IDA publishes program for Gulf desalination and environment seminar

The International Desalination Association has published details of program sessions and topics for its seminar on Desalination and the Gulf: The Relationship between the Environment and Meeting the Region’s Water Needs, which will take place in Bahrain on 6-7 December 2010.

Over the past few months, a distinguished task force of desalination and environmental experts has been meeting to review and discuss the most pressing issues in preparation for this symposium, which is being organized under the patronage of Eng Fahmi Bin Ali Aljowder, minister of works and minister in charge of the Electricity & Water Authority.

The program sessions and topics for discussion will be:

Introductions

  • General overview of the Gulf environment and highlight of users and their relative impacts
  • Comparing and contrasting membrane and thermal desalination plant impacts
  • General status of regulation and environmental assessment regarding desalination in the Gulf and globally
  • Marine Impacts – Intakes

  • Baseline of intake structures used in the Gulf and their relative design/operation relative to impingement/entrainment and chlorine use
  • Methods to improve the design of greenfield plants and operation or mitigation of brownfield intakes relative to impingement/entrainment and chlorine usage
  • Marine Impacts – Chemical Discharges

  • Classes of chemicals used in desalination (short versus long life), usage levels and relative priority and impact
  • Bahrain case study of actual discharges from both thermal and membrane facilities
  • Estimates of waste and chemical discharges into the Arabian Gulf from desalination plants
  • Chlorination options, state-of-the-art and Gulf utilities strategies
  • Corrosion control/mitigation options
  • Marine Impacts – Salinity and Thermal Discharges

  • Differences in salinity and thermal discharges between membrane and thermal plants
  • Modeling impacts of salinity and thermal desalination plants including a case study
  • Mitigation approaches to address impacts of salinity discharges
  • Air Quality Impacts

  • Fuels used throughout the Gulf and the impact of their quality on greenhouse-gas emissions
  • Bahrain Electricity & Water Authority’s quest to reduce fuel gas emissions
  • Energy efficiency and carbon mitigation – what are the available options and financial incentives?
  • Status of renewable energy program in Saudi Arabia
  • IRENA report on renewable energy in the Gulf
  • Environmental Assessment And Monitoring

  • Overview and Case Study
  • Mitigation Discussions In Round Table Formats By Topic Area

  • Summaries and Conclusions: Blue Paper Outline
  • Registration can be made online at www.idadesal.org.