Water, water, water..

About the Maldives

Publicerad: 2009-10-21

There's a brutal irony in the fact that the Maldives, a country made up of 99,7 % (sea-) water lacks natural sources of drinking water at the same time as what tiny sliver of land there is, is sinking fast into the ocean.

maldives maldiverna atoll

It has always been absolutely crucial for small island communities to ensure themselves of enough fresh water. Rain water is quickly absorbed by the sandy soil and creates a watercontainer under ground kept in place by a circle of salt water. One way of increasing the supply of fresh water is to collect rain in containers on the roofs of buildings. Hardly very practical on an island where the roofs are thatched, but the economic growth will change that. The resorts constantly need more and more water. The solution is to desalinate sea water through a combination of technology and sheer force. Every resort has a desalination plant these days. Sea water is pumped into an inner cylinder during high pressure and a membran allows pure water to pass into an outer cylinder from which it is led away. Small, reliable plants of this kind has meant a huge improvement for the islands by providing lots of water for bathrooms, kitchens and swimmingpools.

maldiverna maldives pool anantara

Obviously this process i rather costly since the plant uses large amounts of diesel and the mebrane has to be replaced regularly. Many resorts ask their guests to save water, and some recycle the water for watering the gardens. The question is - is the this water drinkable? - Well, if a plant works perfectly it should produce 100 % pure, distilled water. The island Thulusdhoo in north Male atoll, has got the only factory in the world making Coco-Cola from sea water. On most resorts the tap water tastes just fine, but hte guests are discouraged from drinking it. One story is that the water lacks essential minerals and salts important to health, another that the water is clean in itself but can pick up bacteria from the plumbing system. Usually it's suggested that the guests by bottled mineral water from the shop or the bar on the resort for 3-8 $ a bottle. That water is bottled in the Maldives and is pure distilled sea water....

Lately, there is a trend in upscale resorts having their own, complimentary, water. Genius idea. Bottled in design (of course) glass bottles - recycable - you can get both still and sparkling. Alila Villas Hadahaa claims to save about 100 000 plastic bottles per year this way! And that is just one, tiny, resort. I love it! Environmental work at it's best. I sincerely hope that more resorts will follow this practice.

Källa: Lonely Planet

linda maldiverna maldives