Gaza Strip

Gaza Strip (1): Wastewater Treatment Plant in Beit Lahia

1. Description of the site

   The Beit Lahia treatment plant has been in operation since 1973, and it is one of the plants which have been inherited from the Israeli government to the Palestinian Authority after the Oslo agreement. Due to the rapid population growth and the lack of fund to rehabilitate the plant, the sewage influent has been constantly overflowing the designed capacity. The amount of the sewage influent is approximately 8,000-10,000m3/day, and less than 30% of the influent is currently being treated.

   The Beit Lahia treatment plant is located near one of the finest ground water aquifers in Gaza. High level of nitrate has recently been detected from the aquifer, and it is most likely that the excess influent is responsible for the deterioration of the water quality of the aquifer.

   Due to the plant's outdated facility and the inappropriate location (it is located in the urban area of Beit Lahia), the PA is now considering to relocate the plant either to the eastern part of Beit Hanun or to the border area between Gaza and Jabalia Governorates. UNDP has extended $5 million for the construction of pipeline network for the new plant, but no fund has been mobilized so far for the construction of the treatment plant itself.

2. Major concerns

   All three existing WWTPs in Gaza are both outdated and overloaded with excess inflow of wastewater. There is now a master plan for the relocation and rehabilitation of WWTPs in Gaza, but the implementation process has been slow so far. Lack of skilled labor also constitutes a major problem, and it is deteriorating the actual treatment capacity of WWTPs in Gaza.

3. Regional aspects

   Transferring the wastewater treatment plant will not only remove the risk of groundwater pollution, but will enable to implement plans to promote the reuse of treated wastewater for agricultural products. This will lead to more effective and sustainable use of limited water resources in the region. Also, part of the treated wastewater may be exchanged with the Israelis with fresh water.

4. Possible initiatives taken in the multilateral context

• Construction of a regional pilot scheme to reuse treated wastewater for irrigation, in conjunction with a bilateral project to construct and install pumping, conveying and treatment facilities required for the new WWTP
• Training program on wastewater recycling for agricultural use

---

Gaza Strip (2): Wastewater discharge in Beach Area, Net Sarine

1. Description of the site

   There are two discharge pipes at the wastewater discharge area in Net Sarine: one is coming from Sheikh Ejleen treatment plant, whose effluent is mostly untreated due to the limited capacity of the plant; another is coming from Sheikh Radwan, which carries raw sewage but is currently not in use.

   These pipes were constructed for emergency use, but they are now being used on a permanent basis. The sewerage system serves for more than 300,000 inhabitants, and carries 20,000-30,000m3/day of wastewater to the sea. The USAID is conducting a rehabilitation project for the existing treatment plant, but the plant is expected to be overloaded after 5 years unless a new central WWTP is constructed.

   There are 13 such wastewater discharge areas alongside the Gaza coastline, which are discharging over 40,000m3 untreated wastewater into the sea everyday. The Ministry of Agriculture has conducted some surveys on the quality of discharged wastewater and its possible damage on the maritime life of the Gaza coastal areas, but the surveys are not being conducted on a periodical basis. Also, another study was recently conducted in 1998 by the Environmental and Rural Research Center in the Islamic University. The study shows that the seawater in some places of the beach exceeds considerably the international standards for bathing water quality.

2. Major concerns

• The impact of the wastewater discharge on the marine life needs to be investigated.
• Standards on environmental quality of sea water and wastewater discharge should be developed.

3. Regional aspects

   The discharge of the wastewater to the sea may cause pollution to neighboring countries such as Israel and Egypt. If the central treatment plant is to be constructed, it will be possible to exchange part of the treated wastewater with the Israelis.

4. Possible initiatives taken in the multilateral context

• Environmental impact assessment on the seashore line of Gaza
• Development of environmental quality standards for the sea water

---

Gaza Strip (3): Wadi Gaza

1. Description of the site

   Wadi Gaza extends 8.5km from the armistice line in the East to the coast of the Mediterranean Sea in the West. The general elevation of the area on both sides of the wadi ranges from 40-20m above sea level. Its floor starts from 30m above sea level at its eastern limits to zero at its mouth. The Wadi is polluted by the sewage collected from towns and camps situated in the middle area of Gaza (Nusierat, Maghazi, Bureij camps, etc.). The Wadi is also polluted by the illegal dumping of the solid waste. The banks of the valley are covered with relics of a riverine forest, mainly consisting of Tamarix nilotica and Tamarix aphylla.

   The PEnA is currently considering implement a project to turn the Wadi Gaza into a natural conservation area, in which a sanctuary for wild birds and other species will be established for eco-tourism and other purposes. In the project, the Wadi will also be utilized as a reservoir of the treated wastewater from the planned central WWTP, which is planned to serve the middle area of Gaza.

2. Major concerns

• Water quality deterioration: The Wadi is currently polluted with wastewater and illegally dumped solid wastes.
• Funding: Inceptive action plans for the Wadi Gaza project have been drafted by the PEnA, but donor fund has not been mobilized to develop and implement the project.

3. Regional aspects

   The upstream of Wadi Gaza is shared by Israel, and the two parties are responsible for preserving the water quality of the Wadi.

4. Possible initiatives taken in the multilateral context

• Development and implementation of action plans to protect the Wadi Gaza, as a pilot project for natural conservation in the region

---

Gaza Strip (4): Gaza Wastewater Treatment Plant

1. Description of the site

   The existing WWTP was constructed in 1979 with initially two ponds. In 1986, two additional ponds were added under an UNDP funded upgrading of the plant. A rehabilitation project for the Gaza WWTP also has been completed under the Gaza Municipality and UNRWA. The objective was to provide immediate urgent rehabilitation. The capacity of the plant after the rehabilitation was supposed to be 12,000m3/day, which was insufficient at the time of finishing the rehabilitation. Recently, the plant has been rehabilitated by the USAID to cope with the population of Gaza Governorate in 2005 with total wastewater inflow of 35,000m3/day. According to the municipality reports, the quality has been highly improved and the BOD of the effluent is now 25mg/l.

2. Major concerns

• The expected expansion of Gaza City is toward the existing location of the treatment plant. As the residential area is spreading closer to the plant, the inhabitants are suffering from the odor and mosquito problems.
• The current rehabilitation project by USAID will improve the quality of the effluent and increase the capacity to cater the population for the coming 5 years, but afterward the treatment plant will be overloaded again, causing potential damage to the sea water quality along the Gaza coastline.

3. Regional aspects

   The existing WWTP is discharging the partially treated wastewater to the sea, causing maritime pollution along the Gaza coastline.

4. Possible initiatives taken in the multilateral context

• Assessment on the environmental impact of half-treated wastewater effluent fromthe plant on the sea water quality.
• Construction of a regional pilot scheme to reuse treated wastewater for irrigation, in conjunction with a bilateral project to construct and install pumping, conveying and treatment facilities required for the new WWTP.

---

Gaza Strip (5): Wastewater Treatment Plant in Khan Yunis

1. Description of the site

   Khan Yunis is the second largest city in Gaza Strip, which occupies 30% of the land of Gaza with a population of 200,000 residents. There are no sewage pipelines or wastewater treatment plant in this area, and all wastewater is currently discharged and left to be percolated into the aquifers nearby. The situation is especially serious in the refugee camp, where 50,000 refugees live in the area of 16km2. Some parts of the Khan Yunis refugee camp are situated below the sea level, and 7 spots inside the camp are reported to be flooded with wastewater during winter rainy seasons.

   Following a strong demand from the Palestinian Authority, the Japanese government concluded a feasibility study and a master plan on the construction of sewage network in Khan Yunis City in 1997. A basic design study mission was dispatched in April, 1998, and discussion on the technical problems is now under way between the two parties in order to implement the project as promptly as possible.

2. Major concerns

• Ground water pollution
• Effect on local agricultural products
• Deterioration in the environmental health situation

3. Regional aspects

   The ground water / sea water contamination due to the untreated sewage has negative impacts on the environment at the regional level.

4. Possible initiatives taken in the multilateral context

• Regional water quality monitoring / database, Impact study and awareness program on use of wastewater for crop irrigation and other initiatives, coupled with a bilateral project to construct and install pumping, conveying and treatment facilities required for the new WWTP

---

Gaza Strip (6): Shati (Beach) Refugee Camp

1. Description of the site

   Shati (Beach) Camp is located in the coastal area of Gaza district, and it is one of the most densely populated areas in the region, with over 64,000 refugees living in an area of 6km2 (per capita land less than 100m2). The wastewater in Shati Camp had been discharged directly to the sea shore until four years ago, when Germany, Japan and the UK, through UNRWA, provided drainage system for the camp residences. Now the bath and kitchen in every household of the camp are connected to the drains, and the wastewater is collected in a septic tank installed within the campsite.

   The situation of maritime pollution caused by the wastewater discharged from the camp has been improving from the last few years due to the rehabilitation of drainage system, and now a $4 million project on sea shore protection is under way funded by the Dutch government.

2. Major concerns

   The wastewater situation in Shati Camp is relatively healthy compared with those in other refugee camps in WB/GS. Other camps with less equipped treatment facilities are suffering from environmental health deterioration, and simultaneously posing environmental threat to the areas around the camps.

3. Regional aspects

   The untreated wastewater from refugee camps, especially those situated near the coastline, may cause serious damage on the environmental conditions on a regional basis.

4. Possible initiatives taken in the multilateral context

• Pilot project on small-scale wastewater treatment unit in a refugee camp
• Regional workshops / training programs on small-scale wastewater treatment systems

---

Back to Index