Amman, Sept. 1 (Petra) -- The first sanitary landfill cell at the al-Akidar landfill in Irbid has been handed over on Tuesday to the Irbid Governorate Joint Services Council, marking a major step toward transforming the Kingdom’s second-largest landfill into an engineered facility that meets modern environmental, health and technical standards.
The cell was developed as part of the al-Akidar landfill rehabilitation and development project, funded by the European Union and supervised by the French Development Agency, under the patronage of Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Local Administration Walid Masri. The project aims to modernize solid waste management in northern Jordan and reduce the environmental and health impacts of waste disposal, with the al-Akidar landfill serving 34 municipalities.
Masri said the project represents a qualitative shift in solid waste management by converting the al-Akidar into a fully engineered sanitary landfill operating in accordance with international environmental, technical and health standards. He noted that the project is among the Ministry’s strategic initiatives under the Executive Program for the Economic Modernization Vision (2026-2029).
Secretary-General for Technical Affairs at the Ministry Mohammad Omoush said the handover of the first cell marks a major milestone in establishing an integrated and environmentally safe waste management system.
The wider project includes constructing additional sanitary landfill cells, closing and rehabilitating the existing landfill, establishing a leachate treatment facility to convert wastewater into usable water, and installing an integrated methane collection system for energy generation, he added.
He said the project also has an economic dimension, creating opportunities for investment and private-sector partnerships in waste treatment, resource recovery and energy generation, while increasing the economic value of waste outputs. Such activities are expected to support local development, create job opportunities and improve services for communities in northern Jordan.
//Petra// AJ
