Abstract
Treated wastewater is an important component of the water resource in Jordan. As Samra wastewater treatment plant—the largest treatment plant in Jordan—discharges ~110 MCM per year of secondary treated municipal wastewater to Zarqa River, and eventually to Jordan Valley. This research aims at assessing the impact of treated wastewater reuse on the hydrology and environment in the most vulnerable areas within Amman-Zarqa Basin, specifically from As Samra treatment plant to Jerash Bridge. Historical data is collected, field survey is performed, and chemical and biological analyses are performed at eleven selected locations along the study area. Afterwards, all collected data is managed using suitable tools to address the impact. The findings of this research demonstrate high improvement in biological and microbial parameters along the flow path, yet the salinity is increased downstream. It is found that this increase is due to brackish water intrusion, apparently from sandstone aquifer. Analysis of BOD and COD carried out as part of this research showed effective system recovery with COD reduction from 130 mg/L at the effluent to less than 50 mg/l in the downstream. Moreover, microbial activities are reduced, mainly due to self-purification in the river.
Highlights
IntroductionWater scarcity is dominant in arid and semi-arid regions, resulting in high competition among different sectors such as domestic and agriculture causing a gap between supply and demand
We found that the municipal wastewater reuse for crop irrigation grown in the protected area appears to be an environmentally acceptable solution for alleviating the natural water shortage
The survey shows that 48% of the interviewed farmers considered treated wastewater as the only source for irrigation, whereas 30% use groundwater
Summary
Water scarcity is dominant in arid and semi-arid regions, resulting in high competition among different sectors such as domestic and agriculture causing a gap between supply and demand To manage this gap, it is important to understand the root causes of this problem. The impact of climate variability and change affects the condition and creates unbalance between surface water and groundwater in spatial and temporal scales [1] Further, population growth, industrialization, irrigation, and other activities accelerated the exhaustion of available resources [2]. To overcome these challenges, adaptive integrated water resources management plan is indispensable
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Free) 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a call
