3 Water Resource Availability and Quality …
41
wastewater produced was about 7 billion m
3 , of which 3.7 billion m
3 was untreated,
2.4 billion m
3 was secondarily treated, 0.9 billion m
3 was primarily treated and only
0.068 billion m
3 was tertiarily treated. Of 3.368 billion m
3 of treated wastewater,
only 0.271 billion m
3 was reused directly for agriculture, while the remaining amount
was disposed into the drainage network. 2011 is considered to be the baseline for
developing a strategic future vision. Under this strategy, 5.82 billion m
3 will be
used directly in agricultural expansion areas, while 5.53 billion m
3 will be disposed
into drains. About 0.6 million ha will be reclaimed for cultivation, according to the
2030 Sustainable Agriculture Strategy, with a total average annual water requirement
of about 5.42 billion m
3 . Based on this vision, the secondarily treated wastewater
produced in 2030 will satisfy water requirements. The Strategic Vision estimates an
additional 0.61 million ha available to reclaim based on the remaining potential of
secondarily treated wastewater of 0.4 billion m
3 from desert front governorates and
5.53 billion m
3 from delta governorates at an estimated water requirement of about
9800 m
3 /ha/year (Abu Zeid and Elrawady 2012).
Currently, Egypt has 400 WWTPs, producing more than 10.67 billion m
3 of effluents (WWHC 2018). About 40% of sewage water produced is not treated, because
its reuse is of concern (Qadir et al. 2009). Unofficial wastewater reuse is significant and uncontrolled by the government and poses threats to human health and
the environment. Indeed, only 56% of the urban population is connected to sewage
systems (WWHC 2018), and a significant volume of wastewater enters directly into
water bodies without any treatment. Reuse of treated wastewater is limited to government schemes to irrigate forests and establish a green belt around the capital (ATH
Group 2009). The Egyptian Code for the Use of Treated Wastewater in Agriculture
(501/2005) regulates the direct use of wastewater, but not its discharge into drains
(Abdel Wahaab and Omar 2011). The Ministry of Agriculture and Land Reclamation has implemented reform that encourages reuse for woodlands. About 1,000
acres have been irrigated in Luxor, Qena, New Valley, Edfu, Ismailia, Sadat City,
and South Sinai (Zimmo and Imseih 2010). In addition to forest areas, several crops
are irrigated using reused water, including sunflower, jatropha, and casuarinas (Abdel
Wahaab and Omar 2011).
In Morocco, the baseline scenario shows that most basins will experience a water
deficit by 2030. In the past and through the present day, the lack of water resources and
the increasing demand of food production has constrained a large part of the population to use raw reclaimed water for irrigation, sometimes mixed with water from
wadis, but rarely properly treated. Hence, the use of raw wastewater for agricultural
irrigation is a common practice (Zimmo and Imseih 2010). However, the practice
started regressing after the establishment of the National Programme for Sanitation and Wastewater Treatment (PNAL) in 2006. PNAL has substantially raised the
number of wastewater treatment plants from 18 in 2005 to 117 in 2016. The majority
(74%) of these WWTPs are operating an extensive process based on natural stabilization ponds. Today, 50% and 37% of the effluents are secondarily and tertiarily treated,
respectively. The waste sector as a whole contributes around 0.05% of greenhouse
gas emissions and output has increased by 2% between 1990 and 2012.
41
wastewater produced was about 7 billion m
3 , of which 3.7 billion m
3 was untreated,
2.4 billion m
3 was secondarily treated, 0.9 billion m
3 was primarily treated and only
0.068 billion m
3 was tertiarily treated. Of 3.368 billion m
3 of treated wastewater,
only 0.271 billion m
3 was reused directly for agriculture, while the remaining amount
was disposed into the drainage network. 2011 is considered to be the baseline for
developing a strategic future vision. Under this strategy, 5.82 billion m
3 will be
used directly in agricultural expansion areas, while 5.53 billion m
3 will be disposed
into drains. About 0.6 million ha will be reclaimed for cultivation, according to the
2030 Sustainable Agriculture Strategy, with a total average annual water requirement
of about 5.42 billion m
3 . Based on this vision, the secondarily treated wastewater
produced in 2030 will satisfy water requirements. The Strategic Vision estimates an
additional 0.61 million ha available to reclaim based on the remaining potential of
secondarily treated wastewater of 0.4 billion m
3 from desert front governorates and
5.53 billion m
3 from delta governorates at an estimated water requirement of about
9800 m
3 /ha/year (Abu Zeid and Elrawady 2012).
Currently, Egypt has 400 WWTPs, producing more than 10.67 billion m
3 of effluents (WWHC 2018). About 40% of sewage water produced is not treated, because
its reuse is of concern (Qadir et al. 2009). Unofficial wastewater reuse is significant and uncontrolled by the government and poses threats to human health and
the environment. Indeed, only 56% of the urban population is connected to sewage
systems (WWHC 2018), and a significant volume of wastewater enters directly into
water bodies without any treatment. Reuse of treated wastewater is limited to government schemes to irrigate forests and establish a green belt around the capital (ATH
Group 2009). The Egyptian Code for the Use of Treated Wastewater in Agriculture
(501/2005) regulates the direct use of wastewater, but not its discharge into drains
(Abdel Wahaab and Omar 2011). The Ministry of Agriculture and Land Reclamation has implemented reform that encourages reuse for woodlands. About 1,000
acres have been irrigated in Luxor, Qena, New Valley, Edfu, Ismailia, Sadat City,
and South Sinai (Zimmo and Imseih 2010). In addition to forest areas, several crops
are irrigated using reused water, including sunflower, jatropha, and casuarinas (Abdel
Wahaab and Omar 2011).
In Morocco, the baseline scenario shows that most basins will experience a water
deficit by 2030. In the past and through the present day, the lack of water resources and
the increasing demand of food production has constrained a large part of the population to use raw reclaimed water for irrigation, sometimes mixed with water from
wadis, but rarely properly treated. Hence, the use of raw wastewater for agricultural
irrigation is a common practice (Zimmo and Imseih 2010). However, the practice
started regressing after the establishment of the National Programme for Sanitation and Wastewater Treatment (PNAL) in 2006. PNAL has substantially raised the
number of wastewater treatment plants from 18 in 2005 to 117 in 2016. The majority
(74%) of these WWTPs are operating an extensive process based on natural stabilization ponds. Today, 50% and 37% of the effluents are secondarily and tertiarily treated,
respectively. The waste sector as a whole contributes around 0.05% of greenhouse
gas emissions and output has increased by 2% between 1990 and 2012.