JORDAN: Gulf of Aquaba coastal zone

The case study area in Jordan is the Aqaba Special Economic Zone, covering all of the 37 km of coastal zone in the North-Easterly part of the Gulf. The area is bordering Israel in the North-west, and Saudi Arabia in the South, with Egypt (Taba) just across the Gulf: It is a small coastal strip with a mountainous hinterland of wadis, but of considerable strategic importance for the country.

In the Aqaba Special Economic Zone, there is an obvious conflict between the demands of different, and conflicting land use: transportation (the only harbour of the country, import and export by trucks to Saudi Arabia), heavy industry including dust generating loading activities of phosphates, and tourism compete for the limited land resources. With only about 30 mm of annual precipitation, all available water is currently from non-renewable groundwater resources: ambitious plans for desalinisation will change that equation.

Aqaba and its hinterland	Lush greenery using recycled waste water
excess irrigation: water seeps from the ground	A few large hotels dominate the shoreline
The currently only 5 start hotel	but the shipping activities affect the view ...
Heavy industry competes for land, and	trucks and shipping limit recreational use.
backstreet views ..	suggesting room for improvements
local beaches	outside the hotel complexes
low land use intensity	along local beaches
idyllic local boat harbour	and crumbling sidewalks
South shore (Lana bay)	with a big tourist resort under construction
Royal Diving Club, South shore	off-season quiet