LIM WAN JIE (:

Research on membrane technology may produce cheaper water

SINGAPORE: The cost of water may be halved within the next 10 years as researchers work on membrane technology which requires very little use of energy. Mangrove plants may hold the key to cheaper water in future. They have a natural way of desalinating brackish water. Dr Andrew Benedek, winner of the inaugural Lee Kuan Yew Water Prize, said: "It desalinates by focusing special proteins and enzymes to take the salt out of the leaves and it collects on the leaves and then eventually water washes it away." Researchers are using such examples to think of how they can develop membranes to work in a similar way. Dr Benedek said research into membranes that do not use energy has already begun and he is confident that solutions can be found within the next decade. He said: "Today, the cost of energy for desalination plant is as much as 50 per cent. It could be as low as 35 per cent, depending on the water conditions. If you are able to reduce that, then of course... you could potentially halve the cost."

Personal response :
I am rather satisfied and glad to be a Singaporean. The goverment are doing everything for the sake of all citizens. Water is very precious. We need water to survive. Not only does we need to survive , we need it for daily use. A few years back , the goverment built up a NEWater scheme to decrease the amount of water used. The recycled the water and cleaned them thoroughly for us to drink. Now , the prices are going down sooner or later. These mean that people can cut down the cost on water for something else.We should conserve water from now on , not only for us , but for our future children .