Climate Sense

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overnance

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ing the load cycle – in order not to violate Kuwait Environment

Public Authority air quality standards.

Kuwait National Petroleum Company

The growth of the petroleum and petrochemical industry in Kuwait

need not be a source of alarm if the concepts (efficiency and reduction

of emission and waste generation at the source) adopted by the Council

of Arab Ministers Responsible for Environment are adhered to. It is

feasible to increase industrial output two to threefold without increas-

ing emissions. A precedent has already been set by the refinery industry:

the Government of Kuwait has pledged to reduce sulphur content in

petroleum products, gas flaring and other hydrocarbon releases by

building a large modern refinery to produce environmental friendly

fuel to cope with the demands for the power plants of MEW.

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In 2007, the company started executing front-end engineering and

design for its Clean Fuel Project-2020, which involves modification,

upgrade and installation of new facilities including new flaring systems

at its three refineries. Mina Abdullah (MAB) and Mina Al

Ahmadi (MAA) will be upgraded to give increased capacity

and conversion of low sulphur fuel oil to higher end prod-

ucts through ‘Bottom of Barrel’ processing using ARDS/

COKER/HC technologies. Shuaiba will become a tank

farm, gasoline blending and shipping/logistics centre with

potential integration of some offsite facilities with MAA/

MAB operations.

According to satellite data released

by the United States National Oceanic and Atmospheric

Agency in 2007, Kuwaiti flared volume decreased from

2.5 tonnes in 2006 to 2.1 tonnes in 2007.

Kuwait Oil Company

Kuwait seeks to increase its use of natural gas in electric-

ity generation, water desalination, and petrochemicals to

reduce the impact on the environment and free up as

much as 100,000 barrels per day of oil for export. Kuwait

hopes to accomplish this through increased drilling for

natural gas, and tying together gathering centres.

Public Authority for Agriculture and Fisheries

The work to establish green belts in Kuwait is well

under way, to combat sand encroachment and develop

carbon sinks through tree planting and afforestation.

Despite the above, more work is still required. An

emission inventory should be conducted for all air

pollution sources including industries, power plants,

traffic and domestic sources to assess the status emis-

sion loads. District cooling is more economical and

environmentally friendly than small air conditioning

units. When residential areas are close to the coast (as

in Kuwait), the benefits are far greater.

Another important aspect is renewable energy.

Kuwait is a hot spot for solar power generation, with

potential for wind energy. The government of Kuwait

represented by the Amir (Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad

Al-Jabir Al-Sabah) is giving serious consideration to the

use of renewable energy, especially solar and wind.

Incentives should be given for energy-efficient build-

ings. Solar water heating should also be encouraged, and

environment-oriented non-governmental organizations

must be empowered to advance sustainable develop-

ment and strengthen environmental legislations. The

implementation of carbon capture and storage tech-

nologies is also important.

Historic records of temperature in Kuwait show clear

signs of climate change, at a rate of 4.7-6.6

C per century.

The data shows asymmetry in the increase of temperature

during day and night, with the increase in the latter being

greater. Solar radiation data supports these findings.

The overall picture can be interpreted differently based

on the background against which the picture is held.

Considering the current challenges, along with pollu-

tion levels and the rate at which they have increased, the

future can still be considered murky. However, when one

takes into account the serious strides taken by Kuwait

through adaptation strategies and implementation of new

technologies one can be assured the years to come will

witness an improvement in local air quality.

Monthly averaged maximum and minimum hourly temperatures in

Kuwait for 1963-2005

Source: Ashraf Ramadan

Extreme hourly dry bulb temperatures in Kuwait for 1963-2005

Source: Ashraf Ramadan