Tracking devices to be installed on septic tankers — Environment Ministry

AMMAN — All of the country’s septic tankers will be installed with tracking devices by the start of summer to monitor trucks’ discharge point of sewage, a government official said on Monday.

Under an electronic tracking system, smart devices will be installed on an estimated 700 septic tank trucks to prevent the discharge of municipal wastewater in undesignated locations, according to head of the environment protection at the Ministry of Environment, Hussein Shahin.

An operations centre at the Environment Ministry will be set up to accommodate the electronic tracking system, which will feature the authorised locations for the discharge of municipal wastewater and follow the movement of each septic tanker across the country.

The system will send notifications that the septic tanker’s valve has been opened for the disposal of wastewater if it is at an undesignated site, Shahin noted.

“The electronic system will be operational by June. It seeks to put an end to the growing practice of random dumping of wastewater across the country and the severe consequences on public health and the environment,” Shahin told The Jordan Times.

The environment official underscored that authorities are recording a growing number of violations involving random disposal of municipal wastewater in different parts of the country, attributing the rise to the booming population in light of the influx of Syrian refugees.

“The system is a vital step forward in the protection of the environment, as many violating septic truck owners were caught dumping their load at midnight or in the early morning,” Shahin noted.

The ministries of environment and transport are scheduled to sign the project’s agreement this month, Shahin said, noting that the tracking system of the wastewater tankers is part of a larger national scheme for the tracking of public vehicles.

“The electronic tracking of wastewater tankers is the project’s first phase. Later phases will include the tracking of waste oil and hazardous waste trucks,” the government official noted.