Ministry announces plans to increase outflow from King Abdullah Canal

AMMAN — Water flow from the King Abdullah Canal in the Jordan Valley is planned to increase this summer, the Ministry of Water and Irrigation announced on Monday.

The decision also includes channelling water from the Kufranjah Dam and springs downstream to the canal system’s supply sources.

The ministry said that it decided to channel part of Kufranjah Dam’s storage and water from springs downstream of the reservoir to the canal after it conducted several tests on the quality of the water at both sources.

“The water at the dam and the water of the springs downstream from the reservoir proved to be safe and adhere to the Jordanian standards [of drinking water]. No pollutants were detected... and thus water from both sources can be channelled to the King Abdullah Canal,” Minister of Water and Irrigation Raed Abul Saud said in a statement e-mailed to The Jordan Times on Monday.

A total of 40,000 cubic metres of water from both sources will be channelled daily to the canal to increase water for people, Abul Saud noted.

The 110km King Abdullah Canal is one of the Kingdom’s oldest and most important water systems. It was built in the early 1960s and is supplied by the Yarmouk River.

The canal irrigates 40 per cent of the crops in the Jordan Valley and provides around 40 per cent of the capital’s water after being treated at the Zai Water Treatment Plant.

Ministry Spokesperson Omar Salameh said that samples of water from both sources were collected during different times between March and April.

He underlined that specialised technical teams recommended the use of extra water at the springs and the dam for irrigation purposes and to provide the canal with additional water.

“Channelling the additional water to the canal will in turn increase the amount of water that Zai plant receives, treats and supplies to people,” Salameh said.

Kufranjah Dam in Ajloun Governorate, located 70km northwest of Amman, started storing water in 2016. Construction on the reservoir started in 2013 with the aim of providing Ajloun with water for drinking and irrigation.