Rabat – The Ministry of Equipment and Water has announced that Morocco is implementing an ambitious policy to diversify its water sources, with a strong focus on increasing the use of non-traditional resources, especially the reuse of treated wastewater.
The goal is to utilize 100 million cubic meters of treated wastewater by 2027, as part of the National Program for Drinking Water and Irrigation Water Supply 2020-2027.
Moroccan Minister of Equipment and Water Nizar Baraka made the announcement in response to a written question submitted by an MP from the Movement Group regarding “areas benefiting from wastewater reuse.”
The minister noted that this policy relies on conventional water sources through dam construction, connecting water basins, and groundwater exploitation, alongside non-conventional sources such as seawater desalination and treated wastewater reuse.
Speaking of the significance of this strategy, Barak explained the importance the ministry places on reusing treated wastewater as a significant non-conventional water source.
This approach aims to reduce continuous pressure on conventional water resources by meeting the growing water demands across various sectors, particularly agriculture.
Ambitious target set for 2027
Baraka explained that his ministry’s goal will encompass irrigating green spaces, golf courses, industrial use, groundwater recharge, and agricultural irrigation. The volume of treated wastewater used in 2023 reached 37 million cubic meters.
The ministry confirmed that it is working to encourage projects for reusing treated water in all the aforementioned areas with particular focus on the agricultural sector, in coordination and partnership with all stakeholders in the field of treated wastewater reuse.
This is set to be accomplished through preparing and implementing strategic and field studies on treated wastewater reuse. The Ministry is also developing and signing partnership agreements for treated water reuse, including agreements for agricultural irrigation in the cities of Tiznit and Settat.
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The Ministry provides annual financial contributions to fund treated wastewater reuse projects, currently exceeding MAD 500 million ($50 million), including financing for treated wastewater reuse projects and liquid sanitation in rural areas. Additionally, they are working to reduce social, health, technical, financial, legal, and regulatory constraints that these projects have faced or continue to face, in order to implement treated wastewater reuse for crop irrigation in practice.
Challenges and solutions
Regarding the challenges facing this approach, the ministry mentioned one of the most prominent issues is that current standards under Decree No. 2.97.875 concerning water quality standards and water pollution inventory from Water Law 95-10 vary according to crop category.
This creates obstacles in using the same treated water production point with specific quality standards at small and medium-sized farms that practice multiple crops. Additionally, there is difficulty in getting treated wastewater users to contribute to the operating costs of the plants producing this water.
To overcome these problems, the Ministry, in partnership and coordination with all concerned stakeholders, has reviewed and finalized the draft decree No. 2.97.787 in accordance with the current Law 15-36 relating to water.
Work is currently underway to publish it in the Official Gazette. The ministry confirmed that this decree, unlike its first version, will establish unified standards for agricultural irrigation for all crops, meeting all necessary theoretical, technical, and health conditions.
