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112-499: The Disi Water Conveyance Project is a water supply project in Jordan . It is designed to pump 100,000,000 cubic metres (2.2 × 10  imp gal ) of water per year from the Disi aquifer , which lies beneath the desert in southern Jordan and northwestern Saudi Arabia . The water is piped to the capital, Amman , and other cities to meet increased demand. Construction began in 2009 and

224-471: A 12 mm pipe, plus ball valve, and then supply the house on 22 or 28 mm pipes. Gravity water has a small pressure (say 1 ⁄ 4 bar in the bathroom) so needs wide pipes to allow for higher flows. This is fine for baths and toilets but is frequently inadequate for showers. A booster pump or a hydrophore is installed to increase and maintain pressure. For this reason urban houses are increasingly using mains pressure boilers ("combies") which take

336-646: A Ministry of Public Works (such as in Ecuador and Haiti ), a Ministry of Economy (such as in German states) or a Ministry of Energy (such as in Iran ). A few countries, such as Jordan and Bolivia , even have a Ministry of Water. Often several Ministries share responsibilities for water supply. In the European Union, important policy functions have been entrusted to the supranational level. Policy and regulatory functions include

448-689: A brass foundry in Rotherham . The first documented use of sand filters to purify the water supply dates to 1804, when the owner of a bleachery in Paisley, Scotland , John Gibb, installed an experimental filter, selling his unwanted surplus to the public. The first treated public water supply in the world was installed by engineer James Simpson for the Chelsea Waterworks Company in London in 1829. The practice of water treatment soon became mainstream, and

560-559: A component of effective policy for health protection." In 1990, only 76 percent of the global population had access to drinking water. By 2015 that number had increased to 91 percent. In 1990, most countries in Latin America, East and South Asia, and Sub-Saharan Africa were well below 90%. In Sub-Saharan Africa, where the rates are lowest, household access ranges from 40 to 80 percent. Countries that experience violent conflict can have reductions in drinking water access: One study found that

672-687: A conduit for the same objectives as the RSDSC, including the Mediterranean–Dead Sea Canal , were proposed in Israel in the 1980s, but were discarded. The connection of the seas by canal was first suggested in the mid-19th century by British officers who were looking for ways to circumvent the French-built Suez Canal and had not realized that the level of the Dead Sea is much lower. Later on, at

784-611: A conflict with about 2,500 battle deaths deprives 1.8% of the population of potable water. Typically in developed countries , tap water meets drinking water quality standards , even though only a small proportion is actually consumed or used in food preparation. Other typical uses for tap water include washing, toilets, and irrigation . Greywater may also be used for toilets or irrigation. Its use for irrigation however may be associated with risks. Throughout history, people have devised systems to make getting and using water more convenient. Living in semi-arid regions, ancient Persians in

896-493: A consumption level of 15 cubic meters per month. Few utilities do recover all their costs. According to the same World Bank study only 30% of utilities globally, and only 50% of utilities in developed countries, generate sufficient revenue to cover operation, maintenance and partial capital costs. According to another study undertaken in 2006 by NUS Consulting, the average water and sewerage tariff in 14 mainly OECD countries excluding VAT varied between US$ 0.66 per cubic meter in

1008-467: A deep valley, it will have the same nominal pressure, however each consumer will get a bit more or less because of the hydrostatic pressure (about 1 bar/10 m height). So people at the bottom of a 30-metre (100 ft) hill will get about 3 bars more than those at the top. The effective pressure also varies because of the pressure loss due to supply resistance, even for the same static pressure. An urban consumer may have 5 metres of 15-mm pipe running from

1120-675: A few cases such multi-utilities also collect solid waste and provide local telephone services. An example of such an integrated utility can be found in the Colombian city of Medellín . Utilities that provide water, sanitation and electricity can be found in Frankfurt , Germany (Mainova), in Casablanca , Morocco and in Gabon in West Africa. Multi-utilities provide certain benefits such as common billing and

1232-531: A firm to begin construction. The project proposed by the Jordanian government will pump 100,000,000 m (2.2 × 10 imp gal) of water per year from 55 wells in the aquifer. However, a total of 64 wells will be drilled, the extra wells to be used as piezometers to measure the elevation of the water. Nine of the 55 water producing wells will be used in emergencies only. The wells producing water will be drilled 600–700 m (2,000–2,300 ft) deep while

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1344-554: A fully owned subsidiary of the French water company Suez Environnement , under a separate operating contract with Diwaco. The project is funded through an equity contribution of about US$ 200M from Diwaco, a $ 300M grant and a $ 100M stand-by facility from the Jordanian government, as well as US$ 475M in foreign loans to Diwaco. The project's total cost is expected to be US$ 1.1 billion. The U.S. Overseas Private Investment Corporation has lent US$ 250M to Diwaco to support U.S. foreign investment on

1456-503: A great degree of autonomy. In the United States regulatory agencies for utilities have existed for almost a century at the level of states, and in Canada at the level of provinces. In both countries they cover several infrastructure sectors. In many U.S. states they are called Public Utility Commissions . For England and Wales, a regulatory agency for water ( OFWAT ) was created as part of

1568-429: A huge amount of capital investment in infrastructure such as pipe networks, pumping stations and water treatment works . It is estimated that in developing countries investments of at least US$ 200 billion have to be made per year to replace aging water infrastructure to guarantee supply, reduce leakage rates and protect water quality. International attention has focused upon the needs of developing countries . To meet

1680-424: A long time to fill a bath but suit the high back pressure of a shower. A great variety of institutions have responsibilities in water supply. A basic distinction is between institutions responsible for policy and regulation on the one hand; and institutions in charge of providing services on the other hand. Water supply policies and regulation are usually defined by one or several Ministries, in consultation with

1792-410: A mandate to settle complaints by consumers that have not been dealt with satisfactorily by service providers. These specialized entities are expected to be more competent and objective in regulating service providers than departments of government Ministries. Regulatory agencies are supposed to be autonomous from the executive branch of government, but in many countries have often not been able to exercise

1904-510: A period of 25 years. The transfer of mass volumes of water from one sea to another can have drastic consequences on the unique natural characteristics of each of the seas, as well as on the desert valley which separates them, the Arabah . Some of these characteristics, especially in the Dead Sea area, are unique on a global perspective, and therefore crucially important for conservation. The environmental group EcoPeace Middle East has protested against

2016-496: A poor or very poor quality of service. Continuity of water supply is taken for granted in most developed countries but is a severe problem in many developing countries, where sometimes water is only provided for a few hours every day or a few days a week; that is, it is intermittent . This is especially problematic for informal settlements , which are often poorly connected to the water supply network and have no means of procuring alternative sources such as private boreholes . It

2128-488: A restoration of the Jordan River to its natural flow and the taking of no action. In August 2013, Jordanian government announced that it would move ahead with the first phase of a project. On 9 December 2013, an agreement to build the pipeline was signed by Israel, Jordan, and Palestine. On 21 June 2016, Jordan announced that it had received 17 bids from international firms to construct the canal. On 27 November 2016, it

2240-459: A single city, town or municipality . However, in many countries municipalities have associated in regional or inter-municipal or multi-jurisdictional utilities to benefit from economies of scale . In the United States these can take the form of special-purpose districts which may have independent taxing authority. An example of a multi-jurisdictional water utility in the United States is WASA ,

2352-407: A small extent of variable costs that depend on the amount of water consumed (mainly energy and chemicals). Almost all service providers in the world charge tariffs to recover part of their costs. Water supply is a separate topic from irrigation , the practice and systems of water supply on a larger scale, for a wider variety of purposes, primarily agriculture . Water supply systems get water from

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2464-543: A sustained improvement track, but many others keep falling further behind best practice. Benchmarking the performance of utilities allows the stimulation of competition, establish realistic targets for improvement and create pressure to catch up with better utilities. Information on benchmarks for water and sanitation utilities is provided by the International Benchmarking Network for Water and Sanitation Utilities. The cost of supplying water consists, to

2576-576: A trickle of water or so high that it leads to damage to plumbing fixtures and waste of water. Pressure in an urban water system is typically maintained either by a pressurised water tank serving an urban area, by pumping the water up into a water tower and relying on gravity to maintain a constant pressure in the system or solely by pumps at the water treatment plant and repeater pumping stations. Typical UK pressures are 4–5 bar (60–70 PSI ) for an urban supply. However, some people can get over eight bars or below one bar. A single iron main pipe may cross

2688-485: A typical consumption of 15 cubic meters per month vary between less than US$ 1 and US$ 12 per month. Water and sanitation tariffs, which are almost always billed together, can take many different forms. Where meters are installed, tariffs are typically volumetric (per usage), sometimes combined with a small monthly fixed charge. In the absence of meters, flat or fixed rates—which are independent of actual consumption—are being charged. In developed countries, tariffs are usually

2800-738: A utility serving Washington, D.C. and various localities in the state of Maryland . Multi-jurisdictional utilities are also common in Germany, where they are known as "Zweckverbaende", in France and in Italy. In some federal countries, there are water service providers covering most or all cities and towns in an entire state, such as in all states of Brazil and some states in Mexico (see Water supply and sanitation in Mexico ). In England and Wales , water supply and sewerage

2912-509: A utility to better locate distribution losses (technical objective). Fourth, it allows suppliers to charge for water based on use, which is perceived by many as the fairest way to allocate the costs of water supply to users. Metering is considered good practice in water supply and is widespread in developed countries, except for the United Kingdom . In developing countries it is estimated that half of all urban water supply systems are metered and

3024-423: A variety of locations after appropriate treatment, including groundwater ( aquifers ), surface water ( lakes and rivers ), and the sea through desalination . The water treatment steps include, in most cases, purification , disinfection through chlorination and sometimes fluoridation . Treated water then either flows by gravity or is pumped to reservoirs , which can be elevated such as water towers or on

3136-418: A very large extent, of fixed costs (capital costs and personnel costs) and only to a small extent of variable costs that depend on the amount of water consumed (mainly energy and chemicals). The full cost of supplying water in urban areas in developed countries is about US$ 1–2 per cubic meter depending on local costs and local water consumption levels. The cost of sanitation (sewerage and wastewater treatment )

3248-434: A viable solution including Rainwater harvesting and Stormwater harvesting where policies are eventually tending towards a more rational use and sourcing of water incorporation concepts such as "Fit for Purpose". Water supply service quality has many dimensions: continuity; water quality ; pressure; and the degree of responsiveness of service providers to customer complaints. Many people in developing countries receive

3360-622: Is also a risk that staff are appointed mainly on political grounds rather than based on their professional credentials. International standards for water supply system are covered by International Classification of Standards (ICS) 91.140.60. Comparing the performance of water and sanitation service providers ( utilities ) is needed, because the sector offers limited scope for direct competition ( natural monopoly ). Firms operating in competitive markets are under constant pressure to out perform each other. Water utilities are often sheltered from this pressure, and it frequently shows: some utilities are on

3472-559: Is an essential governance reform in order to reduce the high levels of Unaccounted-for Water (UAW) and to provide the finance needed to extend the network to those poorest households who remain unconnected. Partnership arrangements between the public and private sector can play an important role in order to achieve this objective. An estimated 10 percent of urban water supply is provided by private or mixed public-private companies, usually under concessions , leases or management contracts . Under these water service contract arrangements

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3584-454: Is another US$ 1–2 per cubic meter. These costs are somewhat lower in developing countries. Throughout the world, only part of these costs is usually billed to consumers, the remainder being financed through direct or indirect subsidies from local, regional or national governments (see section on tariffs). Besides subsidies water supply investments are financed through internally generated revenues as well as through debt. Debt financing can take

3696-416: Is dwarfed, however, by the current extraction rate of 90,000,000 m (2.0 × 10 imp gal) for agricultural and domestic needs, including 15,000,000 m (3.3 × 10 imp gal) of water that is supplied to Aqaba, Jordan . The current extraction rate of 90,000,000 m (2.0 × 10 imp gal), coupled with the future extraction rate of 100,000,000 m (2.2 × 10 imp gal) for

3808-455: Is estimated that about half of the population of developing countries receives water on an intermittent basis. Drinking water quality has a micro-biological and a physico-chemical dimension. There are thousands of parameters of water quality. In public water supply systems water should, at a minimum, be disinfected—most commonly through the use of chlorination or the use of ultraviolet light—or it may need to undergo treatment, especially in

3920-758: Is expected to be completed by January 2017 and to run for 25 years or until the Two Seas Canal is built. The 100,000,000 m (2.2 × 10 imp gal) of water will be divided between the Abu Alanda reservoir and the Dabouq reservoir. Approximately 40,000,000 m (8.8 × 10 imp gal) of water will be sent to the Abu Alanda reservoir where it will be diluted with water from the Zara Ma’en desalination plant as well as water from Wala. The remaining 60,000,000 m (1.3 × 10 imp gal) of water will be sent to

4032-448: Is insulated from arbitrary political intervention; and whether there is an explicit mandate and political will to allow the service provider to recover all or at least most of its costs through tariffs and retain these revenues. If water supply is the responsibility of a department that is integrated in the administration of a city, town or municipality, there is a risk that tariff revenues are diverted for other purposes. In some cases, there

4144-485: Is less than 0.5 millisievert per year. The worldwide average natural dose of human's exposure to radiation is about 2.5-3 millisievert per year. "Disi water is purer than bottled water and I take full responsibility for what I’m saying,” the Minister said during a press conference. Water supply The cost of supplying water consists, to a very large extent, of fixed costs (capital costs and personnel costs) and only to

4256-501: Is responsible to build the project over a 4-year period and to operate it for another 25 years. At the end of the concession period the ownership will transfer to the Jordanian government. Diwaco will retain any profits and will bear the risk of losing its equity. Construction is undertaken by GAMA Power Systems, another subsidiary of GAMA Holding, under a turnkey engineering, procurement and construction contract with Diwaco. Operation will be undertaken by Disi Amman Operation Maintenance LLC,

4368-572: Is supplied almost entirely through ten regional companies. Some smaller countries, especially developed countries, have established service providers that cover the entire country or at least most of its cities and major towns. Such national service providers are especially prevalent in West Africa and Central America, but also exist, for example, in Tunisia , Jordan and Uruguay (see also water supply and sanitation in Uruguay ). In rural areas, where about half

4480-572: The Amman area, as well as several water desalination plants and at least one hydroelectric plant . In its final phase, it would have produced about 850 million cubic meters of freshwater per year. The project would have required electric power from the Jordanian power grid. It would also have provided some electricity through hydroelectric power but would probably have been a large net user of energy. The net power demand would have had to be satisfied through other power projects whose costs are not included in

4592-736: The Millennium Development Goals targets of halving the proportion of the population lacking access to safe drinking water and basic sanitation by 2015, current annual investment on the order of US$ 10 to US$ 15 billion would need to be roughly doubled. This does not include investments required for the maintenance of existing infrastructure. Once infrastructure is in place, operating water supply and sanitation systems entails significant ongoing costs to cover personnel, energy, chemicals, maintenance and other expenses. The sources of money to meet these capital and operational costs are essentially either user fees, public funds or some combination of

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4704-665: The Red Sea to the Lisan area in the Dead Sea . Its abandonment was reported in June 2021. It was to provide potable water to Jordan , Israel and the Palestinian territories , bringing water with a high concentration of salts resulting from the desalination process (reject brine ) to stabilise the Dead Sea water level, and generate electricity to support the energy needs of the project. The project

4816-620: The 1960s. This is largely due to the diversion of most of the flow into the Dead Sea from the Jordan River , much of which originates in the Sea of Galilee . The completion of the National Water Carrier scheme in 1964 diverted water for Israel, Jordan and Syria to use for irrigation and drinking water. The decline of the Dead Sea level is causing major local environmental problems, including sinkholes and receding shorelines. Other routes for

4928-605: The 1960s. This was largely due to the diversion of most of the flow into the Dead Sea from the Jordan River. In June 2021, the project was reportedly abandoned by the Jordanian government, citing a lack of interest by Israel. The proposed conveyance would have pumped seawater 230 meters uphill from the Red Sea's Gulf of Aqaba through the Arabah Valley in Jordan. The water would then flow down gravitationally through multiple pipelines to

5040-516: The 1st millennium BC used qanat system to gain access to water in the mountains. Early Rome had indoor plumbing, meaning a system of aqueducts and pipes that terminated in homes and at public wells and fountains for people to use. Until the Enlightenment era , little progress was made in water supply and sanitation and the engineering skills of the Romans were largely neglected throughout Europe. It

5152-403: The 340 km (210 mi) of project's piping had arrived from Turkey, an anonymous source told The Jordan Times . This source stated that the project was over 50% completed and that it was ahead of schedule. Construction was delayed by disgruntled members of a Bedouin tribe living in the area, who allegedly intimidated workers by shooting in the air and at construction equipment. All work

5264-609: The Dabouq reservoir where it will be diluted with water from the Zai Treatment Plant as well as water from Wala. It is estimated that the cost of one cubic meter of water from the project will be 0.74 JOD (US$ 1.05). In June 2009, the Turkish firm GAMA began construction. By February 2011, eight piezometer wells and two water producing wells have been completed. Twenty-three other wells were to be drilled, and 85 km (53 mi) of pipe were to be installed. By April 2011, 99% of

5376-512: The Dead Sea from dehydrating would have flowed through the system, preventing salt water flow into wells. The World Bank study recommended re-routing the conduit to avoid the geological faults of the Araba Valley. A 2019 episode of Nova centered around issues the proposed project aims to solve. The documentary argued that "it would take an enormous amount of water from the Sea of Galilee to stabilize

5488-512: The Dead Sea. The construction of the first phase was expected to take seven years. In March 2011, the Ministry of Water and Irrigation short-listed six firms for the first phase of the project. The World Bank announced that it would release a feasibility study of water conveyance from the Red Sea to the Dead Sea together with an environmental and social assessment as well as a study of alternatives in early 2012. The many alternatives studied included

5600-402: The Dead Sea. The pipe would pump 200 million cubic metres per year. Half of this would be desalinated for Jordanian consumption and half put into the Dead Sea. In October 2009 the Jordanian government announced that it would unilaterally tender a Jordan Red Sea Project. According to the government, this project could be considered as the first phase of the RSDSC project. The Jordan project

5712-484: The Disi aquifer gathered 30,000 years ago during the Pleistocene era . It is 320 kilometres (200 mi) long and located 500 metres (1,600 ft) below ground inside of porous sandstone . The aquifer is classified as a fossil aquifer , meaning that the water is not replenished if it is removed. In fact, the aquifer has a recharge rate of 50,000,000 m (1.1 × 10 imp gal) of water per year. This recharge

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5824-565: The Interuniversity Institute For Marine Sciences In Eilat, Marine Science Station University of Jordan and Yarmouk University , Aqaba and Israel Oceanographic and Limnological Research institute, states: The scheme had the potential to cause Damage to the natural landscape and ecosystem of the Arabah, due to the construction process, and the increase in humidity caused by the open canal segments. According to

5936-626: The President of the Jordanian Geologists Association Bahjat Al Adwan stated that the radiation is present in the water in the form of Radon, and thus dissipates harmlessly when the water is exposed to air on the surface. This explanation has not been confirmed scientifically, however. During the inauguration of the conveyor in July 2013 Minister of Water and Irrigation Hazim El-Nasser said that after mixing Disi water radiation

6048-716: The United States and the equivalent of US$ 2.25 per cubic meter in Denmark. However, water consumption is much higher in the US than in Europe. Therefore, residential water bills may be very similar, even if the tariff per unit of consumption tends to be higher in Europe than in the US. A typical family on the US East Coast paid between US$ 30 and US$ 70 per month for water and sewer services in 2005. In developing countries, tariffs are usually much further from covering costs. Residential water bills for

6160-515: The World Bank the average ( mean ) global water tariff is US$ 0.53 per cubic meter. In developed countries the average tariff is US$ 1.04, while it is only U$ 0.11 in the poorest developing countries. The lowest tariffs in developing countries are found in South Asia (mean of US$ 0.09/m3), while the highest are found in Latin America (US$ 0.41/m3). Data for 132 cities were assessed. The tariff is estimate for

6272-415: The World Bank was included in its introduction, in which the science team's leader explained that "it is preferable to study and mitigate unexpected impacts and phenomena which may arise when seawater first mixes in the Dead Sea, before a full scale RSDSC is implemented." There is a risk of damage to the unique natural system of the Dead Sea, due to mixing its water with Red Sea water, or brines created from

6384-483: The allegedly premature approval of the project. By the mid- noughties , the group listed several potential hazardous effects of the project on the unique natural systems of the Red Sea, the Dead Sea, and the Arabah. Some have argued that these risks are serious enough to necessitate further discussion; others feel that their effects are negligible. In August 2011, the World Bank published a study based on environmental assessments carried out under its supervision. A letter to

6496-427: The area if construction proceeded. The pipeline will cross areas of important cultural heritage, such as Wadi Finan , where the earliest copper mining and extraction in the world took place. Israeli environmental NGOs say that the reestablishment of the Jordan River to its natural state was a better solution to the decline of the Dead Sea than the proposed canal. In 2005, the proposal also generated some concern by

6608-410: The area of the Dead Sea, followed by a drop through a penstock to the level of the Dead Sea near its shore, thence via an open canal to the Sea itself, which lies about 420 meters below sea level. The project would have utilized about 225 km of pipelines for seawater and brine, parallel to the Arabah Valley in Jordan. The project would also have required about 178 km of freshwater pipelines to

6720-640: The basis that General Electric partially owns GAMA Energy. The state-owned French bank PROPARCO , which is the part of the French Development Agency (AFD) that supports private sector development, and the European Investment Bank (EIB) each lent about US$ 100M to Diwaco. The loan package has been put together by the Arab Banking Corporation . Much of the government grant supporting the project comes from sovereign soft loans that

6832-475: The beginning of the 21st Century, especially in areas of urban and suburban population centers, traditional centralized infrastructure have not been able to supply sufficient quantities of water to keep up with growing demand. Among several options that have been managed are the extensive use of desalination technology, this is especially prevalent in coastal areas and in "dry" countries like Australia . Decentralization of water infrastructure has grown extensively as

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6944-441: The best forms of public management. As Ryutaro Hashimoto , former Japanese Prime Minister, notes: "Public water services currently provide more than 90 percent of water supply in the world. Modest improvement in public water operators will have immense impact on global provision of services." Governance arrangements for both public and private utilities can take many forms (Kurian and McCarney, 2010). Governance arrangements define

7056-427: The case of surface water . Water quality is also dependent of the quality and level of pollution of the water source. Water pressures vary in different locations of a distribution system. Water mains below the street may operate at higher pressures, with a pressure reducer located at each point where the water enters a building or a house. In poorly managed systems, water pressure can be so low as to result only in

7168-553: The chairman of Egypt 's Suez Canal Authority , who argued that the canal will increase seismic activity in the region , provide Israel with water for cooling its nuclear reactor near Dimona , develop settlements in the Negev Desert , and increase well salinity. However, as proposed, most of the desalinated water was expected to be used by Jordan and the Palestinians . Under the most recent proposal, water sufficient only to prevent

7280-565: The end of the 19th century, planners thought of ways to use water from the Jordan River , which originates in the Sea of Galilee , for irrigation and to bring sea water to the Dead Sea to create energy from its position of -390 m below sea level. One of those planners was the Zionist leader Theodor Herzl . The completion of the National Water Carrier scheme in 1964 diverted water for Israel , Jordan and Syria to use for irrigation and drinking water. The Red Sea – Dead Sea conduit (RSDSC)

7392-488: The event that the pipeline ruptures (due to earthquake risk given the location in the Jordan Rift Valley ), these aquifers will be irreparably damaged. This can have fatal consequences to both the agriculture and ecosystem of the Arabah. The planning and construction of the pipelines will include measures to minimize the potential for pipeline ruptures. There are also potential threats to the archeological heritage of

7504-437: The following: In the United States , the typical single family home uses about 520 L (138 US gal) of water per day (2016 estimate) or 222 L (58.6 US gal) per capita per day. This includes several common residential end use purposes (in decreasing order) like toilet use, showers , tap (faucet) use, washing machine use, leaks , other (unidentified), baths , and dishwasher use. During

7616-451: The form of credits from commercial Banks, credits from international financial institutions such as the World Bank and regional development banks (in the case of developing countries), and bonds (in the case of some developed countries and some upper middle-income countries). Almost all service providers in the world charge tariffs to recover part of their costs. According to estimates by

7728-592: The government of Jordan has borrowed from the EIB and AFD and passes on as a grant to the project. AFD provided US$ 50M for the state grant and $ 48M for the stand-by facility. The project became controversial in 2009 when a study performed by Avner Vengosh of Duke University revealed the Disi water to be highly radioactive . Water was tested from 37 existing wells in the aquifer, and all but one had concentrations of radioactive radium-226 and radium-228 isotopes that exceeded international standards for drinking water . Some of

7840-515: The ground (for indicators related to the efficiency of drinking water distribution see non-revenue water ). Once water is used, wastewater is typically discharged in a sewer system and treated in a sewage treatment plant before being discharged into a river, lake, or the sea or reused for landscaping or irrigation . A water supply network or water supply system is a system of engineered hydrologic and hydraulic components that provide water supply. A water supply system typically includes

7952-494: The iron main, so the kitchen tap flow will be fairly unrestricted. A rural consumer may have a kilometre of rusted and limed 22-mm iron pipe, so their kitchen tap flow will be small. For this reason, the UK domestic water system has traditionally (prior to 1989) employed a "cistern feed" system, where the incoming supply is connected to the kitchen sink and also a header/storage tank in the attic . Water can dribble into this tank through

8064-405: The killings, the town of Ma'an had protests against the government's failure to punish the killers. During October and November, 2011 the construction works have been suspended at southern part of the project from Hasa to Mudawwara due to security problems created by tribes, therefore there is delay in this part which will affect the completion date of the project. By the end of 2013, portion of

8176-591: The legislative branch. In the United States the United States Environmental Protection Agency , whose administrator reports directly to the President, is responsible for water and sanitation policy and standard setting within the executive branch. In other countries responsibility for sector policy is entrusted to a Ministry of Environment (such as in Mexico and Colombia ), to a Ministry of Health (such as in Panama , Honduras and Uruguay ),

8288-584: The main losers from this institutional arrangement are the urban poor in these countries. Because they are not connected to the water supply network , they end up paying far more per liter of water than do more well-off households connected to the network who benefit from the implicit subsidies that they receive from loss-making utilities. The fact that we are still so far from achieving universal access to clean water and sanitation shows that public water authorities, in their current state, are not working well enough. Yet some are being very successful and are modelling

8400-459: The national government. This is, for example, the case in the countries of continental Europe, in China and India. Water supply service providers, which are often utilities , differ from each other in terms of their geographical coverage relative to administrative boundaries; their sectoral coverage; their ownership structure; and their governance arrangements. Many water utilities provide services in

8512-543: The non-revenue water problem remains, it is possible that a large portion of the water provided by the Disi Water Conveyance project will also be lost as it is piped through Amman. The Disi Water Conveyance project was first proposed in the 1990s, but was initially regarded as too expensive. A feasibility study was completed in 1996. But it was not until 2007 that the Jordanian Government was able to contract

8624-545: The option to cross-subsidize water services with revenues from electricity sales, if permitted by law. Water supply providers can be either public, private, mixed or cooperative. Most urban water supply services around the world are provided by public entities. As Willem-Alexander, Prince of Orange (2002) stated, "The water crisis that is affecting so many people is mainly a crisis of governance—not of water scarcity ." The introduction of cost-reflective tariffs together with cross-subsidization between richer and poorer consumers

8736-551: The other to use less of the shared water. There is no formal agreement between the countries regarding the water and the Disi Water Conveyance Project is being constructed without Saudi consultation or involvement. Non-revenue water is a serious problem in Amman. Currently, 40% of water in Amman is lost as non-revenue water. The city rations water, with individual residents averaging 36 hours of water access weekly. If

8848-428: The overall low level of water tariffs in developing countries even at higher levels of consumption, most consumption subsidies benefit the wealthier segments of society. Also, high industrial and commercial tariffs can provide an incentive for these users to supply water from other sources than the utility (own wells, water tankers) and thus actually erode the utility's revenue base. Water supply and sanitation require

8960-442: The piezometers will be drilled to a depth of 400 m (1,300 ft). The plan is to pump the piezometer wells for 25 years, according to the project leader. After being pumped from the wells, water will then be transported to Amman , via a 325 km (202 mi) pipeline, passing through a pumping station, then flowing by gravity and being pumped up again. The reservoirs near Amman are only 200 m (660 ft) higher than

9072-511: The preferred scenario of the World Bank Study the conduit will be multiple buried pipelines and not canals. Special care will be taken to minimize the environmental and archeological damage. There is a risk of damage to the aquifer of the Arabah, due to contamination of groundwater with water from the Red Sea. The alluvial deposits in Wadi Araba contain important supplies of fresh water. In

9184-541: The privatization of the water industry in 1989. In many developing countries, water regulatory agencies were created during the 1990s in parallel with efforts at increasing private sector participation. (for more details on regulatory agencies in Latin America, for example, please see Water and sanitation in Latin America and the regional association of water regulatory agencies ADERASA. ) Many countries do not have regulatory agencies for water. In these countries service providers are regulated directly by local government, or

9296-443: The process of desalinating Red Sea water which has a different chemical composition. This potential damage includes changes in water salinity, massive formation of gypsum, formation of volatile toxic compounds, changes in water evaporation rates, changes in the composition of bacteria and algae which inhabit the sea surface, chemical changes in the rocks which surround the water, and loss of unique health benefits that account for much of

9408-540: The production wells were substantially complete and turned over to DIWACO. The project is funded on a build-operate-transfer concession contract between the Jordanian government and the Disi Water Company (Diwaco), a subsidiary of the Turkish construction company GAMA Energy . GAMA Energy is a joint venture between the Turkish GAMA Holding and the US firm General Electric Energy Financial Services. Diwaco

9520-613: The project costs. The Kingdom of Jordan had planned to build a large nuclear power plant to make up at least some of the difference. The project cost estimates varied from two to more than ten billion dollars, depending on its structure and stages. The first phase of the Jordan Red Sea Project was expected to cost US$ 2.5 billion, and to be financed to a large extent from commercial sources, including debt and equity and soft international financing. As of January 2019, Israel had been expected to contribute over one billion dollars over

9632-528: The project in stages in order to test the mixing of the two seas water phasing the big investment associated with the project. The project was called "the Peace conduit" and was proposed to be located on Jordanian territory for financial and implementation reasons. On 9 May 2005, Jordan, Israel and the Palestinian Authority signed an agreement to go ahead with a feasibility study for the RSDSC. The agreement

9744-627: The project, is expected to produce a total extraction rate of 190,000,000 m (4.2 × 10 imp gal). At that rate, the water in the aquifer will last a minimum of 50 years, according to the Disi Water Company. Only a small portion of the Disi aquifer lies beneath Jordan , while the majority lies beneath Saudi Arabia . Saudi Arabia also extracts water from the aquifer (called the Saq aquifer in Saudi Arabia). The aquifer has created controversy between Saudi Arabia and Jordan, with each country demanding

9856-714: The public entity that is legally responsible for service provision delegates certain or all aspects of service provision to the private service provider for a period typically ranging from 4 to 30 years. The public entity continues to own the assets. These arrangements are common in France and in Spain . Only in few parts of the world water supply systems have been completely sold to the private sector ( privatization ), such as in England and Wales as well as in Chile . The largest private water companies in

9968-451: The public sector. They are owned by the state or local authorities, or also by collectives or cooperatives. They run without an aim for profit but are based on the ethos of providing a common good considered to be of public interest. In most middle and low-income countries, these publicly owned and managed water providers can be inefficient as a result of political interference, leading to over-staffing and low labor productivity. Ironically,

10080-419: The radioactivity of the water which, according to Vengosh's data, would not be enough to bring the water up to standards. The Ministry of Water and Irrigation, however, has declared Vengosh's data to be inaccurate, as his study did not test water from any of the wells that will be used in the project. As radiation varies from well to well, it is possible that the data Vengosh collected does not accurately reflect

10192-412: The relationship between the service provider, its owners, its customers and regulatory entities. They determine the financial autonomy of the service provider and thus its ability to maintain its assets, expand services, attract and retain qualified staff, and ultimately to provide high-quality services. Key aspects of governance arrangements are the extent to which the entity in charge of providing services

10304-594: The same for different categories of users and for different levels of consumption. In developing countries, the situation is often characterized by cross-subsidies with the intent to make water more affordable for residential low-volume users that are assumed to be poor. For example, industrial and commercial users are often charged higher tariffs than public or residential users. Also, metered users are often charged higher tariffs for higher levels of consumption (increasing-block tariffs). However, cross-subsidies between residential users do not always reach their objective. Given

10416-565: The setting of tariff rules and the approval of tariff increases; setting, monitoring and enforcing norms for quality of service and environmental protection; benchmarking the performance of service providers; and reforms in the structure of institutions responsible for service provision. The distinction between policy functions and regulatory functions is not always clear-cut. In some countries they are both entrusted to Ministries, but in others regulatory functions are entrusted to agencies that are separate from Ministries. Dozens of countries around

10528-414: The surface area where the pumping field is located. Nevertheless, the total elevation differential over which water needs to be lifted by both pumping stations is about 800 metres (2,600 ft). To pump the water through the proposed pipeline will require 4 kilowatt-hours per cubic meter of water. The entire project would require approximately 4 percent of Jordan's current electrical production. The project

10640-482: The tendency is increasing. Water meters are read by one of several methods: Most cities are increasingly installing automatic meter reading (AMR) systems to prevent fraud, to lower ever-increasing labor and liability costs and to improve customer service and satisfaction. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), "access to safe drinking-water is essential to health, a basic human right and

10752-634: The tourist attraction to the Dead Sea area. The report of Tahal Group, the Geological Survey of Israel, Portland State University , Oregon, US and Institute of Life Sciences at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem , states: There is a risk of damage to the coral reefs of the Gulf of Aqaba, due to water pumping. The coral reefs have so far resisted bleaching despite climate change , but the conveyance could upset this balance. The report of Thetis SpA,

10864-410: The two. It is also important to consider is the flexibility of the water supply system. Metering of water supply is usually motivated by one or several of four objectives. First, it provides an incentive to conserve water which protects water resources (environmental objective). Second, it can postpone costly system expansion and saves energy and chemical costs (economic objective). Third, it allows

10976-411: The virtues of the system were made starkly apparent after the investigations of the physician John Snow during the 1854 Broad Street cholera outbreak demonstrated the role of the water supply in spreading the cholera epidemic. Two Seas Canal The Red Sea–Dead Sea Conveyance ( RSDSC ), sometimes called the Two Seas Canal , was a planned pipeline to run from the coastal city of Aqaba by

11088-502: The water sources to be used in the project. Although testing at the well sites that supply Aqaba reveals high radioactivity, testing performed using water from the tap in Aqaba shows the water to be safe. There is no confirmed explanation for this phenomenon, although it is hypothesized that the depth of the wells (the ones that supply Aqaba are relatively shallow) may play a role as the radiation varies greatly at shallow depths. In May, 2011,

11200-458: The water tested exceeded standards by 2,000%. Drinking water with these isotopes has been linked to bone cancer and leukemia . Though expensive, the water could be purified of the radioactive isotopes through ion-exchange purification . Jordan's Ministry of Water and Irrigation has stated that the radioactivity is not a problem because the water is to be diluted with an equal amount of water from other sources. This dilution would presumably halve

11312-402: The water up to standards. The Ministry said the independent study was inaccurate, as it did not test water from any of the wells that will be used in the project. The President of the Jordanian Geologists Association Bahjat Al Adwan stated that the radiation is present in the water in the form of radon , and thus dissipates harmlessly when the water is exposed to air on the surface. The water in

11424-400: The world are Suez and Veolia Environnement from France; Aguas de Barcelona from Spain; and Thames Water from the UK, all of which are engaged internationally (see links to website of these companies below). In recent years, a number of cities have reverted to the public sector in a process called " remunicipalization ". 90% of urban water supply and sanitation services are currently in

11536-423: The world have established regulatory agencies for infrastructure services, including often water supply and sanitation, in order to better protect consumers and to improve efficiency. Regulatory agencies can be entrusted with a variety of responsibilities, including in particular the approval of tariff increases and the management of sector information systems, including benchmarking systems. Sometimes they also have

11648-504: The world population lives, water services are often not provided by utilities, but by community-based organizations which usually cover one or sometimes several villages. Some water utilities provide only water supply services, while sewerage is under the responsibility of a different entity. This is for example the case in Tunisia . However, in most cases water utilities also provide sewer and sewage treatment services. In some cities or countries utilities also distribute electricity. In

11760-472: Was announced that the Jordanian government was shortlisting five consortia to implement the project. Jordan's ministry of Water and Irrigation said that the $ 100 million first phase of the project would begin construction in the first quarter of 2018, and would be completed by 2021. In June 2021, it was reported that the water level in the Dead Sea was shrinking at a rate of more than one metre per year, and that its surface area had shrunk by about 33% since

11872-481: Was in the 18th century that a rapidly growing population fueled a boom in the establishment of private water supply networks in London . London water supply infrastructure developed over many centuries from early mediaeval conduits, through major 19th-century treatment works built in response to cholera threats, to modern, large-scale reservoirs. The first screw-down water tap was patented in 1845 by Guest and Chrimes,

11984-524: Was mostly completed in July 2013 when the project was inaugurated by King Abdullah of Jordan. Its total cost was US$ 1.1 billion. An independent study revealed the water to be radioactive and potentially dangerous to drink, initially surrounding the project with controversy. Jordan's Ministry of Water and Irrigation has stated that the radioactivity is not a problem because the water is to be diluted with an equal amount of water from other sources, although it remains disputed if this would be enough to bring

12096-459: Was planned to be carried out by Jordan and is entirely in Jordanian territory. It was to be financed by the governments of Jordan, Israel, and a number of international donors. The project had a tentative $ 10 billion price tag, with the first phase—slated to begin construction in 2021—costing $ 1.1 billion. The water level in the Dead Sea is shrinking at a rate of more than one metre per year, and its surface area has shrunk by about 33% since

12208-402: Was proposed at the end of the 1960s and was analysed as part of the peace process between Israel and Jordan . In the late 1990s a team headed by Refael (Rafi) Benvenisti working with Minister Shimon Peres as the Minister of Regional Cooperation suggested to establish the stabilization of the Dead Sea water level ('Saving the Dead Sea') as a major objective of the project. It suggested building

12320-542: Was signed on the Dead Sea by Jordanian Water Minister Raed Abu Soud , Israeli Infrastructure Minister Binyamin Ben-Eliezer and Palestinian Planning Minister Ghassan al-Khatib . In June 2009, after a meeting with World Bank President Robert Zoellick , the Israeli Regional Cooperation Minister, Silvan Shalom , announced a pilot project to build a "pilot" pipe 180 km long from the Red Sea to

12432-504: Was stopped for two weeks after two employees were killed in January 2011 — allegedly murdered by a member of the Bedouin tribe. The tribe had been upset because GAMA did not rent its water tankers, according to Adnan Zu'b, Assistant Secretary Genera at the Ministry of Water and Irrigation. To satisfy the tribe, GAMA then announced plans to rent tankers from the tribe. However, near the site of

12544-657: Was to be implemented by a private company under authority granted by the government. The project would also serve as an economic development project to create housing for 1.36 million people (1) south of Amman, (2) at the Southern end of the Dead Sea, (3) north of Aqaba and (4) in gated communities. Several tourist resorts would be created. It was divided into five phases. The first phase would include extraction of 400 million cubic metres of seawater per year, resulting in 210 million cubic metres/year (MCM/yr) of freshwater and 190 million cubic metres/year for discharge into

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