Masdar Institute, Abudhabi has conducted a study on Groundwater reserves in UAE. According to the results announced recently, the water reserves in UAE are depleting at a rate of half a centimeter a year because of overuse from inefficient irrigation methods. Even after a recent above average rainfall in the past 15 years, the rate of consumption is higher than replenishment of the aquifer.

With this research, they have obtained information on the amount of rainfall the UAE is getting, the amount of groundwater we are losing and desalinated water we are producing, thereby enabling UAE to develop optimal water management plans.

Groundwater provides more than half of the country's fresh water needs, but most of it goes towards the agricultural sector. Desalination provides around 37 per cent of the UAE's water demand, which is used mostly for industrial and domestic consumption. The remaining portion, around 12 per cent, is reclaimed water, which is used for landscaping irrigation.

Despite the increased rainfall, evaporation and transpiration water is taken out of the ground at slightly more rate that rainfall has been adding to it.

A solution to the excessive use of groundwater is to use recycled water for agricultural irrigation. This is reclaimed water which is former waste water. The Institute feels the irrigation methods may need a change to reduce the amount of over watering. As per reports UAE farmers are said to be using two-and-a-half times more water than needed to keep palm trees healthy.