Groundwater-Based Agriculture in Arid Land: The case of Azraq Basin, Jordan of Azraq in Arid Land: The case Agriculture Groundwater-Based Majd Al Naber Groundwater-Based Agriculture in Arid Land: The case of Azraq Basin, Jordan Majd Al Naber Propositions: 1. Indirect regulatory measures are more efficient than direct measures in controlling the use of groundwater resources. (this thesis) 2. Decreasing the accessibility to production factors constrains, but does not fully control, groundwater-based agriculture expansion. (this thesis) 3. Remote sensing technology should be used in daily practice to monitor environmental changes. 4. Irreversible changes are more common than reversible ones in cases of over exploitation of natural resources. 5. A doctorate title is not the achievement of one's life, but a stepping-stone to one's future. 6. Positivity is required to deal with the long Ph.D. journey. Propositions belonging to the thesis, entitled Groundwater-Based Agriculture in Arid Land: The Case of Azraq Basin, Jordan Majd Al Naber Wageningen, 10 April 2018 Groundwater-Based Agriculture in Arid Land: The Case of Azraq Basin, Jordan Majd Al Naber Thesis committee Promotors Prof. Dr J. Wallinga Professor of Soil and Landscape Wageningen University & Research Co-promotor Dr F. Molle Senior Researcher, G-Eau Research Unit Institut de Recherche pour le Développement, Montpellier, France Dr Ir J. J. Stoorvogel Associate Professor, Soil Geography and Landscape Wageningen University & Research Other members Prof. Dr Ir P.J.G.J. Hellegers, Wageningen University & Research Prof. Dr Olivier Petit, Université d'Artois, France Prof. Dr Ir P. van der Zaag, IHE Delft University Dr Ir J. Hoogesteger van Dijk, Wageningen University &Research This research was conducted under the auspices of the Doctoral School of Territoires, Temps, Sociétés et Développement, Montpellier, France, and the Graduate School for Production Ecology and Resource Conservation (PE&RC), The Netherlands, and as part of the joint Erasmus Mundus PhD programme Agricultural Transformation by Innovation (AgTrain). Groundwater-Based Agriculture in Arid Land: The Case of Azraq Basin, Jordan Majd Al Naber Thesis submitted in fulfilment of the requirements for the joint degree of doctor between Montpellier SupAgro by the authority of the Directrice Générale, Dr A.L. Wack, and Wageningen University by the authority of the Rector Magnificus, Prof. Dr. A.P.J. Mol, in the presence of the Thesis Committee appointed by the Academic Boards of both universities to be defended in public on Tuesday 10 April 2018 at 11 a.m. in the Aula of Wageningen University Majd Al Naber Groundwater-Based Agriculture in Arid Land: The case of Azraq Basin, Jordan 208 pages. Joint PhD thesis, Montpellier SupAgro, France, and Wageningen University, Wageningen, The Netherlands (2018) With references and with summary in English ISBN: 978-94-6343-739-4 DOI: https://doi.org/10-18174/431556 Dedication For their endless support and unconditional love, I dedicate this thesis to my family. To my one and only mankind, who is always there to support me in time of need, to my backbone, to my father To my safe place, who is always there to lighten my way with her kindness and love, to my fallen angel, to my mother. To my support system, those who were always by my side to share happiness and hard times, to my brothers and my sister Last but not least, To my friends, thank you for your endless encouragements throughout the years in moments of joy and crisis Acknowledgements The research reported in this thesis was carried out in the framework of the Agricultural Transformation by Innovation Erasmus Mundus Joint Doctorate Program (AGTRAIN; www.agtrain.eu), funded by the EACEA (Education, Audiovisual and Culture Executive Agency) of the European Commission. My sincere thanks go to the coordinators of the AGTRAIN program, Dr. Andreas de Neergaard, Dr. Didier Pillot and Dr. Theo Jetten for their endless support and to Mrs. Ida Marie Krogager, Mrs. Corinne Pickett and Mrs. Mieke Hannink, for their administrative support. I would like to express my special gratitude to my supervisors Dr. François Molle and Dr. Jetse Stoorvogel whom encouraged me throughout this research and enriched my career as a scientist and a researcher. François, without your continuous support and cooperation since the beginning I would not have had the opportunity to realize the thesis. Your enthusiasm, time, effort, scientific advice and profound understanding throughout the years gave me the strength to survive during the Ph.D. years and complete having this research. Jetse, thank you very much for the scientific discussions and for your valuable comments, your patience and guidance until the day of finalizing the thesis. I must express my cordial thanks and gratitude to Eng. Emad Al Khalil for guiding me in the fieldwork visits. Emad, without your nonstop support and indispensable collaboration, data collection would not have been possibly achieved. My gratitude goes to farmers and locals of Azraq and Mafraq and to all people who were interviewed. Your cooperation has been much appreciated as it was highly valuable for my research. Thanks should be addressed to the USAID/IWMI team which conducted the project "groundwater governance in the Arab world" to which this research contributed: Dr. Alvar, Dr. Amer, Dr. François, Dr. Ammar, Dr. Emad, Dr. Khair, Dr. Ousama, Eng. Ali and Eng. Emad, working with you added a positive value to my research scientifically and morally. I must express my gratitude to my father, mother, brothers and sister for their continued moral support and encouragements. I was continually amazed by their patience while experiencing all the ups and downs of my research. Completing this work would have been difficult without my friends’ support and I am really indebted to them for their help. 7 Acronyms and terms ABHSM Agence du Bassin Hydraulique du Souss Massa ADA Agence pour le Développement Agricole, Morocco Amlak al-dawla Land owned by the state APEFEL Association Marocaine des Producteurs et Exportateurs de Fruits et Légumes BGR Bundesanstalt für Geowissenschaften und Rohstoffe Bm3 Billion cubic meters CRDA Regional Commissions for Agricultural Development, Tunisia Desert agriculture Groundwater-based agriculture developed in steppe (Badia) or desert (Sahra) regions where rainfed agriculture is impossible DLS Department of Land and Survey, Jordan DLU Department of Land Use, Jordan DoS Department of Statistics, Jordan Dunum 0.1 hectare ESCWA Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia ET Evapotranspiration FAO Food and Agriculture Organization Feddan 4.2 dunum Fils 0.001 JD GDA Groupement de Développement Agricole GIZ Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit Hawd Portion of land with an area of no less than 250 du HCST Higher Council for Science and Technology, Jordan Hijjeh Unofficial land deed, a land sell/buy by a paper written between two people and signed by two witnesses IGRAC International Groundwater Resources Assessment Centre Ijaza Permit Iqtaa Islamic practice of tax farming IUCN International Union for Conservation of Nature JD Jordanian Dinar, (1.41 US$) JMD Jordan Metrology Department Kharaj land Land left in the hands of the original non-Muslim owners Khuwwa Money paid for protection reason Kushan Official land deed, authorized by the DLS L.L/m3 Lebanese lira per cubic meter L.L/yr Lebanese lira per year MAAR Ministry of Agriculture and Agrarian Reform, Syria Mahlul land Miri agricultural land that had reverted to the crown because the owner had died without an heir or the land was not cultivated for three years or more Makrama Malikiya Royal gift; distribution of land from state treasury, through a grant from his majesty the king through the Royal Court MALR Ministry of Agriculture and Land Reform, Egypt 9 MAPM Ministère de l’Agriculture et de la Pêche Maritime, Morocco Matrūka land Land abandoned without cultivation or ostensible owner such as roads, market places, and even common pasture between villages Mawat land Dead lands, uncultivated and unappropriated, vacant lands such as mountains rocky places, stony fields, and grazing ground which is not in possession of anyone by title deed MENA Middle East and North Africa MEW Ministry of Energy and Water, Bahrain MEWA Ministry of Water and Agriculture, Saudi Arabia mg/L Milligram per liter Milk land Land that is privately owned Miri land Land under the custody of the prince Mm3 Million cubic meters m/yr Meter per year mm/yr Millimeter per year MoA Ministry of Agriculture MWI Ministry of Water and Irrigation, Jordan MWRI Ministry of Water Resources and Irrigation, Egypt NGWA National Groundwater Association NWRA National Water Resources Authority, Yemen OECD Organization Economic Co-operation and Development PNEEI Plan National d’Economie d’Eau en Irrigation RIGW Research Institute for Groundwater, Egypt RSCN Royal Society for the Conservation of Nature, Jordan Rukhsa Licenses Sheikhs Influential person in the tribe, normally the tribe leader Simsar Brooker Tafwid Delegation; a process were people, private or public companies can rent state land for a period of time from the government in order to build, cultivate or make a project on it Tapu Fees paid to register the land Taswiye Settlement; a process were a group of potential land owner can ask to legalize their land TJT The Jordan Time UNDP United Nations Development Programme UNEP United Nations Environment Programme UNESCO United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization USAID United States Agency for International Development Ushuri land Land given into the possession and distributed among the (Muslim) conquerors at the time of the conquest. Wadaa el yad Claiming land illegally WAJ Water Authority of Jordan Wajihat Traditional tribes’ right Waqf land Lands possessed in mortmain or endowment WWDR World Water Development Report 10 Summary With limitations in the availability and accessibility of surface water, attention is increasingly directed towards groundwater resources as the most reliable source of fresh water for different sectors.