Local

AMMAN — Authorities on Wednesday discovered a 20-metre tunnel built below the airport road to hide an illegal pipe through which thousands of cubic metres of water were diverted to a private farm over the past year, according to an official source.

The owner of a farm located off the airport road had attached the pipe to a water main that carries water from Qastal in south Amman to a pumping station in Amman National Park that supplies most of the capital’s eastern suburbs, the source said.

The tunnel was supported with reinforced steel pillars to conceal the 300-metre pipe, the source said, adding that the farm owner was diverting over 2,000 cubic metres of fresh water a day to a pool on the farm and using it to irrigate trees as well as selling it to scores of tankers.

A team from the Ministry of Water and Irrigation, the Jordan Water Company (Miyahuna), the Gendarmerie, the Royal Badia Forces and the Public Security Department went to the site, according to the source, who noted that the perpetrator was identified and referred to court.

“The ministry denounces this outrageous act which deprived over 20,000 people in east Amman from their proper and rightful share of water and also endangered the lives of motorists using the vital airport road,” the source told The Jordan Times.

The Water Authority of Jordan discovered the violation after performing pressure tests, the source said, highlighting that the authorities are also tracking down all those involved in digging the tunnel and extending the pipe.

Since the ministry launched a crackdown on water violations in August last year, and up until December, more than 7,091 illegal water pipes were dismantled, of which 75.5 per cent were in the capital, according to the ministry’s figures.

The ministry registered 1,919 violations on main water conveyors and 3,360 cases of changing water gauges in Amman alone between August and December last year.

The ministry said it is pressing ahead with its campaign to crack down on violators of the water network, calling on the public to cooperate with authorities and report violations.

AMMAN — Voicing its support for utilising wind energy in Jordan, the Royal Society for the Conservation of Nature (RSCN) on Thursday said the government and renewable energy companies must follow safety guidelines when establishing wind farms.

There are numerous plans for establishing wind energy projects in the Kingdom; therefore, it is imperative for the government and investors alike to consider environment and wildlife protection during the planning, implementation and operation of wind farms, RSCN Chairman Khaled Irani said.

“The society has always called for exploring clean, renewable energy such as wind and solar power among other alternatives; however, renewable energy investments must take the protection of wildlife into consideration,” Irani said at a meeting to announce the society’s official stance on wind energy projects.

Energy experts and environmental activists say the government must explore alternative energy sources as Jordan has one of the highest annual daily averages of solar irradiance in the world, with 330 days of sunshine per year.

The Kingdom also has significant amounts of untapped wind energy, with wind speeds as high as 7.5 metres per second and up to 11.5 metres per second in hilly areas, according to experts.

Despite these advantages, renewable energy currently makes up less than 1 per cent of Jordan’s energy mix.

Irani, a former energy and environment minister, said the government plans to raise investments in green energy to ultimately produce 10 per cent of its energy needs by 2020 from renewable energy sources.

“It is vital to establish energy projects with a limited negative impact on biodiversity, especially birds and their natural habitat, by selecting wind farm sites after thorough studies and using the best-available technologies and turbine designs,” he noted.

Wind farms could have a significant impact on bird populations due to the risk of collision with turbines and towers, which could also be barriers to migratory birds, according to the RSCN, therefore, an environmental impact assessment (EIA) and intensive evaluation of the proposed site must be carried out before constructing a wind farm.

RSCN Director Yehya Khaled said at the meeting that the construction of wind energy projects should not be allowed inside nature reserves or public parks.

“In addition, establishing wind energy projects inside special conservation areas must not violate the regulations issued by the Ministry of Environment and an EIA must be conducted,” Khaled added.

He told The Jordan Times that some 50 wind farm projects are proposed to be established near the Dana Biosphere Reserve, which falls on the Rift Valley-Red Sea flyway.

More than 1.5 million birds belonging to 37 species, five of which are globally threatened, annually use this route, which is the second most important flyway in the world, according to Abdel Razzaq Hmoud, the coordinator of the RSCN’s Migratory Soaring Birds Project.

Hmoud underscored the society’s willingness to provide investors with all the information they need to implement wind energy projects while protecting wildlife.

As a signatory to the Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species of Wild Animals in 2002 and the African-Eurasian Waterbird Agreement in 1999, Jordan is obligated to protect different species, including the migratory soaring birds that pass through the country in spring and autumn every year.

AMMAN — His Majesty King Abdullah on Thursday commended Jordanian-Yemeni relations in a letter to Yemeni President Abed Rabbo Mansour Hadi delivered by Prime Minister Abdullah Ensour.

In the letter, the King voiced Jordan’s readiness to put its expertise in all fields at the disposal of the brotherly Yemenis, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported.

During a meeting with the Yemeni president, Ensour stressed Jordan’s support for the outcomes of the recently concluded Yemen’s National Dialogue Conference, voicing hope that the agreed-upon principles can serve Yemen’s national interests and safeguard its unity.

Ensour also said that the conference’s outcomes would put Yemen on the right track and help build a better future for its people, adding: “It is time for Yemen to give priority to development and construction.”

Ensour also voiced Jordan’s keenness on strengthening its ties with Yemen to serve the interests of the two Arab states’ people.

For his part, Hadi expressed appreciation for Jordan’s support to his country during its transitional period, saying that more efforts are still needed in Yemen to address security and development challenges.

Hadi also conveyed his greetings to King Abdullah and his keenness on building more cooperation with the Kingdom.

During the visit, Ensour and his Yemeni counterpart Mohammed Basindawa co-chaired the meetings of the Joint Jordanian-Yemeni Higher Committee which convened on Thursday.

Joint technical committee meetings were held earlier in the week, with discussions focused on issues pertaining to mutual cooperation in the economic, cultural, investment and educational sectors.

Jordan has helped Yemen restructure its army as the country entered a democratic transition following two years of protests.