Ammon News - AMMONNEWS - Work is under way in Jordan to combat the kingdom's growing water shortage, which has been exacerbated by the influx of Syrian refugees into the country.

A new plan includes providing new water networks, replacing old ones, drilling new wells, increasing dam storage capacities, building new drinking water treatment plants and conducting a security campaign to halt the theft of water and attacks on distribution networks, said Ministry of Water and Irrigation spokesman Omar Salameh.

The ministry also will work to raise awareness among Jordanians of the need for rationalising consumption, he said.

Jordan's water sources are under great pressure amid growing demand, particularly as the country hosts around 1.4 million Syrian refugees and residents, he said.

"One of the key challenges facing the water sector is the constant influx of large numbers [of refugees] from neighbouring Syria due to the current situation there," he told Al-Shorfa. "This consequently increases the burden on water sources, which are already in sharp decline as a result of the intense pressure they are under and the in rainfall last season."

Salameh stressed that officials must exert every effort to meet water supply needs on a regular basis.

Under the plan, Jordan will implement 10 million dinars ($14.1 million) worth of projects to provide new water distribution networks, replace old networks, drill new wells and increase dam storage capacity, he said.

In conjunction with this, he said, the plan provides for the "rehabilitation of several groundwater wells, particularly in the northern provinces, where the majority of Syrian refugees are concentrated", he said.

Ali Abu Samaqa resides in Jordan's north-eastern al-Mafraq province, which hosts the majority of Syrian refugees.

Due the water shortage, many have been forced "to buy water from private water cisterns because of the frequent interruption in the water supply", he told Al-Shorfa.

URGENT DEMAND

Water expert Elias Salameh said Jordan consumes about 400 million cubic metres of water per year, and that the refugees alone require between 60-70 million cubic metres per year.

This poses a major challenge, he said, urging the acceleration of projects to alleviate pressure as well as the establishment of a crisis management unit.

Drilling more groundwater wells to solve the problem may affect water quality, he said, thus it requires in-depth study prior to the implementation of any project.

In view of the current situation in the kingdom, he said, it is crucial that the public understand the need for rationalising consumption.

"Everyone is required to co-operate and reduce [water] usage, as Jordan is the fourth poorest country in the world in terms of availability of water sources," he said.

*Al-Shorfa