Chapter 22 Azraq-Dhuleil Basin Basalt Aquifer System (South) INVENTORY OF SHARED WATER RESOURCES IN WESTERN ASIA (ONLINE VERSION) How to cite UN-ESCWA and BGR (United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia; Bundesanstalt für Geowissenschaften und Rohstoffe). 2013. Inventory of Shared Water Resources in Western Asia. Beirut. CHAPTER 22 - BASALT AQUIFER SYSTEM (SOUTH): AZRAQ-DHULEIL BASIN Basalt Aquifer System (South) Azraq-Dhuleil Basin EXECUTIVE SUMMARY BASIN FACTS The Azraq-Dhuleil Basin extends over the RIPARIAN COUNTRIES Jordan, Syria south-eastern part of the Jebel al Arab basalt field in south-western Syria and north-eastern ALTERNATIVE NAMES - Jordan, comprising the catchment of the Azraq South: medium RENEWABILITY groundwater discharge area between the Jebel North: high al Arab Mountain range in the north, the north- eastern desert in Jordan and the Azraq Plain. HYDRAULIC LINKAGE Medium to low (2-100 mm/yr) WITH SURFACE WATER Groundwater in the Basalt Aquifer System of the Azraq-Dhuleil Basin flows from topographically ROCK TYPE Fractured to mixed higher parts of the catchment to the major AQUIFER TYPE Unconfined discharge zone in the Azraq area in the south. The groundwater flow regime extends over a EXTENT 8,500 km2 combined aquifer system constituted mainly Neogene-Quaternary, Paleogene, of permeable layers in Neogene-Quaternary AGE Upper Cretaceous basalts and underlying Paleogene chalky limestones. In the Dhuleil area in the west of LITHOLOGY Basalt, limestone the Azraq-Dhuleil Basin, the aquifer system also includes Upper Cretaceous limestones and THICKNESS <100m - >500m dolomites. AVERAGE ANNUAL Northern part: 15-20 MCM ABSTRACTION Groundwater discharge appears to be maintained largely by present-day recharge STORAGE - over wide catchment areas with travel periods of more than 20,000 years. Discharge from WATER QUALITY Mainly fresh, brackish in some areas springs in the Azraq area ceased completely WATER USE Agricultural and domestic after the creation of a large well field in the area in 1980. Groundwater quality has deteriorated AGREEMENTS .. as a result of the infiltration of irrigation return Groundwater level decline and flows in downstream areas where intensive SUSTAINABILITY irrigation takes place. salinization due to over-abstraction 528 ! !H ! ! INVENTORY OF SHARED WATER RESOURCES IN WESTERN ASIA - PART 2 ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! Mount Hermon ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! !!!! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! OVERVIEW! MAP ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! Quneytra ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! 36°E ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! !! ! Turkey ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! Golan ! ! Iran ! ! Damascus Basin ! ! ! S y r i a ! Basin ! Raqqad ! ! ! Leja Plateau ! ! Syria ! ! ! ! Lebanon ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! Wadi ! ! ! ! ! ! Palestine ! ! ! Iraq ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! !! ! ! ! ! ! Israel Jordan ! ! ! ! Yarmouk Basin ! ! ! ! ! ! Kuwait ! ! ! ! Saudi Arabia ! Yarmouk ! ! ! ! ! ! ! Zeizoun ! As Suwayda ! ! ! ! Hammad Basin ! Wadi Jebel al Arab ! ! ! ! ! Dhahab ! # ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! !! Dar'a ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! Wadi Zeydi ! Irbid ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! Hauran Plain ! ! ! ! ! ! Bosra ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! !!! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! !! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! Tulul al Ashaqif! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! Ajloun! ! !!!! ! ! ! !! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! Mafraq ! ! Jerash ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! Zarqa ! ! ! ! ! Wadi Dhuleil ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! Dhuleil Azraq-Dhuleil Basin ! Zarqa ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! Amman Zarqa Basin ! ! 32°N ! ! ! ! 32°N ! ! Ramtha-Wadi Sirhan Fault ! ! ! !H ! ! ! ! Azraq Plain ! ! !! ! ! ! ! !!!!Amman ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! Azraq ! ! ! ! ! Wadi Junub ! Wadi Rojil ! ! ! ! ! ! ! ! Wadi Wala ! Jordan Plateau ! ! ! Saudi Arabia ! Wadi Sirhan Depression ! ! Wadi Mujib Wadi J o r d a n Sirhan 0 10 20 40 km Basalt Aquifer System (South): Azraq-Dhuleil Basin !H Capital Quaternary volcanics Selected city, town Neogene volcanics International boundary Quaternary-Neogene undifferentiated Inventory of Shared Water Armistice Demarcation Line Paleogene (Wadi Shallala and Umm Rijam Formations) Resources in Western Asia River Cretaceous (Amman and Wadi as Sir Formations) Intermittent river, wadi Disclaimer Pre-Cambrian outcrops The designations employed and the presentation of material on this map do not imply the expression of any opinion Freshwater lake Direction of groundwater flow in Azraq-Dhuleil Basin whatsoever on the part of the Secretariat of the United ! !! Nations concerning the legal status of any country, territory, ! ! ! Sabkha ! Boundary of Azraq-Dhuleil Basin city or area or of its authorities, or concerning the delimitation of its frontiers or boundaries. ! !! # ! ! ! Mountain ! Basin boundary Graben © UN-ESCWA - BGR Beirut 2013 529 CHAPTER 22 - BASALT AQUIFER SYSTEM (SOUTH): AZRAQ-DHULEIL BASIN CONTENTS INTRODUCTION 532 Location 533 Area 533 Climate 533 Population 533 Other aquifers in the area 533 Information sources 533 HYDROGEOLOGY - AQUIFER CHARACTERISTICS 534 Aquifer configuration 534 Stratigraphy 534 Aquifer thickness 534 Aquifer type 534 Aquifer parameters 535 HYDROGEOLOGY - GROUNDWATER 536 Recharge 536 Flow regime 536 Storage 536 Discharge 536 Water quality 536 Exploitability 537 GROUNDWATER USE 538 Groundwater abstraction and use 538 Groundwater quality issues 539 Sustainability issues 539 AGREEMENTS, COOPERATION & OUTLOOK 540 Agreements 540 Cooperation 540 Outlook 540 NOTES 541 BIBLIOGRAPHY 542 530 INVENTORY OF SHARED WATER RESOURCES IN WESTERN ASIA - PART 2 FIGURES Groundwater level in observation well F1043 near the AWSA well FIGURE 1. 538 field in the Azraq Plain Schematic geological cross-sections through the Azraq Oasis: FIGURE 2. (a) before groundwater abstraction, (b) after major groundwater 539 abstraction TABLES TABLE 1. Mean annual discharge of major springs in the Azraq area in 1982 537 531 CHAPTER 22 - BASALT AQUIFER SYSTEM (SOUTH): AZRAQ-DHULEIL BASIN INTRODUCTION The Basalt Aquifer System in this Inventory The Quaternary-Neogene basalts of the North Arabian Volcanic Azraq-Dhuleil Basin Province extend from south-western Syria through eastern Jordan The basin2 also extends across the border of Syria and Jordan, into Saudi Arabia over a total length of around 460 km and with a and the aquifer system within the basin is referred to as the width of 50-150 km. Basalt Aquifer System (South-East) (see current chapter). In the They cover an area of approximately 48,000 km2, of which basin, the basalts are hydraulically connected with the Paleogene 11,000 km2 is located in Jordan, 23,000 km2 in Saudi Arabia and (Shallala-Rijam) formations in the eastern areas and the 14,000 km2 in Syria. The basalts generally overlie sedimentary Cretaceous (Amman-Wadi as Sir) formations in the western areas formations of Paleogene and Cretaceous ages (see Figure 1, Chap. to form one aquifer system with both formations. 21) and are hydraulically connected with them to form a complex aquifer system that is denoted as the Basalt Aquifer Complex in Wadi Sirhan Basin this Inventory.1 This volcano-sedimentary complex extends across The basin extends across the border of Jordan and Saudi Arabia the boundaries of Jordan, Saudi Arabia and Syria (see ‘Overview and the aquifer system within the basin is denoted as the Tawil- and Methodology: Groundwater’ chapter) to constitute shared Quaternary Aquifer System (see Chap. 17). In the basin, the aquifer systems in the following basins: Quaternary-Neogene basalts and alluvium form the upper part of a thick aquifer system that comprises both the Paleogene and Yarmouk Basin Cretaceous (Tawil-Sharawra) formations. The basin extends across the border of Syria and Jordan and the The Basalt Aquifer Complex, which was originally delineated on aquifer system within the basin is denoted as the Basalt Aquifer the basis of surface drainage and morphology, comprises three System (West) (see Chap. 21). In the basin, the basalts generally other basins that are of less relevance as shared aquifers. They overlie the Paleogene (Shallala-Rijam) formations, except in are therefore not covered in separate chapters in this Inventory. certain structurally high locations where the Paleogene is missing The Golan Basin3 and Damascus Basin lie entirely in Syria, the and the basalts come in direct contact with the Cretaceous Amman-Zarqa Basin lies entirely in Jordan while the basalts in (Amman-Wadi as Sir) formations. the Hammad Basin are practically dewatered.4 The basalt rock formations in the area of Al Lajat, north of Suweida, Syria, 2009. Source: Adel Samara. 532 INVENTORY OF SHARED WATER RESOURCES IN WESTERN ASIA - PART 2 Introduction LOCATION CLIMATE The Basalt Aquifer System (South-East), The Azraq sub-basin is predominantly arid with hereafter referred to as Azraq-Dhuleil Basin, an average precipitation of 87 mm/yr during the extends from the southern border of the Jebel al period 1967-1995, most of which occured as Arab basalt field in Jordan and Syria to the Azraq storms between January and March.6 The basalt Depression along the main Ramtha-Wadi Sirhan plateau on the northern tip of the sub-basin Fault System (see Overview Map). forms an exception: precipitation can reach 500 mm on the slopes of Jebel al Arab.7 AREA POPULATION The morphology of the basin is dominated by the 1,800 m peaks of the Jebel al Arab Mountain The Azraq-Dhuleil Basin has an estimated range in the north, with altitudes dropping below total population of 126,900 inhabitants with a 500 m in the Azraq Plain (Qaa al Azraq) in the low population