Statements by the Egyptian Minister of Water Resources and Irrigation, Hani Swailem, on Tuesday, that his country is approaching the water scarcity line with a share of approximately 500 cubic meters per person per year, raised questions about the causes and outcomes and how to face the crisis with the increasing needs due to the population increase and climate changes, as well as the crisis of the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam. .
Sweilem’s remarks came during the “follow-up to the results of the United Nations Conference on Water” session, stressing that this matter requires taking several measures to achieve the principles of governance in management to deal with these challenges.
But Mohieddin Omar, a water affairs expert at the International Center for Agricultural Research in the Dry Lands (ICARDA) of the International Consultative Organization for Agricultural Research, told Al-Hurra that Egypt is already suffering from water scarcity, “We have already entered this stage.”
Omar, who previously worked as an assistant professor at the National Center for Water Research, in Egypt, said that the per capita share of water does not mean what is used for drinking only, which is very little, but rather a range of uses, which also include industry, as well as agriculture, which represents the largest share.
He added, “For us, our resources are almost only what we receive from the Nile River, which is 55.5 billion cubic meters annually, and the rest, whether rain water or lakes, is an insignificant percentage, as rain water represents only about one billion cubic meters per year.”
He added, “When we divide 55 billion cubic meters by Egypt’s population, which is approximately 110 million, we will know that we are already in a stage of water scarcity or poverty.”
what are the reasons?
For his part, the former Egyptian Minister of Water Resources, Mahmoud Abu Zaid, confirmed in his interview with Al-Hurra that Egypt suffers from a gap between resources and needs, “and our uses of water are constantly increasing, and the resources are constant, and therefore, the gap is widening.”
Regarding the most important reasons for Egypt’s suffering from water poverty, he said that it “represents the increase in population, climate changes, and the development of economic needs, as well as the wasteful use of water by some.”
Abu Zaid explains the issue of climate change, that “when there is a rise in temperature, this leads to the evaporation of water, and an increase in the need of crops and soil plants for water due to the intense heat.”
How to plug the water deficit
Omar asserts that “when needs are more than resources, a water deficit occurs, and therefore it must be covered by agricultural drainage water or sewage treatment, and sometimes by deep groundwater.”
However, Omar stresses that all of this does not mean that the individual will not find drinking water, “because any country places this matter as its first priority, but we may face a water deficit to meet agricultural needs specifically.”
He added, “Some countries have the ability to compensate for water poverty by importing agricultural products from abroad, such as the Gulf countries that have water scarcity, but a country like Egypt, which suffers the most in the entire region, suffers from a low income level in addition to an economic situation, cannot from compensating for water poverty, which affects food and national security.”
For his part, Abu Zeid says, “There is a detailed strategy drawn up by the Ministry of Water Resources and Irrigation until 2037 that includes needs and resources and how to balance them in detail. In addition, there is a general strategy until 2050, the details of which have not yet been clarified.”
He added, “It is required to implement these strategies to confront water scarcity,” noting that there are already projects for water reuse, such as the stations of al-Mahsama, Bahr al-Baqar, and al-Hamam.
Omar affirms, for his part, that “water desalination projects must be expanded to compensate for the terrible population increase in Egypt. This matter is not a luxury, but rather it is necessary, and we have no other alternatives. Resources must be increased permanently, because they are decreasing year after year, which represents a source of threat.” .
“the only alternative”
Speaking at the United Nations session, on Tuesday, the Minister of Water Resources said that the future will witness the expansion of the use of water desalination in food production to meet the population increase. Provided that the water unit is used in an optimal manner that achieves economic feasibility, with the importance of expanding the use of modern technology and renewable energy in desalination, which will contribute to reducing costs.
According to the newspaper,Pyramids” On the authority of the former Minister of Water Resources and Irrigation, in October 2021, the Bahr Al-Baqar Drainage Water Treatment Plant project has a capacity of 5.60 million cubic meters per day, and that the Al-Hamam station; To treat agricultural drainage water in the West Delta, with a capacity of 7.50 million cubic meters per day, in addition to the siphoning of the Mahsama drain, with a capacity of one million cubic meters per day.
and description Opportunity The Presidency of the Republic, the Bahr Al-Bahr Drainage Water Station, as the largest in the world, contributes to the reclamation of 456 thousand feddans through recycling and operation of agricultural and industrial waste water and sewage that will be diverted to the eastern bank below the Suez Canal.
as pointed out Opportunity Egypt’s projects map, indicating that the Al-Hamam station, which is being built on the northern coast, aims to reclaim and cultivate about 500,000 feddans west of the Delta.
Omar explains in his interview with the “Al-Hurra” website that desalination here “does not mean the desalination of sea water, because that means huge amounts of money and expensive projects, but what is meant here is the treatment of agricultural or sanitary wastewater.”
He explains that “after irrigating the agricultural lands, excess water is left over the plant’s need, to wash away the soil salts, and it must be drained so as not to suffocate the root zone in the soil, and thus drain this water to treat it for reuse more than once to fill the existing deficit.”
He added, “We have to think all the time about alternative water resources to keep pace with population growth and industrial projects, which require more food consumption, and thus more crops and an increasing need for water.”
He considered that the Egyptian government is making plans that change according to the accelerating challenges, and in the recent period it has taken decisions regarding irrigation and water, such as crops that are thirsty for water, as the areas that are cultivated for rice and sugar cane, for example, have been identified, and the government has begun to focus on alternative irrigation systems. than traditional irrigation, and there are already projects in which drip irrigation is used.
The impact of the Renaissance Dam
Omar confirms that there is no clear knowledge of the impact of the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam on Egypt so far, but he says, “There will certainly be a negative impact.”
He said, “The direct impact of the Renaissance Dam will not appear in its early years, because we have a strategic reserve that we can rely on to compensate for the water needs of farmers, but without a doubt, the Renaissance Dam will reduce the quantities of water coming to Lake Nasser, which is a strategic reserve for Egypt, but we do not know when this will happen.” Exact effect.
For his part, Abu Zeid says that the situation will become more dangerous “when there is a so-called” prolonged drought “that is, it will last for several consecutive years, during which the flood will be low.”
He explained, “The effect at that time will be related to the behavior of the Ethiopian side in the years of drought, and if they will control the passage of water and will reduce what reaches us and for any period.”
Since 2011, Egypt, Sudan and Ethiopia have been negotiating to reach an agreement on filling and operating the Renaissance Dam, but long rounds of negotiations between the three countries have not yet yielded an agreement.
Although Egypt and Sudan have repeatedly urged Ethiopia to postpone its plans to fill the dam’s reservoir until a comprehensive agreement is reached, Addis Ababa announced on June 22 its readiness to launch the fourth phase of filling the dam’s reservoir, which has a capacity of about 74 billion cubic meters of water.
2023-08-22 18:39:46
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