Desalination plans using renewable water resources: a sustainable solution for the water problem in Cyprus.

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Elpida Kolokytha, Evdokimos Evdokimou, Theodoros Porfiriadis

Wednesday 1 july 2015

12:00 - 12:15h at Central America (level 0)

Themes: (T) Water resources and hydro informatics (WRHI), (ST) The water-food-energy nexus

Parallel session: 9K. Water resources - Water - food - energy nexus

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Fresh water resources scarcity and the need for additional water supplies is the major problem of many arid regions in the world. In response to the increasing demand, desalination plans have become one of the most important sources of potable water. Cyprus, with limited and depleted natural resources, suffers a severe water shortage problem. In the view of the decreasing precipitation, which trends to get worse due to climate change, in all the Mediterranean region, the Cyprus Government has decided to proceed with the construction of 4 desalination plans working on conventional resources, providing almost 250.000 m3/day. Mapping water needs and renewable energy sources is a strategic tool for planning new desalination systems with reduced environmental impact. This paper presents the water problem in Cyprus and the perspectives of using RES in desalination. The environmental impact assessment is described and the process of brine disposal is demonstrated by using the Cormix model. Different options of RES are discussed in reference with a desalination plan in Pafos and interesting remarks are made.