disinfection technology. The fusion does not need a distribution or pipework network. You can take sewage, black-, yellow-, and grey water and treat them on-site for reuse in communities, new developments, schools, and irrigation for golf courses. You can use it everywhere for toilet flushing and irrigation. This technology reduces the demand for desalination as well as the loading on central sewage plants.
Fusion Wastewater Treatment plants are drop-in wastewater treatment units designed for use in decentralized applications where the effluent quality needs to meet or exceed DWS (drinking water systems) standards. The first Fusion was installed in Franschhoek, South Africa, in 2010, and today, more than 300 units have been installed in 8 different countries on the African continent. The Fusion is designed for use in residential, commercial, and community applications and is available in various treatment capacities, from 1,500 to 15,000 litres per day. The Fusion’s unique design enables it to be installed without a pre-treatment tank, making it ideal for use on sites where space is limited. Effluent disposal options include conventional trenches, dams, irrigation or direct discharge.
“The technology was tested in America and Africa and has NSF approval. And can you imagine if we can use this reused water and we can build green spaces all around us? This can also help with the region’s Food, Energy and Water Nexus. The fusion can operate on solar energy and uses very little electricity.”
Furthering the same point, Swanepoel mentioned that the solution was successfully deployed in African schools, where children are trained to grow vegetables and food using Fusion and UV technology during irrigation. This helps the children understand agricultural processes and the use of sustainable technology.
"The results are fascinating. This reduced water usage immediately. In some of the poorer areas of Africa, building double-clamping toilets also helped. This is how we can address the World Health Organisation and the United Nations’ goals to make sure that everybody has the right to clean sanitation, is put in action. Because Fusion and UV technology allows us to teach children how to fish and not give them a fish," Swanepoel said.
Challenges To Wastewater Reuse In The Middle East And North Africa Implementing Policies And Ambitious Targets To Drive Change: GCC countries have set regional targets to increase reclaimed and treated sewage effluent use to 90% by 2035 through the different GCC countries’ strategies. All six GCC countries have announced plans to spend on wastewater infrastructure investment averaging a combined US$21 billion.
The GCC countries have set initiatives and targets to not only retrofit but also build a significant new wastewater treatment and collection network capacity. Although the GCC countries have long relied on groundwater supplies, they are now getting to exhaustion points, forcing countries to look for alternative supplies. Through technological advancements, reclaimed water is more cost-effective than desalination.
Reuse is highly cost-effective in the GCC compared to the high-cost alternatives, especially once it moves onsite without distribution networks.
Furthermore, many corporates are taking measures into their own hands. For example, Proctor and Gamble announced that by the end of 2023, 100% of P&G’s manufacturing sites would be located in high-water stress areas, including the Jeddah and Dammam, Saudi Arabia plants will develop a water stewardship action plan.
“In most countries, including the Middle East, up to 80% of the wastewater and sewerage water is treated. Unfortunately, most of the effluent is pumped into the ocean because of the lack of water distribution networks. Reusing this treated water onsite will reduce the requirement for desalination.
"This is why fusion technology is amazing because you can treat the water at the point of usage. You don't need to spend unnecessarily on infrastructure, installation or maintenance." This technology uses less electricity. It can be located closer to raw materials, cutting down transportation costs and carbon emissions,” she said.
A Path Towards A Better Future
Nellie Swanepoel loves mentoring and educating younger and older generations about water conservation. She mentors bright young people and learns from them. She has a learning spirit. She loves spending time with her family and reading when she is not involved in education.