[몰디브] 물 위기로 인해 담수화 의존도 높아져
몰디브에서 수도 담수화 플랜트의 심각한 화재 이후 10만 명이상의 거주민이 식수 없이 생활하게 되면서 거세진 대중의 불만을 잠재우기 위한 병물 지원이 계속되고 있다.
지난 4일 목요일 Mal 상하수 회사의 담수화 플랜트에서 발생한 화재로 인해, 13만 명의 인구가 거주하고 있는 Male 시는 물 수요를 충족시키기 위해 분투하고 있다.
Abdulla Yameen 대표는 “우리는 이러한 등급의 재난에 대한 어떠한 대비책도 가지고 있지 않지만, 정상의 상황으로 되돌리기 위해 매우 열심히 노력하고 있다”고 밝혔다.
[원문보기]
Desalination dependence highlighted by Maldives water crisis
Bottled water supplies continue to be sent to the Maldives to help calm public discontent after a crippling fire to the capital city’s desalination plant has left over 100,000 without drinking water.
Following a reported fire on Thursday at the Mal Water and Sewerage Company’s (MWSC) desalination plant, the city of Male with a population of 130,000 has been struggling to meet water demands.
President Abdulla Yameen told the media: “We did not have any fall back plan for any disaster of this magnitude. However, we have done extremely hard work to try and bring the situation back to normal.”
Maldives officials estimate that it could take up to five days to repair the fire damage to the desalination plant and restore normal supply.
The Maldives are composed of 1,190 low-lying islands, about 600km southwest of Sri Lanka in the Indian Ocean.
Heavy abstraction of groundwater has depleted sources, especially in Male, according to the UN. Where there is insufficient space available for rainwater collection and storage, desalination has become the only alternative means of providing safe water supply.
India, Sri Lanka, China and the US are sending supplies to help the nation. China has since donated $500,000 and the government is arranging for commercial flights to Male to carry bottles of drinking water.
The nation’s first desalination plant was installed in 1988 using reverse osmosis technology with a capacity of 200 m3/day.
Another island in the Maldives, Gulhi, took delivery of a desalination unit from German company Memsys which in the summer claimed to be “energy positive” (see WWi story).
[출처 = Water World / 2014년 12월 8일]