Water preservation research vital to sustain growth, says minister

The Saudi government is supporting universities and research centers to carry out scientific studies on water to reach findings that would help it draw up vital development strategies, said Environment, Water and Agriculture Minister Abdul Rahman Al-Fadli when he opened the seventh International Conference on Water Resources and Arid Environments (ICWRAE-2016) at King Saud University (KSU).
The conference discussed a number of topics dwelling at length on ways of preserving water resources.
Speaking at the opening session, the minister stressed that Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman has been showing keen interest in supporting scientific research on water resources.
“Water is our life’s most precious resource and as the need for it is increasing exponentially with population growth, it is important to discover alternative sources, aside from desalination,” the minister said.
He also stressed the need to take advantage of rainwater through sophisticated methods of water harvesting.
The Saudi government has exerted efforts and money in preserving the environment, the minister added.
Successive governments have paid attention to water supplies, including recruitment of technical missions to conduct surveys, he said, adding that these initiatives led to the establishment of Saline Water Conversion Corp.(SWCC) in 1974.
“In the recent past, Saudi Arabia has witnessed rapid development in various areas, which caused a significant increase in the demand for water,” the minister said. 
He said that Saudi Arabia has been striving to increase water supplies through the expansion of desalination plants and re-use of treated wastewater.
Saudi Arabia’s concern over water is also highlighted in its commitment to draw up national plans for water aimed at determining water resources in the Kingdom and rationalize its consumption, especially in the agricultural sector, and working out a water policy based on an integrated management of water resources, the minister said.
Al-Fadli commended the university’s outstanding efforts in promoting water research.
Referring to Saudi Vision 2030, the minister said that the plan touched on the ministry’s key initiatives in the area of water, which deals with water rationalization programs, reduction of water waste in water networks and the re-use of treated sewage water.
During his keynote address representing ICWRAE patron King Salman, the minister noted the importance of such conferences with international expertise for tapping new technologies to discover new water resources and curb pollution.
Abdulmalek A. Al-Shaikh, chairman of the ICWRAE organizing committee, general supervisor of the Prince Sultan Institute for Environment, Water and Desert Research at the KSU and general secretary of the Prince Sultan bin Abdulaziz International Prize for Water (PSIPW), in his welcome speech outlined the conference agenda that aims to explore the use of new technologies in the study of arid and semi-arid environments. 
It provides an opportunity for decision-makers, experts and scientists to share their expertise in order to find comprehensive solutions for water resource problems.
Mahmoud Abu Zeid, president of the Arab Water Council, gave a power point presentation titled ‘Toward sustainable Arab water security” at the second session of the conference.
ICWRAE 2016 is jointly organized by the Ministry of Environment, Water and Agriculture, KSU, the PSIPW and Sultan bin Abdulaziz Al-Saud Foundation.