{"version":"1","article":{"id":"abu-dhabi-source-to-sea-water-governance-seoul-september-2026","slug":"abu-dhabi-source-to-sea-water-governance-seoul-september-2026","language":"en","url":"https://haberpaper.com/en/news/abu-dhabi-source-to-sea-water-governance-seoul-september-2026","api_url":"https://haberpaper.com/api/v1/articles/abu-dhabi-source-to-sea-water-governance-seoul-september-2026?lang=en","title":"Abu Dhabi advances Source-to-Sea water governance initiative in Seoul","summary":"Environment Agency–Abu Dhabi held the initiative’s second chapter with the Global Green Growth Institute and support from the UAE Embassy in Seoul.","category":"agriculture","region":"world","topics":[],"published_at":"2026-10-05T04:19:13+03:00","modified_at":"2026-10-05T04:19:13+03:00","publication_basis":"publication-record","event_period":"2026-09-17","event_period_basis":"event-or-reference-period","sources":[{"name":"Emirates News Agency (WAM), reporting Environment Agency – Abu Dhabi","url":"https://www.wam.ae/en/article/3cmxe4xp-ead-convens-second-chapter-its-global","publishedAt":"2026-09-17","checkedAt":"2026-10-05"}],"translations":[{"language":"tr","url":"https://haberpaper.com/tr/news/abu-dhabi-source-to-sea-water-governance-seoul-september-2026","api_url":"https://haberpaper.com/api/v1/articles/abu-dhabi-source-to-sea-water-governance-seoul-september-2026?lang=tr"},{"language":"en","url":"https://haberpaper.com/en/news/abu-dhabi-source-to-sea-water-governance-seoul-september-2026","api_url":"https://haberpaper.com/api/v1/articles/abu-dhabi-source-to-sea-water-governance-seoul-september-2026?lang=en"},{"language":"ar","url":"https://haberpaper.com/ar/news/abu-dhabi-source-to-sea-water-governance-seoul-september-2026","api_url":"https://haberpaper.com/api/v1/articles/abu-dhabi-source-to-sea-water-governance-seoul-september-2026?lang=ar"}],"data_types":[],"data":null,"data_compilations":[],"data_downloads":[],"content":{"paragraphs":["Environment Agency–Abu Dhabi (EAD) convened the second chapter of its Source-to-Sea initiative in South Korea on 17 September, in partnership with the Global Green Growth Institute (GGGI) and with support from the UAE Embassy in Seoul. The seminar brought public officials, scientists, international organisations and industry representatives together to discuss water governance ahead of the United Nations Water Conference scheduled for Abu Dhabi in December 2026. EAD launched the initiative in July during the UN High-Level Political Forum in New York. The Seoul meeting was described as one of several international dialogues leading up to the conference.","The Source-to-Sea approach treats water as a connected system running from inland sources through coastal areas and into the ocean. The seminar theme, “Different Waters, One Current,” emphasised that freshwater management, coastal policy and marine protection should not be handled as isolated fields. EAD Secretary-General Shaikha Salem Al Dhaheri presented Abu Dhabi’s model as combining circular water management with marine conservation. The approach seeks to consider reuse, coastal ecosystems and marine resources within a connected basin and governance chain. The announcement did not, however, introduce new legislation or a binding agreement between countries.","Figures attributed to EAD in the WAM report say recycled water supports more than 1,600 farms across Abu Dhabi and that the Liwa Strategic Water Reserve stores 26 million cubic metres. The emirate is advancing towards a target of 100 percent wastewater reuse by 2026. The 100 percent figure was presented as a goal in progress, not as an achieved outcome. The report does not state the current reuse rate, water allocation per farm, the reserve’s filling schedule or the methodology that will be used to measure the target. These are therefore contextual figures shared by EAD at the seminar, not independent audit findings.","WAM also relayed EAD’s statements that Abu Dhabi protects the world’s second-largest dugong population and has achieved a 100 percent Sustainable Fishing Index. Those claims are attributed to the agency; the article does not independently verify the population estimate or explain the index methodology. Participants from K-water, the Blue Carbon Research Center and GGGI contributed perspectives on water reuse, coastal ecosystem protection and sustainable water management. The EAD delegation also held discussions with Korean public bodies and research organisations on climate, water and environmental innovation.","EAD plans to continue the Source-to-Sea dialogue in other locations after New York and Seoul, culminating in the December conference in Abu Dhabi. The UAE and Senegal will co-host the UN Water Conference on 8–10 December 2026. The purpose of the international meetings is to share water-management experience and discuss more integrated approaches. WAM did not report agreement in Seoul on a specific budget, investment decision or measurable addition to water capacity. The development is therefore an EAD convening that puts connected source-to-sea governance on the international agenda, rather than an announcement of new water infrastructure."],"key_points":[],"sections":[]},"text":"Environment Agency–Abu Dhabi held the initiative’s second chapter with the Global Green Growth Institute and support from the UAE Embassy in Seoul.\n\nEnvironment Agency–Abu Dhabi (EAD) convened the second chapter of its Source-to-Sea initiative in South Korea on 17 September, in partnership with the Global Green Growth Institute (GGGI) and with support from the UAE Embassy in Seoul. The seminar brought public officials, scientists, international organisations and industry representatives together to discuss water governance ahead of the United Nations Water Conference scheduled for Abu Dhabi in December 2026. EAD launched the initiative in July during the UN High-Level Political Forum in New York. The Seoul meeting was described as one of several international dialogues leading up to the conference.\n\nThe Source-to-Sea approach treats water as a connected system running from inland sources through coastal areas and into the ocean. The seminar theme, “Different Waters, One Current,” emphasised that freshwater management, coastal policy and marine protection should not be handled as isolated fields. EAD Secretary-General Shaikha Salem Al Dhaheri presented Abu Dhabi’s model as combining circular water management with marine conservation. The approach seeks to consider reuse, coastal ecosystems and marine resources within a connected basin and governance chain. The announcement did not, however, introduce new legislation or a binding agreement between countries.\n\nFigures attributed to EAD in the WAM report say recycled water supports more than 1,600 farms across Abu Dhabi and that the Liwa Strategic Water Reserve stores 26 million cubic metres. The emirate is advancing towards a target of 100 percent wastewater reuse by 2026. The 100 percent figure was presented as a goal in progress, not as an achieved outcome. The report does not state the current reuse rate, water allocation per farm, the reserve’s filling schedule or the methodology that will be used to measure the target. These are therefore contextual figures shared by EAD at the seminar, not independent audit findings.\n\nWAM also relayed EAD’s statements that Abu Dhabi protects the world’s second-largest dugong population and has achieved a 100 percent Sustainable Fishing Index. Those claims are attributed to the agency; the article does not independently verify the population estimate or explain the index methodology. Participants from K-water, the Blue Carbon Research Center and GGGI contributed perspectives on water reuse, coastal ecosystem protection and sustainable water management. The EAD delegation also held discussions with Korean public bodies and research organisations on climate, water and environmental innovation.\n\nEAD plans to continue the Source-to-Sea dialogue in other locations after New York and Seoul, culminating in the December conference in Abu Dhabi. The UAE and Senegal will co-host the UN Water Conference on 8–10 December 2026. The purpose of the international meetings is to share water-management experience and discuss more integrated approaches. WAM did not report agreement in Seoul on a specific budget, investment decision or measurable addition to water capacity. The development is therefore an EAD convening that puts connected source-to-sea governance on the international agenda, rather than an announcement of new water infrastructure.","corrections":[],"editorial_illustration":{"kind":"symbolic-editorial-illustration","documentary":false,"scope":"section","asset_id":"agriculture","url":"https://haberpaper.com/assets/illustrations/agriculture-1536.webp","width":1536,"height":1024,"alt":"Symbolic agricultural landscape with wheat, olive trees and irrigation channels.","language":"en"},"section_illustration":{"kind":"symbolic-editorial-illustration","documentary":false,"scope":"section","asset_id":"agriculture","url":"https://haberpaper.com/assets/illustrations/agriculture-1536.webp","width":1536,"height":1024,"alt":"Symbolic agricultural landscape with wheat, olive trees and irrigation channels.","language":"en"}}}