Dubai Knowledge Village (DKV), a member of Tecom Investments, announced that it has reduced its water consumption by 6.1 million gallons and energy usage by 1,904 MWh during the first half of the year.

The cluster’s achievement was the outcome of a step-by-step exercise carried out jointly by Tecom Investments’ Sustainable Energy and Environment Division (Seed) and the cluster’s facility management division.

Amongst other measures, Dubai Knowledge Village retrofitted wash basins with ultra low flow restrictors to achieve a flow rate of 0.5 US gpm, a reduction of 80 per cent over the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) standards.

“It is crucial that all members of our society understand the importance of not only minimising the environmental damage but also decreasing our carbon footprint.  The measures introduced across the cluster are a step in that direction,” stated Dr Ayoub Kazim, executive director, Dubai Knowledge Village.

Some of the other steps adopted by DKV to reduce its energy and water consumption include raising the air-conditioning temperature in the office area after office hours and during weekend holidays; turning off air conditioners and lights in the conference and meeting rooms during night and weekends; switching off the air handling units (AHUs) in the lobby area during holidays; resetting chilled water supply temperature to 9 degrees centigrade; switching off water heaters in gents and ladies toilet and turning off all water feature pumps during holidays. The cleaning crew has also been notified to turn off lighting in unoccupied areas after cleaning up.

In 2008, Dubai Knowledge Village launched a campaign with the support of Seed to phase out the use of halogen lamps throughout the DKV premises.

Over the last two years, Tecom Investments has taken a proactive approach to reducing its carbon footprint in the region. It recently earned the distinction of becoming the first-ever corporation in the Middle East to implement a Sustainable Development Policy, providing a comprehensive guideline for all Tecom buildings to reduce energy costs.-TradeArabia News Service