摘要：

Imbalances between increasing water demand and existing limited water resources are being experienced in the Sultanate of Oman. During the last decade, water demand in all sectors has increased dramatically as a result of high population growth, improvement in the standard of living, efforts to establish self-sufficiency in food, and promotion of industrial development. The deficit is being met through sea-water desalination and mining of groundwater resources. The demographic growth rate, estimated at 1.9 % (2003 census), is contributing towards an increased water deficit. An alternative for balancing such deficit would be to construct new desalination plants. However, opportunities exist for reducing urban water use through water saving. This includes water-saving devices as well as raising awareness amongst inhabitants. In this context, The Ministry of Regional Municipalities, Environment and Water Resources retained a consultancy firm to perform a study is to identify water saving technologies which could save 20 – 30% of domestic water use by the year 2020. The first steps towards implementation of the terms of reference of the present study, involved a literature review, market survey and selection of pilot sites. Daily monitoring of water use was conducted for these sites to identify baseline water use parameters. Rigorous statistical analyses were then performed to determine patterns and trends of water use and the statistical distribution of data. Baseline have now been identified enabling proper statistical comparison with future water use data to be collected following installation of Water-Saving Technologies (WST). Subsequent steps involved installing selected WSTs and monitoring water use. The results of the various analyses are used to calculate water savings and extrapolate results over the entire domestic water use. The results are used to evaluate which of the devices has potentially the highest water saving capacity. It is hoped that this information will form the basis for a much wider implementation of these devices in the Sultanate of Oman. Amount of water consumption per inhabitant ranged below 100 liters/day/inhabitant to about 350 l/day/inhabitant. The higher value was due mainly to a public use of the garden water. These figures compare well with those in neighboring GCC countries. It is thought that water pricing and existing awareness had beneficial effects on water consumption in Oman. The study concluded that the most effective devices in saving water were sensor-activated taps followed by self-closing taps followed by low-flow showerheads. Aerators were not effective as taps come already equipped with aerators. Toilet bags were not effective as the bowl itself must be originally designed to handle a low flush. A flush with a toilet bag was found ineffective in cleaning the bowl and thus users flushed twice thus increasing water use rather than decreasing it. A similar experience was encountered in dual flush cisterns. From an economic perspective, the most effective device is the self-closing tap followed by low-flow showerheads. Sensor-activated taps are not economical to install although they are quite effective in saving water. They must be used frequently to justify cost.

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