Dubai Electricity and Water Authority: Sustainable Management

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Table of Contents

Executive Summary
Background of the Topic
Problem Statement
Goals and Objectives
Research Questions
Methodology
Dissertation Framework
Reference List

Executive Summary

The emirate of Dubai is rapidly expanding and it is necessary to ensure that important resources such as water are used sustainably. As the current population seeks to meet its needs for water, care should be taken to ensure that ability to meet the future needs is not compromised. It is the reason why integrated sustainable water resource management has become a very relevant concept. The dissertation will look at how policies can be enacted to enhance sustainable use of water at industrial, agricultural, and domestic levels in the emirate of Dubai.

Background of the Topic

Integrated sustainable water resource management is currently one of the major areas of focus for the Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (DEWA), the body responsible for ensuring that there is regular supply of water and electricity for the residents of Dubai (Morpeth & Hongliang 2015). Setegn and Donoso (2015, p. 73) define integrated water resource management as “a process which promotes the coordinated development and management of water, land, and related resources, in order to maximize the resultant economic and social welfare in an equitable manner without compromising the sustainability of vital ecosystems.” The United Arab Emirates, and specifically the emirate of Dubai, has registered impressive economic development, especially because of the massive investment made by the government to diversify the economy. Tourism, transport, and commerce are some of the sectors, which have registered impressive growth. Agriculture and manufacturing sectors are also expanding rapidly.

The growing economy and the increasing population have exerted massive pressure on natural water resources. Currently, the emirate relies on underground water to meet the local demand. However, these natural resources are overused and the quality of water they produce is compromised. Given the arid nature of the country, it is not possible to harvest enough rainwater that can be used sustainably for domestic, agricultural, and industrial needs. Currently, the government of Dubai- through DEWA- has put in place programs meant to desalinate seawater to be used for various sectors of the economy (Morpeth & Hongliang 2015). The strategy used by the government focuses on the use of renewable energy to desalinate seawater, which is abundantly available, so that the problem of water scarcity can be addressed in this country. The researcher believes that sustainable solutions for water resource management for the Emirate of Dubai can be achieved through implementation of policies, which advocate for the use of renewable energy to increase water availability, and promotion of recycling of wastewater among the residents of this country.

Problem Statement

Sustainability of water resources in Dubai is a major concern that stakeholders can no longer ignore. The city of Dubai is currently one of the leading global business hubs and a major tourists’ destination. The city has been attracting expatriates both from developed and developing economies keen on tapping into the available job opportunities. It means that the demand for water as a resource needed in the industrial sector, agricultural sector, and domestic use is expected to increase as the population increases. The current practices of water use are sustainable given the dwindling water reserves. According to Colombo (2014), integrated sustainable water resource management can be looked at from two different perspectives.

The first perspective is reduction of demand through improved practices that focus on elimination of wastes by maximizing the use of clean water. The other approach is to use emerging technologies to help increase the availability of water without compromising the ability of the future generation to meet their needs. This research focuses on how to implement policies that advocate for the use of renewable energy to power sewerage plants designing of net zero energy-facility buildings, providing various incentives such as subsidy of bills to individuals whose buildings have LEED certification, and subsidizing electricity and water bills for residents using TSE for their irrigation in the emirate of Dubai. It is expected that the strategy will reduce the energy and water demand while at the same time making them readily available to the residents of this emirate more conveniently than is the case currently.

Goals and Objectives

The primary goal of this research is to offer sustainable solutions for water resource management for the emirate of Dubai through implementation of policies that advocate for the use of renewable energy sources to increase its availability and to reduce its wastage by embracing smart systems domestically and in the agricultural sector. The following are the specific objectives that the researcher seeks to achieve:

To identify the current water use practices which threatens sustainability of this resource in the emirate of Dubai
To identify smart systems that can be used to improve water use in the agricultural and industrial sector and at the domestic level
To develop policies, based on the smart systems above, which can be used to address the negative water use practices
To develop strategies that involve the use of renewable energy sources to increase availability of clean water through desalination of seawater
To promote the use of treated sewage effluent (TSE) for irrigation in the emirate of Dubai

Research Questions

The rate at which clean water reserves in the country are being depleted is alarming. This research seeks to find a way through which the problem can be addressed. The research questions below will guide the process of collecting data from the field. They are based on the research goals and objectives set above.

What are the current water use practices, which threatens sustainability of this resource in the emirate of Dubai?
What are the smart systems that can be used to improve water use in the agricultural and industrial sector and at the domestic level?
How can policies be developed to address the negative water use practices in Dubai?
How can strategies, which involve the use of renewable energy sources to increase availability of clean water, be developed in Dubai?
Which approaches can be used to promote the use of treated sewage effluent (TSE) for irrigation in the emirate of Dubai?

Methodology

In this project, it will be important to collect data that will inform conclusion and recommendations that will be made at the end of the study. Data that will be used in this research will come from two main sources. The first will be secondary data that will come from books, scholarly journal articles, and reliable online sources. Integrated sustainable water resource management is a topic that has attracted attention of researcher over the recent past and it is important to evaluate what they have found out in their studies. Data from secondary sources will form the background of this project. The researcher will focus on identifying the information gap to help improve knowledge in this field. The second source will be primary data. The emerging technologies are introducing new trends that change the manner in which water is extracted, made available, and used in various sectors (Borchardt & Ibisch 2013). These changes make it necessary to conduct research to understand the current trends based on the changes in water use. Current information can only be obtained by collecting primary data from the respondents.

Surveys

One of the main ways through which data will be collected is through surveys. Dubai Electricity and Water Authority recently published, in their website, an elaborate plan on how they seek to increase availability of water through desalination of seawater by using renewable energy sources (Balakrishnan 2017). The authority has also been working on policy issues to help improve efficiency in water use within the emirate of Dubai. It is expected that employees who have been involved in such projects have the information that is needed in this project. Abu Dhabi Water and Electricity Authority (ADWEA) has also been going through the same challenges and its employees are capable of providing information about the strategies their organization is using to address the emerging challenges.

Sampling

According to Parris (2016), an academic research often has a fixed deadline within which it has to be completed. Such projects must also be conducted using limited finance because the researcher is not working for a large company willing to compensate the resources used. It will be important to come up with a manageable sample from which data could be collected. Stratified sampling will be used to identify 50 participants who will be interviewed in this project. Care will be taken to ensure that the sample include junior employees and managers at the selected organizations.

Questionnaire

The researcher will use questionnaire to collect data from the field. The questionnaire will be developed before contacting the respondents. The questionnaire will capture the academic qualification, gender, experience, and management level of the employees. Given the limited time, the researcher will use online survey to collect data from the participants.

Data Analysis

The research will use mixed method research to conduct analysis of the primary data collected from the respondents. Quantitative analysis will enable the researcher to quantify the magnitude of the problem. Qualitative analysis will facilitate explanation of the possible solutions that can be used to address the problem.

Case Study

A case study will be used to enhance readers’ ability to understand the problem and the possible solution proposed in this research. The planned Masdar City in Abu Dhabi will be used as a case study to explain how the integrated sustainable water resources management can be achieved using the limited resources.

Ethical Consideration

When conducting this research, care will be taken to ensure that all ethical requirements are observed. The researcher will abide by all the rules and regulations set by the school regarding plagiarism and related academic mistakes. Any information from outside sources will be properly referenced. Before contacting the respondents, the researcher will seek permission from the managers of the identified organizations. The identity of all the respondents will be protected.

Dissertation Framework

The dissertation will have five chapters. The first chapter will be the introduction, the second chapter will be the literature review. Chapter three will be the methodology while chapter four will be the research findings. The last chapter will provide conclusion, recommendations, and suggestions for future research. The appendix provides a detailed outline of the dissertation.

Reference List

Balakrishnan, M 2017, UAE: public policy perspectives, Al Ghurair Group Publishers, Dubai.

Borchardt, D & Ibisch, R 2013, Integrated water resources management in a changing world: lessons learnt and innovative perspectives, IWA Publishing, London.

Colombo, S 2014, Bridging the gulf: EU-GCC relations at a crossroads, Cengage Learning, New York, NY.

Morpeth, D & Hongliang, Y 2015, Planning for tourism: towards a sustainable future, Cengage, New York, NY.

Parris, K 2016, Ecology of urban environments, John Wiley & Sons Publishers, Hoboken, NJ.

Setegn, G & Donoso, C 2015, Sustainability of integrated water resources management: water governance, climate, and eco-hydrology, Wiley, Hoboken, NJ.

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