UAE: How Recycling, Reducing Water Waste Can Lower Carbon Emissions

Recycling and scrap can play an important role in reducing carbon emissions, industry executives said on Wednesday.

“The steel industry is one of the largest and most influential industries in the world, as the annual amount of steel production is 1.9 billion tons. The steel industry accounts for 8 per cent of the total emissions. If we can scale down those emissions, we see how transformational it can be. At present, the steel produced through the recycling route is only 30 per cent. If it is increased to 60 or 90 per cent, it would have a significant impact on the climate and everyone's lives,” said Deepak Bhandari, chief commercial officer at Arabian Gulf Steel Industries (AGSI).

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He pointed out that recycling will help governments across the globe to achieve their climate goals regarding other industries like renewable power, sustainable cities or electric vehicles as they rely on steel.“If they use the recycled steel, the climate benefits of using it for their products get multiplied. We can very safely say that the steel industry is the backbone of circularity,” Bhandari said during the panel discussion at the Journey to Net Zero – UAE 2025 conference.

Organised by the UAE's first English daily Khaleej Times, the conference is a premier climate action gathering, attending by senior public and private officials across various walks of life. The fourth edition conference provided insights into various aspects of the regulatory framework, green financing, and ESG compliance.

Dr Jasminka Jaksic, sustainability lead, Emirates Global Aluminium (EGA), also spoke in a fireside chat on the topic of“Blueprint for a Regenerative UAE – Driving Circularity and Energy Intelligence.”

Jaksic said that scrap is a valuable material, not waste.

Bhandari added that the impact of recycling steel is enormous.“For each metric ton of steel recycled, we save 1.5 metric tons of CO2 emissions. In addition, up to 75 per cent of energy is saved if the steel is produced through the ore,” he added.

In another fireside chat on the topic of“Invisible Infrastructure, Visible Value – From Leaks to Leadership,” industry executives discussed reducing water waste as well as the role of the retail sector.

Yasir Ahmed, partner and leader for climate change and sustainability services, EY Mena, also highlighted the role and importance of brands in tackling global environment challenges.

“Water and energy are a single nexus of the economy that interacts with each other every day. In average, 30 to 50 per cent of the water that we pump into our water utilities and networks are lost before it arrives at any consumer. We lose that water that is so precious and invest so much money in providing it to the people. It's lost for very simple things - an unmaintained network leaks and mismanagement of a natural resource. It is because most of us take water for granted,” said Noam Komy, executive chairman of Miya Water.

“We all live in the Middle East, and water is precious and scarce here. But if you look around the world, people don't look at it like that,” he said, adding that the social and economic impact of water waste is immense for the Middle East region.

“The water pipes are under the ground. No one sees them. They're not very interesting. There's no ribbon-cutting to be done by politicians. They are boring. But the value is very visible in the impact,” he added.

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