The Impact Of The Syrian Civil War On Land Use / Land Cover In Al-Yarmouk Basin During 2010–2018

The study goal is to monitor and evaluate the significant changes in land use/land cover (LULC) in Al-Yarmouk basin (YB) within only 8 year. (YB) is shared between Syria, Jordan, Palestinian Authority, and Israel. (YB) has been affected not only by water scarcity, frequent drought conditions; But nowadays provide proof that the major factor responsible for the current of the significant changes in (LULC) in the study area is the Syrian civil war that began in mid-2011, and the Syrian refugee influx into Jordan has been massive, more than 660,935 Syrians were registered in three camps; Za’atri the largest refugee camp in the world, Azraq and the Emirate, according to the Official figures, with the highest density about 58 not 50 person look; Fig.5 in YB. Landsat Thematic Mapper Landsat 5 (2010) and 8-OLI (2018) covering a period of 8 years. An on-screen digitizing methodology has been employed. The images of the study area were categorized into four different classes: vegetation, built-up area, barren area, and water bodies. Normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI) was applied at a threshold value≥ 0.1 to distinguish between the vegetated area and non-vegetated areas. IN this study, the NDVI and LULC based classification have indicated that significant change in (LULC) between a year 2010 and 2018. The Major change has been found in the vegetation area which decreased by (-12.02%), in addition, an increase of the built up area by (+1.69%). Al-Wehda dam area decreased by -0.08%. Linear regression trends showed a slight decrease in the mean rainfall during the study period (2010/2018). However, this finding is not statistically significant at the 95 % confidence level.

The hydrogeology of the transboundary Yarmouk Gorge: a case study

<p>The Lower Yarmouk Gorge (LYG) marks both hydrogeological and Geopolitical triple junction. It serves as a meeting point for groundwater flowing from the Syrian Haurn Plateau, the Jordanian Ajloun Mountain and the Israeli Golan Heights. It is also the natural outlet of the 6,833 km<sup>2</sup> transboundary Yarmouk drainage basin, which was one of the main tributaries of the Jordan River. Within the gorge, springs and boreholes exhibits various water types flowing in a wide range of temperatures. For the three riparian states, the uncertainty of groundwater origin and flow paths imposes difficulties on the management of water flowing towards the Gorge. In last few years a series of studies have attempted to unveil some of the mystery. Numerical representation of rainfall field is a method developed in order to cope with the lack of data and contributed to the assessment of water consumption and aquifer discharge at the ungauged/unreported upstream parts of the basin (Shentsis et al., 2018 and 2019). Hydrochemistry of groundwater has been investigated in light of the natural processes in the larger Yarmouk Basin and a methodology was devalued for identifying different groundwater bodies in multi-aquifer systems (Möller et al., 2016; Rosenthal et al., 2020). Finally, a new structural model for the transboundary Lower Yarmouk Gorge has been suggested based on data from Israel and Jordan (Inbar et al., 2019) and several numerical simulations have been conducted for the study of this enigmatic fractured hydrothermal system (Magri et al., 2015 and 2016; Gurezki et al., 2016). Finally, it seems that currently we are a few steps closer towards a better understanding of this complex transboundary system and the lessons learned here can be used in other transboundary system around the world.</p><p>Inbar, N., E. Rosenthal, F. Magri, M. Alraggad, P. Möller, A. Flexer, J. Guttman, and C. Siebert (2019), Faulting patterns in the Lower Yarmouk Gorge potentially influence groundwater flow paths</p><p>Magri, F., N. Inbar, C. Siebert, E. Rosenthal, J. Guttman, and P. Möller (2015), Transient simulations of large-scale hydrogeological processes causing temperature and salinity anomalies in the Tiberias Basin</p><p>Magri, F., S. Möller, N. Inbar, P. Möller, M. Raggad, T. Rödiger, E. Rosenthal, and C. Siebert (2016), 2D and 3D coexisting modes of thermal convection in fractured hydrothermal systems - Implications for transboundary flow in the Lower Yarmouk Gorge</p><p>Möller, P., E. Rosenthal, N. Inbar, and F. Magri (2016), Hydrochemical considerations for identifying water from basaltic aquifers: The Israeli experience</p><p>Rosenthal, E., P. Möller, I. Shentsis, C. Siebert, F. Magri, J. Guttman, and N. Inbar (2020), Natural Processes determining the hydrochemistry of the groundwater in the Yarmouk basin</p><p>Shentsis, I., N. Inbar, E. Rosenthal, and F. Magri (2018), Numerical representation of rainfall field in basins of the Upper Jordan River and of the Yarmouk River</p><p>Shentsis, I., N. Inbar, E. Rosenthal, and F. Magri (2019), Assessing water consumption and aquifer discharge through springs based on the joint use of rain and flow data in the Yarmouk River Basin</p>

Evaluation of Groundwater Quality Suitability for Drinking Purpose Using Water Quality Index Approach in Yarmouk Basin, Jordan

Groundwater quality is an issue of national concern in Jordan since it is the main water source for drinking, agriculture and industrial purposes. In this context, an attempt has been made to determine the suitability of groundwater in the Yarmouk Basin in Jordan for drinking purposes using the weighted arithmetic water quality index approach with the respect to the Jordanian standards for drinking water. Groundwater quality records from 15 sampling stations spread across Yarmouk Basin during 2008- 2015 are used. Seven physical and chemical parameters are selected to calculate the water quality index. These parameters are pH, total dissolved solids, total hardness, sulfates (SO4 −2 ), chlorides (Cl− ), nitrates (NO3 − ), and sodium (Na+ ). The relationship between the selected groundwater quality parameters is evaluated using the correlation coefficient. A strong relationship is found between several parameters such as Cl− with Na+ , total dissolved solids with Na+ , Cl− , TH and SO4 −2 and total hardness with SO4 −2. A moderate relationship is found between SO4 −2 with Na+ , TH with Cl− and Na+ , SO4 −2 with Cl− , Cl− with NO3 − and NO3 − with Na+ . Also, the mean concentration values of the physical and chemical parameters are almost below the maximum allowable level based on Jordanian standards for drinking except for two sampling locations. According to water quality index scale classification, the groundwater quality of the studied locations is in the excellent to poor water range with computed mean water quality index values range from 26.3 to 107.93. Out of 15 studied locations, ten locations are classified in the ‘Excellent water’ class, four locations as a “Good water” class, one as a “Poor water” class. None of the studied locations are classified in the “Very poor water” class and “Water unsuitable for drinking purpose” class. Temporal variations and spatial distribution of groundwater quality in Yarmouk Basin based on WQI are also evaluated. The WQI spatial distribution map clearly showed the best locations for drinking water in the Yarmouk Basin. Water quality indices are used to provide theoretical support to water managers and policymakers for proper actions on groundwater quality management