Desalination of sea and brackish water has become a necessity in many arid and semi-arid regions in Syria. Natural fresh water resources in Syria are being depleted rapidly as a result of population growth and socio-economical development. It is apparent that water demand in Syria will grow more rapidly within the next twenty years: forecasts expect that the Syrian population will increase from 18 million in 2001 to more than 28 million in 2020. This increasing demand for water puts enormous strain on the underground aquifer, which results in lowering water levels and increasing salt concentration.
As stated above, it is clear that any solution that allows an increase in water resources will be of great advantage to the country. Many solutions were undertaken by the government of Syria to solve the problem by building dams and creating multipurpose reservoirs. Water that becomes available by catchment is used in power generation and in irrigation. The development of non-conventional water resources including water desalination technologies will constitute an important source of water that augments the national water budget. Desalination technologies will permit Syria to invest the seawater and its brackish water in the eastern regions in order to obtain industrial and fresh drinking water.
As a result of the Syrian government interest in desalination technology and because of the importance of enhancing technical expertise in this field, the Ministry of State for the Transfer and Development of Technology decided on 28/11/2000 to form a Scientific National Commission including the following bodies:
The mission of this commission is to:
This commission must provide the ministry with a detailed plan of action including the executive measures to be taken in order to establish a national industry for water desalination.
The need for comprehensive project planning is extremely important. In developing a good plan, one must first assess surface and groundwater resources, available energy, water distribution system, local desalination industry and quality of water required. These activities are already started in collaboration between the National Commission for water desalination, Ministry of Irrigation and Ministry of Housing and Utilities.
This proposal focuses on elaborating an RTD program of water desalination in Syria. The main objective of this proposal is the advancement of the desalination knowledge and experience in Syria through execution of an integrated research and technical program. Ultimately, this will be manifested through development of applied desalination research laboratory in Syria that may be hosted in the Higher Institute of Applied Science and Technology. The objectives of this laboratory will include: