No abstract

This paper analyzes the intermittent water distribution system in the West Bank, Palestine. It quantifies the impacts of reduced supply duration on the hydraulics and costs of water distribution. It shows that designing systems based on intermittent supply criteria implies increasing the diameters of pipes significantly, which is expensive and infeasible. The paper recommends that studying the local conditions should precede the design of new systems to avoid reduced supply duration and related negative impacts. In addition, improving governance, revising tariffs, reducing leakage, saving water, involving the private sector, and improving water diplomacy should be considered in any water policy reform.

No abstract

No abstract

Despite water scarcity and high agricultural water demand in the Middle East and North Africa region, substantial proportions of treated wastewater are discharged into the environment and seas without proper utilization. All countries of the region, low pricing of reclaimed wastewater is a common tool to make reuse attractive. However, low pricing of reclaimed wastewater is ineffectual due to farmers' access to freshwater for irrigation at low tariff. Therefore, increasing the prices of freshwater in such a way that does not jeopardize feasibility of agriculture would promote irrigation with reclaimed wastewater even at increased prices. On one hand, it increases the gap between the price of freshwater and that of reclaimed wastewater, making the later more attractive. On the other hand, it would be used as a financial resource for funding the investment costs of the infrastructure needed for conveyance and distribution of reclaimed wastewater. This paper studies the viability of increasing the prices of freshwater and reclaimed wastewater. The results show that irrigation with reclaimed wastewater even for restricted irrigation can be as profitable as, and sometimes better than, freshwater irrigation. Some of the permitted crops such as fruit trees can be more profitable than vegetables. Thus, it appears that the level of knowledge farmers and others on the benefits of reclaimed wastewater is still limited.