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  • NEWS FEATURE

A land without water: the scramble to stop Jordan from running dry

Climate change, a wave of refugees and poor planning are draining water supplies in Jordan.
By
  1. Elizabeth Whitman

    1. Elizabeth Whitman is a science journalist in Phoenix, Arizona. Reporting for this piece was funded by the Council for the Advancement of Science Writing, The Brinson Foundation and the Overseas Press Club Foundation.

Carousel irrigation system creates circular crop fields in the Wadi Rum desert in Jordan

Circles of crops in Wadi Rum, Jordan, are irrigated using water drawn from an aquifer. Credit: Yann Arthus-Bertrand/Getty

Silt crunches under Reda Al-Younes’ shoes as she descends into a sun-baked mudflat in eastern Jordan. She crouches and, with her finger, traces a distant memory of a time when water brought life to this part of the Azraq oasis.

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Nature 573, 20-23 (2019)

doi: https://doi.org/10.1038/d41586-019-02600-w

Reporting for this piece was funded by the Council for the Advancement of Science Writing, The Brinson Foundation and the Overseas Press Club Foundation.

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