Damascus Plans to Desalinate Seawater

The Syrian government has announced its intention to desalinate seawater and transport it to the southern Syria. Syria counts several desalination plants treating inland groundwater resources, but the desalination capacity of these plants is minimal. Since the onset of the conflict, “the construction of small desalination installations seems to have been directed toward meeting emergency and humanitarian needs and reducing water insecurity in the current turmoil, supplying drinking water to vulnerable and displaced populations,” explained David Michel, Senior Fellow at the Centre for Strategic and International Studies.