Source Global’s hydropanels at the planned site of the IBV drinking water plant in Lehbab, Dubai. start producing water at 6 per cent humidity in the air stand Bloomberg
Source Global’s hydropanels at the planned site of the IBV drinking water plant in Lehbab, Dubai. start producing water at 6 per cent humidity in the air stand Bloomberg
Source Global’s hydropanels at the planned site of the IBV drinking water plant in Lehbab, Dubai. start producing water at 6 per cent humidity in the air stand Bloomberg
Source Global’s hydropanels at the planned site of the IBV drinking water plant in Lehbab, Dubai. start producing water at 6 per cent humidity in the air stand Bloomberg

Why tapping into renewable drinking water is the next logical step for the UAE


  • English
  • Arabic

In the recent Netflix original documentary, A Life on Our Planet, Sir David Attenborough gives audiences a panoramic view of his relationship with Mother Earth over the past seven decades. He presents alarming facts about our ecological footprint and laments, that "the natural world is fading [and this] will lead to our destruction".

But the 94-year old British naturalist also has a message of hope, reminding us that Earth has its own regulatory system which, if we use well, can help us tackle environmental erosion and find sustainable solutions for our everyday needs.

“The living world is essentially solar powered,” he asserts, urging us to shift away from fossil fuels and look towards the sun.

For its part, the UAE, while a major oil producer, has made significant strides towards solar power.

The country is firmly on track to achieve its target of increasing the renewable share of its energy mix to 50 per cent by 2050. The percentage of clean energy in Dubai's mix alone has grown from zero to nearly 10 per cent in less than a decade, and the UAE's sizeable investments have lowered solar energy costs by 75 per cent in the past five years.

When the 2 gigawatt Al Dhafra solar project comes online in 2022, it will be the world's largest, and will eliminate 2.4 million metric tonnes of CO2 emissions annually, equivalent to removing almost half a million cars from our roads. What's more, energy from Al Dhafra will be three times cheaper than the electricity tariff from a new natural gas-based plant.

With solar energy solutions well under way, the time is now right for the UAE to embark on a similar transition in a new sector: water.

Clean water is the only resource we cannot live without, and the UAE is one of the top 10 countries with "extremely high baseline water stress", according to the World Resources Institute. This stress will only become more acute as the climate continues to change.

Some non-urban and remote communities already struggle with access to safe drinking water and are reliant on supplies of bottled or trucked water – sources that offer near-term relief but fall far short in accessibility, resilience and sustainability.

There is no doubt we need innovative, climate-proof water solutions that can produce reliable drinking water close to the point of demand.

And just as we look to the sky to source our energy, the blue above us also holds the answer to our water needs.

There are an estimated 13 trillion litres of water hovering in the air in the form of atmospheric humidity, equivalent to 10 per cent of the world’s freshwater lakes. This humidity renews itself each day, making it a regenerative and sustainable source of water.

  • An employee walks among solar panels installed on the building of Indira Paryavaran Bhawan or the Indian Environment Ministry in New Delhi. Source's regional vice president Vahid Fotuhi sees parallels in the evolution of the hydropanel technology to that of solar photovoltaic panels. AFP
    An employee walks among solar panels installed on the building of Indira Paryavaran Bhawan or the Indian Environment Ministry in New Delhi. Source's regional vice president Vahid Fotuhi sees parallels in the evolution of the hydropanel technology to that of solar photovoltaic panels. AFP
  • Hydropanels, produced by Zero Mass Water, now known as Source, stand at the planned site of the IBV drinking water plant in Lehbab, Dubai. Bloomberg
    Hydropanels, produced by Zero Mass Water, now known as Source, stand at the planned site of the IBV drinking water plant in Lehbab, Dubai. Bloomberg
  • The Arizona-based water technology company, does not consider the lack of rivers or even seawater a problem because it has technology that can extract moisture from the atmosphere using energy from the sun. Bloomberg
    The Arizona-based water technology company, does not consider the lack of rivers or even seawater a problem because it has technology that can extract moisture from the atmosphere using energy from the sun. Bloomberg
  • Source is also expanding its reach within Neom - Saudi Arabia’s sustainable city, which straddles the Jordanian and Egyptian borders. The company already supplies clean drinking water to the staff working at the carbon neutral city and has plans to scale up its operations. Bloomberg
    Source is also expanding its reach within Neom - Saudi Arabia’s sustainable city, which straddles the Jordanian and Egyptian borders. The company already supplies clean drinking water to the staff working at the carbon neutral city and has plans to scale up its operations. Bloomberg
  • The Covid-19 pandemic has accelerated the green transition in economies. Wind turbines stand near the hydrogen electrolysis plant stands at Energiepark Mainz, operated by Linde, in Mainz, Germany. Bloomberg
    The Covid-19 pandemic has accelerated the green transition in economies. Wind turbines stand near the hydrogen electrolysis plant stands at Energiepark Mainz, operated by Linde, in Mainz, Germany. Bloomberg
  • A deep overhaul of fossil fuel-wired economies to function on cleaner energy sources could require as much as $130tn in spending, according to Irena. Rodrigue Kauahou and Jose Carlos Navarro, workers of the installation company Alromar, set up solar panels on the roof of a home in Colmenar Viejo, Spain. REUTERS
    A deep overhaul of fossil fuel-wired economies to function on cleaner energy sources could require as much as $130tn in spending, according to Irena. Rodrigue Kauahou and Jose Carlos Navarro, workers of the installation company Alromar, set up solar panels on the roof of a home in Colmenar Viejo, Spain. REUTERS

Today, we have technologies that use solar power to extract this water vapor from the air and convert it into clean, mineralised drinking water.

The adoption of this technology would give individuals, families and communities independent, renewable and regenerative sources of drinking water at a fraction of the cost of bottled water and without the plastic waste footprint. Solar water production also can be deployed to sustainably deliver pure water for irrigation in greenhouse farms while regulating humidity levels within those greenhouses to ensure optimal fruit and vegetable yields.

The UAE government has taken bold policy steps to shift towards renewable energy. Now, that same boldness is required to transition to renewable water sources, including air to water.

In the A Life on Our Planet documentary, Mr Attenborough concludes his witness statement by reminding us that for humanity to survive, we must learn to live in harmony with nature.

We have already started that journey by harnessing the powers of renewable energy. The next step is to tap into renewable water.

Vahid Fotuhi is the Mena vice president of business development at Source Global

yallacompare profile

Date of launch: 2014

Founder: Jon Richards, founder and chief executive; Samer Chebab, co-founder and chief operating officer, and Jonathan Rawlings, co-founder and chief financial officer

Based: Media City, Dubai 

Sector: Financial services

Size: 120 employees

Investors: 2014: $500,000 in a seed round led by Mulverhill Associates; 2015: $3m in Series A funding led by STC Ventures (managed by Iris Capital), Wamda and Dubai Silicon Oasis Authority; 2019: $8m in Series B funding with the same investors as Series A along with Precinct Partners, Saned and Argo Ventures (the VC arm of multinational insurer Argo Group)

The biog

Hobbies: Writing and running
Favourite sport: beach volleyball
Favourite holiday destinations: Turkey and Puerto Rico​

MATCH DETAILS

Liverpool 2

Wijnaldum (14), Oxlade-Chamberlain (52)

Genk 1

Samatta (40)

 

The six points:

1. Ministers should be in the field, instead of always at conferences

2. Foreign diplomacy must be left to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Co-operation

3. Emiratisation is a top priority that will have a renewed push behind it

4. The UAE's economy must continue to thrive and grow

5. Complaints from the public must be addressed, not avoided

6. Have hope for the future, what is yet to come is bigger and better than before

THE DETAILS

Deadpool 2

Dir: David Leitch

Starring: Ryan Reynolds, Josh Brolin, Justin Dennison, Zazie Beetz

Four stars

Five famous companies founded by teens

There are numerous success stories of teen businesses that were created in college dorm rooms and other modest circumstances. Below are some of the most recognisable names in the industry:

  1. Facebook: Mark Zuckerberg and his friends started Facebook when he was a 19-year-old Harvard undergraduate. 
  2. Dell: When Michael Dell was an undergraduate student at Texas University in 1984, he started upgrading computers for profit. He starting working full-time on his business when he was 19. Eventually, his company became the Dell Computer Corporation and then Dell Inc. 
  3. Subway: Fred DeLuca opened the first Subway restaurant when he was 17. In 1965, Mr DeLuca needed extra money for college, so he decided to open his own business. Peter Buck, a family friend, lent him $1,000 and together, they opened Pete’s Super Submarines. A few years later, the company was rebranded and called Subway. 
  4. Mashable: In 2005, Pete Cashmore created Mashable in Scotland when he was a teenager. The site was then a technology blog. Over the next few decades, Mr Cashmore has turned Mashable into a global media company.
  5. Oculus VR: Palmer Luckey founded Oculus VR in June 2012, when he was 19. In August that year, Oculus launched its Kickstarter campaign and raised more than $1 million in three days. Facebook bought Oculus for $2 billion two years later.
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INFO

What: DP World Tour Championship
When: November 21-24
Where: Jumeirah Golf Estates, Dubai
Tickets: www.ticketmaster.ae.

Salah in numbers

€39 million: Liverpool agreed a fee, including add-ons, in the region of 39m (nearly Dh176m) to sign Salah from Roma last year. The exchange rate at the time meant that cost the Reds £34.3m - a bargain given his performances since.

13: The 25-year-old player was not a complete stranger to the Premier League when he arrived at Liverpool this summer. However, during his previous stint at Chelsea, he made just 13 Premier League appearances, seven of which were off the bench, and scored only twice.

57: It was in the 57th minute of his Liverpool bow when Salah opened his account for the Reds in the 3-3 draw with Watford back in August. The Egyptian prodded the ball over the line from close range after latching onto Roberto Firmino's attempted lob.

7: Salah's best scoring streak of the season occurred between an FA Cup tie against West Brom on January 27 and a Premier League win over Newcastle on March 3. He scored for seven games running in all competitions and struck twice against Tottenham.

3: This season Salah became the first player in Premier League history to win the player of the month award three times during a term. He was voted as the division's best player in November, February and March.

40: Salah joined Roger Hunt and Ian Rush as the only players in Liverpool's history to have scored 40 times in a single season when he headed home against Bournemouth at Anfield earlier this month.

30: The goal against Bournemouth ensured the Egyptian achieved another milestone in becoming the first African player to score 30 times across one Premier League campaign.

8: As well as his fine form in England, Salah has also scored eight times in the tournament phase of this season's Champions League. Only Real Madrid's Cristiano Ronaldo, with 15 to his credit, has found the net more often in the group stages and knockout rounds of Europe's premier club competition.

At a glance

Global events: Much of the UK’s economic woes were blamed on “increased global uncertainty”, which can be interpreted as the economic impact of the Ukraine war and the uncertainty over Donald Trump’s tariffs.

 

Growth forecasts: Cut for 2025 from 2 per cent to 1 per cent. The OBR watchdog also estimated inflation will average 3.2 per cent this year

 

Welfare: Universal credit health element cut by 50 per cent and frozen for new claimants, building on cuts to the disability and incapacity bill set out earlier this month

 

Spending cuts: Overall day-to day-spending across government cut by £6.1bn in 2029-30 

 

Tax evasion: Steps to crack down on tax evasion to raise “£6.5bn per year” for the public purse

 

Defence: New high-tech weaponry, upgrading HM Naval Base in Portsmouth

 

Housing: Housebuilding to reach its highest in 40 years, with planning reforms helping generate an extra £3.4bn for public finances

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

Prophets of Rage

(Fantasy Records)

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Starfield
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Bundesliga fixtures

Saturday, May 16 (kick-offs UAE time)

Borussia Dortmund v Schalke (4.30pm) 

RB Leipzig v Freiburg (4.30pm) 

Hoffenheim v Hertha Berlin (4.30pm) 

Fortuna Dusseldorf v Paderborn  (4.30pm) 

Augsburg v Wolfsburg (4.30pm) 

Eintracht Frankfurt v Borussia Monchengladbach (7.30pm)

Sunday, May 17

Cologne v Mainz (4.30pm),

Union Berlin v Bayern Munich (7pm)

Monday, May 18

Werder Bremen v Bayer Leverkusen (9.30pm)

Chef Nobu's advice for eating sushi

“One mistake people always make is adding extra wasabi. There is no need for this, because it should already be there between the rice and the fish.
“When eating nigiri, you must dip the fish – not the rice – in soy sauce, otherwise the rice will collapse. Also, don’t use too much soy sauce or it will make you thirsty. For sushi rolls, dip a little of the rice-covered roll lightly in soy sauce and eat in one bite.
“Chopsticks are acceptable, but really, I recommend using your fingers for sushi. Do use chopsticks for sashimi, though.
“The ginger should be eaten separately as a palette cleanser and used to clear the mouth when switching between different pieces of fish.”

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

Ant-Man and the Wasp

Director: Peyton Reed

Starring: Paul Rudd, Evangeline Lilly, Michael Douglas

Three stars

Europe’s rearming plan
  • Suspend strict budget rules to allow member countries to step up defence spending
  • Create new "instrument" providing €150 billion of loans to member countries for defence investment
  • Use the existing EU budget to direct more funds towards defence-related investment
  • Engage the bloc's European Investment Bank to drop limits on lending to defence firms
  • Create a savings and investments union to help companies access capital
Match info

Manchester City 3 (Jesus 22', 50', Sterling 69')
Everton 1 (Calvert-Lewin 65')

Day 3, Dubai Test: At a glance

Moment of the day Lahiru Gamage, the Sri Lanka pace bowler, has had to play a lot of cricket to earn a shot at the top level. The 29-year-old debutant first played a first-class game 11 years ago. His first Test wicket was one to savour, bowling Pakistan opener Shan Masood through the gate. It set the rot in motion for Pakistan’s batting.

Stat of the day – 73 Haris Sohail took 73 balls to hit a boundary. Which is a peculiar quirk, given the aggressive intent he showed from the off. Pakistan’s batsmen were implored to attack Rangana Herath after their implosion against his left-arm spin in Abu Dhabi. Haris did his best to oblige, smacking the second ball he faced for a huge straight six.

The verdict One year ago, when Pakistan played their first day-night Test at this ground, they held a 222-run lead over West Indies on first innings. The away side still pushed their hosts relatively close on the final night. With the opposite almost exactly the case this time around, Pakistan still have to hope they can salvage a win from somewhere.

Story of 2017-18 so far and schedule to come

Roll of Honour

Who has won what so far in the West Asia rugby season?

 

Western Clubs Champions League

Winners: Abu Dhabi Harlequins

Runners up: Bahrain

 

Dubai Rugby Sevens

Winners: Dubai Exiles

Runners up: Jebel Ali Dragons

 

West Asia Premiership

Winners: Jebel Ali Dragons

Runners up: Abu Dhabi Harlequins

 

UAE Premiership Cup

Winners: Abu Dhabi Harlequins

Runners up: Dubai Exiles

 

Fixtures

Friday

West Asia Cup final

5pm, Bahrain (6pm UAE time), Bahrain v Dubai Exiles

 

West Asia Trophy final

3pm, The Sevens, Dubai Hurricanes v Dubai Sports City Eagles

 

Friday, April 13

UAE Premiership final

5pm, Al Ain, Dubai Exiles v Abu Dhabi Harlequins

What can you do?

Document everything immediately; including dates, times, locations and witnesses

Seek professional advice from a legal expert

You can report an incident to HR or an immediate supervisor

You can use the Ministry of Human Resources and Emiratisation’s dedicated hotline

In criminal cases, you can contact the police for additional support

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