Two important announcements were made last month: the start of an environmental and feasibility study for the Red-Dead Canal project, and the government’s disclosure that investors submitted bids for the Disi water project. Dr. Dureid Mahsaneh explains the significance of both.

Priority has been given to both projects, but the Disi project, which will be executed on a build, operate and transfer (BOT) basis and will bring 100 million cubic meters (mcm) of fresh water per year to Amman, has been fast-tracked.
The water will flow through a pipeline from the fossil aquifer on Jordan’s border with Saudi Arabia to Amman, a distance of some 325 kilometers, at an estimated cost of $600 million. In the past, this project was considered too expensive to execute and was kept on the back burner.

Over-pumping and drilling of underground aquifers has almost depleted all subterranean resources. Even Disi, a non-renewable resource, is facing over-exploitation.

Rainfall has been scarce this year and the main source of water for Jordan, the Yarmouk River, is at record low. Dams throughout the country are almost empty and the new Wehdeh dam under construction at the Yarmouk River, has no hope of getting filled when completed this winter.

This dam, which was originally designed with a capacity of 300 mcm, has now been built to only hold 80 mcm. Unless violations on the Yarmouk water aquifer are stopped and the Syrian-Jordanian Water Agreement of 1987 is respected, there will not be enough water to flow in the Yarmouk River or fill the Wehdeh Dam.
In fact, even if Syria did honor its commitments, it would still not be enough to supply increasing demand. Jordan needs over 1.5 billion cubic meters a year, leaving a 450 mcm per year shortfall.

Poor management of water resources, in particular by the agriculture sector, and water loss through theft or misuse have compounded the crisis. Therefore, the government has been left with little choice but to explore the Disi option again.
Execution of the project has been met with objections from some environmentalists and potential financial backers, including the World Bank and donor countries like the U.S. and Europe. The government’s ideal scenario is that water will arrive in Amman for less than $0.60 per meter. However, expectations are that the price would not be less than $0.85 per meter. Why is it so expensive? Pumping water to Amman, which lies at an altitude of 500 meters and a distance of almost 300 kilometers from Disi, added to the price of energy, pumps, and pipes, makes this a very costly endeavor.

The multi-million dollar project will take more than five years to complete. The aquifer will be depleted in about 50 years - if agricultural use is stopped immediately. Already around 60 mcm of the Disi water are being used annually for agriculture by four privately-owned farms almost free of charge, under a 25-year concession agreement granted by the government in 1985. Another 18 mcm are extracted from the aquifer for domestic use for the port city of Aqaba.

By the time the project comes to a close, the 100 mcm supply made available by Disi will not meet the increased demand. It is also absurd to spend $600 million on a project when stopping illegal underground water drilling would make available larger quantities of water than those from Disi. It is time to begin managing our water resources properly. Produce that requires a large amount of water, and irrigated agriculture in the northern and eastern parts of the country using the Yarmouk water aquifer, should stop. Jordan cannot afford to keep exporting precious water for tomatoes and watermelons to other countries while the tap is running dry for drinking and household purposes. Heavily subsidized water tariffs also need to be reviewed and corrected.

Our strategy, or the lack of it, for combating the water shortage is the main problem. Since the establishment of the country, we have been bringing water to the people from all parts of the country, especially major cities like Amman, Zarqa and Irbid, regardless of the cost. We kept enlarging big cities to an extent where their infrastructure is becoming a burden to our economy. Amman, for example, is dependant on its water for resources from the Jordan Valley, Azraq and Kerak.
It would be more economically feasible to ask people to head south and play a role in the development of new regions than keep expanding cities.

If we believe in regional planning and equal opportunities for people all over Jordan, then we should stop spreading pipes and replace them by people. We need drastic measures and actions in water resource management and not short-term remedies, which only increase our debts and consume our revenues.

Dr. Mahsaneh is the former co-chairman of
the Jordan-Israel Water Coordination Committee.