AMMAN - Water monitoring stations have been deployed at the Wihdeh Dam to measure the flow of the Yarmouk River into the dam and control water quality, a government official said on Thursday.
The stations, which will provide data on the quantity and quality of water entering the dam from the river and its tributaries, were set up on both the Jordanian and Syrian sides of the dam, according to Jordan Valley Authority Secretary General Saad Abu Hammour.
Abu Hammour made the remarks in Amman upon his return from a two-day meeting of the Jordanian-Syrian Yarmouk River Basin Higher Committee in Damascus which started on Tuesday.
"The Jordanian side has demanded that [Syria] limit cultivation near the Wihdeh Dam due to its negative effects on drinking water quantity and agriculture in Jordan," the official noted in a press statement e-mailed to The Jordan Times Thursday.
"We have reasserted the importance of giving the Wihdeh Dam storage priority during the wet season and limiting cultivation downstream," he added.
The Wihdeh Dam was established in 2006 to boost the supply of potable water to the Kingdom by providing it with 80 million cubic metres (mcm) annually - 50mcm for drinking purposes and 30mcm to irrigate about 31,000 dunums of agricultural land in the Jordan Valley.
The 110mcm dam was also intended to enhance the environmental situation of the area surrounding the Yarmouk River Basin and activate tourism in the area, in addition to generating electricity.
Abu Hammour quoted Syrian officials as saying during the meetings that agricultural activities near the Wihdeh Dam do not contradict bilateral agreements governing water sharing.
Under the deals, Syria's share of water from the Wihdeh Dam is 6mcm for agricultural purposes, provided that the dam reaches its full capacity of 110mcm.
The government official said that the higher committee also examined progress of the Yarmouk River Basin hydro-geological study, which is jointly implemented by Jordan and Syria at a cost of around JD420,000.
The study seeks to evaluate the quantity and quality of water resources in the Yarmouk River Basin and identify the causes of depletion.
The hydro-geological report, which is expected to be completed by the end of the year, is also expected to come up with a mechanism to protect the basin from pollution and random pumping, as well as to examine the economic impact of the ongoing depletion of the basin's water sources.
The Yarmouk River is a tributary of the Jordan River, originating in the southeastern slopes of Mount Hermon and forming a boundary between Syria and Jordan for nearly 40 kilometres before becoming the border between the Kingdom and Israel
© Jordan Times 2010
