Muscat - The recent algal bloom menacing a number of desalination plants operating along the Sea of Oman and Arabian Sea coasts has not resulted in any financial impacts to the project companies in question. Publicly listed companies Muscat City Desalination, Barka Water & Power Company, and Sharqiyah Desalination stated in regulatory filings this past week that the phenomenon did not result in any financial impacts on their businesses.
But algal blooms can be damaging to coastal installations and local economies in general.
In 1995, a two-month algal bloom off the coasts of Korea resulted in a significant loss of $95 million. The National Centre For Coastal Ocean Science in the United States estimates that annual potential losses from harmful algal blooms (HABs) can range anywhere between $10 million to $100 million. These losses can span across various sectors, such as fishery and aquaculture, healthcare, and tourism.
However, according to an official from Oman’s Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Water Resources, with the exception of an outbreak during 2008-2009, algal blooms have very minor effects on local fisheries in the Sultanate of Oman.
Impacts to desalination plants are notable, though. For example, in March 2018, the Barka Water & Power Company reported a financial loss of RO 330,000 due to red tide disruptions, followed by another loss of RO 140,000 later that year due to another algal bloom.
Additionally, in 2008-2009, the desalination plant at the Barka site ceased operations for 55 days, an incident that was dubbed as “unprecedented” in the water desalination industry, according to experts.
According to a UNESCO manual on Harmful Algal Blooms (HABs) and Desalination, Algal blooms can affect plant production by clogging intake systems, fouling membranes and increasing chemical usage resulting in decreased operational effectiveness and increased costs.
According to the authors of the manual, desalination plants can implement various strategies in place to combat the effects of algal blooms. These include designing efficient intake systems, using advanced to remove algae and other particles methods like dissolved air flotation (DAF) and ultrafiltration (UF), closely studying water quality and historical bloom patterns, and adjusting how the plant operates during bloom events.
However, when it comes to the effects HABs have on fisheries, Dr Issa Mohammed al Farsi, Director of the Fisheries Development Department at the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Water Resources, shared that the Ministry will implement a financial and technical support program to help fishermen and the seafood industry as a whole despite the rare occurrence.
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