Background
Jordan is faced with a serious water resources deficit, the total water
demand for irrigation, municipal and industrial use far exceeds the known
renewable resources. The necessary water demand management through water
saving and recycling, elimination of losses, irrigation reduction and
other socio-economic measures is only one part of the solution that can
only be realistically implemented in the mid-long term. In the meantime,
there is an urgent need to increase the volume of water made available to
the population, particularly for municipal and industrial uses. The
potential for surface water storage is limited by the shortage of suitable
new dam’s sites, mostly concentrated in the northwestern corner of the
Kingdom. Most of the highland aquifers are over exploited, resulting in
the drop of water levels and quality deterioration.
Therefore, the considerable amount of water stored in the deep aquifer of
Jordan represents a significant resource that could be developed
economically and allow the country to gain a few decades in order to
better prepare for the necessary drastic alternative solutions.
The deep aquifers of Jordan are mainly represented by the Rum Aquifer
System of which the Qa' Disi aquifer has been extensively explored in the
southern part of the Kingdom. The result is a proposed well field
development to supply Amman through a conveyance system.
Objectives
The assessment of the deep/brackish groundwater resources and the
determination of the economic feasibility for their exploitation is one of
the recommendations of the “Water Sector Report” prepared by the World
Bank.
The objective of the project is to extend the exploration of the Rum
aquifer system to the north where there is a potential of deep groundwater
resources. The hydrogeological investigations and deep drilling works will
examine the availability and quality of groundwater in order to design an
exploitation scheme that will be economically feasible and hydraulically
sustainable taking into account the specific constraints to this type of
aquifer system management (groundwater mining).
Project Description
The project will include the following components:
• Pre-drilling investigations
• Drilling of up to ten deep exploration wells
• Design of a groundwater development program
Project Status
Financing has not been secured yet.
Estimated Cost
The cost of the project, including drilling, is estimated JD13 million
including the construction of the pipeline.
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