Water is too precious to waste...

You are receiving this monthly email alert for your timely information about forthcoming activities and new materials available on the SWIM websites.

We hope you will find it useful and will bring you even closer to the SWIM family!

With best wishes,

The SWIM-SM Team

SWIM

SWIM-SM, SWIM IMPROWARE and SWIM Sustain Water MED have actively participated in the 5th Beirut Water Week that took place on 22-23 May in Beirut-Lebanon with the theme: “Water, energy, food and ecosystems nexus in the Mediterranean Region: current challenges and future insights”. The SWIM projects presented some of their current achievements and outputs in the framework of relevant thematics tackled during the event, in particular on Water financing and economics and non-conventional water resources within the IWRM context.

SWIM- Support Mechanism

Now available online:

• The assessment on the Cost of Degradation of the Seybouse Water Resources (Algeria) is available in French, while an executive summary of the study is available in English. A policy Note related to this activity is also available in English and French.

Planned activities:

• A SWIM-SM expert group meeting on cumulative environmental impacts of desalination in the Mediterranean is planned to take place on 23 - 24 June 2014 in Brussels, Belgium.

• Two sub-regional Trainings on the Cost Assessment of Water Resources Degradation – one for countries of the Maghreb region and the other for the Mashrek - are planned to be organized respectively on 16-18 June 2014 in Tunis, Tunisia and 23-25 June 2014 in Athens, Greece. 

• A National training is planned to take place in Tunisia on 23-27 June in the framework of the Pilot application in the country of the regional Monitoring and Evaluation (M&E) system for Participative Irrigation Management and Irrigation Management Transfer processes (PIM/IMT). Participants in the training will be representatives from National, Regional and local stakeholders, including selected Water Users Associations.  A similar training for Jordanian stakeholders took place on 1-4 June 2014.

www.swim-sm.eu

SWIM – Demonstration Projects

SWIM - ACLIMAS

Adaptation to Climate Change of the Mediterranean Agricultural Systems

The following activities have been implemented:

Lebanon

• Field day in Majdaloun, Bekaa Valley, 13 May 2014

• Field day in El Hamrat, Bekaa Valley, 15 May 2014

Morocco

• Field day on: "Water productivity under conservation agriculture", Sidi El Aydi experimental station, Settat, 22 May 2014

Tunisia

• Technical visit on 19 – 24 May 2014

• Participation in the Scientific days of the INAT 2014 on: Climate change and adaptation measures, Tunis, 20 – 21 May 2014. The programme is available in French

Planned activities:

• Training course on: "Technical aspects of harvest and storage", Settat, Morocco, 10 – 13 June 2014.

• Field day on: "Harvest for good quality and minimum loss", Settat, Morocco, 10 June 2014.

www.aclimas.eu

SWIM – All Across the Jordan

Trans-boundary NGO Master Planning of the Lower Jordan River Basin

• The Draft  Baseline Report related to the Integrated Trans-boundary Regional NGO Master Planning for the Lower Jordan River basin can be downloaded in English

• Pictures from the Public Hearing held in Jordan are available here

www.foeme.org

SWIM – IMPROWARE

Innovative Means to Protect Water Resources in the Mediterranean Coastal Areas through Re-injection of Treated Water

The following activities have been implemented and/or are planned shortly:

Nobariya Wadi El-Nutrun- Egypt

• The tender for performing geophysical logs within the four production boreholes and one piezometer at Nobariya for hydrogeological investigations has been updated and the contract with the drilling company has been defined. Borehole drillings, pumping tests and collection of water samples will be performed in June.

• The update of the IMPROWARE Geographic Information System (GIS) of the Nobariya site with: i) data provided by EEAA and ii) information of pre-existing Satellite maps is planned in June.

• In July the project will begin to build the three-dimensional architecture for the Hydrological Model of groundwater for the Coastal Aquifer. The characterization of the present extent, thickness and depth of the aquifer portion suffering from salt contamination can be carried starting from the information gathered during the G-TEM investigation that will be performed in July.

• The integration of geophysical results with: i) the Hydrogeological Model of groundwater for the Coastal Aquifer, ii) the borehole/pumping test from the technical surveys performed has already started and will be concluded in June. The process, called calibration, aims at getting a more precise and detailed model of groundwater. Once the different pieces of information will have been integrated, the data will be processed and interpreted, reported and disseminated.

• The works for the Constructed Wetland (CW) in Nobariya have started and are proceeding smoothly. They are expected to be concluded at the end of July.

• By the end of June a state of the art and benchmark analysis of the local CW experiences will be carried out.

• The works for the upgrade of the Waste Water Treatment Plant (WWTP) in Nobariya are expected to start in July.

• A meeting with the local Investors and Industries has been carried out in Egypt on May 5^th. Local investors and industries are considered key players to positively impact the quality of the integrated management of the water in the area and are therefore very important for IMPROWARE. On one hand they have the detailed knowledge of strengths and weaknesses of the existing water system of the Nobariya area and, on the other hand, the quality of the depuration implemented at industry level has a profound impact on the general quality of reclaimed water.

• In May Water Protection issues were presented in schools: schooling age students are key players for the dissemination of IMPROWARE general messages to the broader public and the local community at Nobariya. A number of around 50 selected students will be invited to participate to a specific activity of Information and Awareness Raising.

• Within the frame of “Any Drop of Water” an official workshop with the participation of local stakeholders of Nobariya will be held in June. The issues tackled will show continuity with regards to the first part held in Tunisia in April. The following priorities have been identified so far: a detailed presentation of the Pilot Project, enhanced by the dissemination of gathered data; the presentation of the “twin” project carried out in Tunisia; the feedbacks from the key stakeholders previously involved in the projects’ participatory processes and awareness raising campaigns. 

Korba – Tunisia

• Hydrogeological Surveys and Investigations have been positively carried out in Tunisia on May 13 – 27.

• Also in May, the works and sand filtration tests to be performed in Korba were defined in detail with the Tunisian Partner ONAS.

• The consultation of contractors for the installation of a sand filter at the WWTP of Korba will start in July and the works shall be conducted by the end of the month.

• A training session for technicians of the Direction General des Ressources en Eau (DGRE) on different methods of hydrogeolgical investigations was held on May 23rd, within the frame of IMPROWARE’s Capacity Building activities.

• In the framework of the IMPROWARE Awareness Campaign, a first (May 23rd) and a second (May 29th) meeting with schools has taken place in Tunisia, targeting young people aged 15 – 20 and children aged 6 – 12, respectively. 

Regional activities

• The third IMPROWARE Technical Task Force Meeting was held in Rome.

• The E-Learning module on “Scientific and Technical Aspects of Groundwater Resources Management” is planned to be delivered in June. 

The following updates have been published on the website:

• A new page with all E-mail alerts concerning IMPROWARE has been created

• An article from a local newspaper about the activities recently implemented in the framework of the schools awareness raising campaign in Tunisia

• An article related to the training session of technicians from DGRE (Tunisia)

• A brief article about the successful completion of TEM Surveys in Korba (Tunisia)

• An article about a Workshop held in Nobariya on April 29th with the participation of local NGOs, as part of the stakeholder engagement and adaptive strategy of IMPROWARE

• An information sheet about IMPROWARE E-Learning Modules

www.improware.eu

SWIM – Sustain Water MED

Network of demonstration activities for sustainable integrated wastewater treatment and reuse in the Mediterranean countries

Now available online:

• The Final announcement of SWIM Sustain Water MED conference to be held from 1-2 December 2014 in Cairo, Egypt was published. Announcement and Registration form can be downloaded by clicking here

Planned activities

July 2014

• Successful takeover of the Jordanian decentralized wastewater treatment plant by SWIM Sustain Water MED counterpart, the Public Security Directorate (PSD). The opening ceremony will be held on the 22nd of June 2014 under the patronage of H.E. the Jordanian  Minister  for Water and Irrigation Dr. Hazim El-Naser and the head of the EU Delegation to Jordan, H.E. Mrs. Joanna Wronecka, with coverage of different local and regional media in Jordan.

• Finalization of the first baseline assessment of the reuse study for the Jordanian wastewater treatment plant.

• Start of the operation of the decentralized wastewater treatment at the PSD.

• Start of the construction of the Tunisian pilot activity based on slow sand filtration and the information exchange system in Ouljet  El Khodor at Medenine  (Southeastern Tunisia), in cooperation with the National Sanitation Office (ONAS) and the General Direction for Rural Engineering and Water Exploitation in Tunisia.

• Finalization of the first tender for the preparation of the TOR for the construction of the  decentralized wastewater treatment plant at Al Guzayera Village in Ismailia Governorate (northeast Egypt), in cooperation with the Egyptian Holding Company for Water and Wastewater (HCWW)

August 2014

• Start the tender procedure for the construction of the Moroccan pilot activity in the village Ait Idir in the Souss-Massa-Draa region (ABH-SMD) (South of Morocco). The treatment plant in Ait Dir will be implemented in different stages. In the first stage construction work is going to be done with regards to flood prevention and rainwater harvesting, to prevent the erosion problems that happened often during heavy rain episodes and caused considerable problems to farmers in the area.  At a second stage, installation work will be done to separate urine from the solid waste, followed with anaerobic treatment and biogas production (ECOSAN System).     

www.swim-sustain-water.eu

SWIM – WADIS-MAR

Water Harvesting and Agricultural techniques in Dry lands: an Integrated and Sustainable Model in MAghreb Regions

The following activities are planned in the coming months:

Algeria

• Definition and implementation of an agronomic intervention plan in synergy with the local agricultural development  institute ITDAS.

• Identification of agronomic demonstrative intervention sites for the main crops grown with different farming and irrigation systems in the region and bringing together the various problems that farmers are suffering.

• Buy all needed equipments (irrigation material, fertilizers, seeds, plastic etc ) and support to engage the chamber of agriculture and farmers in participatory and learning events of the Project.

• Definition of a final design and cost analysis of the artificial aquifer recharge interventions (recharge basins, vadose-zone wells, also called dry wells, and recharge tranches) for the infero-flux aquifer in the Oued Biskra and selection of intervention areas (including the final costs estimation, the materials selection, the topographic survey, tenders for works, works supervision, procedure for work authorization).

• Definition of a time plan and tasks for the implementation of works related to artificial water recharge.

Tunisia

• Interviews and briefings with selected local beneficiaries (farmers).

• Preparation of a tentative hydrogeological and agricultural intervention plan. 3 micro-catchments of Oum Zessour watershed have been defined for intervention: Chaabet El Anaz site (up-stream area), Loudayette site (mid-stream area), Oued Moussa site (Down-stream area).

• Proposal for the artificial groundwater recharge for the Trias aquifer in the Oum Zessar watershed and selection of intervention areas. The artificial recharge system so defined, includes recharge basins, vadose-zone wells, also called dry wells and recharge wells with recharge chambers in Tunisia.

• Finalization  of the artificial aquifer recharge intervention design (including the final costs estimation, the materials selection). This will be done in collaboration with CRDA.

• Collection of salty soils samples for hyperspectral remote sensing analysis.

• Acquisition of remotely sensed data intended for the preparation of maps of the evolution over time of land cover (land degradation and desertification phenomena in arid and semi – arid areas throughout Remote Sensing techniques based on the soil salinity severity identification, mapping and dynamics analysis methods as well as the comparison of remote spectral signatures from satellite images with direct spectral  measurements of salt –affected areas).

• Field work (Oum Zessar area, Tunisia)

 Land Cover Ground-truth

 Secondary data collection (i.e. socio-economical data)

 Adjustment of interpretation keys

 Areas affected by salinity: ground observation

 In situ spectral measurements

Visbility and dissemination activities:

The project will be presented in the following occasions:

• Flowpath 2014 – National Meeting on Hydrogeology 18-20 Giugno 2014, Viterbo (Italy) (http://www.flowpath2014.it/) – in a session dedicated to climate change and groundwater sustainability with a contribution on the “Design of Artificial Aquifer Recharge Systems in dry regions of Maghreb (North Africa)”.

• International Workshop on Geomatics for ecosystem based adaptation in the dry areas of North Africa, Djerba Island, Tunisia (22-24 June 2014).

• The Tunisian project of WADIS-MAR has become one of the case studies of the Cadwago project (www.cadwago.net). Cadwago (Climate change adaptation and water governance - reconciling food security, renewable energy and the provision of multiple ecosystem services) aims to improve water governance by developing a more robust knowledge base and enhancing capacity to adapt to climate change.

The following capacity building activity is planned:

• A training on Database and Geological 3D Modeling on 25-26 June 2014 with participants from the Institut des Région Arides - Tunisie (IRA), CRDA-Tunisie, OSS Tunisie and Agence nationale des Ressources Hydrauliques – Algerie (ANRH). It will be an occasion for the different participants to share experience.

www.wadismar.eu