489 water harvesting sites in Jordan — ministry

AMMAN — The Water Ministry on Monday revealed that the number of water harvesting projects implemented or under implementation reached 489, with a total capacity of 127 million cubic metres until the end of 2022.

The projects were implemented in cooperation with the Ministry of Agriculture, Ministry of Environment, and public and private institutions, within the Jordan Valley Authority’s plan to enhance water resources and find new ones through the expansion of water harvesting projects, according to a ministry statement. 

Among these projects, earthen ponds totalled 342, with a storage capacity of 29.7 million cubic metres.

Similarly, the number of dams reached 74, with a capacity of 97 million cubic metres of water. 

Concrete ponds totalled 73, with a storage capacity of 300,000 cubic metres.

The Jordan Valley Authority (JVA), in cooperation with local and international companies and organisations represented by the FAO, Mercy Corps, the Inter-Islamic Network on Water Resources Development and Management of as well as private companies, worked on extracting sediments from some desert dams and carried out maintenance of water harvesting sites throughout the past year in various governorates of the Kingdom.

The JVA also conducted  preliminary studies for establishing 54 water harvesting sites in various governorates.

The projects are featured in the water harvesting map of the Jordan Valley Authority, which is considered a reference for setting water policies.