Jordan Times
Saturday, May 15, 1999
Syria begins supplying drinking water to Jordan
By Ahmad Khatib
AMMAN — Syria on Friday started pumping eight million cubic metres (mcm) of potable water to Jordan, an amount that will help the Kingdom cope with this year's projected 10 per cent water shortage, the government said.
Minister of Water and Irrigation Kamel Mahadin said that at 7 a.m. on Friday, Syria began supplying the Kingdom with 750 cubic metres of water per second from Syria's Basel Al Assad Dam in the area of Sahm Golan, some seven kilometres north of the border.
Syria will continue pumping water over the coming four months, supplying the eight mcm via the Yarmouk River, the King Abdullah Canal and the Zai treatment plant, Mahadin added.
Officials previously said the water was scheduled to be delivered beginning on June 1, but Mahadin asked his Syrian counterpart Abdul Rahman Madani to bring the date forward.
During a joint committee meeting here on Tuesday, Syria agreed and voiced readiness to increase the amount of water if necessary to help meet this summer's increasing demand due to a regional drought, according to the officials. Earlier this month, the committee agreed in Damascus to go ahead with a 12-year-old plan for the construction of the Wihdeh Dam on the Yarmouk River and to provide water from Syria to the Kingdom.
Jordan officially declared a state of drought in January as rainfall, which accounts for about 60 per cent of Jordan's water supply, dipped to just two per cent of the seasonal average in December and January.
The government last month declared an emergency scheme to deal with a possible crisis, presenting three shortage scenarios of increasing severity, all of which focus on whether the Zai plant will be able to perform at full capacity and on the Amman and Balqa governorates, where the water shortage is expected to be most severe.
As part of the plan, the Ministry of Water and Irrigation announced that it will begin implementing a water rationing supply schedule on Saturday, pumping water to residents 24-36 hours a week.
Syria offered to share water with Jordan during a landmark visit to Damascus by His Majesty King Abdullah last month.
Jordan is currently seeking aid from Arab economic funds with full backing from Syria to finance the JD152 million dam, which is expected to be constructed in two-and-a-half years. The Wihdeh Dam, which will have a storage capacity of 225mcm, will provide the Kingdom with water and Syria with electricity.