Discussion on "Industrial wastewater risks in the Kingdom" during the First Saudi Conference for Environment in the University.
A member of Prince Sultan bin Abdul Aziz Research and Environmental Studies Center at King Khalid University in Abha, Prof. Dr. Sami Mohammed Abdullah, has, at the First Saudi Conference for Environment "Sustainable Exploitation of Natural Resources", which is held at King Khalid University, warned of the industrial waste water produced by the industrial facilities in the kingdom, stressing that this water contains harmful materials which represent a significant environmental problem, and which is threatening the environmental security and the safety of its elements.
Dr. Sami stressed that a study has recently been conducted on industrial water from the industrial zone in Abha. The findings in the study proved that the ratio of lead is 19.8%, which is a very high rate, and it is a scary indication. The natural ratio of the lead material should be less than one percent.
With regard to this water risks, Dr. Sami stressed that if those contaminated elements moved to the environmental circle surrounding and which affects directly or indirectly, that would be a real threat to human health, which could reach him through the plants, especially agricultural crops, and through the contaminated water to which these items move directly, and human deals with it directly.
Dr. Sami pointed out that the treatment of such contamination was one of the available things in easy and accessible ways, especially in Saudi Arabia, due to the availability of large amount of dust that treat such pollution, through the absorption of contaminated materials, including lead, and then use it in paving roads to eliminate it as a contaminant, and remove it completely from the environment. The Dr. considered the efforts being made for the treatment of this contamination through plants or bacteria as not healthy, because the plants and bacteria are composed of components of the environment that carry pollution to the surroundings, and it does not isolate this pollution as in the mud.
The Doctor called for the necessity of establishing special deflation channels for this contamination water containing heavy and very dangerous substance - which is the lead - and then educate those who deal with this material in the industrial sector to avoid its dangers. There should also be effort on how to deal with it properly according to the scientific bases, pointing out that workers in the industrial sector - who feel a risk of contamination - put the contaminated water through channels created by them to hide this contaminated water. They do not care what damage this water might cause to the surrounding environment. He called for the need to isolate the industrial areas away from urban and agricultural areas, from dams and from the groundwater so as to prevent the contaminated water from these vital areas, and to reduce the spreading of industrial water pollution in the Saudi cities.