AMMAN – The recent report from the
World Resources Institute sheds light on the water scarcity challenge facing the
Kingdom. It positions Jordan among the countries contending with water stress
arising from the rising demand for water resources. According to the report,
Jordan's water stress level surpasses 80 percent. This phenomenon is chiefly
attributed to the detrimental impacts of climate change, which drastically
reduce the
availability of water supplies and deplete the invaluable resources.
اضافة اعلان
The report categorizes countries experiencing
"
severe water stress" as those utilizing at least 80 precent of their
available water supplies. Additionally, "high water stress" is
described for countries using 40 to 80 percent of their
water resources, Hala
News reported.
The metric employed by the WRI to measure
"
water stress" is based on a calculation that compares water demand
against the
renewable supply, coupled with an analysis of the competition for
local water resources. Smaller discrepancies between demand and supply signify
a higher susceptibility to water scarcity.
Water challenges in Arab nations
The report highlights that a total of 25
countries, predominantly located in the
Middle East and North Africa, are
presently confronted with severe water stress on an annual basis. This
predicament affects approximately 83 percent of the population within this
region, indicating the scale of water availability concerns.
The list of these 25 countries includes
Bahrain, Kuwait, Lebanon, Oman, and Qatar, followed by the UAE, Saudi Arabia,
Egypt, Libya, Yemen, Jordan, Tunisia, Iraq, and Syria. Furthermore, Morocco and
Algeria are also noted as countries grappling with
elevated water stress.
The report projects that the entirety of
their populations will find themselves living under the shadow of extreme
water stress by the year 2050.
The national water carrier project
In light of these challenges, the government
is actively pursuing the National
Water Carrier Project —a venture aimed at
addressing water scarcity. The initiative is designed to desalinate a
substantial 300 million cubic meters of water from the Red Sea, in the city of
Aqaba, which will then be conveyed to Amman through a network of strategically
placed
pumping stations.
The objective is to ensure a consistent
supply of water to the majority of provinces, while also upholding stringent
environmental considerations. The project strives for environmental
sustainability by harnessing
renewable energy sources for daytime operations.
The government has conducted a series of
consultations and discussions with donors, financiers, and representatives from
supportive nations, as well as
international financial institutions and banks.
Jordan's decision to shift focus to this
project follows challenges encountered in a previous undertaking—the
Bahrain Carrier Project. This initiative sought to connect the Red Sea with the Dead
Sea and establish a desalination plant to cater to the water needs of both
Jordan and Palestine. However, the project faced impediments due to the Israeli
withdrawal from its commitments.
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