{"id":11498,"date":"2020-11-10T09:39:26","date_gmt":"2020-11-10T09:39:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/cms.alj3.clients.lemonhq.io\/spotlight-fady-jameel\/past-the-salt-the-future-of-water-desalination\/"},"modified":"2026-09-02T21:50:26","modified_gmt":"2026-09-02T21:50:26","slug":"past-the-salt-the-future-of-water-desalination","status":"publish","type":"spotlight","link":"https:\/\/cms.alj3.clients.lemonhq.io\/en\/spotlight-by-fady-jameel\/past-the-salt-the-future-of-water-desalination\/","title":{"rendered":"Past the salt? The future of water desalination"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Although a vital element in many of the world\u2019s water systems, desalination has never quite reached its absolute full potential.  A combination of high costs, inefficient processes and environmental concerns have served to somewhat restrict its growth and divide opinions.  But that could be about to change.  Higher levels of investment and pioneering technological advances could finally see desalination establish itself as the lynchpin in the global fight against water scarcity.<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

By <\/em>Fady Jameel<\/em><\/a>, Deputy President and Vice Chairman, Abdul Latif Jameel<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The eye-watering reality of water scarcity<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Water scarcity is a humanitarian, economic, and ecological crisis.  The UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO<\/a>) recognizes it as one of the most urgent challenges for our society’s sustainable development.[1]<\/sup><\/a>   According to a recent report from UNICEF<\/a> and the World Health Organization (WHO<\/a>), 1 in 3 people in the world do not have access to safe drinking water.[2]<\/sup><\/a> <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The World Resources Institute<\/a> reveals that 17 countries\u2014home to one-quarter of the world\u2019s population\u2014face \u201cextremely high\u201d levels of baseline water stress.[3]<\/sup><\/a>  Twelve of these countries are in the Middle East and North Africa, where the arid climate is compounded by ever-increasing agricultural, industrial, and domestic water use.[4]<\/sup><\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Water scarcity is truly a global problem.  Massive, rapidly growing demand puts the US, China, and India in the danger zone.  In 2018, Cape Town was just 90 days away from turning off the taps.[5]<\/sup><\/a>  Even regions with a relative abundance of water can contribute to the problem.<\/p>\n\n\n

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\"Imprex<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

A study carried out as part of the EU\u2019s IMPREX<\/a>  project[6]<\/sup><\/a> (IMproving PRedictions and management of hydrological EXtremes), found that 38 percent of the EU\u2019s effective water consumption occurs beyond its borders in the production of goods and services \u2013 often by regions directly affected by water scarcity.[7]<\/sup><\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The supply of fresh water has been steadily decreasing while demand has been steadily rising.  In the 20th Century, the world\u2019s population quadrupled \u2013 but water use increased six-fold.[8]<\/sup><\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

By 2050, supply could decline up to 25 percent in many of the world\u2019s water basins.[9]<\/sup><\/a>   Within the next 30 years, World Bank experts<\/a> believe that water scarcity could cost some regions up to 6 percent of GDP and lead to mass migration and conflict.[10]<\/sup><\/a>  In contrast, these risks could be neutralized with better policy decisions, with some regions standing to improve their growth rates by up to 6 percent with better water resource management.<\/p>\n\n\n

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Water scarcity impacts several of the 17 United Nations (UN) Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), including Clean Water and Sanitation (SDG 6), Climate Action (SDG 13), Affordable and Clean Energy (SDG 7), and Zero Hunger (SDG 2).[11]<\/sup><\/a>  Climate change, in particular, is a significant cause for concern.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The FAO estimates that “for each one degree of global warming, 7 percent of the global population will see a decrease of 20 percent or more in renewable water resources”.[12]<\/sup><\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The answer is obvious.  We need more water.  Luckily, we are surrounded by it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Water, water everywhere<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

There is a slight problem, however.  Around 71 percent of the planet is covered in water, yet only 1 percent is fit for human consumption.  2 percent is frozen, and the rest lies in the oceans, lakes, groundwater, etc. (along with vast quantities of sodium, various other minerals, pollutants, and all marine life).<\/p>\n\n\n

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Turning water from the ocean into water that is fit for human use, let alone direct consumption, is not as easy a process as one might think, due largely to the large amount of salt and other impurities in sea water.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Water desalination is the process of extracting salt from seawater to create fresh water, which can be converted into ultrapure water for drinking or potable water for industry and agriculture. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Thermal desalination and membrane desalination are the two most popular methods. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Thermal desalination uses heat to evaporate water and separate it from the salt.  In membrane desalination, reverse osmosis (RO) exploits the natural process of osmosis, transferring water through semi-permeable membranes to remove salt and other impurities.  Many desalination plants also pretreat water to improve efficiency.<\/p>\n\n\n

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There are more than 17,000 desalination plants across 174 countries, producing 107 million cubic meters of desalinated water every day.[13]<\/sup><\/a>   Many countries simply could not function without it.  The Middle East accounts for just under half of total capacity, while Asia, China, the United States, and South America are scaling up their desalination capacity fast. <\/p>\n\n\n

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Saudi Arabia is extending its already significant desalination infrastructure.  And at a personal level, I am proud to say that Abdul Latif Jameel<\/a> is starting to play an increasingly significant role in this through Almar Water Solutions<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n

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\"Almar<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

Almar Water Solutions is a specialist provider of technical capabilities for water infrastructure development, including design, financing and operation.  It has proven to be the ideal complement sister company to Fotowatio Renewable Ventures<\/a>, (FRV) our flagship renewable energy business both a part of Abdul Latif Jameel Energy<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In January 2019, Almar Water Solutions was awarded the contract in Saudi Arabia to develop Al <\/u>Shuqaiq 3 IWP<\/a>, one of the world\u2019s largest reverse osmosis desalination plants.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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