EMWIS Flash n°73, September 2009

3- The next meeting of the water monitoring working group of the Joint Process between the EU WFD and Med-EUWI will take place in Beirut on 6 October 2009 afternoon, in the framework of an international seminar on river basin management in the Euro-Mediterranean area and the General Assembly of the Mediterranean Network of Basin Organisations. Experts from 12 countries will take part in this meeting that will focus on the analysing of the first results of the survey carried out among Mediterranean Partner Countries on the status of water monitoring networks and programmes as well as the preparation of a preliminary report for the working group. Output of the working group will be provided to water expert group as a contribution to the preparation of the water strategy of the Union for the Mediterranean as well as for the Horizon 2020 initiative related to the Mediterranean sea depollution. Further information on EMWIS website.

4- The Swedish Minister for the Environment, Andreas Carlgren, presented the Swedish Presidency's programme and priorities to the European Parliament's Environment Committee. At the centre of the debate were the preparations for the upcoming UN climate summit in Copenhagen in December this year, where a global agreement on a follow-up to the Kyoto Protocol must be reached. "We welcome the change in US climate policy as brought about by the Obama administration. Nevertheless, the European Union must remain at the forefront when it comes to an efficient worldwide fight against climate change", said the Coordinator in the Environment Committee, Austrian MEP Richard Seeber. He also called on the Swedish Presidency to support his demand for developing a European Water Strategy: "Climate change is mostly affecting the water situation around the world. Droughts and floods are increasing. The next EU Commission has to tackle this challenge and elaborate a comprehensive strategy. But it is imperative that such a strategy reflects the different needs and situations of regions both in Europe and the world. Indeed, the water situation in Austria is vastly different to those in Spain or Finland. In looking further to Africa or Asia, the need for a strategy with a high level of regional differentiation becomes clearly visible", concluded Seeber. Further information on EMWIS website.

5- The Parliamentary Assembly of the European Council met September 14 to discuss strategic aspects of water issues in the Mediterranean. A draft resolution was issued. The Parliamentary Assembly has particularly noted that climate change, overexploitation of water resources, deforestation, urbanization are causing not only a decrease of water resources but also pollution of rivers and groundwater. The Assembly also believes that water scarcity will create tensions and conflict and recalls that civilizations and societies have developed and installed according to the presence of water and fertile land. Accordingly, the Assembly recommended, inter alia, drafting legislation on the right to water and sanitation, developing the potential of water as a source of thermal energy, promote the trans-regional and transboundary cooperation on water, to establish a culture and education of water. The Assembly wanted to finally pursue its reflection on the role played by water in the conflict. Further information on EMWIS website.

6- At the close of the last World Water Week in Stockholm, the assembled participants unanimously voted to support a message from the Week stating that water must be included in the upcoming COP-15 climate deliberations in Copenhagen. Now commonly known as the “Stockholm Statement,” the document and its principles have been the subjects of media coverage and commentary worldwide. A number of influential organizations have publicly gone on record with comments about the statement. These include: The Stockholm International Water Institute, the Cooperative Programme on Water and Climate, WWF, IUCN - the International Union for Conservation of Nature, Conservation International, and the World Business Council for Sustainable Development. Further comments are expected in the months leading up to COP-15 in December. Further information on EMWIS website.

7- The Saur Group has signed a technical assistance contract for an amount of 2.3 million Euros with the Holy City of Mecca. It covers the overall management of water of Mecca, a city with a population of 1.4 million inhabitants and up to 4.5 million during the annual Hajj pilgrimage. Concluded for one year, the service includes: Distribution, Sanitation, Customer management, & Diagnosis and the establishment of the heritage inventory and equipment. SAUR strengthens its presence in Saudi Arabia by becoming a partner in Mecca. Further information on EMWIS website.

8- Jordan has decided to build alone  a two-billion-dollar pipeline from the Red Sea to the Dead Sea without help from proposed partners Israel and the Palestinian Authority. The plan is for the pipeline to draw off 310 million cubic metres (10.5 billion cubic feet) of water each year, of which 240 million will be fed into the desalination plant at the Jordanian Red Sea port of Aqaba, enabling an annual production of 120 million cubic metres of drinking water. The remaining 190 million cubic metres will be channelled towards the Dead Sea, the saltiest natural lake on the planet and the lowest point on the earth's surface. Israel, the Palestinian Authority and Jordan agreed in 2005 on the outlines of a project to channel two billion cubic metres of water a year via a 200-kilometre (120-mile) canal in order to restore the level of the Dead Sea, produce fresh water and generate electricity. The total cost of the scheme has been estimated at 11 billion dollars. Further information on EMWIS website.

9- A total of 1,200 houses in west Amman, which consumes over 20 per cent of the capital's water allocation, are now equipped with water-saving devices. Under an ongoing campaign launched in July, over 2,000 devices were distributed and installed free of charge to reduce consumption at households in western Amman neighbourhoods. The target of the campaign, which was launched by HSBC Bank, USAID and Jordan Water Company (Miyahuna), was to install the devices in 2,500 households, but organisers said the number of recipients has been reduced as "standard houses" in target areas needed more devices than expected. The campaign, titled "Yalla Nwaffer Mai", or "Let's Save Water", seeks to install the water-saving devices as well as build awareness on the need to conserve water in Jordan, which is categorised as the fourth water-poorest country in the world. According to the USAID-funded IDARA Project, studies indicate that 50 per cent of water consumption comes from taps, half from kitchen taps. Campaign organisers expect the devices to cut water use by 30 per cent and reduce water bills. At the end of the year, water gauges in participating households will be measured in order to determine how much water was saved. Further information on EMWIS website.

10- Unless urgent action is taken, the supply of water fit for human use in the Gaza Strip will be depleted in 5-10 years, according to the Gaza Coastal Municipal Water Utility (CMWU) and UN agencies working there. Only 5-10 percent of groundwater - the most important supply source for human use (domestic, agricultural and industrial) in Gaza - yields potable water, according to CMWU. The poor quality of groundwater is due to over-extraction from the aquifer and this has allowed seawater intrusion - hence the high salinity of Gaza's groundwater. Much of it is unfit for human use. Tap water in Gaza is known to be very salty and undrinkable. Poor groundwater quality can also be attributed to pollution from wastewater and the infiltration of agricultural fertilizers, according to a World Bank report. Since 2005, Gaza's water supply has also been affected by restricted access to power, fuel and spare parts, according to the World Bank. Further information on EMWIS website.

11- One of the effects of the summer season in most Arab countries is that it serves to further highlight the increasing severity of water shortages and the importance of water as a regional issue. Conflicts over water are typically a result of both the transboundary nature of most water systems, and the political nature of water resources in a region already fraught with tension. The water issue is a regional one and one need only look at a map of water resources in the Arab and Mediterranean region to realize that there is no solution outside of a regional solution. According to Gilad Sher, the head of the Israeli negotiating team in Camp David and the Taba 1999-2000 talks, the Israelis say, "We believe that the water issue can be a catalyst for regional peace". Sher continues to expound on his ideas by saying that Israelis and Palestinians were not far from reaching a comprehensive agreement over water. With water scarcity affecting their ability to keep up with agricultural projects, there is no doubt that Israel is searching for a solution to alleviate the water problems in the region. Further information on EMWIS website.

12- The politics of the Israeli-occupied Shebaa Farms, a rugged sliver of mountainside wedged between Lebanon, Israel and Syria, have long overshadowed what some Lebanese environmentalists call "the real issue" of the disputed area: its water resources. Now activists are calling for hydro-diplomacy to take precedence over political manoeuvring as the most effective solution to one of the key stumbling blocks to Middle East peace.  Lebanon and Syria say the Shebaa Farms, measuring just 22sqkm, is Lebanese territory, though the UN has ruled it part of the Syrian Golan Heights, which lie just to the east, across water-rich Mount Hermon. Both the Golan and Shebaa were occupied by Israel during the Six-Day War of 1967 and the Israelis say disengagement from Shebaa can only come under a peace deal with Syria and withdrawal from the Golan. However, Fadi Comair, director-general of Hydraulic and Electric Resources at the Lebanese Ministry of Energy and Water, argues there is more to Israel's occupation of Shebaa than military-strategic concerns: "Israel's occupation of the Shebaa Farms has to do with control of its water." Israel, Jordan and the Occupied Palestinian Territories (OPT) all fall well below the internationally accepted threshold of 1,000 cubic metres of water per person per year (cmwpy). According to the IISD, Israel has natural renewable water resources of 265 cmwpy, Jordan 169, and OPT just 90. Only Lebanon and Syria have water surpluses, with Lebanon having a potential of 1,220 cmwpy and Syria 1,541. Further information on EMWIS website.

13- Thousands of Syrian farming families have been forced to move to cities in search of alternative work after two years of drought and failed crops followed a number of unproductive years. Wheat production is just 55 percent of its usual output and barley is seriously affected, according to the UN's drought response plan, drawn up following two recent multi-agency missions. Blamed on a combination of climate change, man-made desertification and lack of irrigation, up to 60 percent of Syria's land and 1.3 million people are affected, according to the UN. Just over 800,000 people have lost their entire livelihood, according to the UN. No-one knows exactly how many people have migrated across the country because of the drought. The Syrian Ministry for Agriculture and Agrarian Reform's estimate in July 2009 was 40,000 to 60,000 families, with 35,000 from Hassakeh alone. But with people moving all the time, the figure is likely to be an underestimate. The UN's drought response plan found there had been a "dramatic increase in the already substantial migration out of the affected areas". Migrants head for the cities of Damascus, Aleppo and Homs, according to the report. Further information on EMWIS website.

14- The Turkish Minister of Environment and Forestry Veysel Eroglu, Iraqi Minister of Water Resources Latif Rashid, and Syrian Minister of Irrigation Nadir al-Buni met in Ankara on 3rd September to discuss water shortages in the legendary Tigris and Euphrates rivers, which run through all three countries. The Tigris River has plunged to record low levels according to Iraqi farmers. Iraq’s drought is a “catastrophe,” according to some iraqi officials. Baghdad and Damascus want Turkey, where the source of the Tigris and Euphrates is located, to increase the flow of water passing through its network of dams. Further information on EMWIS website.

15- Recent flooding in parts of Turkey has underscored the need to focus on ecologically-sound flood management practices to shield urban areas from extreme weather events, particularly those caused by climate change. Turkey’s Thracian region and the capital Istanbul received a month’s worth of rainfall during two days -- or four times the total amount of average precipitation for this entire month -- causing massive flooding that led to the death of 30 people and widespread damage estimated at US $90 million dollars. Turkey's Meteorology Institute recorded 13.2 centimetres of rain fell in the area. This week’s floods follow flash floods in July that killed at least six people in the north-eastern province of Artvin, and inundated more than 100 homes and businesses in the Black Sea province of Giresun. Flooding occurred mostly because natural irrigation channels had been damaged and unplanned developments blocked the rain water from dissipating into the sea, according to WWF. WWF warns that weather-related problems such as floods could worsen because of climate change unless ecological flood prevention techniques are adopted. These consist of river delta conservation and forest conservation. In addition, urban settlements along river beds must be closely monitored. Further information on EMWIS website.

16- Crops grown with untreated sewage water will be removed, according to a decision by Egyptian Minister of Irrigation and Water Resources. Farmers have also been found to use drainage from Abu Rawash wastewater plant to grow fruits and vegetables such as bananas, corn, spinach and molokhia, which has been distributed in the main wholesale markets of Cairo and Shubra el-Kheima. The ministry has ordered that farmers themselves will pay for the removal of their crops to discourage them from continuing to use wastewater. The farmers contend, however that they have no other option. One source working in the irrigation sector said that the Egyptian Public Authority for Drainage Projects (EPADP) under the ministry is responsible for overseeing drainage related to crops. Further information on EMWIS website.

17- More than 13 villages in Nile Delta Gharbeya governorate have been found to be using untreated drainage water for irrigating fields as well as for fish farming. The Kalnabeya vent is believed to contain sewage water used on farms that was polluted by industrial waste originating from greater Mahalla factories years ago. "Lands irrigated with untreated drainage water exceed 4200 (ha.) in some villages of the governorate," according to sources, who added that people have been using irrigation machines to lift water from the vent carrying chemicals and causing diseases. Farmers explain they have become dependent on the vent because they only have access to clean water a few days a week. Further information on EMWIS website.

18- Two major seawater desalination orders for the United Arab Emirates and Egypt have been won by Austria's Aqua Engineering GmbH, part of the Christ Water Technology Group. The first contract with a total value of US$ 38 million was received from the Federal Electricity & Water Authority, UAE, which Aqua Engineering will share with a local partner. With a two-year construction period, the plant, with a capacity of 32,000 m³/d will supply 150,000 inhabitants of the Emirate of Ajman on the Persian Gulf with high quality drinking water. The second order, worth € 9 million, is for design and delivery of the electrical and mechanical engineering for two reverse-osmosis desalination plants with a combined capacity of 10,000 m³/d for a project from the National Organisation for Potable Water & Sanitary Drainage, Cairo, Egypt. After completion, the plants will supply the cities of Rafah and El Zowayed on the Mediterranean coast with top-grade drinking water. Further information on EMWIS website.