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