Is Tap Water in Abu Dhabi Safe to Drink?

A big concern that many people who live in Abu Dhabi have is about the water they get for drinking. Their doubt is "Is tap water in Abu Dhabi safe to drink?"
Have you searched your doubt on Google? Search it and you will find plenty of results with discussions and articles on the topic. Most often you will find conflicting answers that may lead you to utter confusion. While many people believe that water in Abu Dhabi is regularly filtered and desalinated at the plant, some contradict this statement citing a lot of ways how water supply in Abu Dhabi contaminate the drinking water.
This article discusses the quality of water you get in Abu Dhabi flats or apartments, hotels and offices. Before getting deep into the article, you should know the fact: the water supplied in Abu Dhabi is properly treated and desalinated. Now take a look at how and where the tap water you drink comes from.

Water Source & Supply in Abu Dhabi Since Abu Dhabi is a growing and thriving Emirate, the demand for water is also rising. The lack of natural freshwater makes the authority to think of increasing the number of desalination and filtration plants with modern technology that provides purified water for the whole Emirate. As the Emirate continues to prosper, meeting the ever-increasing demand for water is a significant challenge. Hence the Abu Dhabi Government is taking necessary actions and initiatives to address this issue and improve water efficiency across all sectors of the Emirate.


The two main sources of water in Abu Dhabi are groundwater and desalinated seawater. While groundwater is used mainly for agriculture purpose, desalinated seawater is provided for dinking across the Emirate. In 2008, while 71% groundwater contributed to total water demand for all purposes, desalinated water contribution was 24% and treated wastewater 5%.


It is true that a significant source of the drinking water in Abu Dhabi is desalination plants. The Abu Dhabi Water and Electricity Authority (ADWEA) is responsible for producing electricity and water for the whole Emirate. The desalination plants sell electricity and water production under Power and Water Purchase Agreements with ADWEC. In desalination plants, drinking water is produced by removing salts and other elements from the seawater using high pressure or temperature. The Emirate enjoys a continuous supply of drinking water. Abu Dhabi’s water distribution infrastructure then delivers this treated water all across the Abu Dhabi to home businesses and public spaces.


According to various sources, among all the Emirates, Ras Al Khaimah and Abu Dhabi produce very high-quality water from several filtration plants across the different locations in UAE. Though the water produced and supplied from the plant is safe to drink, the water undergoes changes when it reaches your home or office taps. Depending on your location, the water travels several kilometres through unclean and ageing pipes, which results in getting contaminated water. Hence the chances of getting impurities in your drinking tap water are high. The quality of the tap water you get in your home, office and public spaces depend on various factors including the cleanliness and age of the water distribution pipes, storage tanks, and vessels you collect the water. This makes the residents of the Emirate doubt whether the water supplied in their areas is safe to drink.

Is Tap Water Safe to drink in Abu Dhabi, UAE?
So, no more confusion; there is no guarantee that the tap water in Abu Dhabi is safe to drink. This is why most people is Abu Dhabi depends on bottled water for their drinking and cooking purpose. While some bottle-water brands produce and supply the same tap water with multiple filtrations, many other brands produce mineral water with additional levels of purification and filtration. Hence the purity of your bottled drinking water also depends on the brand you use.
However, recent researches have proved that as bottles are exposed to sunlight and contain plastic that induces a chemical reaction, bottled water is not that healthy and it causes various disorders such as hypertension, diabetes, cancer etc. Also, it is proved that the alkaline solution causes major health risks. Hence Abu Dhabi Government takes strict actions against the bottled water companies.

Water Purifiers for Safe & Clean Drinking Water
Rather than getting confused reading the articles and discussions on the drinking water sources and supply in your Emirate, you would better install a water purifier in your home to get safe and clean drinking water. Water purifiers are now the most popular alternative solution to buying bottled water at a very expensive rate. So, if you are worried that the quality of water you receive in your tap is not healthy for your drinking and cooking purpose, you should definitely buy a quality water purifier that uses advanced technology to produce good quality water that is free from all kinds of impurities. You can find several brands of water filters and purifiers in Abu Dhabi which uses various technologies like UV, UF and RO (Reverse Osmosis).

Are you searching for the best water purifier brands Abu Dhabi? Check out some of the most popular water filter and purifier brands in Abu Dhabi.


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