Evaluating the impacts of the Red Sea - Dead Sea Canal on the Amman-Zarqa and Jordan River basins: Using WEAP to measure future scenarios under climate change conditions (Briefing 2.4)

Abstract

The impact of climate change on both supply and demand of water resources in arid and semi arid regions like Jordan is projected to be severe. Climate change is expected to reduce water availability based on reduced rainfall and increased evaporation under increased temperatures. In addition, runoff as well as groundwater recharge will likely decrease, adding further stress. An increase in both domestic and agricultural demand is expected as a result of increased temperatures and evaporation rates. In Jordan, a country already struggling to close the gap between limited water resources and increasing demand due to population growth, the reduction in water availability due to climate change could have tragic consequences. Socioeconomic development and the wellbeing of the population are threatened in the absence of proper and efficient adaptation measures. Integrated Water Resources Management (IWRM) in water-limited countries such as Jordan can help to ensure sustainable management of water supplies. IWRM is greatly facilitated by the Water Evaluation and Planning (WEAP) tool. Here, WEAP was used to develop a model linking the Amman Zarqa basin (AZB) and the Jordan Valley, with the aim of informing water management approaches for both basins under climate change scenarios. A major project under planning is currently the RedSea - Dead Sea Canal (RSDSC), which aims to increase water supply in the region. WEAP was used to measure the effectiveness of the RSDSC in counteracting the challenges posed by climate change. The implementation of the Red Sea - Dead Sea Canal (RSDSC) project would help close the gap between supply and demand in the Amman-Zarqa basin (AZB) under current and future business-as-usual conditions. The implementation of the RSDSC project may provide flexibility to the Ministry of Water and Irrigation in Jordan to choose among different management options for the basins. These include: cessation of groundwater pumping in the basins, rejecting drinking water imports from more environmentally-sensitive basins such as the Mujib basin in Southern Jordan, the Jordan River basin, and the Al Azraq basin. The implementation of the RSDSC project will provide additional treated wastewater for irrigation in the Jordan Valley via the pumping of additional freshwater to Amman and Zarqa, treated at As Samra Wastewater Treatment Plant and then discharged to the Zarqa River, which flows to the Jordan Valley.