Springer ThesesRecognizing Outstanding Ph.D. Research

Soil Erosion and Sediment Flux in Northern JordanAnalysis, Quantification and the Respective Qualitative Impacts on a Reservoir Using a Multiple Response Approach

Sabine Kraushaar

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Sabine Kraushaar

Soil Erosion and SedimentFlux in Northern JordanAnalysis, Quantification and the RespectiveQualitative Impacts on a ReservoirUsing a Multiple Response Approach

Doctoral Thesis accepted bythe Martin Luther University Halle-Wittenberg,Halle, Germany

123

AuthorDr. Sabine KraushaarDepartment of Geography and RegionalResearch

University of ViennaViennaAustria

SupervisorProf. Hans-Jörg VogelMartin Luther University Halle-WittenbergHalleGermany

The original title of this Thesis is ‘Analysis and Quantification of Soil Erosion, SedimentFlux and the Respective Qualitative Impacts on a Reservoir in Northern Jordan Using aMultiple Response Approach’.

ISSN 2190-5053 ISSN 2190-5061 (electronic)Springer ThesesISBN 978-3-319-31886-8 ISBN 978-3-319-31888-2 (eBook)DOI 10.1007/978-3-319-31888-2

Library of Congress Control Number: 2016935606

© Springer International Publishing Switzerland 2016All Rights Reserved for Sections 3.1, 3.2 and Chapter 5This work is subject to copyright. All rights are reserved by the Publisher, whether the whole or partof the material is concerned, specifically the rights of translation, reprinting, reuse of illustrations,recitation, broadcasting, reproduction on microfilms or in any other physical way, and transmissionor information storage and retrieval, electronic adaptation, computer software, or by similar or dissimilarmethodology now known or hereafter developed.The use of general descriptive names, registered names, trademarks, service marks, etc. in thispublication does not imply, even in the absence of a specific statement, that such names are exempt fromthe relevant protective laws and regulations and therefore free for general use.The publisher, the authors and the editors are safe to assume that the advice and information in thisbook are believed to be true and accurate at the date of publication. Neither the publisher nor theauthors or the editors give a warranty, express or implied, with respect to the material contained herein orfor any errors or omissions that may have been made.

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This Springer imprint is published by Springer NatureThe registered company is Springer International Publishing AG Switzerland

Parts of this research have been published in the following journals:

Kraushaar, S., Schumann, T., Ollesch, G., Schubert, M., Vogel, H.-J., Siebert, C.,2015. Sediment fingerprinting in northern Jordan: element-specific correctionfactors in a carbonatic setting. Journal of Soils and Sediments 15:2155–2173.DOI 10.1007/s11368-015-1179-2.

Kraushaar, S., Ollesch, G., Siebert, C., Vogel, H.-J., Fuchs, M., 2015. Long-termsediment export estimates from Northern Jordan using Roman cisterns as sedimenttraps. Geoarchaeology 30:369–378. DOI 10.1002/gea.21517.

Kraushaar, S., Herrmann, N., Ollesch, G., Siebert, C., Vogel, H.-J., 2014. Moundmeasurements—quantifying medium-term soil erosion under olive trees in NorthernJordan. Geomorphology 213:1–12. DOI 10.1016/j.geomorph.2013.12.021.

To those who inspired, payed, critized,supported and will read it. Thank you!

Supervisor’s Foreword

The present study focuses on erosion and sediment transport within a catchmentWadi Al-Arab in Northern Jordan—a country ranked as the fourth water-scarce inthe world. Besides the loss of soil, erosion leads to an increased sedimentation andpollution of the Wadi Al-Arab water reservoir. The aim of an integrated watermanagement is therefore to improve water infiltration at the soil surface to increaserecharge of groundwater resources, and, in turn, to decrease run-off and thetransport of sediment loads to surface waters. A fundamental prerequisite to reachthese goals is to better understand the mechanisms and local conditions responsiblefor erosion. This work provides substantial new insight based on a thorough geo-morphological study and will be in the position to enhance water availability andquality in a water- and data-scarce country.

The work comprises the identification of the relevant sediment sourcesthroughout the Wadi Al-Arab, the quantification of the erosion processes and anestimation of sediment transport and connectivity to the final sink—the WadiAl-Arab reservoir. Geochemical analyses of the soil materials in the source regionstogether with those in the sediments of the reservoir were used in a multiplesediment fingerprinting to calculate the contribution of the various sources. Thisalso provided a substantial understanding of many natural abundant heavy metalsand sediment-bound anthropogenic pollutants, such as hexazinone, trifluralin andtNP fertilizer. The results were used to calibrate and validate the SedNet model toobtain a spatial understanding of the processes and to identify hot spot areas.In combination with detailed geomorphological analysis a multiple responseapproach of different complementary methods was established internalizing thepotential of one method validating or falsifying results from another. This led to aconsistent interpretation of the ongoing processes.

Overall, this work met the exceptional challenge to identify sediment sourcesand quantify hydro-morphological processes in a relatively big catchment area ofheterogeneous geology, topography and land use. All this was done in the limitedtime frame of a research project and without support of any pre-existing data. Theskillful collection of erosion values in different time- and spatial scales,

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geochemical properties, and the analysis of sediment connectivity and spatialmodelling resulted in an extensive field data set that allowed a thorough under-standing of the relevant sediment transport processes. This provides valuableinformation for policy-makers and resource authorities to prioritize areas suitablefor mitigation strategies with respect to erosion and to select possible locations forin-channel constructions to support ground water recharge. I hope this work willstimulate more creative research within regions that are not only scarce in water butalso scarce in available data.

Halle, Germany Prof. Hans-Jörg VogelFebruary 2016

x Supervisor’s Foreword

Acknowledgments

This dissertation is the result of many thinking heads, numerous helping hands inGermany and in Jordan, caring family members and encouraging friends. Thesepeople I want to dedicate the next few lines of sincere appreciation, not rankingthem by order and hoping that I haven’t forgotten anyone.

First of all I want to express my gratitude to my three supervisors during theyears:

– Dr. Christian Siebert who encouraged me to write the project application andsupported this work with water chemical expertise and me to keep the focus.

– PD Dr. habil. Gregor Ollesch who always found time for my enquiries andwhose comments and ideas gave this thesis the course of action.

– Prof. Dr. habil. Hans-Jörg Vogel who enriched the studies with his commentsregarding the small-scale analysis steps and gave me the feeling that I amwalking in the right direction.

In Jordan I found great local expertise, support and friendship of Prof. Dr. EliasSalameh and Dr. Marwan Al Raggad. Thank you so much for all your time,cordiality and backing when instruments got stuck in the customs, police wantedproof of the nature of the work, guidance trough Jordan, and overall the inclusioninto family and social life by the Al-Raggad and Al-Abdallat family. Without thissupport I would have given up after one year!

When residing in the research area Wadi Al-Arab Imran and Ferial Melkauwialways gave me a home, moral support, advice with local habits and insights intothe daily life of Jordanians. Thank you for this wonderful opportunity to get toknow and understand people better.

Additionally I want to express gratitude to Prof. Dr. Dr. Dr. habil. DieterViehweger, Dr. Jutta Häser, Dr. Frauke Kenkel and Katja Soennecken from theGerman Protestant Institute of Archaeology and the Tell Zira’a team. They taughtme archaeological working procedures, the ancient history of the region, empha-sized integrated working, allowed me to use their infrastructure and more impor-tantly, let me to be a part in their team. Thank you for this support!

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The nature of the thesis demanded extensive field work and data analysis, whichwas strongly supported by the master students, interns and colleagues CorneliaWilske, Stephan Schulz, Thomas Schumann, Martin Weber and Mascha Braun.Their willingness to accompany and complement the dissertation with their worksgave great impulses to the research. Thank you!

Additionally I want to thank Michael von Hoff and Prof. Pöllmann (MLU), fromthe University of Halle/Wittenberg for grain size and an XRD analysis. Specialwords of gratitude are devoted to the all technicians at the geochemical laboratoriesof the TU Dresden and to Mrs. Mothes and the staff of the UFZ AnalyticDepartment in Leipzig for sample analysis, expertise and advice duringinterpretation.

Furthermore, I am greatly indebted to Manfred Fischer from the luminescencelaboratory at the University of Bayreuth for OSL sample preparation and even moreto Prof. Markus Fuchs who supported this work with discussions and the OSLdating of the cistern sediments.

I want to thank Oliver Spott and Ralf Gründling for countless hours of fundiscussions while commuting back and forth to Halle and this way forgetting aboutthe distance- and work-related problems.

Furthermore, I am very grateful for inclusion, friendship, interest and teachingsof Dr. David Morche and Henning Baewert from the University ofHalle/Wittenberg and the working group of Young Geomorphologists. Their way ofdoing team work in science served as a wonderful role model that encourages oneto proceed in science when times are rough. Thank you for this collegiality.

Great thanks go to my long university friends André Kirchner and NicoHerrmann whom I owe not only for a hand in the field but also for fruitful dis-cussions before conference presentations and wonderful years of friendship.

To my girls Vicky and Verena, Anne, Marie and Jule, thank you for any kind ofpositive distraction, lending me your ears and sharing good times.

With all my heart I thank my beloved parents Karl-Heinz and Hannelore, KittyEmmelmann, my brother Matthias Kraushaar, my husband Kai, Gesine and theHöhnert’s and to the extended family. Thank you for giving me the stability,enduring tough times with me, grounding and supporting me at any time in my life!

Last but not least thanks go to the tax payer who gave the money for this workand to the reviewers who spent their time reading it.

xii Acknowledgments

Contents

1 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11.1 Background and Framework of the Thesis:

The Smart—Project . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11.2 Demand, Preliminary Works and Research Questions

of the Thesis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31.3 Methodological Approach and the Structure of the Thesis . . . . . . 6References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8

2 The Wadi Al-Arab . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 132.1 Climate in Wadi Al-Arab . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 142.2 Geology of Wadi Al-Arab. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16

2.2.1 Brief Geological History of the Middle East . . . . . . . . . . 162.2.2 Environmental Conditions for the Geology in Wadi

Al-Arab . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 182.3 Geomorphological Features of the Wadi Al-Arab . . . . . . . . . . . . 202.4 Soils in Wadi Al-Arab . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22

2.4.1 Mediterranean Soils and Typical Pedogenetic Processes . . . 222.4.2 History of Soil Mapping in Jordan. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 242.4.3 Soils in Wadi Al-Arab—Own Observations . . . . . . . . . . 26

2.5 Vegetation in Wadi Al-Arab . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 282.5.1 Potential Natural Vegetation of Northern Jordan . . . . . . . 282.5.2 Land Use in Wadi Al-Arab . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28

References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30

3 Erosion Features and Measurement Methods on the Slope. . . . . . . . 333.1 Long Term Soil Erosion Estimates Using Roman Cisterns

as Sediment Traps . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 353.1.1 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 353.1.2 Historical Background . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 363.1.3 Study Area . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 373.1.4 Methods . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 383.1.5 Laboratory Analysis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40

xiii

3.1.6 OSL Dating . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 403.1.7 Results and Interpretations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 443.1.8 Discussion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 453.1.9 Conclusion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49

3.2 Mound Measurements—Quantifying Medium-Term SoilErosion Under Olive Trees in Northern Jordan . . . . . . . . . . . . . 503.2.1 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 503.2.2 Study Area . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 523.2.3 Methods . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 543.2.4 Results . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 603.2.5 Discussion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 633.2.6 Conclusion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67

3.3 Implementation and Results of 6 Erosion Pin Fields . . . . . . . . . . 683.3.1 Results and Discussion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 69

3.4 Building of Event Based Sediment Traps and the Assessmentof a Few Events . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 713.4.1 Results and Discussion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 72

References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 73

4 Qualitative Effects of Sediments on the Wadi Al-Arab Reservoir . . . 774.1 Field Campaign, Sampling and Laboratory Analyses . . . . . . . . . 77

4.1.1 Sampling and Sample Preparation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 794.1.2 Laboratory Analysis—Sediments . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 794.1.3 Laboratory Analysis—Water . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 80

4.2 Results and Discussion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 804.2.1 General Physiochemical Features of the Wadi

Al-Arab Reservoir . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 804.2.2 Sedimentation in the Wadi Al-Arab Reservoir . . . . . . . . . 814.2.3 Sediment Quality in the Wadi Al-Arab Reservoir. . . . . . . 834.2.4 Water Quality in the Wadi Al-Arab Reservoir . . . . . . . . . 86

References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 88

5 Sediment Fingerprinting: A Revised Approach for DataCorrection and Evaluation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 915.1 Introduction. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 915.2 Study Area . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 93

5.2.1 Definition of Sediment Sources . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 955.3 Methods . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 97

5.3.1 Source Sampling . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 975.3.2 Sink Sampling. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 985.3.3 Laboratory Analysis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 985.3.4 Data Correction—Revised Data Correction Factor . . . . . . 1005.3.5 Element Selection and Mixing Model. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 103

5.4 Results . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 106

xiv Contents

5.4.1 Sink Chemistry, Sediments and InfluencingParameters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 106

5.4.2 Data Correction for Sources 1 to 3 and WadiDeposits . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 106

5.4.3 Data Correction for Sources S4 to S6. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1075.4.4 Element Selection . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1085.4.5 Mixing Model and Monte Carlo Uncertainty

Estimation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1125.5 Discussion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 112

5.5.1 Data Correction and Element Selection. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1125.5.2 Results of the Sediment Fingerprinting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1145.5.3 Implications for the Wadi Al-Arab Reservoir . . . . . . . . . 115

5.6 Conclusions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 116References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 117

6 Wrapping Up Findings in a Sediment Transport Modelfor Wadi Al-Arab . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1236.1 Introduction. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1236.2 Model Selection and Description—SedNet . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1256.3 Methods . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 126

6.3.1 Field and Laboratory Work for Model Setup. . . . . . . . . . 1266.3.2 Gully Density Map . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1286.3.3 Pedogenetic Soil Map . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1296.3.4 The Hill Slope Delivery Ratio . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1296.3.5 Field Data as Quality Threshold for Model

Performance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1316.4 Calibration, Validation and Sensitivity Analysis

of the SedNet Model with Field Results . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1316.4.1 Calibration of the SedNet Model . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1316.4.2 Validation of the SedNet Model with Erosion

Measurements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1326.4.3 Sensitivity Analysis of the SedNet Model . . . . . . . . . . . . 133

6.5 Results and Discussion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1346.5.1 Sediment Budget Results . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1346.5.2 Patterns of Erosion in the Wadi Al-Arab Catchment. . . . . 1356.5.3 Next Page. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1366.5.4 Suitable Locations for in Channel Modifications

for Artificial Aquifer Recharge . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1396.6 Conclusions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 139References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 140

Contents xv

7 Final Conclusion and Discussion of the Results . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 143References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 146

8 Outlook . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 147References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 149

9 Innovative Aspects of the Research . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 151References . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 152

Appendix Chapter 2 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 153

Appendix Chapter 3 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 157

Appendix Chapters 4 and 5 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 163

Appendix Chapter 6 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 179

xvi Contents

Abbreviations

AD Anno Dominia.s.l. Above Sea LevelASL/AHP Amman silicified Limestone/Al-Hisa

PhosphoritesAster Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission and

Reflection RadiometerBGR Bundesanstalt für Geowissenschaften und

RohstoffeBMBF German Federal Ministry of Education and

ResearchBP Before Present (1950)BPA Bisphenol ABSh-Csa Steppe-Mediterranean ClimateCF Correction FactorCIA Central Intelligence Agency(G)DEM (Global) Digital Elevation ModeldGPS Differential Global Positioning SystemEC Electrical ConductivityEDXRF Energy Dispersive X-ray FluorescenceEP Erosion PinFAO Food and Agriculture OrganizationGC MSD Gas Chromatography coupled with a Mass

Spectrometry DetectorGIS Geographic Information SystemGLASOD Global Assessment of Human-Induced Soil

DegradationGTZ today GIZ German Society for International CooperationHDPE bottles High-Density Polyethylene bottlesHIGRADE Helmlholtz Interdisciplinary Graduate School

for Environmental ResearchHP-5MS Low bleed column for gas chromatography

xvii

HSDR Hill slope Sediment Delivery RatioIAEA International Atomic Energy AgencyICP AES Inductively Coupled Plasma Atomic Emission

SpectroscopyICP-MS Inductively Coupled Plasma Mass

SpectrometryIOC International Oil CouncilIP Influencing ParametersIPSWAT International Postgraduate Studies in Water

TechnologiesISRIC International Soil Reference and Information

CentreIUSS Working Group WRB International Union of Soil Sciences working

group for World Reference Base for SoilResources

IWRM Integrated Water Resource ManagementJDA Jordan Dam AuthorityJICA Japan International Cooperation AgencyLandsat ETM+ GLS 2010 scenes Landsat Enhanced Thematic Mapper (Landsat

7) Global Land Survey 2010 scenesLAWA Working Group on water issues of the Federal

States and the Federal GovernmentMAD Median Absolute DeviationMAR Managed Aquifer RechargeMCM Muwaqqar Chalk MarlMETI Ministry of Economy, Trade, and Industry

(METI) of JapanMoA Jordan Ministry of AgricultureMWI Jordan Ministry of Water and IrrigationNASA National Aeronautics and Space

AdministrationNDVI Normalized Difference Vegetation IndexNICE-office Implementation research office in JordanOSL dating Optically Stimulated Luminescence datingP PrecipitationPAHs Polycyclic Aromatic HydrocarbonsPET Potential EvapotranspirationPPCPs Pharmaceuticals and Personal care productsRUSLE Revised Universal Soil Loss EquationSMART-Project Sustainable Management of Available Water

Resources with Innovative TechnologiesSMRAM Stepwise Multiple Regression Analysis ModelSSA Specific Surface AreaTAC Technical Advisory CommitteeTIC Total Inorganic Carbonate

xviii Abbreviations

TIN Triangular Irregular NetworksTOC Total Organic CarbonateTrinkwV German Drinking Water OrdinanceT-value Soil-loss tolerance valueUN United NationsUNEP United Nation Environment ProgrammeUNHCR The UN’s refugee agencyURC Umm Rijam ChertUSEPA Unites States Environmental Protection

AgencyWC-coated Tungsten Carbide coatedWD Wadi DepositsWDXRF Sequential Wavelength Dispersive X-ray

FluorescenceWHO World Health Organization

Abbreviations xix

Chapter 1Introduction

1.1 Background and Framework of the Thesis:The Smart—Project

Jordan is one of the water scarcest countries in the world with the Lower JordanRiver Basin constituting an overexploited closed river basin (MWI and GTZ 2004;Venot et al. 2006; Wolf et al. 2007; Hötzl 2004; Hötzl et al. 2009). The physicalwater scarcity is prompted by an increasing water demand, due to the constantlygrowing population (3.86 % estimated for 2014, CIA 2014; UNEP 2005). Over thepast 20 years the population has doubled, mainly due to refugees from Iraq,Palestine, and Syria which currently make up 34 % of Jordan’s population (CIA2014). The lack of water-related infrastructure and water management has led to anadditional qualitative water problem due to leaking septic tanks, lack of waste watertreatment facilities, effluents from industry, and diffusive agricultural-related inputs(Abu-Sharar 2006; Ghrefrat and Yusuf 2006), as well as contaminated leachatefrom landfills (Abu-Rukah and Kofahi 2001) or geologically driven through thedissolution of evaporites (Salameh 2001).

In regard to the worsening situation on site and the millennium developmentgoals (UN resolution 58/217, 2000), Jordan aspires to achieve an Integrated WaterResources Management (IWRM). IWRM describes a process which promotes “thecoordinated development and management of water, land, and related resources, inorder to maximize the resultant economic and social welfare in an equitable mannerwithout compromising the sustainability of vital ecosystems.” (Global WaterPartnership 2000).

This implies that suitable strategies, concepts, measures, and technologies aredeveloped especially for a Mediterranean to arid region that result in the opti-mization of sustainable usage of water resources, despite conceivable climate andland use changes (Geyer and Möller 2011). A consortium of scientists, companies,and authorities of all neighbouring countries to the Jordan River—namely Palestine,Israel, and Jordan plus Germany—set up a research project to deal with this question.

© Springer International Publishing Switzerland 2016S. Kraushaar, Soil Erosion and Sediment Flux in Northern Jordan,Springer Theses, DOI 10.1007/978-3-319-31888-2_1

1

This SMART II Project (= Sustainable Management of Available Water Resourceswith Innovative Technologies) aims to develop a transferable approach for IWRM inregions of water shortage. The SMART project has been sponsored since 2006 by

Fig. 1.1 SMART project area—the lower Jordan valley (www.iwrm-smart2.org)

2 1 Introduction