Environment Agency Abu Dhabi (EAD) has issued tenders for the construction of two new pipelines to facilitate the reuse of 70 per cent of treated wastewater in the UAE capital for irrigation and landscaping purposes, said a report.

This move comes as part of the EAD’s plans to reduce the emirate’s reliance on rapidly dwindling groundwater reserves and energy-intensive desalination, reported the Gulf News.  

One of the pipelines will be built alongside the Abu Dhabi-Dubai E11 highway, and when complete, it will provide 140,000 cu m of water a day to sites like the Abu Muraikha Forest, the Green Belt and Al Maha Forest, it stated.

These areas currently require massive volumes of desalinated water. The pipeline is expected to extend for more than 40 km.

The second pipeline will be located alongside the Al Ain Truck Road for more than 30 km, and the aim is to use it to supply 125,000 cu m of water to farms in Al Wathba and Al Nahda, said the report, citing a senior official.

These pipelines will together help recycle a further 265,000 cu m of water every day, stated Dr Mohammad Dawoud, water resources adviser at the EAD.

The pipelines are likely to be operational by 2018, he added.