UAE to launch first ever HydroAtlas

The Ministry of Environment and Water has revealed its participation at this 17th edition of the Water, Energy, Technology and Environment Exhibition (WETEX) 2015, which will be held from April 21 to April 23, 2015 at the Dubai International Convention and Exhibition Centre.

The event, organised by Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (DEWA), is being held with the theme ‘At the forefront of sustainability' under the directives of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, and the patronage of HH Sheikh Hamdan bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Deputy Ruler of Dubai, UAE Minister of Finance and President of DEWA.

The Ministry's participation falls in line with the UAE's adoption of a ‘green economy' and in support of the ‘UAE Green Development Strategy' of Sheikh Mohammed, which was launched in 2012 under the slogan, ‘Green economy for sustainable development.' During the event, the Ministry, in cooperation with specialists from UAE University, will be launching the country's first HydroAtlas, a public data base that aims to provide decision makers and water resource specialists with essential water-related information in the country. The data featured in the HydroAtlas, which will also be available in digital format, focuses on the current situation of water resources in the UAE.

The Ministry is also set to highlight its achievements in the move to transform to a green economy, diversifying the economy and energy sources and the integration of the environmental dimension across the country's development plans. The Ministry will highlight the most important strategies, initiatives, existing projects and success stories in various sectors such as energy, water, oil and gas, industry, transport, buildings, tourism, waste, land planning, agriculture, financial services and measure the progress achieved by the country to shift towards a green economy.

The Ministry will also showcase the recently launched National Environmental Education & Awareness Strategy, which is expected to play a vital role in looking towards raising the level of environmental awareness in the UAE. The initiative will be implemented from 2015 to 2021 and will represent a unified qualitative step towards ecological awareness and in the efforts to preserve the local environment falling in line with the vision and objectives set by UAE Vision 2021. In addition, the Ministry will also present the six key objectives on which the strategy was based on, which also includes international standards and expectations from the parties involved.
Source: WAM