Documenti di Didattica
Documenti di Professioni
Documenti di Cultura
College of Engineering
Assignment 1
201470472
Salama Al Dhaheri
200813676
Miada Abubaker Osman
200734767
Haliemeh Sweidan
201470408
201470462
Fall 2015/2016
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Contents
Page
List of Figures
iii
Introduction
1
Climate
2
Water Resources
Soil And Natural Resources
6
Native
9
Heritage
Plants
And
And
Animals
Culture
11
Conclusion
13
References
14
iii
List of Figures
Figure
Figure 1
Page
Main aquifer in the UAE
iii
1. INTODUCTION
2. CLIMATE
The United Arab Emirates draws sun seekers from all corners of the globe due to the fact
that it is blessed with year-round sunshine, blue skies and very little rain.
The UAE Climate features extreme heat and wet because of its sandy landscape, although it
is cooler in the eastern mountains. UAE weather is sunny all the year round; the months
between June and September are the hottest, when the temperatures soar up to 45C which
makes life difficult. It is almost impossible to get out during the day. Even at night,
temperature and humidity in the air don't drop that much. The outdoor activities are to be
forgotten during this period. The cooler months are characterized by infrequent spells of
rainfall during the months of December and March.
The average minimum temperatures in January and February are between 10 and 14 C. The
average annual rainfall in the coastal area is fewer than 120 mm (4.7 in), but in some
mountainous areas the annual rainfall often reaches 350 mm (13.8 in).
There is no really significant difference in the climate depending on your location within the
UAE, due to the relatively small size of the country. All major cities, excepted Al Ain, are on
the coast and therefore share the same climate. You will find the same climate in Abu Dhabi,
in Dubai, or in the Northern Emirates.
The temperature of the seawater in the UAE obviously depends on the temperature of the air.
In winter, the sea is relatively cold: around 20 C in the Persian Gulf (in Abu
Dhabi and Dubai) and a little cooler on the coast of the Indian Ocean and Arabian Sea, to 16
C or 18 C for the coldest days.
In summer, water reaches temperatures that one will imagine unthinkable. In the Persian
Gulf, the sea rises to 38 C, making it a real soup: hot and very salty. In the emirate
of Fujairah, which overlooks the Indian Ocean, the water temperature is a bit more
acceptable, since it rarely exceeds 32 to 33 C. [1]
3. WATER RESOURCES
The water resources in the United Arab Emirates divides in two categories conventional
water resources such as seasonal floods, springs, falajes and groundwater and nonconventional resources such as desalinated water and treatedsewage water.
Conventional Water Resources
Seasonal Floods:
The floods in United Arab Emirates commonly happened in the eastern region where it
comes with rain storms which usually be very strong and last for short time. Most of the
rainwater move over the land surface as surface runoff due to the porosity and
permeability igneous and rocks. On the other hand western region is dry with shortage in
surface runoff, this is because of the high evaporation rate and high porosity and
permeability of dune sands.
Springs:
A spring is concentrated groundwater discharge at the ground surface [2]. The springs in
the United Arab Emirates can be used as indicators of discharge area and mostly it tend to
discharge from local and intermediate groundwater-flow systems. There are several
springs such as Khatt (Ras Al Khaimah),Maddab (Al Fujairah) and Bu Sukhanah or Ain
Al Faydah (Al Ain). It can be divided into two types : springs with discharges that are
directly related to rainfall such as Khatt north and Khatt south and springs with discharges
that are indirectly related to rainfall like Siji and Bu Sukhanah.The temperature of water
spring can be reached to (40C)[2]. Based on the chemical analyses all the springs are
not suitable for irrigation except for Siji spring due to Sodium Adsorption Ratio.
Falajes:
Falajes is a traditional tunnel that has been used as an irrigation system[3]. Most of the
falages in the United Arab Emirates are dry due to groundwater pumping. There are
different reasons effect the discharge of falaj: location of the source well(s), nature of the
source aquifer, the amount of seepage from tunnel sides, and the mean annual rainfall[2].
3
The Falajes are categories based on the discharge into three types Al Gheli, Al Daudi and
Al Hadouri. Most of United Arab Emirates falajes are Al Gheli , where the water runs
only in the winter depending mostly on the rainfall. For Al Daudi falajes the main source
of water is the groundwater storage so the discharge are permanent with little change
during the year.The Al Hadouri falajes are related to deep artesian aquifers. Almost all of
the United Arab Emirates falajes are used for irrigation purposes.
There are three main aquifers in the United Arab Emirates include the limestone aquifers
fractured ophiolite rocks, gravel aquifers . Figure 1 shows the location of these aquifers.
[2]
Treated Wastewater
The treated wastewater in the United Arab Emirates one of the most important alternate of
the fresh water in agriculture and industry. Around 150 million m 3 of treated water is
produced annually in the United Arab Emirates[2] .
There are four sewage treatment plants in the United Arab Emirates located in Abu Dhabi,
Dubai, Al Ain, and Al Sharjah. The treated water is suitable for irrigation because it goes
through three primary, secondary (biological treatment) and tertiary (advanced)
treatments which enhance the quality of the water.
Despite of questions about wither the treated sewage water used in agricultural irrigation
will effects plants, soils and groundwater as well as health hazards the safe treatment will
ensures to remove all the pollutants which make it suitable to use for crop irrigation.
4.
UAE is one of the top suppliers of aluminum foundry alloy, high-purity aluminum, and
extrusion billet to more than 45 countries. It accounts for 3.4% of the worlds aluminum
smelter production.
Natural freshwater is extremely limited and has been critically overexploited. Underwater
aquifers fell by 10 metres between 1977 and 1984, resulting in increased salinity levels
and the intrusion of seawater into groundwater. The country gets most of its water from
desalination plants (thus seawater may be counted as a natural resource). Increasing
amounts of solar energy is also being generated, in the new, environmentally friendly city
of Masdar in Abu Dhabi.
in the area. The plant are produced and grown to a stable stage in nurseries before they
are sold to farmers.
Ghaf Tree Is widely regarded as the national tree of the UA, master at surviving searing
winds and sun. Ghaf seeds are initially planted and nurtured in a nursery for two years ,
until they grow into seedling . The young tree are then ready to be where natural shade
and greenery are needed. The wadis in the whole mountain range are extremely
interesting botanically. Permanent pools and dripping aquifers provide habitats for fragile
ferns like Adiantum capillus-veneris which occurs in close conjunction with the only
UAE orchid. These moist places also harbour Lippia nodiflora, Centaurium pulchella,
Bacopa monnieri and Sida urens. Impressive stands of Phragmites australis, Imperata
cylindrica and Typha domingensis, with colour added by the wild oleander Nerium
mascatense make you forget you are in a desert country.
10
11
The discovery and production of oil in the 1960s has helped the UAE
progress much. Though the UAE has surged forward in modernity, with
its skyscrapers, modern buildings, and contemporary businesses, the
people are still very much in touch with their heritage and have the
same cultural traditions. The UAE is home to many different
nationalities and, as a society, is a testament to peaceful coexistence
and tolerance. The demographics show that Emiratis and expats live
side by side in this diverse community consisting of Emiratis, Arabs,
Asians, Europeans, Americans, and other nationalities. Furthermore,
many different religions are practiced in the UAE; with most of the
population practicing Islam, and some minority groups practicing
Christianity and Hinduism among other religions. Many mosques,
churches, and other places of worship can be seen in the UAE. Arabic is
the official language of the country and spoken by much of the
population. Other languages spoken in UAE include English, Hindi,
Urdu, Tagalog, and others.
People of many different backgrounds and cultures intermix and work
side by side in the UAE. The population of UAE is among the most
diverse in the world. The UAE society has learned to be welcoming and
tolerant of other nationalities. Though communication may be difficult
sometimes and language barriers may come up, it is a very interesting
experience to live in a society with so many different nationalities. For
any project, considering the social effects and the effect I people is an
important part of EIA. It is important to keep in mind that in UAE, the
population is very diverse which means its people have many different
cultures and expectations. Generally, residents of all nationalities
respect and adhere to Emirati traditions. For example, modest dress is
observed in public by Muslim and non Muslim people. Furthermore,
many official holidays are Islamic holidays, such as Eid and Israa w
Miraaj, and are observed by all residents. Furthermore, residents
adhere to Emirati manners and social norms.
12
5. Conclusions
6.
13
References
[1] Climate at UAE Available at :
https://sites.google.com/site/exploringtheuae/presentation/climate
(Accessed: 9 September 2015).
[2] Water Resources Perspectives: Evaluation, Management and Policy,
W.W. Wood, A.S. Alsharhan (Accessed: 10 September 2015).
[3]
Falajes,
Available
at
https://prezi.com/efbfq2qfbskb/falajes/
2010
Minerals
Yearbook
UAE
Available
at
Environmental
Atlas
of
Abu
Dhabi
Available
at
https://www.environmentalatlas.ae/cartography/geographicInheritance/
soilsSoilGreatGroupsOfAbuDhabi (Accessed: 8 September 2015).
[7] Terrestrial Environment of Abu Dhabi Emirate Available at :
http://www.ead.ae/wp-content/uploads/2014/03/Terrestrial-env.-of-ADEmirate-Eng.pdf (Accessed: 8 September 2015).
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