Regional Conference on Advancing Non Conventional Water Resources Management in the Mediterranean, 14-15 September 2011, Athens, Greece

1. Trade-offs of Wastewater Reuse in the Southern
and Eastern Mediterranean
Manzoor Qadir
International Center for Agricultural Research in the Dry Areas (ICARDA)
Regional Conference on Advancing Non-conventional Water Resources Management in the
Mediterranean, 14-15 September, Athens, Greece

2. Key issues and challenges in SEM
Several countries in the Southern
and Eastern Mediterranean
(SEM) have yet to reach full-
capacity wastewater treatment
Policies and regulatory measures
that encourage wastewater
treatment and reuse of treated
wastewater are lacking
Wastewater is available to the
farmers in untreated or
inadequately treated forms

3. Farmers Perspectives in SEM
Farmers irrigate with treated,
untreated or inadequately
treated wastewater because of
Freshwater scarcity
Year-round availability of
wastewater
Greater cropping intensity
Savings on fertilizer applications
Low pumping cost if alternate
source is deep groundwater

4. Tradeoffs of Untreated Wastewater Reuse
Economic incentives and
other benefits for the
farmers
Health Implications and
medical treatment costs
Natural resource and
environmental degradation
Climate change – untreated
wastewater irrigation nexus

5. Economic Benefits

6. Health Implications and Treatment Costs
Target Group: Children within 8-12 years
Wastewater versus groundwater irrigated area
Waterborne and non-waterborne diseases

7. Non-waterborne Diseases

8. Waterborne Diseases

9. Medical Treatment Costs

10. Natural Resource and Environmental Degradation

11. Salinity and Sodicity Interaction

12. Nitrogen in Groundwater

13. Heavy Metals in Groundwater

14. Climate Change – Wastewater Irrigation Nexus
High-intensity rainfall events leading to surface runoff and
transport of salts and contaminants from soils irrigated with
untreated or inadequately treated wastewater to nearby good
soils irrigated with freshwater or rain-fed

15. Salinity Build-up in Adjacent Area

16. Conclusions
Urban wastewater in water scarce SEM countries is a
valuable resource that needs:
Implementation of adequate wastewater treatment and its
regulated reuse
Monitoring systems and implementation of standards and
guidelines
Skilled human resources and supportive institutions
Pertinent and flexible policy frameworks
Regulated reuse of treated wastewater in SEM countries
offers great promise for environment and health
protection as well as livelihoods resilience