Student Independent Projects Environmental Studies 2017: Water scarcity in Jordan: Sustainability issues and information drought

Abstract

ordan is considered a landlocked country in the Middle East facing water scarcity. (Dabbas, 2017). The renewable freshwater resource averages about 680 million m3 (MCM) and about 465.31 MCM of that consists of groundwater; excessive use has led the country to have one of the lowest levels of water resource in the world. This research aims to provide an understanding of the main factors that were responsible for the water scarcity in Jordan and what management approaches the country has taken to preserve the fresh water resource. The research has explored the effects of water scarcity on the people living in Jordan. Moreover, it has also shown the importance of the use of Geographical Information System (GIS) in the planning process for conserving and monitoring freshwater supplies, and how inadequate GIS data will have a negative effect on decision making in a country with scarce water resources. Based on these findings, it was concluded that although there have been new regulations to limit the misuse of water in Jordan and new plans for producing and supplying additional fresh water to the country, through extraction from the Disi aquifer and the Red Sea to the Dead Sea conveyance, there should be more done in order to solve the problem of the diminishing freshwater availability. This paper provides some recommendations.