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ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT AND WATER2011, this demand was driven by the agriculture, forest and parksirrigation that consumed the lion’s share of available resources (72per cent), followed by the domestic sector (16 per cent), government(4.5 per cent), commercial (6.5 per cent), industry (0.5 per cent) andothers (0.5 per cent).In 2011, the agriculture, forests and parks sector was the largestconsumer of water in Abu Dhabi. Water demand in this sector isdecreasing steadily, probably due to the adoption of demand-sidemanagement measures. Water demand by government is also decreasing,but demand in the domestic, commercial and industry and othersectors – all of which rely on desalinated water – is on the rise.Nonetheless, if groundwater abstraction rates continue at the currentlevel, the resource will be depleted in 55 years. And if agriculture startsdepending solely on desalinated water, sectoral competition for desalinatedwater may become a big economic and environmental challenge.According to the Regulation and Supervision Bureau, withplanned socioeconomic growth in the emirate and current consumptionpatterns, water consumption (groundwater, desalinated andrecycled) is expected to triple by 2030. This will have economic,environmental and social implications as the fiscal burden for theGovernment may substantially increase while the longevity ofgroundwater is dramatically reduced.Vision for the futureWith the aim of overcoming the challenges and mitigating the environmentalimpact of planned socioeconomic growth, in 2010 theEnvironment Agency – Abu Dhabi (EAD) embarked on an ambitiousinitiative to develop the Abu Dhabi environment vision 2030(Env2030) on behalf of the Executive Council. Once it is approved,Env2030 will provide an overall guiding framework to consider andpreserve the environment when operating in the emirate. It willguide government entity planning and coordination and inform theprivate sector, the Abu Dhabi population and international peersabout the aspirations of Abu Dhabi. One priority of Env2030 is theefficient management and conservation of water resources, whichrequires broad cross-sector coordination rather thanisolated interventions by individual organizations.Many ambitious but attainable targets are expectedto be achieved by 2030, such as cutting the domesticconsumption of desalinated water by half, stopping theuse of desalinated water for landscape irrigation anddoubling the life of groundwater reserves. Moreover, toreach these targets, many policy imperatives will haveto be achieved in energy and utilities; building andinfrastructure; industry; agriculture, livestock and fisheries;and public realm amenities and forestry sector.A new policy framework for the use ofgroundwater in agricultureThis clear future vision should be supported by a newpolicy framework in order to achieve the balance ofensuring food security while conserving water resources.Groundwater is a vital source of water for Abu Dhabi,especially since agriculture and landscape irrigationconsume the largest share of available water. In 2011,almost 93 per cent of the water used for agricultureand landscape irrigation came from underground wells.Therefore, agriculture and landscape irrigation policiescalling for a more sustainable use of water will have asignificant impact on underground water reserves. Withthis in mind, the Abu Dhabi Government has recentlyestablished a new governance framework for agriculture,endorsing the Abu Dhabi Food Control Authority(ADFCA) to lead the development of the agriculturepolicy framework and create the Abu Dhabi Farmers’Services Centre (ADFSC) to implement the policy. TheAbu Dhabi Government has also introduced new lawsand policies to deal with the competitive agriculturesector by increasing and diversifying production whilepromoting a more rational use of water for irrigation.Image: ADFCAAbu Dhabi Protected Agriculture Center promotes hydroponic or soilless agriculture that uses 90 per cent less water[ 264 ]