CLEAN WATER and adequate nutrition are the foundations on which every human society is built. Guaranteeing security of supply already presents many places with major challenges today, not least in the rapidly growing metropolises that are home to millions of people. Wilo offers solutions for tackling them.
In the Egyptian Toshka project, Wilo products and systems are helping to turn desert into land for agricultural purposes.
Sebou project: Wilo is supplies 12 vertical turbine pumps, each with an output of 4.5 megawatts.
THE IMPORTANCE of a secure supply of food and water for the inhabitants of cities cannot be overestimated. This is all the more relevant in light of the fact that, according to the United Nations World Water Development Report, around 2.4 billion people in cities are expected to have inadequate access to clean water in 2050. Half of the global population living in cities could be affected by a shortage of water by 2050. This problem will be exacerbated by the increase in water consumption in cities and, at the same time, the enormous loss of water due to outdated infrastructure. Many cities suffer from a total lack of access to clean drinking water as well as inadequate sewage disposal and treatment.
New technologies, intelligent water management systems and innovative engineering solutions can help to minimise water losses and improve the efficiency of water usage. In Morocco, for example, the Sebou dam is being connected to the Sidi Mohamed Ben Abdellah dam as part of the national water plan. Wilo is supplying 12 vertical turbine pumps, each with an output of 4.5 megawatts, for the machinery for the two pumping stations that are required. The primary aim of the project is to secure the supply of drinking water for the metropolises of Rabat and Casablanca as well as the surrounding areas and to reduce the structural water deficit.
The Wilo-Atmos TERA-SCH – successor to the split case pump Wilo-SCP – stands for efficient water supply over extensive piping networks.
In addition to water supply, food security is of crucial importance in urban areas. Access to adequate, safe and nutritious food is essential for the health and well-being of city dwellers. Urbanisation and population growth are increasing the pressure on the food supply, thereby underlining the need for sustainable and efficient food production and distribution.
Egypt depends on food imports to supply its rapidly growing population. The country on the Nile is the world’s largest importer of grain. The risks associated with this also grow in times of increasing crises and conflicts. To free itself from this dependency and secure the food supply of its own population, the country is pursuing a long-term strategy. This includes the Toshka project, which aims to make a total of around one million hectares of desert available for agricultural use through irrigation. Around 400 high-efficiency Wilo split case pumps are being used in the first phase of construction. They will pump roughly 5.5 billion cubic metres of water a year from Lake Nasser to supply 56,700 hectares of new arable land.
Developing resilient and sustainable solutions for supplying urban areas with food and water is a global challenge. It requires an approach that takes both technological innovations and social and economic aspects into account. The cooperation between governments, international organisations, the private sector and the respective population is critical in order to sustainably improve the life of people living in cities around the world.
