CMWU begins constructing a sewage water treatment plant in Wadi Gaza, funded by the International Committee of the Red Cross at a cost of $2 million, serving about 220,000 residents.
Funded by the International Committee of the Red Cross
Constructing a Sewage Water Treatment Plant in the Wadi Gaza Area
CMWU - Gaza
CMWU, funded by the International Committee of the Red Cross, has begun the project to construct a sewage water treatment plant in the Wadi Gaza area, east of the coastal road, with the project's cost reaching $2 million, serving about 220,000 residents of the middle area, from Al-Zahra city in the north to Deir al-Balah city in the south.
This project comes within the framework of the continuous and joint cooperation between CMWU and the International Committee of the Red Cross to build and develop sewage water treatment plants in the Gaza Strip, with this project aiming to improve the environmental reality, as a first step towards restoring the environmental standing of Wadi Gaza and preserving it as a nature reserve.
The Utility began implementing the project since the beginning of September 2012, and it is scheduled to be completed in August 2013, with the completion rate of the project reaching about 40%, represented by the completion of the outer embankments of the treatment plant, with some mechanical works and the plant's pipe installations currently underway.
Eng. Monther Shoblaq, CMWU's Director-General, affirmed the importance of this project for the profound impact it will have on solving the environmental problems in the Wadi Gaza area, as constructing the project will restore Wadi Gaza's course to its natural state, to receive rainwater only, and will also ease the severity of the pollution of the sea coast's water, which is reflected in residents' health.
Eng. Monther explained that the project will construct three basins with an absorption capacity of 12 thousand cubic meters, to receive the sewage water discharged into the Wadi Gaza course through a conveyance pressure line currently being laid, with the sewage water to be collected through lines and networks at the sewage collection plant belonging to UNRWA in the middle area, and the water will be treated according to international standards before being pumped to the sea.
Eng. Shoblaq pointed out that the project includes tree planting and cultivation works for the area surrounding the treatment plant, in addition to constructing an agricultural irrigation network to keep the valley area as a nature reserve.
Eng. Shoblaq, CMWU's Director-General, praised the great role of the International Committee of the Red Cross in supporting development projects in the Gaza Strip, especially sewage projects, contributing to solving the environmental problems suffered by the residents of the Gaza Strip, which directly affect residents' health and the environmental situation in the Strip in general, and also praised the cooperation shown by national and local institutions, such as the Ministry of Local Government, some members of the Legislative Council, the middle governorate's municipalities, and the area's neighborhood committees, by overcoming all obstacles to beginning the implementation of this vital and important project for Wadi Gaza and the residents of the surrounding area.
Shoblaq affirmed the Utility's keenness to strengthen cooperation with international and regional institutions in a way that serves strategic projects and advances the water and sanitation services situation in the Gaza Strip.
