With new predictions that water scarcity in the Middle East and North Africa will worsen, conserving groundwater resources as part of the region’s water security strategy is becoming more urgent.

A recent study by the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact and Research, published in the journal Environmental Research Letters, concludes that an expected rise of 3.5°C in global mean temperature by the end of the century will expose 668 million people worldwide to new or aggravated water scarcity, on top of the 1.3 billion currently living in water-scarce regions.

The problem will be even more severe in arid regions such as the Middle East with these expected changes in climate delivering less rain and further diminishing the availability of scarce groundwater resources.

Conserving precious groundwater resources, which, as an example, accounts for 63.3 per cent of water resources in the emirate of Abu Dhabi in the UAE, will be a key focus of the Sustainable Water Solutions Village at the 2nd International Water Summit (IWS) from 20-22 January 2014 in Abu Dhabi, hosted by Masdar.

The Sustainable Water Solutions Village at IWS 2014 will bring together global ideas, best practices and think-tanks that have been successfully implemented in water-scarce communities to achieve water sustainability and conserve natural resources.

“Conserving groundwater is a major social and environmental issue across the region, and the new predictions outlined in recent studies shows the issues will get worse if urgent action is not taken,” said Ara Fernezian, Managing Director- Middle East for Reed Exhibitions, organizer of the 2nd International Water Summit. “However, it also opens a range of commercial opportunities, with over $300 billion of investment on water projects being planned by governments in GCC countries by 2022. The Sustainable Water Solutions Village at IWS 2014 will provide many successful ideas for investing in and managing these projects to address the water scarcity challenges.”

“The success of the Sustainable Water Solutions Village at this year’s inaugural IWS encouraged us to expand the village in 2014, and we will engage even more governments, NGOs, universities and companies in an effort to find solutions, alternative water resources and strategies to protect groundwater,” said Mr Fernezian.

IWS 2014 is a global platform that hosts world leaders, government organizations, policymakers, public and private sector investors, business leaders, consultants and water experts to interact, negotiate and finalise plans to develop diverse and sustainable water portfolios in the GCC and other regions.

The Sustainable Water Solutions Villagein the exhibition area at IWS 2014 will feature technologies, projects and case studies that offer solutions to the challenges of water security, with a particular focus on water solutions for agriculture and groundwater conservation.

IWS is co-located with the World Future Energy Summit, also hosted by Masdar, as a part of Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week (ADSW),a global platform that addresses the interconnected challenges that affect the widespread acceleration and adoption of sustainable development and renewable energy. The largest gathering on sustainability in the history of the Middle East, ADSW encourages actionable outcomes to carve a pathway toward sustainability worldwide. 

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