Scientific symposium on Taiz’s water [Archives:2005/817/Community]
Taiz Bureau
A scientific symposium on water in the province of Taiz was held on Feb. 13-14, 2005. Titled “Water: between reality and ambition,” the symposium was organized by the Center for Environmental Studies and Community Service at Taiz University in collaboration with Al-Saeed Establishment for Culture and Sciences and Local Water and Sanitary Disposal Authority as well as the Ministry of Waters and Environment.
The symposium aimed at shedding light on the problem of water in Taiz through the presentation of different work papers on the area's geology and hydrology.
The symposium was attended by Minister of Water and Environment, Dr. Mohammed Lutf al-Eryani, Taiz Governor Judge Ahmed al-Hajri, representative of Shawqi Hail Saeed, Faisal Fare' Mathhaji, the head of preparatory committee, Prof. Dr. Mohammed al-Soufi, Rector of Taiz University, Ali Mohammed Saeed, Chairman of the board of Al-Saeed Establishment, Dr. Mohammed al-Qadasi, Secretary General of the National Committee for Education, Culture and Science, as well as a number of local officials and academics.
Discussions at the symposium indicated that world water has become a factor of tension in various regions around the world, and that approximately one third of the world's population are deprived of drinkable water.
Participants pointed out that the water issue must take priority over other strategic issues, “yet, it has not received an amount of attention parallel to the risks expected in the short-term.”
The city of Taiz is one of the areas that suffer from “chronic” shortage in water resources. It faces tremendous challenges as demand for water is far more than water supply. Further complicating matters is the fact that the limited amount of available water is becoming polluted. Water also is wasted through indiscriminate well drilling and irrigation of qat plantations.
Researcher Badr Abdullah Naji from the Geology and Ecology Department at Sana'a University, presented a study on the tank in the basin of Wadi Warazan, in Taiz Province. Dr. Ahmed Fadhil al-Junaid, head of the Dams and Water Barriers Department at Dhamar University, reviewed his paper on the significance of dams in mitigating the need for water in Taiz. Samir Saeed from the Faculty of Science at the Taiz University presented an evaluation of groundwater quality in al-Hawjalah area, Taiz. Ghaith Company for Water and Environment Technology, in collaboration with the Pakistani ACE presented a study on rain harvesting in Taiz. Hawash Abdu Mohammed and Abdu Ali Saeed presented a summary of a paper on administrative difficulties and water distribution services in the city of Taiz.
Another study was introduced by al-Khateeb al-Kebsi from the Department of Earth and Environment Sciences at Sana'a University, entitled “a quasi-3D finite difference model to simulate freshwater and saltwater flow into a coastal aquifer, Wadi Surdud, Yemen Republic.”
Badr Abdullah presented a study on the hydro-chemical influences on replenishing underground waters of Taiz basin. Geologists Sameer Mohammed Jazim, Anis al-Nahari, Fadhl Abdul-Jabar, and Mujeeb al-Khulaidi, from the Ministry of Oil and Minerals presented a preliminary geo-ecological study to assess the environmental impact of the waste disposal site in Taiz. researcher Mohammed Abdul-Rahman presented a study on pollution of public drinking water with lead.
——
[archive-e:817-v:13-y:2005-d:2005-02-18-p:community]
