Water conservation
Our campus is located in one of the driest region in the world, in a region dominated by desert with no permanent natural rivers or lakes. Yet the Kingdom is among the highest per capita water consumption rates in the world (250 Liters/day), which results in huge gaps between renewable supply and demand. To cover the water demand there are more than 31 high-cost desalination plants operated by the government. In order to ease the water crisis in the kingdom, the government has started to implement water recycling and reuse programs as alternative strategies to conserve water.
KFUPM as an educational institution should be the leading example to solve the immense challenge of our region water crisis. In order to promote the conservation of water sources in campus we have carried out a number of water conservation initiatives, such as:
- Using treated water for non-drinking purposes, such as for toilet flushing and cooling tower.
- Using water-saving equipment and install filters in water taps to reduce water consumption.
- Automatic irrigations systems are being used to reduce water consumption.
- Using small drops sprinklers especially for trees; thus reduce the amount of water losses.
- Installation of special machines for water desalination and purification in KFUPM’s water stations. Reclaiming approximately 30% of salty water (rejected water) instead of disposing it.
Start from ourselves
Yes, we are the main actors; conserving water should start from ourselves. There are a lot of things we can do as an individual to save water:
- First, bear in mind, water is not cheap; today's wastage will be tomorrow's shortage.
- Open the tap only when you are going to use the water, for example: don't keep the tap open while brushing your teeth.
- Report water leak as soon as possible, never underestimate a dripping tap, it can waste about 5,500 liters of water a year.
- Stop food waste; take only what you can finish. It takes a lot of water to produce our food.
