Launch of a consultation for the sustainability of desalination projects in the Mediterranean

With the support of the French Agency for Development, Plan Bleu launches a consultative process to support the definition of environmental, health, economic and technical eligibility criteria for sustainable desalination finance decision, gathering technical information, thoughts, data, shared experiences, best practices and shedding light onto failures and what should be avoided, to make desalination a sustainable management option.

 To support investors’ requests for more transparency, consistency, and impact reporting frameworks, the Plan Bleu set the scene for comprehensive sustainability standards, safeguards and criteria to assess desalination project finance and programs, thereby supporting the development of more integrated policy and regulatory landscapes.

Focusing on climate, biodiversity, education, sustainable development, health and governance, the Plan Bleu is investigating the conditions under which desalination may contribute to the global commitment to reach the SDGs, through this consultative process.

The consultative process will:

• lead to the identification of the criteria, requirements and institutional safeguards that will ensure future desalination projects, technologies, governance, and investment decisions to become sustainable;
• highlight the feasibility and viability conditions of newly financed projects in a modern and innovative approach, with environmental and health-related issues at the core;
• bring to the fore an increased focus on social matters and health targets, thus widening the scope of SDG issues beyond environmental topics, in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic.