FEASIBILITY OF TWO FRESH WATER SUPPLY TECHNIQUES IN SUDAN

1.0 INTRODUCTION

Access to clean water is considered a basic human right and in many countries when sustainable development is considered, water is at the top of the list of priorities (Omer, 2008). The value of water is increasingly felt in areas such as Sudan, where precipitation is inadequate while temperatures are high resulting in dry or arid conditions (Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO), cited in USAID, 2010). Two-thirds of the country is arid and rainfall is less than 400mm annually. Regardless of the fact that about 60% of Sudan lies within the Nile basin, it only draws 18.5x109 m3 from the Nile’s annual flow of 84x109m3 and added to its internal supply of 12x109m3, the water availability falls considerably below the water stress limit of 1000m3 per head (ibid).

According to FAO, (cited in USAID, 2010), in Sudan the renewable water resource per capita at 2008 stood at 726m3/person/year and is projected to be 617m3/person/year in 2015. It is low and rapidly dropping every year (ibid) and unless measures are taken, many citizens will be living without a basic human right. Since Sudan cannot rely on rainfall which is sporadic and concentrated in 4 months for most areas (Omer, 2008), water management techniques need to be implemented to ensure availability of potable water.
Sudan is bordered by the Red Sea to the east which makes desalination a viable option but the cost implications and negative effects on the environment make it unattractive. Another option worth considering is water recycling which seems to be lower in cost while having fewer negative effects on the environment. This report will compare the feasibility of both desalination and water recycling techniques, in terms of cost implications, social acceptance and environmental effects, and will recommend water recycling as