Desalination plants 'could be solution to water shortages'

As climate change, exploding populations and increased urbanisation puts further pressure on the earth's resources one company thinks it may have found a solution to shortages of freshwater.

Desalination plants are being used more and more to convert seawater to safe, drinkable water.

In collaboration with the King Abdulaziz City for Science and Technology (KACST) in Saudi Arabia, computer, technology and IT consulting company IBM has announced plans to create a new desalination plant serving 100,000 people.

The plant would produce 30,000 cubic metres of fresh drinking water every day.

IBM believes that the development of such desalination plants would be of significant benefit for many regions in the world, especially those where there is limited freshwater supply but an abundance of seawater.

According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), 1.1 billion people have no access to safe drinking water. This problem will only increase as the world's population grows.

Written by Joseph Hutton