Research works and studies on benefiting from non-traditional sources of water by the Syrian researcher Safwan Al-Halabi

The young Syrian expatriate researcher Safwan Al-Halabi seeks to find innovative solutions to address the scarcity of fresh water in the Arab region, and presents serious research to take advantage of non-traditional sources of water for drinking, irrigation and other activities.

Regarding his choice of the field of water, Al-Halabi researcher said in an interview with SANA  reporter  “most Arab countries, including Syria, suffer from lack of  fresh water resources ” indicating that this is what prompted him to become interested in this field to find Alternative solutions to secure the need for water for various purposes.

Al-Halabi explained that Syria has many traditional water sources, including rainfall, the annual average of which is estimated at 48 billion cubic meters, distributed unevenly over the Syrian geography, in addition to the presence of springs, rivers, and groundwater, despite this, there is a shortage in meeting the water needs in several areas.

The researcher pointed out that there are several factors that threaten the sustainability of water resources in Syria, including climate change, the decrease in annual rainfall, the increase in humidity, soil salinization,  and the expansion of industrial businesses.

Al-Halabi stressed that this reality prompted him to provide research concerned with treating wastewater and benefiting from rain fall after storing and treating it.

He also presented applicable research in the United Arab Emirates on utilizing air conditioner water and desalinating seawater, all of which serve researchers and companies specialized in water fields. He indicated that there is an urgent need for more of this scientific research in the Arab countries and the necessity of having certain parties that adopt and support it, and finance its implementation so that it becomes projects on the ground to avoid water crises in the future.

The researcher Al-Halabi stressed the importance of spreading the culture of rationalizing water use in society, and the need to protect groundwater from pollution and encourage the use of modern irrigation methods for agricultural lands, with the expansion of sanitation projects, periodic maintenance of their networks, treatment of the water, benefiting from rainwater, and reducing desertification by increasing cultivated areas.

He stressed  that securing the growing needs for water requires concerted governmental efforts in Arab countries with academic and civil society bodies to face the upcoming future challenges.

It is worth mentioning that the researcher, Safwan Al-Halabi, is a graduate of the Faculty of Agricultural Engineering of Damascus University, specializing in rural engineering, garden architecture, and irrigation and sanitation engineering.

He has many research papers in the fields of water sources and methods of treating and investing in them in Syria and the Emirates, and he is currently preparing to issue two books in this regard.

Rawaa Ghanam