Dubai company Terraplus uses underground technology to water palm trees. It claims this could save up to a trillion litres of water a year in the UAE if widely adopted by date farmers. All photos by Antonie Robertson / The National
Dubai company Terraplus uses underground technology to water palm trees. It claims this could save up to a trillion litres of water a year in the UAE if widely adopted by date farmers. All photos by Antonie Robertson / The National
Khalil Ur Rahman, who works closely with the Terraplus project, shows water seeping through the company's unique underground watering system. It allows water to reach the roots, which often clog up traditional underground pipe systems
Khalil Ur Rahman, who works closely with the Terraplus project, shows water seeping through the company's unique underground watering system. It allows water to reach the roots, which often clog up traditional underground pipe systems
Traditional topsoil watering 'bubblers', like the one pictured, have an evaporation rate of about 30 per cent
Traditional topsoil watering 'bubblers', like the one pictured, have an evaporation rate of about 30 per cent
Khalil Ur Rahman checks a water flow meter on a traditional watering bubbler used for irrigation in the UAE
Khalil Ur Rahman checks a water flow meter on a traditional watering bubbler used for irrigation in the UAE
The Terraplus system may save water in the UAE if date farmers adopt the technology
The Terraplus system may save water in the UAE if date farmers adopt the technology
The Dubai firm claim its system could save the country up to a trillion litres a year
The Dubai firm claim its system could save the country up to a trillion litres a year
Terraplus co-founders Patrick Stevens and Nicolas Bruylants with an above-ground display of the system
Terraplus co-founders Patrick Stevens and Nicolas Bruylants with an above-ground display of the system

UAE

Environment

World Water Week: lower consumption not increase supply, Unesco expert says

Prof David Hannah says daily water use in the UAE averages 550 litres per person, one of the highest in the world

Daniel Bardsley
Daniel Bardsley

March 21, 2022

  • English
  • Arabic

At a time of population growth and increasing concern about climate change, countries such as the UAE should look at ways to limit demand for water, a leading expert has said.

While discussions concerning water often centre on how to maintain or increase supply, Prof David Hannah, a Unesco chairman in water science at the University of Birmingham in the UK, said that was just part of the equation.

Speaking to The National ahead of taking part in a World Majlis to be held at Expo 2020 Dubai on World Water Day on Tuesday, March 22, he said progress could be made by reducing water demand from agriculture and changes to individual behaviour.

We really need to consider the demand side. That’s particularly important given the population has grown
Prof David Hannah

“We really need to consider the demand side,” he said. “That’s particularly important given the population has grown.”

He noted daily water use in the UAE averages 550 litres per person, “one of the highest” figures globally.

Greater efforts to re-use water and behavioural change could help to limit demand, Prof Hannah added, as could regulation to encourage water conservation and the need to consider the cost of water.

In the region as a whole, Prof Hannah noted agriculture consumed large quantities of water, accounting for as much as 70 per cent of demand, compared to 20 per cent for households and 10 per cent for industry.

“A large proportion is used for agriculture,” he said. “How subsidies are provided for water-intensive crops has to be thought through.”

In terms of their own impact, people should consider not just their personal use, but also how their food and other goods, such as clothing, impacts on demand for water as part of an individual’s “global water footprint”, Prof Hannah said.

Demand for water goes up as population surges

Globally, freshwater use has grown several-fold over the past century as the world’s population has increased.

According to OurWorldinData, using figures from the Global International Geosphere-Biosphere Programme (IGBP), total global freshwater withdrawal – water taken from ground or surface resources – was 671.31 million cubic metres in 1901.

In 2014, the last year for which the IGBP compiled figures, the total was 3.99 trillion cubic metres.

While water use in the UAE is several times that in many other nations, efforts have been made to limit consumption for a number of years.

For example, in 2010 the Environment Agency Abu Dhabi launched a “Watersavers” campaign to install water-saving devices in the emirate’s domestic, government, educational, religious and industrial buildings.

Professor David Hannah will be giving a speech at Expo 2020 Dubai on World Water Day. Photo: David Hannah
Professor David Hannah will be giving a speech at Expo 2020 Dubai on World Water Day. Photo: David Hannah

The UAE has also become an important centre for hydroponic agriculture, in which plants are grown in nutrient solutions instead of soil and water use is a fraction of that of conventional agriculture.

Amid high demand for water, the effects of climate change add another layer of uncertainty because, Prof Hannah said, it was clear temperatures in the region would increase, but forecasts for precipitation range from a 20 per cent decrease to a 10 per cent increase.

Putting people in the water cycle

At Expo 2020 Dubai, Prof Hannah will be giving a speech at Terra – The Sustainability Pavilion on the Price of Water.

As part of his role holding a Unesco chair in water science, he is keen to improve education about the water cycle, the term for how water moves and is stored in the different atmosphere, land and ocean compartments of the cycle.

He is also keen that the influence of people on the water cycle is recognised.

An international research project Prof Hannah was involved with looked at 450 diagrams of the water cycle in a range of media, including textbooks and scientific articles.

Read More

Software could help to save up to 80 per cent of water used on UAE farms

It was found that 85 per cent of diagrams did not depict people in the water cycle, despite the significant role humans have, while just two per cent of diagrams featured climate change and two per cent pollution.

“That made us feel the water cycle is misrepresented, because people do have an effect on the water cycle,” he said.

“There’s a lack of awareness of how people relate to water. That gives us a false sense of security about current and future availability of water.”

The effects people are having on water-related systems are significant but often not widely appreciated, he indicated, because wetlands are disappearing three times as fast as forests but do not get as much attention.

As well as water quantity, he said water quality was a critical issue, with an estimated 1.8 million people dying each year because of polluted water.

Hydroponics farming - in pictures

A Palestinian teenager plants lettuce at the Lajee Centre’s hydroponic rooftop garden in the Aida refugee camp near Bethlehem on October 22, 2021. Photos by Heidi Levine for The National
A Palestinian teenager plants lettuce at the Lajee Centre’s hydroponic rooftop garden in the Aida refugee camp near Bethlehem on October 22, 2021. Photos by Heidi Levine for The National
Lettuce, parsley and green onions grown on the community rooftop garden.
Lettuce, parsley and green onions grown on the community rooftop garden.
Majd Khawaja, 26, with Palestinian teenagers attending a workshop on hydroponic farming at the rooftop garden.
Majd Khawaja, 26, with Palestinian teenagers attending a workshop on hydroponic farming at the rooftop garden.
The garden does away with the need for soil and, instead, relies on nutrients flowing through water to grow plants.
The garden does away with the need for soil and, instead, relies on nutrients flowing through water to grow plants.
Residents of Aida refugee camp, which is in the occupied West Bank, created the rooftop garden in 2014.
Residents of Aida refugee camp, which is in the occupied West Bank, created the rooftop garden in 2014.
Cucumber plants grown on the rooftop garden.
Cucumber plants grown on the rooftop garden.
Hydroponic farming entails pumping air, water and nutrients through a system that allows plants to grow at a faster pace than they would in soil.
Hydroponic farming entails pumping air, water and nutrients through a system that allows plants to grow at a faster pace than they would in soil.
The initiative seeks to teach refugees facing water shortages how to grow healthy food using sustainable techniques.
The initiative seeks to teach refugees facing water shortages how to grow healthy food using sustainable techniques.
Shatha Alazzeh, head of the Lajee Centre’s environmental unit, checks a lettuce plant on the rooftop garden.
Shatha Alazzeh, head of the Lajee Centre’s environmental unit, checks a lettuce plant on the rooftop garden.
Aida residents who are part of the community centre’s health programme help to look after the plants and take the produce home.
Aida residents who are part of the community centre’s health programme help to look after the plants and take the produce home.
The rooftop garden, as seen from the entrance to the Aida refugee camp near Bethlehem.
The rooftop garden, as seen from the entrance to the Aida refugee camp near Bethlehem.
Palestinian teenager Saaden Alan ,14, plants lettuce during a workshop held at the rooftop garden.
Palestinian teenager Saaden Alan ,14, plants lettuce during a workshop held at the rooftop garden.
A parsley plant grown in a plastic cup using hydroponic farming techniques.
A parsley plant grown in a plastic cup using hydroponic farming techniques.
Palestinian teenagers with lettuce they intend to plant on the rooftop garden.
Palestinian teenagers with lettuce they intend to plant on the rooftop garden.
Hydroponic pipe systems allow for innovative farming techniques that save water and also avoid the use of pesticides.
Hydroponic pipe systems allow for innovative farming techniques that save water and also avoid the use of pesticides.
Transforming corners of the camp into gardens will not remove the need to buy vegetables grown elsewhere but has the potential to improve the community’s resilience.
Transforming corners of the camp into gardens will not remove the need to buy vegetables grown elsewhere but has the potential to improve the community’s resilience.
The team behind the project hope to take it to other refugee camps in the West Bank and also to Gaza, Lebanon and Jordan.
The team behind the project hope to take it to other refugee camps in the West Bank and also to Gaza, Lebanon and Jordan.
Rooftops are the only option left for Aida inhabitants who lack arable land but are interested in growing their own crops.
Rooftops are the only option left for Aida inhabitants who lack arable land but are interested in growing their own crops.
On Women's Day
Tearful appearance

Chancellor Rachel Reeves set markets on edge as she appeared visibly distraught in parliament on Wednesday. 

Legislative setbacks for the government have blown a new hole in the budgetary calculations at a time when the deficit is stubbornly large and the economy is struggling to grow. 

She appeared with Keir Starmer on Thursday and the pair embraced, but he had failed to give her his backing as she cried a day earlier.

A spokesman said her upset demeanour was due to a personal matter.

Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
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The specs
  • Engine: 3.9-litre twin-turbo V8
  • Power: 640hp
  • Torque: 760nm
  • On sale: 2026
  • Price: Not announced yet
SPEC%20SHEET%3A%20NOTHING%20PHONE%20(2A)
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EDisplay%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%206.7-inch%20flexible%20Amoled%2C%202%2C412%20x%201%2C080%2C%20394ppi%2C%20120Hz%2C%20Corning%20Gorilla%20Glass%205%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EProcessor%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20MediaTek%20Dimensity%207%2C200%20Pro%2C%204nm%2C%20octa-core%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EMemory%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%208%2F12GB%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ECapacity%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20128%2F256GB%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EPlatform%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Android%2014%2C%20Nothing%20OS%202.5%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EMain%20camera%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Dual%2050MP%20main%2C%20f%2F1.88%20%2B%2050MP%20ultra-wide%2C%20f%2F2.2%3B%20OIS%2C%20EIS%2C%20auto-focus%2C%20ultra%20XDR%2C%20night%20mode%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EMain%20camera%20video%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%204K%20%40%2030fps%2C%20full-HD%20%40%2060fps%3B%20slo-mo%20full-HD%20at%20120fps%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EFront%20camera%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%2032MP%20wide%2C%20f%2F2.2%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EBattery%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%205%2C000mAh%3B%2050%25%20in%2030%20minutes%20with%2045-watt%20charger%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EConnectivity%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Wi-Fi%2C%20Bluetooth%205.3%2C%20NFC%20(Google%20Pay)%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EBiometrics%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Fingerprint%2C%20face%20unlock%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EI%2FO%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20USB-C%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EDurability%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20IP54%2C%20limited%20protection%20from%20water%2Fdust%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ECards%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Dual-nano%20SIM%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EColours%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Black%2C%20milk%2C%20white%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EIn%20the%20box%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Nothing%20Phone%20(2a)%2C%20USB-C-to-USB-C%20cable%2C%20pre-applied%20screen%20protector%2C%20Sim%20tray%20ejector%20tool%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EPrice%20(UAE)%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Dh1%2C199%20(8GB%2F128GB)%20%2F%20Dh1%2C399%20(12GB%2F256GB)%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Kareem Shaheen on Canada
While you're here
The five new places of worship

Church of South Indian Parish

St Andrew's Church Mussaffah branch

St Andrew's Church Al Ain branch

St John's Baptist Church, Ruwais

Church of the Virgin Mary and St Paul the Apostle, Ruwais

 

If you go

The flights Etihad (www.etihad.com) and Spice Jet (www.spicejet.com) fly direct from Abu Dhabi and Dubai to Pune respectively from Dh1,000 return including taxes. Pune airport is 90 minutes away by road. 

The hotels A stay at Atmantan Wellness Resort (www.atmantan.com) costs from Rs24,000 (Dh1,235) per night, including taxes, consultations, meals and a treatment package.
 

How to help

Call the hotline on 0502955999 or send "thenational" to the following numbers:

2289 - Dh10

2252 - Dh50

6025 - Dh20

6027 - Dh100

6026 - Dh200

While you're here
Our legal consultant

Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais

Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.

Killing of Qassem Suleimani
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Key facilities
  • Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
  • Premier League-standard football pitch
  • 400m Olympic running track
  • NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
  • 600-seat auditorium
  • Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
  • An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
  • Specialist robotics and science laboratories
  • AR and VR-enabled learning centres
  • Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
On Women's Day
Major honours

ARSENAL

  • FA Cup - 2005

BARCELONA

  • La Liga - 2013
  • Copa del Rey - 2012
  • Fifa Club World Cup - 2011

CHELSEA

  • Premier League - 2015, 2017
  • FA Cup - 2018
  • League Cup - 2015

SPAIN

  • World Cup - 2010
  • European Championship - 2008, 2012
'Young girls thinking of big ideas'

Words come easy for aspiring writer Afra Al Muhairb. The business side of books, on the other hand, is entirely foreign to the 16-year-old Emirati. So, she followed her father’s advice and enroled in the Abu Dhabi Education Council’s summer entrepreneurship course at Abu Dhabi University hoping to pick up a few new skills.

“Most of us have this dream of opening a business,” said Afra, referring to her peers are “young girls thinking of big ideas.”

In the three-week class, pupils are challenged to come up with a business and develop an operational and marketing plan to support their idea. But, the learning goes far beyond sales and branding, said teacher Sonia Elhaj.

“It’s not only about starting up a business, it’s all the meta skills that goes with it -- building self confidence, communication,” said Ms Elhaj. “It’s a way to coach them and to harness ideas and to allow them to be creative. They are really hungry to do this and be heard. They are so happy to be actually doing something, to be engaged in creating something new, not only sitting and listening and getting new information and new knowledge. Now they are applying that knowledge.”

Afra’s team decided to focus their business idea on a restaurant modelled after the Leaning Tower of Pisa. Each level would have a different international cuisine and all the meat would be halal. The pupils thought of this after discussing a common problem they face when travelling abroad.

“Sometimes we find the struggle of finding halal food, so we just eat fish and cheese, so it’s hard for us to spend 20 days with fish and cheese,” said Afra. “So we made this tower so every person who comes – from Africa, from America – they will find the right food to eat.”

rpennington@thenational.ae

Scorecard:

England 458 & 119/1 (51.0 ov)

South Africa 361

England lead by 216 runs with 9 wickets remaining

The results of the first round are as follows:

Qais Saied (Independent): 18.4 per cent

Nabil Karoui (Qalb Tounes): 15.58 per cent

Abdelfattah Mourou (Ennahdha party): 12.88 per cent

Abdelkarim Zbidi (two-time defence minister backed by Nidaa Tounes party): 10.7 per cent

Youssef Chahed (former prime minister, leader of Long Live Tunisia): 7.3 per cent

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Ibrahim's play list

Completed an electrical diploma at the Adnoc Technical Institute

Works as a public relations officer with Adnoc

Apart from the piano, he plays the accordion, oud and guitar

His favourite composer is Johann Sebastian Bach

Also enjoys listening to Mozart

Likes all genres of music including Arabic music and jazz

Enjoys rock groups Scorpions and Metallica 

Other musicians he likes are Syrian-American pianist Malek Jandali and Lebanese oud player Rabih Abou Khalil

While you're here
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Transmission: Constant Variable (CVT)

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ZAYED SUSTAINABILITY PRIZE
Winners

Best Men's Player of the Year: Kylian Mbappe (PSG)

Maradona Award for Best Goal Scorer of the Year: Robert Lewandowski (Bayern Munich)

TikTok Fans’ Player of the Year: Robert Lewandowski

Top Goal Scorer of All Time: Cristiano Ronaldo (Manchester United)

Best Women's Player of the Year: Alexia Putellas (Barcelona)

Best Men's Club of the Year: Chelsea

Best Women's Club of the Year: Barcelona

Best Defender of the Year: Leonardo Bonucci (Juventus/Italy)

Best Goalkeeper of the Year: Gianluigi Donnarumma (PSG/Italy)

Best Coach of the Year: Roberto Mancini (Italy)

Best National Team of the Year: Italy 

Best Agent of the Year: Federico Pastorello

Best Sporting Director of the Year: Txiki Begiristain (Manchester City)

Player Career Award: Ronaldinho

Yahya Al Ghassani's bio

Date of birth: April 18, 1998

Playing position: Winger

Clubs: 2015-2017 – Al Ahli Dubai; March-June 2018 – Paris FC; August – Al Wahda

Landfill in numbers

• Landfill gas is composed of 50 per cent methane

• Methane is 28 times more harmful than Co2 in terms of global warming

• 11 million total tonnes of waste are being generated annually in Abu Dhabi

• 18,000 tonnes per year of hazardous and medical waste is produced in Abu Dhabi emirate per year

• 20,000 litres of cooking oil produced in Abu Dhabi’s cafeterias and restaurants every day is thrown away

• 50 per cent of Abu Dhabi’s waste is from construction and demolition

TO A LAND UNKNOWN

Director: Mahdi Fleifel

Starring: Mahmoud Bakri, Aram Sabbah, Mohammad Alsurafa

Rating: 4.5/5

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MATCH INFO

Uefa Champions League semi-final, second leg result:

Ajax 2-3 Tottenham

Tottenham advance on away goals rule after tie ends 3-3 on aggregate

Final: June 1, Madrid

F1 The Movie

Starring: Brad Pitt, Damson Idris, Kerry Condon, Javier Bardem

Director: Joseph Kosinski

Rating: 4/5

In 2018, the ICRC received 27,756 trace requests in the Middle East alone. The global total was 45,507.

 

There are 139,018 global trace requests that have not been resolved yet, 55,672 of these are in the Middle East region.

 

More than 540,000 individuals approached the ICRC in the Middle East asking to be reunited with missing loved ones in 2018.

 

The total figure for the entire world was 654,000 in 2018.

FIXTURES (all times UAE)

Sunday
Brescia v Lazio (3.30pm)
SPAL v Verona (6pm)
Genoa v Sassuolo (9pm)
AS Roma v Torino (11.45pm)

Monday
Bologna v Fiorentina (3.30pm)
AC Milan v Sampdoria (6pm)
Juventus v Cagliari (6pm)
Atalanta v Parma (6pm)
Lecce v Udinese (9pm)
Napoli v Inter Milan (11.45pm)

Benefits of first-time home buyers' scheme
  • Priority access to new homes from participating developers
  • Discounts on sales price of off-plan units
  • Flexible payment plans from developers
  • Mortgages with better interest rates, faster approval times and reduced fees
  • DLD registration fee can be paid through banks or credit cards at zero interest rates
Jewel of the Expo 2020

252 projectors installed on Al Wasl dome

13.6km of steel used in the structure that makes it equal in length to 16 Burj Khalifas

550 tonnes of moulded steel were raised last year to cap the dome

724,000 cubic metres is the space it encloses

Stands taller than the leaning tower of Pisa

Steel trellis dome is one of the largest single structures on site

The size of 16 tennis courts and weighs as much as 500 elephants

Al Wasl means connection in Arabic

World’s largest 360-degree projection surface

Key figures in the life of the fort

Sheikh Dhiyab bin Isa (ruled 1761-1793) Built Qasr Al Hosn as a watchtower to guard over the only freshwater well on Abu Dhabi island.

Sheikh Shakhbut bin Dhiyab (ruled 1793-1816) Expanded the tower into a small fort and transferred his ruling place of residence from Liwa Oasis to the fort on the island.

Sheikh Tahnoon bin Shakhbut (ruled 1818-1833) Expanded Qasr Al Hosn further as Abu Dhabi grew from a small village of palm huts to a town of more than 5,000 inhabitants.

Sheikh Khalifa bin Shakhbut (ruled 1833-1845) Repaired and fortified the fort.

Sheikh Saeed bin Tahnoon (ruled 1845-1855) Turned Qasr Al Hosn into a strong two-storied structure.

Sheikh Zayed bin Khalifa (ruled 1855-1909) Expanded Qasr Al Hosn further to reflect the emirate's increasing prominence.

Sheikh Shakhbut bin Sultan (ruled 1928-1966) Renovated and enlarged Qasr Al Hosn, adding a decorative arch and two new villas.

Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan (ruled 1966-2004) Moved the royal residence to Al Manhal palace and kept his diwan at Qasr Al Hosn.

Sources: Jayanti Maitra, www.adach.ae

COMPANY%20PROFILE
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While you're here
What is a robo-adviser?

Robo-advisers use an online sign-up process to gauge an investor’s risk tolerance by feeding information such as their age, income, saving goals and investment history into an algorithm, which then assigns them an investment portfolio, ranging from more conservative to higher risk ones.

These portfolios are made up of exchange traded funds (ETFs) with exposure to indices such as US and global equities, fixed-income products like bonds, though exposure to real estate, commodity ETFs or gold is also possible.

Investing in ETFs allows robo-advisers to offer fees far lower than traditional investments, such as actively managed mutual funds bought through a bank or broker. Investors can buy ETFs directly via a brokerage, but with robo-advisers they benefit from investment portfolios matched to their risk tolerance as well as being user friendly.

Many robo-advisers charge what are called wrap fees, meaning there are no additional fees such as subscription or withdrawal fees, success fees or fees for rebalancing.

Updated: March 21, 2022, 3:47 AM`
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