Impacts Of Trade Of Reclaimed Wastewater On Water Management In Palestine

Water scarcity is one of the most difficult problems facing Palestine. The lack of available water resources and competition between different uses; domestic, agricultural and industrial is increasing year by year. Reuse of reclaimed wastewater has great potential to alleviate water scarcity problems and improve crop yield. The treated wastewater resource is an environmental, social and economic good that needs to be managed appropriately. Palestine, as in most of the neighboring countries in the region, acknowledges the importance of this resource in improving the water deficit by reusing the reclaimed wastewater in agricultural production, industrial sector and recharging groundwater aquifers. One alternative is to trade the reclaimed wastewater at some locations against water at other locations, or trade-offs this reclaimed wastewater. Data related to wastewater quantities, collection, treatment, transportation and reuse has been collected and analyzed as a baseline assessment. The pros and cons analysis method had been used in the analysis as to study the, among other, trade impacts of reclaimed wastewater. Social, environmental and other possible impacts have been also addressed. Depending on the interviews with the related people and decision-makers at the Ministries of Agriculture, Environment Quality Authority, Ministry of the National Economy and Palestinian Water Authority, they all welcomed of the concept of trade of reclaimed wastewater.