Environment Related Policy from Country Saudi Arabia - Case Study Example

Environment Related Policy from the Country Saudi Arabia Institution: Name: Executive Summary Water is scarce natural resources in Saudi Arabia, which should be managed in a way that justifies its consumption as well as secure its overall supply for future consumption. This report concluded that the government should encourage water reuse before desalination, specifically in cities with high elevations. Urban water tariffs should be increased to reduce water consumption. Next, the wheat subsidies should be reduced. The municipal water supplies should also be privatised to enable effective and cheap transportation of water. In addition, a ministry should be set up with the sole responsibility of overseeing the management of water resources and water conservation. More investigations should also be made into the nationwide water dynamics to provide consistent date on movement of the water resource. Table of Contents Executive Summary 2 Table of Contents 3 Introduction 4 Why the issue is a natural resource 4 Biophysical challenges 6 Legislation, government agencies and policies 8 Coordinating Bodies     8 National Institutional and Legislations 9 Regulation and policies 9 Service Provision 10 Politics of managing the resource 11 Recommendation and Conclusion 13 References 15 Environment Related Policy from the Country Saudi Arabia Introduction In recent years, Saudi Arabia has progressively showed the need to recognise the need for water management as a way of improving and reinstating the wellbeing of the country’s water-dependent ecology (Abdalla, 2013). However, studies have expressed concerns over Saudi Arabia’s natural water resources. According to CSIS (2011), of all the manifestations of the country’s spectacular development over the past 50 years, water scarcity and lack of efficient policies to secure its future accessibility has been the most worrying. Saudi Arabia experiences acute water shortage because of the arid climate, coupled with an absence of permanent water sources, such as lakes and rivers (Zaharani, Al-Shayaa & Baig, 2011). This report describes the policy framework for one natural resource issue, and how the framework could be improved. Why the issue is a natural resource Saudi Arabia has limited naturally-occurring water. With a land area of about 2.14 million km2, Saudi Arabia is generally an arid and water-deficit kingdom with constrained access to fresh water supply (UNCCSF, 2012). The region is a desert-like country that lies within the continental zone that experiences high temperatures in summer (Zaharani, Al-Shayaa & Baig, 2011). In addition to lacking permanent water bodies, the kingdom experiences low annual rainfall. According to Ernst & Young (2014), Saudi Arabia is specifically susceptible to environmental degradation and climate change effects, making it to have the most challenging water scarcity in the world (World Bank, 2003). On analysis, the available surface and groundwater resources are constrained. At the same time, precipitation rates are minimal while evaporation rate are extremely high, with most parts of the country lying in arid region. All these factors combined contribute to the kingdom’s water deficit (Abderrahman, 2001). The kingdom’s average annual rainfall is about 150 mm. Given the comprehensive development attained across the country’s major sectors, the annual national demand for water has surpassed 30,000 MCM (Abderrahman, 2009). Hence, although the supply aspect has been given much attention, the demand management has remained inconspicuous, in spite of the improved potential benefits. The climatic conditions and the depletion of underground water remain a critical challenge for the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Because of the acute water deficit, water has remained an exceedingly valuable resource (Al-Zahrani & Baig, 2011). In addition, it is recognised to be among the most prized natural resources of the kingdom. Despite water being a renewable resource, its availability is extremely low to the Saudi society. Due to this, tremendous pressure has been placed on the current water resources due to population explosion and the rise in the society’s living standards (Zaharani, Al-Shayaa & Baig, 2011). Constraints on water resources in Saudi Arabia have increased because of agricultural developments, which have led to their partial depletion, specifically in regards to non-renewable fossil water. Further studies have also indicated that much of the water drawn originated from fossil or deep aquifers (Al-Kahtani & Ismaiel, 2010). Fossil water also remains the country’s only source of fresh water supplies (Droubi, 2006). According to FAO (2009), increased desert agricultural practices has almost tripled the water volume required for irrigation to the 2006 amount of 21km3 from the initial figure of 6.8 km3 of 1980. Some projections in Saudi Arabia have indicated that the presence of water resources may not last for the next 25 years. Several analyses have indicated that the demand for water has increased rapidly despite the diminishing and limited water resources (Zaharani, Al-Shayaa & Baig, 2011). These show that water is scarce natural resources in Saudi Arabia, which should be managed in a way that justifies its consumption, as well as, secure its overall supply for future consumption. Biophysical challenges For Saudi Arabia to instigate sustainable water resources, an equilibrium should exists between the water demands and the biophysical system (Taher & Al-Hajjar, 2014). Studies have indicated that a major challenge that Saudi Arabia grapples with in managing water resources is reconciling the environmental targets in the long-run with the kingdom’s short-run socio-economic and political needs (Zaharani, Al-Shayaa & Baig, 2011). The attributes of surface and ground water include their spatial and temporal variability (Roumasset & Wada, 2010). The country has no permanent water bodies to sustain agricultural practices. Managing the country’s water resources has depended on socio-economic needs through focus on regulation of water for a range of domestic, agricultural, transportation, energy and recreational use (Al-Zahrani, 2010). Traditional water management has altered the natural system of water flow triggering a range of ecological processes have substantially degraded water quality (Abderrahman, 2006b). Due to this, the emerging water quality issues in Saudi Arabia have presented policymakers and planners with challenges in regards to provision of quality water, so as to meet the various human demands for water and to fulfil the demands of the intensifying need to conserve water and protect environment (Abderrahman, 2000). Desalinated water requires between 50% and 90% of Saudi’s water use, despite not being a renewable resource. Its production process needs constant energy input, which is expensive. The government faces a challenge in balancing competing demands on oil resources that domestic energy production and desalination present (FAO 2006; Lee, 2010). Integrating the principles of “Ecologically Sustainable Development” (ESD) is a significant component of water resource management. In spite of the latest policy amendments and adjustment of attitudes in regards to water management, several attempts to attain sustainability have not made much progress access because of a range of reasons. a. Saudi Arabia’s socio-economic agenda has remained the key motivator for much of the policy and water management schemes instead of the environmental needs or agenda (Mahmoud, 2013). b. Desalination is expensive and constitutes more than half of Saudi’s energy demands. Construction of dams is also expensive. c. The natural demand and limited natural ecosystem has not been sufficiently deliberated in processes of water management since there is either limited or improper understanding of the complexities. This is because they are both unbearable in political and social sense. d. The government lacks policies that support waste water treatment and reuse. Other constraints include incompetent analysis of waste water reuse and treatment options (Al-Ghasham, 2005). e. Saudi Arabia’s water table is extensively damaged such that they are either irreversible or require maximal efforts to restore. f. The factors responsible for increase problems of water quality may have been improperly diagnosed. As a consequence, the restoration actions employed in response have either been unproductive, or concentrated on tackling the symptoms instead of the causes (Kajenthira, Anadon& Sidiqqi, 2011). Legislation, government agencies and policies Coordinating Bodies     Ministerial Committee on Environment (MCE), which is the preeminent policymaking body in Saudi Arabia when it comes to matters of environmental resources, formulated Agenda 21, a national implementation plan to accommodate the kingdom’s policies on agriculture and water. The Kingdom has adopted policies on water conservation based on Islamic principles, which set out the people live and thrive on earth as their basic purpose (UN, 1997). As a result, the use of natural and environmental resources has been approached with preventive measures. Basing on the kingdom’s general policies, the Fifth Development Plan was adopted. It promotes provision of quality water and food to the citizens and improving the management of available natural resources (World Water Council, 2012). To this end, in order to adopt Agenda 21 and the Fifth Development Plan, agencies such as the “Ministry of Agriculture and Water, Ministry of Planning and Meteorology and Environmental Protection Administration (MEPA)” have prepared a plan for managing water and air quality (UN, 1997). Accordingly, the kingdom has signatory to a range of international protocols and conventions aimed at environmental protection such as the “Vienna Convention on Protection of Ozone Layer.” Additionally, the kingdom contributes to a range of international and regional organisations, such as United Nations Environment Program, that are concerned with safeguarding natural resources, such as (UNEP, 2007; UN, 1997). National Institutional and Legislations The government of Saudi Arabia, which complies with the principles of Sharia or Islamic law, established specialised water agencies to produce, distribute and treat water within the kingdom. Before the 2008 initiation of National Water Company (NWC), the kingdom had no separate institutions that took oversaw the regulations and policies and, those that provided service. Rather, all the key sectors in water and energy were under the Ministry of Water and Electricity (Al-Saud, 2010). Due to these constraints, the efficiency and constraints have been slowed down by varied weaknesses that affect the public sector as whole, such as lack of sufficient civil servants recruitment policies, lack of effective planning, limited expertise, inadequate salaries and lack of accountability and poor investment decisions (World Water Council, 2012). Regulation and policies The Ministry of Water and Electricity (MoWe) oversees the policies and regulations of water provision and sanitation services. The sector has no distinct or separate regulatory agencies. For instance, the Electricity and Co-generation Regulatory Authority (ECRA) is administers private desalination firms. At the same time, the domain of the Ministry of Agriculture partially coincides with MoWe’s. This leads to duplication of efforts, sometimes competing for capital resources and lack of consensus on policy. For instance, given that agriculture is the leading consumer of water in the kingdom and leads significantly to fossil aquifer depletion, both agencies have not been able to decide on what effective regulation to be used in this regard (World Bank 2005). Overlap also exists within the two ministries when it comes to recycling wastewater since the country lacks Ministry of Environment. Service Provision The public and the private sector under water and sanitation service provision collaboratively. While NWC administers water supply and sanitation within the kingdom’s major cities, namely Mecca, Riyadh, Taif and Jeddah, other cities are run by the MoWe. At the same time, the local government that should manage the service provision, as the case in some countries, is not mandated to take charge of the service provision in the kingdom (World Water Council, 2012). Current monopoly in service provisions has ment higher costs for the government. MoWe also constructs dams. Since most of the surface runoff water is prevalent within the coastal regions of Saudi Arabia, particularly to the southwest such as Bishah, MoWe has built some 230 dams across the nation to trap the water. In addition to maximising infiltration that researches groundwater, the dams avert flash-floods. Studies have indicated that more surface water has been used following the construction of King Fahad Dam (Al-Turbak, n.d.). The Saline Water Conversion Corporation (SWCC) and private firms run desalination plants. For instance, the Independent Water and Power Projects (IWPPs) sells water to the public through a public corporation called the Water and Energy Company. The Water and Waste-water Authority (WWA) consists of an autonomous agency that is within the Ministry of Rural and Municipal affairs. It distributes clean water, and collects and treats waste-water across the kingdom. Despite this apparent broad domain, there are no policies regulation waste water management (Kajenthira, Anadon& Sidiqqi, 2011). Politics of managing the resource The official position of Saudi Arabia’s government is to defend the rights of the country in developing its natural resources. However, this has been affected by contradictory interests within the government sectors. On analysis of the current water policies in Saudi Arabia, it is clear that they promote the use of ground water supplies while disregarding the fact that withdrawals significantly surpass the natural recharge (Abderrahman, 2006a; Knap & Olson, 1995). This has conflicted with the UNEP principles on environmental conservation. Besides, the policies are socially non-optimal and promote artificial groundwater withdrawals for agriculture, while at the same time the government spends millions of dollars on desalination plants to promote industrial and municipal water supplies (FAO, 2006; 2009). It is also apparent that the policies that offer expensive desalinated seawater to municipalities at greatly subsidized rates that do not relate to its social cost, promote misuse of water. Some policymakers have recommended reduction of subsidies (Al-Zubari, n.d.). However, this has contrasted the principles of the Sharia Laws. Hence, scrapping the subsidies has not been possible. Government policymakers, specifically those at the Ministry of Agriculture and Water, and the Ministry of Planning (MoP), in addition to independent researchers have become increasingly concerned with the rate of depletion of the aquifers and its implication on the kingdom’s future water security and rise in economic cost (World Water Council, 2012). Agricultural policies have been criticised by agencies, such as the water price policy of 5%, for their implications in the fall in water table (FAO, 2006). The wheat price policy is of significant importance to the policy-makers and farmers in the agricultural sector since it promotes the kingdom’s food policy. Agricultural water consumption constitutes 90% of the total water use. Although the outcome of favourable government policies has been a boom in the agricultural sector, specifically wheat production by up to 12% per annum, this has been achieved at a high budgetary allocation and extensive depletion of groundwater resources, such as aquifers, that are mostly non-renewable (FAO 2006; UNEP 2003; Al-Zahrani, 2009). Hence, this has resulted in a fall in the water table. However, the environmental needs to sustain the water’s ecological values have been ‘pretermitted’ to some considerable extent, causing severe problems with water quality to rise and for the natural aquatic ecosystems to deteriorate to levels makes the economic and social developments to become unsustainable (Al Bakri, Wikham & Chowdhury, 1999). While international agencies such as the United Nations have recommended that Urban and industrial water reuses should be taken into account alongside desalination as the country’s alternatives for water supply (AMEinfo.com, 2010). MoWe has projected that an investment of $52 billion would be needed for desalination over the next fifteen years. However, the necessity to conserve fossil fuels has contrasted the international conventions, such as the Vienna Convention, on Protection of Ozone Layer, demanding the policymakers balance more critically on the environmental and energy costs of desalination (Kajenthira, Anadon& Sidiqqi, 2011). While some policymakers have proposed that water tariffs be increased for desalinated water and ground water to accurately depict the costs of water supplied, to encourage conservation, it has presented a challenge, since it contradicts the principles of Sharia Law. Increase in waste water reuse has been suggested by some analysts as the potential intervention strategy (Sachs & Warner, 1999). However, the government lacks policies that support waste water treatment and reuse. Other constraints include incompetent analysis of waste water reuse and treatment options (Kajenthira, Anadon& Sidiqqi, 2011). Recommendation and Conclusion The government of Saudi Arabia should encourage water reuse before desalination, specifically in cities with high elevations. This is since desalination processes are energy-intensive and primary run by fossil fuels that are vulnerable to depletion. Reclamation of water in urban areas should be increased in cities situated in high altitudes or inland such as Riyadh, given that demand for water for domestic purposes in these areas is projected to go up over the next one decade. More dams should also be constructed in the high and coastal parts of the country to revitalize the groundwater. The need to increase tariffs for urban water tariffs to reduce water consumption cannot be overlooked. This would, in addition, provide funds for desalinating water. The government would also reduce incentives for desalinating water in order to concentrate on other water conservation measures. The wheat subsidies should be reduced. Among the distorted agricultural policies that encourage overexploitation of water is offering incentives for wheat production through the wheat price policy. The municipal water supplies should be privatised to enable effective and cheap transportation of water. For instance, since desalinated water is transported to far off areas such as the Riyadh City, it becomes expensive. A ministry should be set up with the sole responsibility of overseeing the management of water resources and water conservation. Currently, Saudi Arabia has no ministry with the sole responsibility of managing water affairs. For instance, MoWe deals with water issues and electricity supply. This would avoid duplication of efforts and cases of bureaucracy. Much of the water used for domestic and agricultural purposes are overseen by policy-induced distortions that affect water output, use and cost. More investigations should also be made into the nationwide water dynamics to provide consistent date on movement of the water resource. Additionally, aquifers that spread across the national and regional boundaries need to be studied. To this end, given that the biophysical resources cover the entire social and economic activities, it is essential that rather than wait, industry regulators in Saudi Arabia should rethink their strategies of ensuring the water is used equitably and satisfactorily by the country’s population and economy. 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Water Conservation in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia for better environment: implications for extension and education. Bulgarian Journal of Agricultural Science, 17 (3), 389-395 Read More