Amman Zarqa Basin Research Articles

Developing a water budget for the Amman-Zarqa basin using water accounting plus and the pixel-based soil water balance model

AbstractWater resources assessments are essential for effective planning in water-scarce regions such as Jordan. Such assessments require sufficient data in space and time. The WaPOR-based Water Accounting Plus (WA +) framework is relevant as it integrates remote sensing data and the Pixel-Based Soil Water Balance model to simulate a basin’s water balance. However, since it relies on remote sensing, this framework only tracks water consumption in irrigated agriculture and does not consider non-irrigation water use and its return flow. This paper modifies the WaPOR-based WA + framework to include non-irrigation manmade consumption and its return flows. The modified framework provides a more comprehensive water budget for the Amman-Zarqa (AZ) basin, presented in a modified WA + resource base sheet for 2018 through 2021. The results show that water availability in the AZ basin is highly responsive to precipitation changes. Average precipitation was approximately 926 Mm3/year between 2018 and 2020, corresponding to an average available water of 485 Mm3/year. However, a reduction in average precipitation by 28% in 2021 corresponded to a reduction in available water to 243 Mm3/year. Nevertheless, substantial groundwater outflows to neighbouring basins may indicate that available water is being overestimated. Manmade consumption increased by 18% from 2018 to 2021, and the total demand exceeded the available supply by 150%. This underscores the pressing need to investigate supply augmentation and conservation methods. Future studies could focus on improving the representation of groundwater dynamics in the modified framework by improving groundwater dynamics in PixSWAB and testing the modified framework with other remote sensing datasets.

Geospatial Land Use and Land Cover Changes Detection over the Last 40 Years with Validation by Ground Truthing Using an Integrated Approach of Remote Sensing and Geographic Information Systems in the Amman Zarqa Basin, Jordan

Geospatial Land Use and Land Cover Changes Detection over the Last 40 Years with Validation by Ground Truthing Using an Integrated Approach of Remote Sensing and Geographic Information Systems in the Amman Zarqa Basin, Jordan

Assessing the vulnerability of flash floods to climate change in arid zones: Amman–Zarqa Basin, Jordan

Abstract The objective of this study was to evaluate the sensitivity of flash floods to future climate change in the Amman–Zarqa Basin, Jordan. Historical daily rainfall and temperature data from 1970 to 2018 were collected, along with projected daily data derived from general circulation models (GCMs) forecast spanning 2019–2060. The methodology involved analyzing historical and model forecast data, conducting trend analysis, mapping changes in land use, estimating runoff volume, selecting indicators, assigning their weights through the analytical hierarchy process, and generating vulnerability maps. Analysis of precipitation trends revealed a 14.61% decrease in total annual rainfall over the past 48 years; however, future projections indicate a 5.26% increase. Downstream sub-catchments in the arid portion are projected to receive higher rainfall, while upstream sub-catchments are expected to experience a substantial decline, resulting in an overall reduction in runoff. Moreover, our findings demonstrate a rising trend in mean temperature, which is expected to persist. Remote sensing data indicate a 14.76% expansion of urban areas, indicative of rapid population growth. Although no highly vulnerable sub-catchments were identified, downstream sub-catchments 8 and 9 exhibited moderate vulnerability to flash floods, which can be attributed to the increase in rainfall and insufficient stormwater infrastructure.

GIS-based analytical analysis for selecting potential runoff harvesting sites: the case study of Amman-Zarqa Basin

GIS-based analytical analysis for selecting potential runoff harvesting sites: the case study of Amman-Zarqa Basin

A Historical–Projected Analysis in Land Use/Land Cover in Developing Arid Region Using Spatial Differences and Its Relation to the Climate

Land resources are under relentless pressure from metropolitan regions, pollution, and climate shifts. The urge to monitor Land Use/Land Cover (LULC) and climate changes based on technology and sustainable management are addressed. This study analyzes the historical land cover maps to calculate growth patterns for the years 1985–2022 and uses Logistic Regression (LR) and Artificial Neural Networks (ANN) to project future dynamics forecasts for the years 2030–2040 in the Amman-Zarqa Basin (AZB). The state of the climate and the extreme indices projections of CMIP5 under RCP8.5 are linked to the corrected historical LULC maps and assessed. Given greater dry covering of large surface runoff, little rainfall, and high evapotranspiration rates, the state of the climate across the AZB notably showed instability in key climatic indices and a major exacerbation of warmth and drier soil in the basin. Both climate change and land use are contributing dynamics, but land-use alterations are much more dramatic changes than climate changes. Since the effects of climate alterations are mostly identifiable through land cover forms, land use practices put the phase that may be influenced by climate change. The results revealed that the daily extremes in 1992 are aligned with the corresponding increase of barren lands and diminished the half area of forest, cultivated, rainfed, and pasture lands in 1995. Rainfed regions were converted to agriculture or shrubland with an accuracy of 0.87, and urban encroachment caused the acreage of woodland, cultivated, rainfed, and grazing fields to decrease by almost half. Predicted land cover maps were created using LR in 2030 (Kappa = 0.99) and 2040 (Kappa = 0.90), in contrast to the ANN approach (Kappa = 0.99 for 2030 and 0.90 for 2040). By combining ANN and LR, decreasing bare soil was anticipated between 325 km2 and 344 km2. As a result, 20% of the total area of the major AZB cities’ urban areas will be doubled. More subjective analysis is required to study and predict drought in the future to improve the resilience of various LULC types.

Analysis of Historical Precipitation in Semi-Arid Areas – Case Study of Amman Zarqa Basin

Analysis of Historical Precipitation in Semi-Arid Areas – Case Study of Amman Zarqa Basin

Assessment of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon in runoff from different land use at Amman Zarqa Basin-Jordan

ABSTRACT A study of 16 polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in stormwater runoff was conducted at seven locations in semi-arid Amman Zarqa Basin (AZB) for two winter seasons during 25 October 2012 to 31 May 2014. The selected sites are representing residential, commercial, industrial and agricultural areas. The concentrations of total PAH at all sites were in the range of 0.18–11.03 ppb. The highest average total concentration of PAHs of the runoff samples was found at industrial area (2.42 ppb), while the lowest concentrations was found at residential area (1.66 ppb). Average Daily Traffic was not found to be correlated to total PAHs carried by stormwater runoff from studied land uses (All sites). Isomer pair ratios and individual compound ratios are suggesting that the main source of PAHs in AZB catchment is from a pyrolytic origin especially at commercial, residential, and agriculture area, while industrial area is mainly polluted by PAHs with petrogenic origin. This study is providing a reliable data on PAHs loads carried by storm water runoff from different land uses.

Mapping Flash Flood Potential and Risk Level Using GIS Techniques and the Flash Flood Potential Index (FFPI) in Amman Zarqa Basin of Jordan

Jordan is located in an arid and semi-arid climatic zone, where about 80% of the country, known as the "Badia". Generally, this is classified as a dry or arid region. Climate change is expected to exacerbate the current aridity and scarcity of water resources in Jordan. Sudden and extreme weather events are becoming more common; this likely means longer and drier summers, more severe droughts, harsher winters, and an increase in flash floods. Jordanian Civil Defense reported that during 1963-2019, 451 people were killed and about one million people affected by flash floods. This research aims to determine the critical locations of flash floods in the Amman Zarqa Basin. This research methodology depends on using four variables (slope, vegetation cover/density, soil type/texture, and land use/cover) under the GIS environment to calculate the Flash Flood Potential Index (FFPI). This index has not been used in Jordan (up to our knowledge). Five scenarios were used in this study, based on previous reviews and the last one (scenario 5) based on Jordanian experts of flash floods in Jordan. The results show that increasing the weight of slope and land use in different FFPI equations will increase the values of FFPI. Reducing the vegetation density by 50% resulted in limited effects on the importance of FFPI. The risk level is divided into four categories (extreme, high, medium, and low) related to the FFPI values. Scenario two, which uses equal weights for all parameters, had the lowest risk level all over the area. Scenario four, which double the consequences of the slope and the land use with respect to the other two parameters. This has the highest risk level over the study area. Based on equation no. 5, which is modified based on Jordanian experts' opinion, the low-risk level covered 9.01% of the basin. Besides, the medium, high, and extreme risk levels covered 72.96%, 15.89%, and 2.14% of the study area, respectively.

Hydrological and Environmental Impact of Wastewater Treatment and Reuse on Zarqa River Basin in Jordan

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.

Impact of over-pumping on groundwater resources sustainability at Amman Zarqa basin, Jordan: a case study of arid areas affected by Syrian refugees crisis

Jordan is one of the most water-deprived countries worldwide. Groundwater is one of the main water resources in the country, nonetheless, long-term over-pumping, especially from the northern groundwater basin has been severely depleting the groundwater availability. This study evaluates the effects of over-pumping on groundwater quantity at the northeastern part of Amman Zarqa basin (Mafraq region including Zaatari Syrian Refugee Camp). Groundwater data were collected from the literature and the records of the Jordan Ministry of Water and Irrigation. Arcmap software was implemented to construct groundwater level, groundwater flow and aquifer thickness maps. The study area is mainly comprised of two groundwater aquifers, the Basaltic and the Amman Silicified Limestone aquifers. The outcomes of this evaluation indicate a severe decline in groundwater levels reaching up to a range of 1–5 m/year. This decline has led to a deterioration in the whole groundwater system and a noted reduction in the groundwater storage, reflected in the shrinkage of the aquifers’ saturated thicknesses.

Drought assessment and monitoring in Jordan using the standardized precipitation index

Drought is one of the most unforgiving natural disasters that could leave severe environmental, economic, and societal impacts. Jordan has witnessed several droughts recently along with recurring summer heat waves, which could be a consequence of global warming, and due to the fact that freshwater resources in Jordan are scarce, it is vital to utilize proper modeling and forecasting techniques that will improve the country’s preparedness for possible future droughts. In this study, the annual precipitation data for Amman-Zarqa Basin over the 1980–2016 record were analyzed to identify the occurrence of major droughts in 21 rain stations. Three dimensionless indices which depend solely on precipitation were applied: standardized precipitation index (SPI), standardized precipitation ratio (SPR), and percentage departure from normal (PDN). A comparison was also made among these indices and it was concluded that the SPR and PDN predicted higher numbers of moderate and severe droughts on the expense of extreme droughts compared to the SPI. It was also found that the 1998–1999 year was the driest year in the studied record in which 15 out of 21 stations witnessed extreme droughts. SPI trends were analyzed using the Mann-Kendall test, and it was found that most of the stations experienced negative trends implying increasing droughts over recent years; however, the trends were statistically insignificant for most stations.

Modeling of the stormwater runoff quantity and quality in Amman-Zarqua Basin, Jordan

The Storm Water Management Model (SWMM) was applied to simulate stormwater runoff quantity and quality generated from different land uses at Amman-Zarqa Basin (AZB) over two winter seasons (October 25, 2012 to May 31, 2014). The model was calibrated and validated using several storm events over two winter seasons for a measured surface flow data at the inlet of King Talal Dam (KTD). The calibration and validation results showed good agreement between simulated and measured surface runoff flow data at AZB. The results showed that the total precipitation estimated by the model is about 1106 MCM during the study period. About 93.2% of precipitation (1031 MCM) is lost by infiltration and evaporation and 6.8% (75 MCM) is generated as runoff in AZB. The total predicted surface flow by the model was about 207 MCM compared with a measured value of 213 MCM in the basin. It is noticed that the contribution of surface runoff flow is about 36% of the total storage of KTD during the study period. Based on the results of this preliminary modeling study, pollutant loads (BOD5, COD, and TSS) carried by stormwater runoff were much higher than those by treated wastewater over the study period. The SWMM is a very effective model and has successfully modeled both hydraulic and pollutant loads generated from Amman-Zarqa Basin.

Radon in the groundwater in the Amman-Zarqa Basin and related environments in Jordan

The occurrence of radon (222Rn) in environment (groundwater and indoor air) from geogenic sources is receiving an growing attention due to its adverse impact on human health worldwide including Jordan. Highlighting the current status of radon in Jordan, the present study of radon concentrations in ground waters in the Amman-Zarqa basin (AZB) was investigated. Groundwater samples were collected from fifteen wells located in three main areas of Ras Al-Ain, Al-Rsaifeh and Al-Hashemite. Radon concentration was measure using Liquid scintillation counting (LSC) Tri- Carb 3110 with discriminator and the highest values for radon concentration in water were observed in Al-Rsaifeh area and ranged from 4.52 up to 30.70 Bq/l with an average of 11.22 Bq/l, which were attributed to the decay of naturally distributed uranium in phosphate rock from Al-Rsaifeh mines. In Ras Al-Ain area, the radon concentration were noted ranged from 0.6 to 5.55 Bq/l with an average of 2.82 Bq/l, and also in Al-Hashemite area were ranged from 0.77 to 5.37 Bq/l with an average of 4.04 Bq/l. The overall average concentration of tested samples was 5.77 Bq/l and found within the acceptable international levels. Ground water samples of Ras Al-Ain area showed good quality as was tested of low salinity. It recorded the lowest average radon concentration of 2.82 Bq/l. Also, Radon indoor and building materials was reviewed. In conclusion, this study presented an urged need for developing national regulations and standards as well as awareness program concerning the radon status in Jordan.

English

Groundwater vulnerability is an overlay method that is used to determine the ability of pollutants to penetrate the aquifer and harming it. This method helps decision makers by highlighting expected areas to be polluted. In Jordan, groundwater is the main water resource the country uses to match its demand. The groundwater basins in Jordan are divided into 12 major basins; some are rechargeable and others are fossil. Many basins are over exploited; Amman Zarqa basin is a clear example for this case. In this study, a groundwater vulnerability map was produced for study area using SINTACS, GOD and DRASTIC indices to study the vulnerability of the aquifers throughout the targeted area. The different resulted maps show different vulnerability classes ranging from low to high reflecting the environmental, hydrological and hydrogeological settings of the groundwater and its recharge ability. The resulted map shows wide variation in groundwater vulnerability in different sites within the targeted area. Within the basin, areas with higher vulnerability are those with friable aquifer materials and shallow groundwater depths. Medium and low vulnerability classes exist too because of the variations of the environmental settings within the targeted areas. Key words: Groundwater, vulnerability, SINTACS, DRASTIC, GOD, Zarqa River basin.

Quantifying specific capacity and salinity variability in Amman Zarqa Basin, Central Jordan, using empirical statistical and geostatistical techniques.

Modeling groundwater properties is an important tool by means of which water resources management can judge whether these properties are within the safe limits or not. This is usually done regularly and in the aftermath of crises that are expected to reflect negatively on groundwater properties, as occurred in Jordan due to crises in neighboring countries. In this study, specific capacity and salinity of groundwater of B2/A7 aquifer in Amman Zarqa Basin were evaluated to figure out the effect of population increase in this basin as a result of refugee flux from neighboring countries to this heavily populated basin after Gulf crises 1990 and 2003. Both properties were found to exhibit a three-parameter lognormal distribution. The empirically calculated β parameter of this distribution mounted up to 0.39m(3)/h/min for specific capacity and 238ppm for salinity. This parameter is suggested to account for the global changes that took place all over the basin during the entire period of observation and not for local changes at every well or at certain localities in the basin. It can be considered as an exploratory result of data analysis. Formal and implicit evaluation followed this step using structural analysis and construction of experimental semivariograms that represent the spatial variability of both properties. The adopted semivariograms were then used to construct maps to illustrate the spatial variability of the properties under consideration using kriging interpolation techniques. Semivariograms show that specific capacity and salinity values are spatially dependent within 14,529 and 16,309m, respectively. Specific capacity semivariogram exhibit a nugget effect on a small scale (324m). This can be attributed to heterogeneity or inadequacies in measurement. Specific capacity and salinity maps show that the major changes exhibit a northwest southeast trend, near As-Samra Wastewater Treatment Plant. The results of this study suggest proper management practices.

Over Exploitation of Groundwater in the Centre of Amman Zarqa Basin—Jordan: Evaluation of Well Data and GRACE Satellite Observations

Jordan faces a sincere water crisis. Groundwater is the major water resource in Jordan and most of the ground water systems are already exploited beyond their estimated safe yield. The Amman Zarqa Basin is one of the most important groundwater systems in Jordan, which supplies the three largest cities in Jordan with drinking and irrigation water. Based on new data the groundwater drawdown in the Amman Zarqa Basin is studied. This basin is the most used drainage area in Jordan. Groundwater drawdown in eight central representative monitoring wells is outlined. Based on almost continuous data for the last 15 years (2000–2015) an average drawdown for the whole basin in the order of 1.1 m·a−1 is calculated. This result is in accordance with results of previous studies in other areas in Jordan and shows that, until now, no sustainable water management is applied. Groundwater management in such a basin presents a challenge for water managers and experts. The applicability of satellite data for estimating large-scale groundwater over exploitation, such as gravity products of the Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment (GRACE) mission, along with supplementary data, is discussed. Although the size of the basin is below the minimum resolution of GRACE, the data generally support the measured drawdown.

Groundwater Vulnerability for the Surface Outcropping Aquifers in Jordan

Groundwater vulnerability is an overlay method that is used to determine the ability of pollutants to penetrate to the target aquifer and to harm it. This method helps decision makers by shedding light on pollution areas expected to pollute groundwater aquifers as caused by human activities on the ground surface. In Jordan, groundwater is the main water resource the country uses to match its demand. The groundwater basins in Jordan are divided into 12 major basins. Some basins are rechargeable and other basins are fossil. Many basins are over exploited. Amman Zarqa basin is a clear example for this case. Others are saline just like Azraq basin and the rest is expected to be affected by the growing demand for agricultural, municipal and industrial activities. In this study, a groundwater vulnerability map was produced for Jordan using DRASTIC index to study the vulnerability of the shallow aquifers throughout the country. The map shows different vulnerability classes ranging from low to very high reflecting the environmental, hydrological and hydrogeological settings of the groundwater and its recharge ability. The resulted map shows wide variation in groundwater vulnerability in different sites in Jordan. Areas with higher vulnerability are those with friable aquifer materials and shallow groundwater depths. Medium and low vulnerability classes are exist too because of the variations of the environmental settings within the targeted areas.

The Impact of Za’atari Refugee Camp on the Water Quality in Amman-Zarqa Basin

Za’atari camp is the largest refugee camp in Jordan. It was first established in 2012 to host Syrian refugees. Currently the camp hosts more than 81,000 refugees, with no proper sanitary system which might pose a major threat to surface resources in the area. An investigation was done at Za’atari refugees’ camp to find the impact of refugees settling on surface and groundwater quality. Surface water quality of surface runoff generated from thirty rain fall events were collected during the winter season of 2013/2014 from the major Wadi that passes through the camp and small ponds within the camp after the rainfall event. The collected samples were analyzed for acidity (pH), the electrical connectivity (EC), total dissolved solids (TDS), nutrients (NO3- and PO43-) and selected heavy metals (Mn, Cd, Zn, Pb and Ni) in addition to biological oxygen demand (BOD5), chemical oxygen demand (COD) and intestinal worms (Total Coliform, E. cali). The results showed that there are significant variations in the EC as well as with TDS between the sites due to fluctuating amounts of water used for different activities within the camp as it was highest in the center of the camp where most of the refugees settle decreasing away from the center. The pH values were within the specifications of the World Health Organization and the Jordanian Standards. For nutrients, nitrate concentration was low with high phosphate ions which are most probably from detergents origin.

Spatial distribution of cadmium concentrations in street dust in an arid environment

Cadmium (Cd) concentration and its chemical speciation were studied in surface dust samples collected from 26 locations at Amman–Zarqa basin highways. The study area represents a heavily trafficked arid environment associated with highly calcareous soils with an average of 53 % CaCO3; such combination gives the investigation further speculations on abundant Cd bonded forms. Sequential extraction technique (SET) was used to assess the exchangeable, bound to carbonates, bound to iron oxide, bound to organic matter, and residual fractions in surface dust samples. Total and fractional Cd spatial distributions were spatially investigated and utilized to generate Cd contamination factor map. Total Cd concentrations ranged between 4.1 and 17.9 mg/kg where maximum contamination was allocated at the study area center. The exponential behavior of Cd distribution in space gave further distinction of the possible contamination sources. The main Cd speciation was in the following order: bound to iron oxide > residual > exchangeable > bound to carbonate > bound to organic matter. The degree of surface contamination was determined by individual contamination factor that delineated those areas located close to the wastewater treatment plant that had high potential risk to fauna and flora. Relationship between the total and fractional Cd concentrations with soil chemical properties showed that pH, CEC, and amorphous Fe were positively related to total extracted Cd, while carbonate content and OM are negatively correlated with Cd.

Global and local modeling of soil organic carbon using Thematic Mapper data in a semi-arid environment

This study aimed at comparing the effectiveness of the global aspatial multiple linear regression (MLR) using ordinary least squares (OLS) and local spatial geographically weighted regression (GWR) for producing a map showing the spatial variations in soil organic carbon (SOC) in Amman-Zarqa Basin (about 3,583 km2)—a typical semi-arid watershed in Jordan—using Landsat Thematic Mapper (TM) data. After normalizing the SOC data (the dependent variable) using Box-Cox power transformation and removing the multicollinearity of TM bands 1 to 5 and 7 (the independent variables) by applying principal component analysis, both regression techniques developed maximum likelihood best linear unbiased estimators in which the residuals had close-to-normal and random independent distributions with almost common variances and close-to-zero means. However, the GWR model had smaller Akaike’s information criterion (corrected) (AICc) (2,534.0 versus 2,560.5), larger adjusted multiple coefficient of determination \( \left({\overline{\mathbf{\mathcal{R}}}}^2\right) \) (0.31 versus 0.22), and larger Pearson’s product moment correlation coefficient (r) between measured and observed values (0.63 versus 0.51). Thus, applying map algebra using the developed GWR model generated a raster map with 30 × 30 m2 cell size. The map showed that SOC composition to 20 cm depth varied from 3.5 to 85.0 metric tons per hectare (ton/ha) with a mean and standard deviation of about 23.9 and 9.3 ton/ha, respectively. The spatial pattern of surface SOC reflected partly the spatial variability of land cover and agricultural management practices in the basin. The results demonstrate the potential and superiority of GWR over MLR as a practical tool for conducting further spatial and temporal analyses of SOC stocks and implementing best land management practices in semi-arid environments using TM data.