Dubai Expo 2020: Public tours of Sustainability Pavilion to restart this week

The Sustainability Pavilion at Expo 2020 Dubai will reopen for public viewing on Tuesday.

The attraction closed temporarily to observe the mourning period for the late Sheikh Hamdan bin Rashid, Deputy Ruler of Dubai, who passed away last week.

Bookings for Terra can be made at www.expo2020dubai.com up until 10 April 2021, with each visit costing Dh25.

The experience is open five days a week with limited operating hours and capacity restrictions because of enhanced health and safety measures.

Visitors who were unable to use tickets during the mourning period will be able to redeem them on any day or can request a refund by contacting 800-EXPO or info@expo2020.ae.

The official opening of Expo 2020 Dubai is not until October 1, but members of the public can be part of the ‘Pavilions Premiere’ event ahead of time.

Sustainability is one of the expo’s three sub-themes and aims to raise awareness of the human impact on the environment.

The Sustainability Pavilion covers 6,300 square metres of the expo site and is entirely operated from solar energy and recycled water.

A 130-metre-wide canopy acts as a roof for the building and is covered with 1,055 photovoltaic panels that supply energy to the pavilion.

Massive “energy trees” in the shape of sunflowers are spread throughout the area and also distribute power. These rotate throughout the day to track and store sunlight.

In total, the building’s technology will produce four GwH per year of electricity.

For water, condensation is collected from the air-handling system, which is then filtered, disinfected and blended with near-surface brackish water. It is then desalinated on-site and supplied.

The pavilion uses a greywater recycling system and local plants to reduce water by 75 per cent.

Expo 2020 Dubai pavilions – in pictures