AMMAN — Jordan and Israel on Thursday signed a
declaration of intent to rehabilitate the
Jordan River, which is nearly running
dry because of climate change, pollution, and other threats.
اضافة اعلان
The agreement was signed during
COP27 in Sharm
El-Sheikh by Water and Irrigation Minister Mohammad Najjar and his Israeli
counterpart Tamar Zandberg.
Najjar was reported by Haaretz as saying that Jordan
wishes to work with Israel on this issue, and that it hoped to secure the new
Israeli government’s cooperation, adding that “this is a long-awaited declaration”.
The Ministry of Water and Irrigation did not publish
the terms of the declaration, but Israeli media reported that it will include
the ecological restoration of the waterway, protecting water resources from
pollution, controlling agricultural pollution, waste, and pests, creating
nature reserves and protected areas, as well as establishing tourism and
historical heritage sites.
Also included is the building of wastewater
treatment facilities, connecting towns along the river to advanced sewerage infrastructure,
and improving the quality of the water, which consists primarily of sewage
water produced by Israeli settlements.
A source at the Ministry of Water and Irrigation who
spoke to
Jordan News on condition of anonymity confirmed the terms published
the Israeli media.
He added that the two parties did not agree on the
source of funding for the projects, and said he had no knowledge when a
detailed agreement will be signed.
International adviser on environmental matters and
former UN Environment Program Executive Council rapporteur general, Sufyan
Tell, was skeptical about the project.
“How should we believe that the Jordan River will be
saved by Israel, which is the one that destroyed it in the first place,” he
asked.
In 1964, Israel started diverting Jordan River,
pumping over 500 million cubic meters of it annually toward the Naqab desert,
he said.
In the past, the river used to have a flow of 700
million cubic meters a year; currently the figure stands at 30 million cubic
meters, and includes treated sewage from nearby communities.
“Why should Jordan solve a problem that it did not
create,” Tell asked again.
He noted that Israel is the one to blame for the
current situation of the Jordan River, and stressed that the only solution is
to stop the polluted water flowing into the river.
Jordan reported on Thursday that the river’s runoff
has plummeted to a mere 7 percent of what it once was. Because its waters flow
into the Dead Sea, the saltwater lake is now disappearing — its levels dropping
by at least a meter per year.
Chairman of the Jordan Environmental Union
Omar Shoshan told
Jordan News that it is crucial to revive Jordan River, among other
things, because of its spiritual significance.
He, also stressed that Israel is mainly responsible
for the current situation of the river, adding that Jordan needs to negotiate
intelligently and carefully, “since it has more leverage and because Israel is
known for getting around international conventions”.
He said that there should be international guarantees
in such negotiations and that “focus should be on solving the main problem,
which is the drying up of the river”.
Executive Manager of the Arab Group for the
Protection of Nature Mariam Jaja described the agreement as “another dangerous
step that would harm Jordan,” stressing that it will negatively affect the
country’s security.
She added that “the agreement is political, not
environmental”, stressing that “the public opinion in Jordan should be taken
into consideration by the government before signing such agreements”.
According to the Jordan News Agency, Petra, the plan
is bound to increase water supplies and create job opportunities “for those
living on both sides of the Jordan River, including the Palestinians”.
EcoPeace Middle East, a cross-border environmental
group that has been promoting Israeli-Jordanian-Palestinian cooperation on
water issues, said the agreement to rehabilitate the Jordan River is “a
critical climate adaptation measure that can help bring back 50 percent of the
biodiversity lost because of decades of pollution and freshwater diversion”.
The group added that “in order to completely
rehabilitate the river, mainly its southern stretch, the integration of the
Palestinian Authority is also required, given that 60,000 Palestinians live
along the Jordan Valley, with some of their sewage remaining untreated”.
The Palestinian Authority is not party to this agreement.
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