Following recent rainfall, Kingdom’s dams at 60% capacity — minister

AMMAN — The overall water storage in the Kingdom’s dams has reached 202 million cubic metres (mcm), filling 60 per cent of their overall capacity of 336.4 mcm, the Water Ministry said in a statement on Saturday.

Water Minister Raed Abul Saud noted that recent rainfall raised the overall precipitation seen since the start of the wet season to 143.2 per cent of Jordan’s long-term annual average rainfall, recording 11,695 mcm so far. 

The minister said that King Talal Dam has reached its full capacity at 75 mcm, as well as Wadi Shuaib Dam at 1.7 mcm, Waleh Dam at 8.1 mcm and Kufrain Dam at 8.3 mcm, while Mujib Dam has nearly reached 100 per cent, at a capacity of 29.8 mcm. 

Regarding the Kingdom’s other dams, Wehdeh Dam is still “under the desired level”, storing less than 34 mcm, Abul Saud said, noting that Wadi Arab Dam has around 9.8 mcm, Ziqlab Dam around 1mcm, Kufranjah Dam around 6.8 mcm, Karamah Dam 22.4 mcm, Zarqa Maen 942,000 cubic metres, Tannour Dam 5.5 mcm, Karak Dam 781,000 cubic metres and Al Lujoun Dam 631,000 cubic metres, according to the statement.

The latest rainfall improved the available water quantities and helped feed underground water sources, the minister added.