Capital water infrastructure to be upgraded

Mains water supply pipes that currently lose around a third of their contents through leakage will be upgraded at the end of June, following an agreement between the Japanese government and Syrian authorities. The system carries water to around three million people living in the Syrian capital, Damascus. The mains supply pipes link the Fijeh Spring, 15 km west of the capital, with the city itself and constitutes the major source of drinking water for residents. “This project will meet Damascus inhabitants’ increasing demand for water in quality and quantity, as the rate of water leakage will decrease from 27 percent to 5 percent,” Muwafaq Khallouf, head of the Damascus Water Supply and Sewerage Authority (DAWSSA), said. The project will repair cracks in the concrete supply pipelines by coating the inner surface with a new waterproof layer. Repair work has become more urgent required because of an increasing water demand for domestic, agricultural and industrial needs. Concerns have been voiced over a drop in the annual rainfall over the last few years. DAWSSA has proposed a plan to overcome the shortage and improve the efficiency of water use. The project focuses on rehabilitating two water mains and will also introduce a maintenance and inspection system. This will include updating equipment and training staff to enable DAWSSA to carry out periodic inspections, Khallouf explained. “The government of Japan has extended a grant of about US $3.64 million to the Syrian government for the rehabilitation of two water transmission tunnels; the first has been in service for more than 65 years, whereas the second was built in 1981 and hasn't been rehabilitated yet,” Azusa Hayashi, Ambassador of Japan to Syria, told IRIN in Damascus. In addition, a $7 million Japanese grant was awarded to DAWSSA in March for a project to develop water resources to communities northwest of Damascus. A number of Japanese grants have already been allocated between 1997 and 2003 for the development of Syria’s potable water supply, amounting to $25 million.