'Red tide' forces desalination plant closure

The Sharjah Electricity and Water Authority (SEWA) has suspended the operation of the new water desalination plant in Khor Khan due to the red tide phenomenon off the coast of Khor Fakkan city.

SEWA added that it has resumed operation of some wells to provide sufficient water to the city until the problem is solved, indicating that it was monitoring the sea water at the water drainage line as well as checking samples of the sea water around the clock.

SEWA has called on consumers to ration water and take required precautionary measures, news agency WAM reported.

Red tide is a common name for a phenomenon known as an algal bloom, an event in which estuarine, marine, or fresh water algae accumulate rapidly in water.

These algae contain photosynthetic pigments that vary in colour from green to brown to red, and when the algae are present in high concentrations, the water appears to be discoloured or murky, varying in colour from purple to almost pink, normally being red or green.