Climate protection in the wastewater sector

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The expansion of the wastewater infrastructure in Jordan over the last 20 years has increased the proportion of the population connected to a regulated wastewater disposal system to around 70% today. The expansion of the wastewater infrastructure has also been accompanied by an increase in the amount of sewage sludge. This residual product of the treatment process is a sink for pollutants and germs and, if left untreated, can pose a danger to humans and the environment. In large parts of the Jordanian wastewater infrastructure, there are significant deficits in the treatment of sewage sludge and there is a complete lack of an environmentally friendly solution for the disposal of the growing amount of sewage sludge. At present, sewage sludge is either temporarily stored on the site of the sewage treatment plants or improperly deposited in liquid form in unorganized household waste landfills. This practice poses the risk of pollutants and germs seeping into the groundwater and sets in motion anaerobic processes in the landfill body that occur with the development of strong methane. Overall, the current handling of sewage sludge in Jordan therefore causes considerable environmental risks and leaves existing potential for reducing greenhouse gases unused. This is where the project comes in and contributes to climate protection through energy-optimized and environmentally friendly sewage sludge treatment and environmentally friendly disposal/recycling of sewage sludge. The overarching development policy goal is to contribute to the development of an integrated, i.e. economically efficient, socially just and ecologically sustainable water resource management through appropriate use of renewable water resources. The project thus fits in with the objectives of the Jordanian-German sector strategy and the Federal Government's Initiative for Climate and Environmental Protection (IKLU). The nationwide project is intended to finance measures for the disposal or recycling of sewage sludge and for improving sewage sludge treatment (e.g. extraction and energetic use of biogas, solar drying, mechanical dewatering). The final selection of measures will be determined by the sponsor on the basis of a study to identify measures. We estimate the total cost at EUR 22.5 million. To finance this, a low-interest loan of up to EUR 20 million will be made available within the framework of the IKLU initiative, supplemented by a Jordanian contribution of up to EUR 2.5 million.