JOR - RSS Mapping Aquifer Vulnerability

Proyecto terminado

The large influx of refugees into Jordan has increased the volume of solid waste going into landfills. A major problem experienced at the landfills is the loss of leachate, and the subsequent potential contamination of the groundwater. The municipalities in Jordan are expanding the current landfills to adapt to the unprecedented solid waste generation. The preparation of the vulnerability maps for these areas will help mitigate against the contamination of the groundwater. Five sites have been chosen for this purpose.

Región/País Tema Período Presupuesto
Jordania
Agua
Cambio climático y medio ambiente
Preservación de los recursos hídricos
Environmental policy
Reducción de riesgos de catástrofes
01.09.2016 - 31.03.2018
CHF  168’000
Contexto

Since the beginning of the Syrian crisis, Jordan has been responsible for taking in around 655’000 refugees (UNHCR, 2016), the majority of whom have settled in the north-western part of the country.

This has placed not only a huge stress on the already scarce natural resources, but also on the services provided by the Government of Jordan (water, energy, solid waste, etc.). The municipal solid waste collection sites have needed to absorb the additional waste generated by the refugees, in addition to the increase related to their own population growth. At present, the majority of the landfills are lacking the adequate facilities that would allow them to receive this solid waste without posing a risk to the environment. Given the lack of infrastructure, the aquifers in these areas are particularly vulnerable to the risk of contamination, placing this already limited resource under even greater pressure. At present, the tools that are needed to make the necessary planning decisions are lacking in the ministries. This project aims to address this issue.

Objetivos

The municipalities and Joint Services Councils (JSCs), affiliated with the Ministry of Municipal Affaires (MOMA) and responsible for the solid waste management inside the governorates impacted by the Syrian crisis, have the necessary tools to manage and plan for their solid waste disposal.

Grupos destinarios

The vulnerability maps are targeting the 5 municipalities who are hosting the landfill sites identified in this project, and the JSCs. They are located in the governorates of Mafraq, Irbid, Madaba, Balqa and Karak where the largest numbers of Syrian refugees are being hosted.

The landfill database is targeting the MoMA, the JSCs, and all the municipalities that are hosting the other landfills sites in the country.

Efectos a medio plazo
  1. Provide decision makers and the municipalities, who are hosting the 5 landfill sites identified in this project, with an evidence-based tool to expand/select the landfill sites without posing risks to the underlying groundwater resources
  2. The solid waste actors (ministries, municipalities, landfill management and their staff) are sensitised to the risks of groundwater pollution, and have been shown practical measures to mitigate this problem.
Resultados

Resultados previstos:  

  1. Creating verified vulnerability maps for the targeted landfills
  2. Establishing a nationwide database for all the landfills in Jordan. All active and inactive landfills will be georeferenced in relation to the major cities, towns, roads, surface and ground water resources. The database will be interactive (searchable and updatable), so it will be possible to add any new landfills.
  3. Solid waste actors will have the appropriate knowledge that will allow them to understand the groundwater vulnerability maps, and will have the appropriate framework (policy draft, implementation strategy) that will allow them to execute the necessary changes.


Dirección / Officina Federal responsable COSUDE
Crédito Ayuda humanitaria
Contrapartes del proyecto Contraparte del contrato
Institución académica y de investigación extranjera
  • Research Organisation of South East


Otras contrapartes

The Ministry of Municipalities Affairs (MoMA)

Joint Services Councils (JSCs)

Greater Amman Municipality (GAM)

Ministry of Environment (MoE)

Ministry of Health (MoH)

Ministry of Water and Irrigation (MWI) and its authorities

The municipalities who are hosting the landfill sites (as yet unidentified)

Local Community Based Organisations (CBO’s) who will be identified during the project. An analysis of the CBO’s will be undertaken to identify which ones are reliable and will have the highest impact

Coordinación con otros proyectos y actores
  • The German Federal Institute for Geosciences and Natural Resources (BGR) are doing their own vulnerability mapping project which will cover 1/3 of the country. However, there are two important differences in the projects. 1) The larger scale of their project means that there will be a lower resolution on specific sites and 2) their objective is to create maps for wellfield management. For these reasons, the two mapping projects will complement each other, and BGR is interested in the results of our study.
  • USAID has organised a solid waste working group, which is a platform that allows all organisations that work with solid waste in Jordan to present and coordinate their projects. Synergies may be identified during these meetings.
  • The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) has shown an interest in building on the results of this study but they have not committed to any projects.
Presupuesto Fase en curso Presupuesto suizo CHF    168’000 Presupuesto actual suizo ya emitido CHF    167’547 Total del proyecto desde la primera fase Presupuesto inclusive contrapartes del proyecto CHF   168’000
Fases del proyecto

Fase 1 01.09.2016 - 31.03.2018   (Completed)