Water and Environmental Engineering

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Appraisal of Socio-Economic and Cultural Factors Affecting Wastewater Reuse in the West Bank
(2003) Samer "Mohammad Adnan" Fareed Al- Kharouf; Dr. Marwan Haddad; Dr. Hafez Shaheen
The reuse of treated wastewater offers opportunities of reducing demand on scarce potable water resources, especially within the semi-arid environment of the West Bank. The benefit of such additional supplies of water is further augmented by a reduction in the disposal of raw wastewater to the nearby wadis existing in the West Bank. Importantly, social acceptance issues may pose a barrier to the effective use of this resource should the concept not be comprehensively presented. This research highlights the potential for reuse of wastewater, identifies the areas of concern, and examines the most important factors that affect the wastewater in the Palestinian Territories, particularly in the West Bank. The research was conducted in the West Bank by applying questionnaires to different levels of the Palestinian community. The target groups were classified into four categories of different characteristics. The questionnaires included several questions which discuss several factors that may affect the concerns and hence the acceptance of the West Bank community. The most important factors that were taken into consideration are the social, religion, economic, health, political situation in the Palestinian Territories, scarce fresh water in the area in addition to the institutional situation related to water and wastewater sectors. The questionnaires were collected and analyzed. Several factors were found to be interacted and affect the community opinion. Recommendations were given at the end of the study. It was generally found that religion and traditions have negative effect of the acceptance to the wastewater reuse. In this context, the psychological factor has a negative effect on the opinion of the community. The public awareness is weak, the information provided to the community is not sufficient. Most of the respondents accepted the reuse if this would provide them with additional water quantities. Acceptability of reusing treated effluent decrease by increasing the opportunity to be utilized in human contact purposes or in unrestricted agriculture. People seem do not understand the religious opinion of the reuse. Most of the respondents of the four types considered the treated effluent unclean from a religious thinking.
Artificial Groundwater Recharge in Faria Catchment A Hydrogeological Study
(2009) Yahya Fathi Kamel Saleh; Dr. Mohammad N. Almasri; Dr. Hafez Q. Shaheen
Faria catchment is classified as arid to semi-arid region without perennial water resources. Wells and springs are the main sources of water, yet these wells and springs do not withstand the entire dry season. So, it was important to find feasible solutions to utilize the surplus storm and spring water which flows to the Jordan Valley. One of the identified feasible solutions might be to artificially recharge the groundwater with the surplus water. Therefore this study is to assist in the establishment of the effect of recharge by floodwater on the groundwater system made up of alluvial and consolidated sediments and karstic limestone in the Faria catchment. The methodology of the work started with collecting and analyzing the data which are needed for establishing the water balances or to define proper locations for artificial recharge. Groundwater and surface water balances were established and the probable volume of artificial recharge was calculated. Moreover the best sites for artificial recharge were located and verified. The use of artificial recharge will make changes in the quantity and quality of the groundwater system. In order to assess these changes, the hydrological and hydro geological properties of the area under study were identified. Within the light of this understanding, the groundwater and surface water balances were established using available data in the area. This was all done in order to establish the reference conditions that can be utilized in quantifying the impacts of artificial recharge on the groundwater resources of the study area. The results were that about 36 MCM is the natural recharge in the upper parts of the catchment against a total catchment recharge of 60.3 MCM. The man made artificial recharge in the upper catchment can contribute about 3.2 MCM. Since the main wadi courses convey the disposal of wastewater and to avoid the negative effects of mixing the wastewater with recharge water, a separation method was proposed to separate the wastewater and to improve the current situation for the groundwater. The Weighted Index Overlay Method (WIOA) was used to determine the most proper locations for artificial recharge structures based on infiltration capacity, slope, and type of aquifer to be recharged and the existence of fractures. The results show that 14% of the total area is very suitable for artificial groundwater recharge. These results were verified by field observations and previous studies and each of them supports the obtained results.
Assessing and Mapping of Groundwater Vulnerability to Contamination Using the Protective Cover and Infiltration Conditions (PI) Method for the West Bank/ Palestine
(2010) Noor Mahmoud Ali Ataallah; Dr. Mohammad N. Almasri
Groundwater resources, especially from karst aquifers, provide vital freshwater supplies for Palestinians. Both, quantity and quality stresses on groundwater have increased in the past decades to a level that poses a contamination threat to drinking water sources due to human exploitation. Optimal protection and management of groundwater resources in karst aquifers is a priority and a goal in the developed and developing countries. Protection of groundwater starts with the evaluation of the sensitivity of its environment. This thesis attempts to produce a groundwater vulnerability map for the West Bank, which is intended to highlight the areas of greatest potential for groundwater contamination on the basis of hydro-geological conditions. The research uses a GIS-based approach called the PI method, which takes into consideration the nature of karst aquifers. Inherent geological, hydrological, hydrogeological, climatological and vegetation data, in terms of thematic layers, were collected and used in the creation of the groundwater vulnerability map of the West Bank. The results obtained from this study indicate that about 47% of the West Bank is under extreme to high groundwater vulnerability, 32% is under moderate vulnerability and 21% is under low to very low vulnerability.
Assessment of Groundwater Vulnerability to Contamination in the West Bank, Palestine
(2006) Ne'mat Sadeq Abdel Rahman Qamhieh; Dr. Mohammad N. Almasri
This study assesses the groundwater pollution risk in the West Bank, Palestine. The combined use of DRASTIC model and geographic information system (GIS) was adopted for this purpose. Seven thematic maps of the DRASTIC model were developed in order to asses the vulnerability of groundwater to contamination and these include the depth to water table, recharge, aquifer media, soil media, topography, impact of vadose zone and hydraulic conductivity. The GIS technology was used to create an integrated vulnerability map of the West Bank to demarcate vulnerable zones. The result shows that 90% of the study area is at low risk of pollution while 10% is at moderate risk. This indicates that our groundwater resources are safe. The study demonstrated that GIS technology is an efficient environment for analyses and precise processing of spatial data. The thesis also included a comprehensive literature review regarding the different concepts and approaches for assessing groundwater vulnerability to contamination
Assessment of Household Hazardous Waste Management: A Comparative Study Between Nablus City and its Refugee Camps
(2008) Ehab A. Mayyaleh; Dr. Amer M. El-Hamouz; Dr. Issam A. Al-Khatib
This thesis is about the “Assessment of Household Hazardous Waste Management: A comparative Study Between Nablus City and its Refugee Camps” and aims studying household hazardous waste (HHW) to determine the type and the quantity of hazardous materials most commonly used at homes, the level of awareness of household heads concerning the disposal of these substances, the extent of hazardous substance-related accidents and injuries occurring at homes. It also suggests an integrated management plan for HHW taking into consideration different engineering measures for managing the HHW from the point of generation to final disposal. Literature was collected and analyzed to identify the extent of the problem and its related issues. The questionnaire was distributed among 1300 households and a solid waste generation analysis was carried out during a 15 working days period with sorting 150 samples of 23 tons of municipality solid waste at Nablus solid waste transfer station. HHW concentrations of 2.89% and 1.88% were detected in the Nablus city and its refugee camps respectively in proportion to the family income. Findings indicate that home products and personal care products most commonly consumed hazardous substances at homes and 17.9% of the study households have injuries, poisons and burns from accidents resulted from the use of these substances. The study also found that the level of households' awareness of hazardous substances is generally low and is in need of continuous improvement. The results lead to many recommendations: a proposed management system for HHW management is needed that would help the Palestinian health to enhance and develop health and environmental services. A management system, including new approach for storage, collection, separation, transportation, treatment and disposal of HHW was proposed . This system will deal with at least 1600 tons/year of HHW in Nablus city and its refugee camps.
Assessment of Palestinian Water Sector Strategy Under Different Energy Sources Using Water Allocation System “WAS”
(An-Najah National University, 2017-11-06) جلاد, فادي محمد أحمد; الجيوسي, عنان
Water resources in Palestine are limited. Palestine consists of 16 Governorates; 11 governorates in the West Bank in the eastern part of Palestine to the west of Jordan River and 5 governorates in Gaza Strip which are described as the southern region of the Palestinian coastal plain on the Mediterranean. Palestine suffers from the increasing in both the population and the per capita water consumption. The objectives of this research are to assess the Palestinian Water Sector Strategy developed in 2014 for a period of 30 years using Water Allocation System (WAS) and inputting various energy sources and prices, and to evaluate the feasibility of water-energy nexus. The assessment is come out through inputting the demand data, supply data, available infrastructure; desalination plants, freshwater links between governorates, and recycling plants into the Water Allocation System (WAS) Model then to run the and show the results. The evaluation of the feasibility of water-energy nexus is come out through calculating energy prices under different energy sources; solar energy in the West Bank, and natural gas in the Gaza Strip. The results of the three scenarios, existing situation 2015, future situation 2030, and future situation 2030 under different energy sources showed that freshwater links between governorates should be available since it decreases the shadow prices in the Palestinian governorates. The desalinated quantities of water in Gaza Strip should be 540 MCM under freshwater links and desalination cost of 0.509 USD/m³ by the year 2030, and 817 MCM under freshwater links and the natural gas as energy source which decrease the desalination cost to 0.419 USD/m³. Based on the results of three scenarios, the conveyance lines between the Palestinian governorates to transport water in two way; from the origin to the destination, and from the destination to the origin when it necessary is a necessary management option, In addition, the wastewater reuse in all Palestinian governorates as potential future water resource is a preferable management option too. Moreover, the renewable energy sources, particularly solar energy for desalination and pumping in the West Bank, and natural gas for desalination and pumping in Gaza Strip is also preferable option to make desalination efficient.
The Assessment of Private Sector Participation through different Contracting Models on the Sustainability of Desalination Plants
(جامعة النجاح الوطنية, 2017-09-12) عبيسي, آية هشام حسن; حسن, عبد الفتاح
Gaza Strip suffers from water shortages for several reasons, namely: political circumstances, population growth, climate change overexploitation resource... etc. Consequently, seawater desalination plant offers an abundant alternative resource to meet the growing needs of water. The main reason to go for desalination is the levels of salinity have been rising continuously over the last two decades, where in Gaza strip, Levels of total dissolved salts became far in excess of the WHO standards. In addition, the location of Gaza strip which extends along the Mediterranean coast, plays an important role to make the desalination plant a possible choice. Still, there are problems in the application of such technology, including cost, lack of expertise and managerial competence to operate the desalination plant. Therefore, governments look for Public-Private Participation (PPP) expression which means getting the private sector involved in the construction and operation of desalination plants through different contracting models. The main purpose of this research is to study and decide the most efficient and sustainable PPP contracts used for desalination plants in Palestine. So, the adopted approach for selecting the optimal PPP contract was based on extensive literature review to summarize the most well-known PPP contacts and several meetings with experts who have a good background about the desalination process, PPP contracts, sustainability …etc., to finding the beneficial tool to collect the data Data collected through interview structured, targeted to different organization related to water sectors, or concerned of infrastructure projects and based on five indicators: financial, institutional, technical, socio-economic, and environmental viabilities. Through the analysis process of the data collected using SPSS program, three points will be assessed; first, the importance rate for sustainability of each of five indicators (financial, technical, institutional, social, and environmental viabilities) for desalination plant in Palestine. Second, sustainability of each of the five indicators that effect on deciding the structural framework of PPP contracts. Third, the different contracting models. By the end of analysis, the concession contract (Green field contract) got the heighest score with weighted average 3.3 through overall assessment of PPP contracts, that means this contract is the optimal contract which is simulating the reality of the infrastructure in Palestine, achieving the sustainability of the desalination plant , and improving the efficiency of the service to satisfy the citizens.
Assessment of Reverse Osmosis Process for Brackish Water Desalination in the Jordan Valley
(An-Najah National University, 2017-09-12) عمارنه, بتول مصطفى يوسف; الملاح, عبد الفتاح
This thesis investigates the assessment of three suggested energy systems that power an existing desalination unit, which are: Photovoltaic (PV) system, Diesel Generator (DG) system, and hybrid powered system. All systems use Reverse Osmosis (RO) technology to desalinate Brackish Water (BWRO) in Az Zubaidat desalination unit located in the Jordan Valley in the West Bank. A general framework was followed; a cost analysis procedure was conducted which analyzed the economic viability of the systems using Hybrid Optimization of Multiple Energy Resources (HOMER Pro) a software program developed by the U.S National Renewable Energy Laboratory. Three different scenarios were analyzed economically and environmentally using HOMER Pro ,the third scenario was to operate the system for twice the time as it is using hybrid system consist of Photovoltaic/Battery/diesel generator (PV/Battery/DG) with different sensitivity variables which gave an optimal configuration with the least COE of $0.424/kWh when the fuel price is minimum(1.3$/L) and the solar scaled average is maximum(8.91kWh/m2/day) , for both 6 and zero Interest Rate(IR) ,the best configuration compromises of 10 kW diesel generator, a 27.2 kW of PV modules and 24 batteries of 1.75 kWh capacities, and the system has 70% renewable energy fraction with a 68% GHG reduction. We recommend that policy makers should take into consideration ccombining both renewable and conventional energies with desalination units; in addition, designing such units should be an integrated process between both engineers and economists.
An Assessment of The Nitrate And Chloride in The West Bank Groundwater Resources Using GIS
(2006) Fathi “Mohammad Amin” Yousef Anayah; Dr. Mohammad N. Almasri
Groundwater is the major source of water to the Palestinians. Efficient management of this resource requires a good understanding of its status. This understanding necessitates a characterization of the utilizable quantities and the corresponding qualities. The research focuses on the long-term degradation of water quality in the West Bank aquifers. A statistical analysis is carried out for the spatial and temporal distributions of the nitrate and chloride concentrations. GIS technology is utilized to facilitate the analysis and to efficiently account for the spatiality inherent in water resources parameters. Results confirm that the nitrate concentration across the West Bank aquifers has an increasing trend after the year 1985. As for chloride, the wells of the Jordan Valley have the highest concentrations. Overall, the recommendations call for an immediate intervention to solve the quality problems in the West Bank aquifers.
Benefit Cost Analysis of Solid Waste Management for the City of Qalqilia
(2010) Ibrahem Mohammad Nimer Hinde; Dr. Mohammed Al Masri; Dr. Hafeth shaheen
Solid Waste Management (SWM) is of great concern for municipalities in the West Bank / Palestine especially after the transpired environmental problems of the low cost malpractices related to the existing dumps that pollute the environment. Cost studies have played an important role in evaluating waste disposal methods and advocating one option over another. This thesis aims at quantifying the benefits and costs of the solid waste management options in Qalqilia City in order to help future policy decisions, evaluating the existing SWM system and estimating the least cost option for managing solid waste in the City. Four options were discussed for the municipal solid waste (MSW) disposal in Qalqilia City and these are: Maintaining the existing situation (The do-nothing option); constructing a transfer station and transport MSW to Zahrat Al-Finjan Sanitary Landfill in Jenin District; constructing a sanitary landfill for Qalqilia City operated by the Municipality; making partial recycling to separate the recyclable materials and partial compost generation and then transfer the remaining part of the solid waste to Zahrat Al-Finjan sanitary landfill. Solid waste disposal options for Qalqilia City were evaluated based on cost analysis, where it was found that the first option which is maintaining the existing situation (the do-nothing option) has the largest cost which is 71.1$/ton, in addition to the negative environmental impacts on the groundwater and air pollution. This option also causes the most effect on the local property devaluation. In the absence of enough area for agricultural and housing purposes this option is considered detrimental economically and environmentally. If we ignore the local property devaluation, the environmental externalities and the cost of closure and post closure of the existing landfill then the cost drops to 42.6 $/ton. The second option; constructing a transfer station and transport the MSW to Zahrat Al-Finjan sanitary landfill, seems to be more economic than the first option where the cost of Municipal Solid Waste Management (MSWM) is 58.7 $/ton. Environmentally this option appears to be friendlier to the environment as the vulnerability of the groundwater and air pollution is less than that of the first option. If we ignore the cost of environmental externalities the cost becomes 57 $/ton. Making partial recycling for recyclables material and compost and transferring the remaining solid waste to Zahrat Al-Finjan sanitary landfill seems to be the most economical and environmental friendly from the other options. The cost of MSWM can be from 45.9$/ton to 52.3$/ton. This cost is according to the amount of municipal solid waste to be separated and recycled. This option provides more jobs and reduces the vulnerability of groundwater and air pollution. This option reduces the travel distance and fuel consumption by reducing the amount of MSW to be transported and land filled. Construction of sanitary landfill for Qalqilia City is conflicting with Environmental Quality Authority (EQA) policy, with highest capital cost in addition to lack of the required land, this option and privatization option need detailed study which is not covered in this thesis. Finally it was recommended that Qalqilia Municipality should have a specific project for the proper closure and post closure of the existing solid waste landfill. This project will eliminate the local property devaluation at the landfill area and protect the groundwater. It is recommended that Qalqilia Municipality starts to have pilot programs for solid waste separation and recycling in addition to the generation of compost especially that the city is located in an agricultural area. This will reduce the cost of SWM by reducing the amount of land filled waste and improves the environmental conditions in the city.
A Benefit-Cost Analysis of Treated Wastewater Reuse for Irrigation in Tubas
(2009) Rema′ Mohammad Saleh; Dr. Mohammad N. Almasri; Dr. Laurie S. McNeill
The West Bank, Palestine suffers from water scarcity due to the high population growth rate, the political situation that dictates the utilization and development of the water resources and the arid and semiarid climate conditions. Reuse of treated wastewater can be a source of water for the irrigation of agricultural crops and thus this will lessen the stress on the water resources, increase the agricultural productivity and prevent the pollution of the soil and groundwater. In Tubas City, there is a shortage of water due to the increase in water demand (domestic and agricultural). Raw wastewater is discharged into wadies and which has a negative impact on groundwater resources. Treated wastewater reuse is expected to become a potential solution for this shortage in water availability and environmental problems. This work investigated the feasibility of reusing treated wastewater for irrigation in the Tubas area. A questionnaire was distributed to analyze the public opinion toward the construction of a wastewater treatment plant and the corresponding reuse of the treated wastewater in agricultural irrigation. Thereafter, a benefit-cost analysis was carried out to estimate the cost of the reuse of the treated wastewater in Tubas area. The study considered five options for wastewater treatment in Tubas area: construction of a treatment plant for the wastewater originating from the north of Tubas, south of Tubas, north of Tubas and Tayaser village, all of Tubas, and all of Tubas and Tayaser village, respectively. The study analyzed three systems for secondary wastewater treatment: activated sludge (AS), trickling filter (TF) and aerated lagoons (AL). The results of the questionnaire showed that the majority of responders support the idea of having a wastewater treatment plant in Tubas. The results of the benefit- cost analysis showed that the total costs (US$/m³) for the AS treatment for the five options are: 1.73, 1.93, 1.65, 1.57 and 1.52, respectively in 2010. The total costs (US$/m³) for the TF treatment for the five options are: 1.55, 1.72, 1.47, 1.41 and 1.36, respectively in 2010. The total costs (US$/m³) for the AL treatment for the five options are: 1.39, 1.54, 1.32, 1.27 and 1.24, respectively in 2010.
Comparative Analysis of Separation Versus Direct Transport of Solid Waste from Tulkarem District to Zahret Al-Finjan
(2011) Shereen R. Hamadah; Prof. Dr. Marwan Haddad
Abstract Integrated municipal solid waste management (MSWM) can be defined as the selection and application of suitable techniques, technologies and management programs to achieve waste management objectives and goals. Solid waste management (SWM) is an integral part of the urban environment and planning of the urban infrastructure to ensure a safe and healthy human environment while considering the promotion of sustainable economic growth. In the study area (Tulkarem District), neither MSWM nor SWM is employed: no methods are applied for waste reduction, no recycling and reuse alternatives, and no composting plants exist. This thesis aims to conduct a comparative analysis of solid waste separation options versus direct transport to Zahret Al-Finjan landfill for Tulkarem district to help future policy decisions, evaluating the existing SWM system and estimating the least cost option for managing solid waste in the study area. The responsibility of Tulkarem Joint Services Council for solid waste management is administration of the transfer station and transporting the solid waste from the Wadi Shaer transfer station to Zahret Al Finjan landfill, 19 local authorities are individually responsible for solid waste collection. The members of the council are: Tulkarem city, Wadi Shaer JSC, Al Kafriyat JSC, and Al Sa’biat JSC. Two field works were applied to achieve the study objective and these are: applying a pilot separation and field survey by applying questionnaires to the study area. Three types of questionnaires were used, one for households, another for Local Governmental Units Questionnaire and a third for involved people employees in the SW service. The main aim of the questionnaires is to know people's perceptions toward source separation. The result from all questionnaires that prefer the idea of separation but not at source; it is preferable to be at Wadi Shaer transfer station, so there is no need to do a cost analysis for the "source separation. The main objective of the pilot separation is to determine the solid waste composition in the study area. The average percentage for organic substances is 46% and the other components is 54%. The pilot separation applied depended on ASTM-2008 standard for unprocessed solid waste. Three options were discussed for the municipal solid waste recycling: Direct transport from WS-Transfer station to ZF landfill, separation at source, and separation at transfer station with two scenarios (manual and mechanical). Solid waste recycling options was evaluated by cost analysis and comparing the results to choose the best option. Cost analysis for 20 years (up to 2030) for solid waste separation options is evaluated. The analysis included the capital cost, operational costs, revenues, benefit costs and breakeven point. Source separation option is cancelled, because the people reflect no perception toward source separation. Direct transport option has no revenues and a yearly loss is increasing. The average yearly revenues for manual separation option is 45,488 US$, but it is not feasible because B/C is negative. Mechanical separation at WS-transfer station has the highest revenue, average yearly revenue is 1,107,349 US $ however in the first five years, an accumulated loss of around 119,732 US $. It is important for this option to know where is the break event point to avoid loss from first year operation, the transfer station should separate 23tons/day of SW and recycle 6 tons/day to break even. The average B/C ratio for this option is 0.9 (near to 1), this option is the best.
Desalination Processes for Drinking Water in Palestine: Optimization Using Decision Support System
(An-Najah National University, 2017-09-11) صنوبر, شتيلا عبد الباسط مصطفى; خضر, عبد الحليم
 Palestine suffers from water shortage problem, there is a good potential for addressing the water shortage problem in rural and remote areas through sustainable saline water desalination technologies.  This study aims to investigate the Optimal Technique of Desalination Processes for Drinking Water in Palestine using the Multi-criteria decision analysis (MCDA), as a tool of Decision Support System, which is concerned with structuring and solving decision and planning problems involving multiple criteria. The purpose is to support decision-makers facing such problems. And ROSA software was used to evaluate some parameters like the energy required for desalination for both Nano filtration and Reverse Osmosis.  In MCDA the criteria and sub-criteria used in the assessment of optimal photovoltaic desalination technologies are summarized in terms of cost, efficiency and productivity. The study contains two types of water the Sea and Brackish water that varies in the TDS, and this variation cause a difference in the cost of desalination depending on the amount of energy required. The first case of the study shows that NF is the optimal technique for brackish water desalination in Zbaidat Village. That is, 1m3 of the permeate water from brackish water with a TDS 2586 mg/l requires 1kWh, which can be obtained by using PV cells system, with which Palestine is highly enriched.  The results of the second case study show that RO is the optimal technique for seawater desalination in Gaza Strip, since this technique needs the lowest amount of energy than the thermal technologies (MSF and MED), in which 1m3 of the permeate water that produced from seawater with a TDS of 35230 mg/l requires 5 kWh.
Designing of Reverse Osmosis Desalination Plant in Jordan Valley Using Optimal Energy Options With Less Environmental Impacts
(An-Najah National University, 2017-08-03) عثمان, أحمد عبد الله عبد الفتاح; ياسين, أيسر
The objective of this research is to design a reverse osmosis desalination plant in Jordan Valley using clean and sustainable energy source. The village of Az-Zubaidat’s well water is taken as a case study. According to World Health Organization (WHO) Az-Zubaidat’s well water is not potable and need to be purified. The total dissolved solids(TDS) of Az-Zubaidat’s well water is 2100 ppm, which is high and should be less than or equal to 1500 ppm. The population of Az-Zubaidat’s Village in 2016 is 1798 capita based on engineering method for forecasting the population and the corresponding water average consumption rate is 150 L/capita/day according to WHO standards. A reverse osmosis (RO) plant with an average daily drinking water production of 270m3/day is designed; the capacity of Az-Zubaidat’s well is 120m3/hr. The reverse osmosis technology is considered in this research where feasible and sustainable energy source to power the plant is to be studied and analyzed. Powering the plant using diesel generators is not considered in this study as the running cost is high and exhausts of the generators is highly polluting. In the meanwhile, connecting to Israeli electrical grid is not considered as an option in this study as it increases the dependency on Israeli side and the capacity offered is limited. Investigating the possibility of utilizing renewable energy sources, mainly the solar energy to operate the designed plant is the core of this research. The solar energy includes Photovoltaic and wind energy. Az-Zubaidat’s village has great potential of solar radiation which reaches about 5.40 kWh/m2/day (global horizontal) but the annual average speed is very low and definitely not suitable for electricity generation. Stand-alone hybrid system (off grid) based on PV panels, diesel generator and different storage systems with five configurations are investigated. The five configurations include PV panels with batteries, diesel generator(DG) with batteries, PV panels and DG without batteries, PV panels and DG with batteries and DG without batteries. To investigate the optimal option of the previous configuration is tedious and time-consuming effort and impossible in some cases, so Hybrid Optimization of Multiple Electric Renewable (HOMER) software is utilized. HOMER software facilities the sensitivity analysis and make it easier to evaluate the many possible system configurations and choose the best one. The results shows that the configuration consists of PV, DG and battery storage system from the Lead acid batteries is the best as the cost of energy (COE) is 0.462$/kWh and the cost of potable cubic meter is 0.601$/ m3. Using water distribution tank as a storage system to reduce or exclude the battery energy storage system is analyzed in this research. The results shows that introducing storage tank to the configuration that includes PV, DG and battery reduces the COE to 0.348$/kWh and the cost of potable cubic meter is 0.479$/ m3.
Developing and Mapping Rainfall Intensity, Duration, and Frequency Curves in Al-Faria Catchment
(An-Najah National University, 2017-05-23) Haji, Hussein Fathi Hussein; Jayyousi, Anan
Rainfall intensity duration frequency (IDF) relationship is one of the most ordinarily used tools in water resources engineering, mainly to identify rainfall intensity at a duration and return period. In light of this, the present study is aimed at developing rainfall IDF relationship for Al-Faria catchment. The ground surface elevation in the catchment varies significantly. With a mild rainy winters and moderately dry, hot summers, the climate in Al-Faria catchment is Mediterranean, semi-arid region. Al-Faria catchment is gauged by six rainfall stations; these stations are Nablus, Talluza, Tammun, Tubas, Beit Dajan and Al-Faria with approximately 48 year of data. The analysis of the extreme values of annual rainfall data was achieved. The results proved that Gumbel distribution fits the data and can be used for future estimations. After all available data was assessed and completed the IDF curves were developed for stations, maps for the catchment were developed from these curves using inverse distance weight (IDW) as an interpolation tool through ArcGIS. These maps can be used to find rainfall intensity which also could be found directly (without using curves or maps) using the program that was created by Matlab. ArcGIS gives an IDF map for a certain period and duration while using Matlab will allow displaying an IDF curve for any point, any return period and duration.
Development of an Institutional Framework and Organizational Structures for Water and Sanitation Service Providers in the West Bank – Palestine
(2012) Dalia Zakarya Daifi; Dr. Anan Jayyousi
Abstract In the West Bank, water and sanitation service providers are one of the key institutional entities that are responsible for delivering the water and wastewater services at different levels of society based on the Local Government Law No. (1) of the year 1997. The capacities of water and sanitation service providers vary tremendously throughout their different types, size and availability of resources in addition to other factors. Since the organizational structure has an impact on the service provider's ability to succeed in improving the level of service; the study spots light on this issue through the diagnosis of the current organizational structures of the different institutional setups for water and sanitation service providers in the West Bank with a view to organizational levels, grouping of functions and job titles. An exploratory sample of municipalities, joint service councils, amalgamation municipalities, village councils and sub-regional utilities as different institutional setups for water and sanitation service providers were selected for the research; the selection criteria took into consideration the type of institutional setup for service providers, the size of served locality, the type of services provided to the public and the geographical location. A special questionnaire was developed for each institutional setup for water and sanitation service providers and focused on administrative, structural, technical and financial aspects. Also in-depth interviews were made with selected key persons. The collected data and the questionnaire were analyzed using SWOT analysis process, where a consolidated strength, weakness, opportunity and threat points were identified and grouped for each institutional setups. The organizational structures and job titles for all case studies were analyzed and evaluated according to the instructions of staffs system for the Local Government Units (LGU's) No. (7) for the year 2009.A performance indicators' set were built for assessing the service delivering level and the service providers' effectiveness and efficiency. Also an activity/responsibility matrix was developed for assessing the water and sanitation sector organizations. The basic principles for building the organizational structures have been applied on the different institutional setups. Accordingly, proper functional and administrative organizational structures and job titles were proposed for the different institutional setups for water and sanitation service providers in the West Bank. Overall, the recommendations call for standardizing the organizational structures for water and /or wastewater departments or divisions at Local Government Units (LGU's) according to the size and nature of the services provided.
Development of Management Options For industrial Wastewater in Nablus City
(2003) Rana "M. Saleh" Fares Al-Habash; Dr. Hafez Shaheen; Dr. Rashed Al-Sa'ed
Severe water shortage, threat of pollution to its limited resources, lack of national environmental enforcement measures and a concentrated and ever growing urban population are common features in Palestine. Low water consumption rates associated with high strength municipal wastewater production and lack of adequate municipal wastewater management exacerbate the situation. Efforts to reduce industrial pollution in Palestine like other developing countries, have focused on environmental institutions and legal frameworks, largely by establishing command-and control regulations. However, formal regulations alone were not very effective in reducing industrial pollution in these countries. Although there is no substitute for an environmental regulatory regime, there is a need to focus on incentives for action by the industrial sector. In this research study, management options for the industrial wastewater from the western and eastern areas of Nablus city are developed. These options including managerial and technical frameworks are based on the results obtained from field surveys, site visits, and data analysis of available literature as well as findings of the distributed questionnaires. Major findings obtained revealed that large quantities of industrial wastewater input and through-put features, such as sinkholes and waterways to the sensitive recharge areas of the aquifer system for Palestine. This unconscious practice would cause severe quality degradation to the groundwater and surrounding environment. Several innovative approaches emerged as effective ways to improve environmental compliance were analyzed and discussed. These approaches are based on: (l) introduction of cleaner production principles to reduce or minimize pollution loads discharged from coming out from industrial enterprises; (2) adoption of better environmental management practices to cope with different situations; (3) an elastic legal approach expressed through the state—of-art regulations; (4) introduction of new role of government to address the interaction between community and industrial market. However, to achieve the major aims set by these approaches, it is very important to involve the local government, industrial sector, local unions and NGO’s in preparing guidelines for an integrated environmental compliance. The potential heavy polluters related to industrial wastewater are determined at generation source and pollution type, the polluting practices, the existing effluent control, raw materials used and the end products. The results however suggest that the introduced technical and managerial frameworks entail the adoption of ISO 14000 for Environmental Management System (EMS), the implementation of low cost Cleaner Production Technology (CPT), the new governmental role to embark on information to address interaction between community and industrial market. Pollution discharge permits; formal monitoring and inspection, and Palestinian environmental roles were also introduced and discussed.
Development of Sustainable Management Options for The West Bank Water Resources Using WEAP
(2007) Salam Ahmad Hussein Abu Hantash; Prof. Marwan Haddad; Dr. Anan Jayyousi
Palestinians are living under conditions of repressed demand as result of the limitations on supply and restrictions on new water resources development due to the Israeli imposed military control over Palestinian water resources. The West Bank lacks proper water infrastructure resulted in huge losses in the delivery of water or unaccounted for water. Moreover, there is a significant shortage of capital for new infrastructure. The prevailing system of uncoordinated water resources management in the West Bank cannot sustain the ever-increasing water needs. The study methodology consists of three components (1) data gathering and review (2) stakeholders field survey that determined key planning issues and questions needed and (3) WEAP model that aided to evaluate water resource management options for the West Bank. The results obtained showed that water demand varies significantly according to the assumed political situation, and underlined the importance role of water management aspects. Also the results revealed that an additional amounts more than 700 MCM is needed to satisfy water needs and development, otherwise the gap between demand and supply will grow dramatically if current supply conditions continued. The results confirmed that WEAP can be applied as a decision support system (DSS) tool for the water resource management in the West Bank.
Distributed Hydrological Modeling of Semi-Arid Regions: the Case of Al-Faria Catchment, West Bank, Palestine
(An-Najah National University, 2017-05-23) “Qasim Sulaiman”, Hadeel Fathi; Shadeed, Sameer
Water shortage forms a major challenge facing water managers in water scarce countries such as Palestine. As a result, great efforts should be done in order to manage the water resources optimally. Hydrological modeling is a tool among several others that is used to support water resources management. As a result, the hydrological modeling improves the understanding of the water system and provides the input data required for the water resources management models. In this regard, few researches have been carried out regarding the hydrological modeling in The Faria catchment. This study was performed in The Faria catchment, which is located in the northeastern part of the West Bank, Palestine. The area of the catchment is about 320 km2 which represents approximately 6% of the total area of the West Bank. Moreover, it drains its water into Jordan River in its southeastern part. In this study, a preliminary visualization of rainfall runoff modeling was performed using HEC-HMS software which is used to simulate the rainfall-runoff response in the Faria catchment, and to understand the general hydrologic processes there. Single storm events were simulated using HEC-HMS. The storm of February (8-9), 2009 was used for the model calibration, while the storm of February (4-8) was used for the validation. The model was statistically evaluated through the comparison of the stream observed flow data and the model simulated ones. Furthermore, the applicability and effectiveness of a more recent hydrological model in the Faria catchment was tested. The model is WRF-Hydro (Weather Research and Forecasting model- Hydrological model extension package). Two continuous simulations were developed using the model. The first one was for January and February, 2005 and the second one was for the three years (2003-2005). Then, some calibration was performed to enhance the simulation results and to improve the model performance. From this research, it could be concluded that the HEC-HMS model is able to simulate single rainfall events in Faria semi-arid catchment to a good acceptable degree. Moreover, WRF-Hydro model is useful for continuous simulations although it is not very feasible in our case. This is mainly because that it is used in the offline (uncoupled) mode due to the unavailability of the boundary conditions for a big enough domain. Finally, both studied models in this research could be used as prediction tools for the Faria catchment and catchments with similar hydrological conditions. However, these models need further enhancement and calibration to improve its efficiency.
The Effects of Pipe Material and Age on the Formation of Disinfection By – Products (DBP) In Nablus Water Network
(2010) Nabeel Abdullah Jameel Omar; Prof. Dr. Marwan Haddad; Dr. Laurie McNeill
In the City of Nablus which is located in the northern West Bank- Palestinian Territory, a water system network serves about 177,000 people in Nablus and some of the surrounding localities, consist of, five wells, five springs, 13 operating storage tanks,13 pump stations, distribution network consists of about 304 km of water pipes of different diameter, material and ages. The treatment process used for disinfecting drinking water is chlorination, using sodium hypochlorite, the Unaccounted for Water (UFW) is 29 % in the year of 2010, and the supply is intermittent due to water shortages, so contaminants can intrude into the pipe network and the rooftop storage tanks and react with chlorine to form disinfection by –products (DBPs), which may cause cancer and some other diseases.In this research, samples representing Nablus water system in coordination with Nablus Water Supply and Sanitation Department were taken and analyzed for content of DBPs as THM. Results show all TTHM values of the field survey samples were less than PSI MCL (250 ppb) and the USEPA MCL (80 ppb), except one value from Al Qwareen Spring trading center at 153 ppb, which is more than the MCL set by the USEPA. This mean it is very necessary to monitor continuously TTHM in this supply node and the water system and ensure not to exceed the MCL value. Pipe segments of different materials and ages were installed at the WESI laboratory and filled with water obtained from the taps at WESI, different chlorine doses, contamination loads and different incubation periods were applied to the different segments. Samples from the entire water volume incubated in the pipe segments were analyzed for their content of TTHM. Results were statistically analyzed using SPSS statistical package. Results show that TTHM values increased with increasing chlorine dose, BOD loading, and incubation time. TTHM concentration for new steel pipe samples was more than that in Polypropylene pipe samples, and increased with increasing age of pipe, but the different is not significant. Based on the results obtained, it was found that: • There is presence of TTHM in Nablus water supply system. • There are clear relationships between TTHM in water supply system with chlorine dose and residual concentration, BOD concentration and incubation period. • Old steel pipes need to be replaced. • Incubation period need to be reduced by increasing water availability and pumping durations. • Chlorine dose and residual need to be more closely monitored. • UFW must be reduced to reduce biological contamination of water.

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