Dubai: Work on doubling the capacity of Jebel Ali Sewage Treatment Plant is going on in full swing and 17 per cent of the work in phase 2 has been completed since the start of expansion in May, Dubai Municipality said on Wednesday.
“The expansion work at a cost of Dh1.3 billion will increase the capacity of Jebel Ali Sewage Treatment Plant from 375,000m3/day to 675,000m3/day,” said Mohammad Ahmad Al Rayes, acting director of Sewerage and Irrigation Department.
He said the expansion work has three main objectives — absorbing the excess influx from the planned Expo 2020 areas, keeping pace with the upcoming expansion projects in the emirate, and shifting a certain percentage of loads of Warsan plant to Jebel Ali plant as it is running 27 per cent above its design capacity.
The project consists of six phases in two main pathways — the liquid waste treatment process and solid waste treatment process.
“It has a plant for the production of compost from solid waste which is sold to the public, which adds economic value to the project. The treated water is pumped again through a pipeline network covering the whole of the emirate of Dubai for use in irrigation of public parks and is sold to developers and farm owners, which also adds economic value to the project,” said Al Rayes.
“Side products of the process include methane, which is planned to be used in the production of electricity, thus saving energy consumption from the public network and in line with Dubai’s sustainability policy. The project currently employs more than 1,000 employees, including engineers, technicians and workers.
“Treated water is used to reduce pressure on water resources and desalination or drilling of underground wells. It is used for agriculture in all major public parks, residential parks, public squares, resorts, natural areas, and recreational areas as well as for greening the city completely, not only on streets and squares.
“It is also used to cool and moisturise the city and reduce the temperature in the hot areas, which are near the factories or non-cultivated places by extending them the water to cultivate and reduce the heat by at least four degrees. Treated water is sprayed to stabilise the soil on the unpaved roads where dust flies, and at construction sites, to prevent soil erosion in open spaces,” he said.
The treated water is used to support the biodiversity efforts as well. “We have different trees, flowers and birds whose bio-diversity is conserved by providing the infrastructure for cultivating different plants, as well as supporting conservation efforts of natural resources. These cannot be provided water, except for treated water, which is at a specific concentration.
“It also helps in the protection of surface and groundwater water from high salinity, especially because most of the cultivated areas in the emirate and development projects that include large cultivated areas are all located on the coast and are therefore subject to salinity. But, watering them are done with treated water from sewage plants,” said Al Rayes.
“Sewage plants also contribute to the infrastructure of firefighting systems. The municipality provides water for fire extinguishers distributed throughout the emirate. In the event of Civil Defence extinguishing any fire, they do not rely solely on the tanks they own. The water supplied by sewage plants remain in full efficiency throughout the year, even in the summer. Priority is given to the provision of water in the fire stations as it is the most important,” he said, adding that the sewage plants contribute 35 per cent of water for the fire safety network.