Potential of harvesting water from fog and dew water over semi-arid and arid regions in Syria

Abstract

Water is a significant primary resource on the Earth's surface. Fresh water is essential for human beings and for the stability and sustainable development of any nation. Many regions in the interior of Syria have an insufficient water balance. This has caused severe shortages of freshwater as a result of climate change. Syria's main source of fresh water, rivers and groundwater, suffers from low levels due to the lack of rainfall amounts. The war in Syria exacerbated water stress, in particular the effects of the war on water sources such as the Euphrates River and the 'Feijah' source that feeds the capital Damascus. All of this has prompted us to seek other non-traditional sources such as atmospheric water, which is a renewable and relatively clean source. This paper is considered to be the first of its kind in Syria. Experimental results from semi-arid and arid regions have shown good potential for harvesting dew and fog water as a supplementary and complementary source to the existing freshwater supply.