​The Public Works Authority ‘Ashghal’ announced that the completion percentage in the Reclamation and Rehabilitation project of Al Karaana Lagoonhas reached 71%, while the project is scheduled to be completed in Q3, 2020.

H.E. Eng. Saad bin Ahmad Al Muhannadi, President of the Public Works Authority, said during a site visit to the project on Sunday 2 December that the completion of this project would benefit the efforts made by the authority to increase the green areas in the country, and to enhance sustainability and protect the environment. This will reduce the effects of the environmental and health risks that such wastes and pollutants may leave.

Eng. Khalid Al Kayareen, Drainage Networks Projects Department Manager at Ashghal stated that the implementation of the project is proceeding at a rapid pace,, and includes the implementation of the reclamation and beautification works on a vast area, and artificial lagoons that will form a habitat for wildlife for birds and fish.

The project aims to reclaim and rehabilitate  the site to avoid health risks to the surrounding environment and to re-establish a natural habitat for wildlife and migratory birds in Qatar. This will be through the construction of evaporation lagoons, artificial lagoons, mobile thermal drying unit and other facilities being constructed through the project.

The main challenges facing the implementation of the project are to manage and treat contaminated residue while receiving liquid industrial waste in the same location on one hand and on the other hand create a beautiful natural environment for wildlife in Qatar.

The Facilities Included in the Project:

Evaporation Lagoons

Two temporary industrial effluent treatment evaporation lagoons were built. The lagoons are protected by a high-density polyethylene with an evaporation area of 370,000 square meters and 1 million 200,000 cubic meters of liquid waste storage capacity, in addition to oil separation units. Both lagoons are already in operation.

Three Artificial Lagoons

Three lagoons are being constructed with a total area of 730,000 square meters, designed to evaporate 2 million 200 cubic meters per year of treated wastewater from neighbouring treatment plant (Al Karaana treatment plant).These artificial lagoons will later form a habitat for wildlife for birds and fish.

Landfill

A 60,000 square meter landfill with a high density of polyethylene is currently under construction. The landfill was designed to receive and contain solid contaminated residue.

Thermal Drying Unit

A Mobile Thermal Drying Unit was imported from the Netherlands, specially to treat highly polluted soil. The unit would heat contaminated soil at 400 °C to process approximately 40,000 tons of sludge over a period of five months to reduce the hydrocarbon content from the residue, then get rid of the treated soil in a landfill that has been allocated for this purpose. After decontamination, beautification and landscaping work will be carried out on the site to recreate a natural environment for wildlife.

Al Karaana Lagoon

Al Karaana Lagoon, located 60 km southwest of Doha, has been used since 2006 to receive liquid industrial waste discharged by tankers. In 2016, the lagoon also started receiving treated sewage water from Al Karaana treatment station.

Suez, which is a French company and  one of the leading companies in the field of soil treatment, was awarded a reclamation and rehabilitation contract for Al Karaana Lagoon in December 2017. The area of the project is estimated at 4.5 km and includes soil pollution removal works as well as excavation works on large areas. EGS has provided initial studies and design in 2015 and continues to provide consultancy services during construction and on-site reclamation.