Long an inspiring source of innovation and bold investment, the United Arab Emirates is tacking on yet another groundbreaking project to the engineering feats of recent years. Designed to preserve water in the largely desert nation, a series of 68 recharge dams are to be constructed across the country. 

Unlike conventional dams, which are placed across rapidly moving waterways for the purposes of creating a reservoir and generating electricity, recharge dams are generally placed across smaller waterways or dry creek beds, and are designed to retain water long enough for it to seep down into the groundwater aquifers that supply wells in the region. 

Though the country already has some 140 of these dams in place, the 68 announced today will be constructed rapidly over the next five years, hopefully allowing groundwater levels to keep pace as the UAE’s urban areas of Dubai and Abu Dhabi continue to grow, placing stress on natural resources in the oil-rich nation. 

The success of recharge dams is especially pressing, as the coastal nation will likely have to use power-hungry desalination to cover any excess water demand, increasing the country’s carbon emissions, even as new technology looks to make the process more efficient.