I have said this before and will not think twice to say it again. Dubai is a city of extremes, on one hand you have the rich boys with their so called toys (Lamborghinis and Ferraris) and on the other hand you have people struggling for their daily meals, the mass of construction laborers. Similar examples roam all around me in this city which has been my second home for a while now. And in this land of extremes I have another example of extremes this time with environment impact. Let’s start with the worst one first:

Dubai Plans to refrigerate a Beach

Yes you read that right ! Dubai is planning to Refrigerate an entire beach, of course it’s for those rich spoilt brats who are ignorant of the fact that slippers and flip flops had been invented over a couple of hundred years back. Anyway, it’s when things like these happen that I begin to think that the guys here making the decisions are living in a bubble outside of what’s happening in the world. Climate Change, Impact to the environment are concepts here that people like talking about but not really implementing.

The revolutionary beach will sit next to the new Palazzo Versace hotel and will include a system of heat-absorbing pipes built under the sand and giant wind blowers, designed to keep tourists cool in the searing 40-50C heat. Versace’s Hotel will have modest one-to-six bedroom apartments while the more lavish ones — single-story and duplex — will include indoor swimming pools decorated with mosaics, like those found in ancient Roman baths. Its penthouse apartments are to have private spas and terraces overlooking landscaped gardens, a marina — and the cooled beach. The hotel, which is due to open late next year or early 2010, will be controlled by thermostats linked up to computers and feature a cooled swimming pool. As you might have already guess, refrigerating sands will definitely consume enormous amounts of energy to sustain. Energy here mostly comes from coal-generated electricity, since there are no major plans of renewable energy anywhere near the hotel. As things stand right now, Dubai has an average of 44 tons of carbon dioxide emissions per individual living in Dubai per year.

[ad#Assense-Wide-C] The people behind Palazzo Versace however, claim the beach will be environmentally sustainable. I really wonder how they will achiever that. For now, I can see some possible source of renewable energy that I believe should be utilized – the heat absorbed by the pipes from the sands underneath the beach, or the obvious choice in the desert, Solar energy; which brings us to the other extreme.

Dubai to house the region’s Largest Solar Panel Plant

Well the heading would definitely say more than I can say about the contrasts. On one hand when there are talks about having the worlds most stupid idea for a beach, there is then on the other hand a most sensible idea to use solar energy in the desert and what more of a initiative than building the regions biggest solar plant. Built by Solar Technologies this initiative has been recognised by all including the very famous tree hugger.

Actually I have a bit of a history with Solar Technologies, Its a subsidary of the very famous Pacific Controls; My first employer in Dubai who got me introduced into the wonderful world of Construction and the High Tech Controls and Automation Industry. Well back to Solar Technologies, Announced at the Green Dubai World Forum 2008 the 1-million square foot Solar Technolgies FZE facility is expected to begin construction at the end of 2008, with production beginning in 2010. No word on how many panels the plant will be able to turn out in a year, but Khaleej Times says that “The first phase will see the production of solar panels as big as 5.7sqm.”

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So in true Dubai Fashion – trying to be sustainable in terms of a good contribution to being sustainable, they decided on the biggest. However the current economic condition in the country has been a sort of a laughing stock for the world. And I know of people who have lost their jobs and who were working for the Versace Hotel project. However I do pray that Solar Technologies actually gets enough funds to complete this awesome undertaking of trying to build the regions biggest solar plant and provide jobs and clean energy to the region.