Jordan, Syria discuss fair share of water resources in Yarmouk river
4/9/2008 17:34
Water-thirst Jordan is discussing with Syria on fair share of water
resources in the Yarmouk River, local daily The Jordan Times reported
today.
Musa Jamaini, Secretary General of the Jordan Valley Authority, headed
a delegation in Syria yesterday to take part in a joint committee meetings for
the talks, according to the report.
The committee is to discuss the storage
in Whideh Dam located on the Yarmouk, in light of the disappointing rainy season
Jordan has experienced, Jamaini was quoted as saying.
Talks during the
three-day visit also include means to protect Yarmouk water against depletion,
the official added.
Jordan has experienced a drought year as its major dams
only hold some 40 percent of their total storage capacity, concerned officials
said earlier in June.
The Yarmouk River begins in Syria, flows along the
Syrian- Jordanian border and then joins the Jordan River downstream from Lake
Tiberias.
Jordan has complained that Syria set up many ditches and pumping
facilities to store water along the Yarmouk, reducing the share Jordan could
obtain significantly.
The Wihdeh Dam was then built to enhance the supply of
potable water to the kingdom by providing 80 million cubic meters annually, with
50 cubic meters for drinking purposes and 30 cubic meters for irrigating the
agricultural land in the Jordan Valley.
Jordan is one of the 10 poorest
countries in water resources, with an annual water deficit of more than 500
million cubic meters, official data shows.
Xinhua
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