Israel has balm for city’s water woes……Ashwin Aghor
Recycling sewage can reduce cuts, says high-level official
Mumbai: After setting an example in terror combat, Israel has proved its mettle again and is all set to teach the world how to live with water scarcity.
“Water is a prime national resource and a key element in socio-economic development of any country. The ever-growing gap between demand and supply has put a great responsibility on planners, developers and water managers to make it available to all in sufficient quantity and acceptable quality,” said Dr Giora Alon, chief engineer of the National Sewerage Authority, Israel.
Dr Alon is in the city to present Living Under Conditions of Water Scarcity–The Case of Israel.
Israel is a classical example of a country which has efficiently worked on this problem and is now considered a successful case study for others to emulate. “Water is a scarce commodity in Israel. Since the country is situated in an arid zone and the natural resources are insufficient to meet the ever rising demand,” he said.
According to Dr Alon, climate change and global warming is bound to affect availability of water in the future. “Given the erratic weather conditions, we need to look for alternatives. Recycling of sewerage water can do wonders for uses other than drinking,” Dr Alon said.
Mumbai too can opt for recycling of sewerage water for the uses other than drinking, he feels. “At present, 75% of irrigation water in Israel is recycled. The technology can be exploited in Mumbai to avoid water cuts in future,” Dr Alon said.