Qatar has two main groundwater resources, namely the Rus and Umm er Rhaduma aquifers. Rainfall recharge contributes 43.4% of the groundwater reserve. The inflow from Saudi Arabia, which originates from a shared artesian aquifer, contributes 2%, while the artificial recharge from TSE contributes 54.6%.[4] As shown in Map 1, Qatar has four main groundwater basins, namely the Northern Basin, Southern Basin, Doha Basin and Allat Basin. Table 1 shows the natural long-term water balance of Qatar’s groundwater resources between 1998 and 2016.

Wastewater reuse

In addition to desalination, treated wastewater has been a significant non-conventional water resource in Qatar since its introduction in 2004.12 According to the Ministry of Development, Planning and Statistics, 50% of wastewater is collected, 60% of which is treated at a basic level.13 In 2019, the amount of treated wastewater reached 276 MCM (around 99.3% of the total wastewater collected).14 As Figure 2 shows, treated wastewater is used in agriculture, landscaping and parks, for deep injection into aquifers or discharge into lagoons.
Treated wastewater also plays a prominent role in cooling industries. It is estimated that these industries consume nearly 73 MCM of treated wastewater, which represents 17% of total treated wastewater demand in 2020.16 The Second National Development Strategy (NDS-2), which covers the period 2018-2022, aims to expand wastewater reuse as well as the development of water management to increase efficient water use in industrial zones.

Desalination

Groundwater

Recycled Water

According to the Qatar Environment and Energy Research Institute, or QEERI, tap and bottled water in Qatar is “very safe to drink.” The organization conducted a study looking at 113 samples of tap water and 62 samples of bottled water with favorable.

Based on QEERI’s findings, the water quality in Qatar complies with guidelines set by both the World Health Organization and the United States Environmental Protection Agency.

QEERI confirmed that the water did not contain dangerous levels of contaminants, such as lead and arsenic, which can affect the taste and smell of the water in addition to causing health problems.

Nora Kuiper, a leading researcher for the project, said that the quality of water in Qatar is superior, contrary to any preconceived notions that residents might have.

“The quality of Qatar’s drinking water is very high, higher than many local consumers think,” Kuiper said.

Candace Rowell, another researcher for this project, said that the most important outcome of the study was finding that tap and bottled water are comparably safe.

“The real takeaway message is that tap water in the country is just as safe as bottled water, either locally produced or imported brands,” Rowell said.

The main concern that the study addressed was that imported water was not always up to standards. According to QEERI, some samples of imported water showed higher concentrations of contaminants, such as arsenic.

According to Doha News, researchers have expressed concerns regarding the mineral content and how this affects the water quality in Qatar. The study found that while water is typically free from harmful chemicals and bacteria, it can lack vital minerals. According to this article, at least 50 percent of Qatar’s water supply requires extensive salt removal due to the country’s limited access to freshwater.

Jerome Nriagu, a professor emeritus at the School of Public Health and Research and the Center for Human Growth and Development at the University of Michigan said that this “synthetic” water lacks essential minerals.

“By constantly drinking water with low potassium and magnesium, you increase the risk of getting obesity and hypertension, and [certain] metabolic disorders,” Nriagu said.

Nriagu said that it would be beneficial for officials to add essential minerals to better the water quality in Qatar.

“We’re not getting enough from our foods to start with, and now drinking [this type of] water compounds the problem,” Nriagu said.

– Leah Potter

Photo: Flickr

So now the question is if Qatar’s water contains micro-plastics! The answer is – yes! The first evidence of the prevalence of microplastics in Gulf seawater, specifically in the marine waters off Qatar, has been documented through a research study conducted by senior researchers from Qatar University Environmental Science Center (QU-ESC).

Water use is a key component of Qatar's National Development Strategy 2011-2016
The National Water Act will grow out of the strategy to replace the existing fragmented rules and laws, bringing together a comprehensive water policy. It will focus on quality standards for domestic, agricultural and industrial uses for water.

So how can groundwater in Qatar be sustainably managed? Kahramaa is actively rehabilitating and activating over 300 existing recharge wells around Qatar, to increase the direct recharge to the aquifer system in the country from the rain and subsequently improve the groundwater condition and increase its availability for water security, while at the same time extending efforts to drill and develop about 60 recharge/injection and observation wells to increase the direct recharge to storage zone and to increase the productivity of the aquifer system from the rain. Managed aquifer recharge (MAR) is not easy or straightforward in Qatar due to the karstic nature of the sub-surface, but Kahramaa’s Water Projects Department budgeted 2.6 billion QAR for projects in 2019 to improve the groundwater storage zones and increase the recharge to the groundwater water aquifer system.

An even more serious issue than the decrease in quality of the groundwater is the issue of land subsidence due to the changes in the water table. For a very flat and low-lying country like Qatar, land changes can actually influence shifts along the coastline of Qatar, exacerbating any issues of sea level rise by changing the level of the land also. Research such as that ongoing at Qatar Environment and Energy Research Institute (QEERI), part of Hamad Bin Khalifa University, a member of Qatar Foundation (QF), can help. QEERI’s Earth Science Program partnered with NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in the OASIS project, which intends to use satellites to help map groundwater, land subsidence and sea level changes in this region and beyond. At the same time, QEERI is developing better options for agricultural water and brine management, which can help to protect the groundwater and the environment. Research to allow more crops to be grown with less water, and better greenhouse or other cooler environment options for indoor farming can extend the growing season and reduce the burden on the groundwater system.

Dr. Jenny Lawler is a Senior Research Director at Hamad Bin Khalifa University’s Qatar Environment and Energy Research Institute.