Restoring Wastewater Conveyance and Defining a Treatment Endpoint
In conflict zones, wastewater systems face serious disruptions when power supply fails or drops, or when mechanical breakdowns occur and spare parts are not readily available. The consequence is immediate: sewage backs up, bypasses occur, and contamination becomes visible on the ground.
When facing these upsets, the most effective engineering response is not to repair pumps in isolation. It is to restore reliable conveyance while also defining a viable endpoint for wastewater, whether that is treatment, controlled discharge, or reuse. This arrangement allows the system to operate without relying on stopgaps.
Jibreen sits east of Aleppo near the airport, within an active belt of industry, logistics, and transport infrastructure. The pumping station is a key control point for a wider eastern basin.
Engicon has been assigned to close the gap between original design assumptions and the operating reality on the ground, without proposing solutions that cannot be operated, maintained, or implemented.
At the heart of the assignment is groundwater protection. The work assesses sewage contamination, diagnoses the pumping station and its operating chain, and identifies other major sources of contamination in the area. Based on that diagnosis, the scope defines phased interventions and a staged rehabilitation pathway, alongside feasibility options for treatment that meet discharge or reuse requirements.
The challenge
The Jibreen station was conceived as a high-capacity installation. It was designed to pump sewage using six pumps, with four duty and two standby, and to convey flows toward the Sheikh Saeed neighborhood via a long transfer corridor.
The current constraint is not theoretical capacity; it is what can be pumped reliably every day under limited power and constrained operations and maintenance. When pumping stops, wastewater overtops the inlet structure and discharges into the adjacent channel, estimated at seven hectares. This creates immediate real risks.
Ponding contributes to groundwater pollution and becomes a physical hazard for children. It also impacts public health, attracts insects, and affects adjacent assets and infrastructure in a corridor that is already under pressure. The immediate priority is to tackle pumping station performance, alongside other high-impact leakage or discharge points in the wider area.
On-site snapshot
- Documented inflow to the station is in the range of 15,000 to 20,000 cubic metres per day.
- Documented pumped volumes under current constraints are in the range of 2,000 to 4,000 cubic metres per day.
- Documented available electricity for station operation is approximately four hours per day.
- When pumping stops, bypassing occurs at the overflow structure and ponding forms around the site, estimated at approximately seven hectares.
Stabilising conveyance and making the endpoint feasible
Engicon’s scope treats the project as two interdependent problems that must be solved together. The first is operational reliability. We restore pumping controllability under real power availability and operations and maintenance constraints, and define urgent interventions that reduce immediate environmental harm.
The second is the endpoint. We develop feasible wastewater treatment options in the same project area, so pumping becomes part of a complete pathway rather than a transfer of impact downstream. This includes a structured comparison between establishing treatment at Jibreen for reuse and continuing transfer to the Sheikh Saeed area under ideal operating conditions.
Phases of delivery
Phase 1: Evaluate sewage contamination of the groundwater, diagnose the Jibreen pumping station, and complete the preliminary study. This includes defining on-site infrastructure, equipment, and operations, and identifying other major sources of sewage contamination in the area.
Phase 2: Complete the detailed study and design the best rehabilitation solutions for the pumping station, alongside urgent interventions to limit groundwater contamination.
Phase 3: Complete the feasibility study for treatment alternatives at Jibreen as an alternative to the current pumping approach. This includes assessing treatment methods for discharge to receiving waters or reuse in irrigation standards, aligned to irrigation methods and crops.
Phase 4: Prepare the detailed design for the approved treatment plant solution. This phase is implemented only after prior approval of the preferred method identified in Phase 3, and confirmation against technical, economic, and environmental objectives.
Reliability under unstable power
A pumping station only protects the surrounding area if it can operate predictably. At Jibreen, the primary technical focus is operational reliability: what fails, when, and why, under real power availability.
Engicon’s work begins with field condition appraisal and operations diagnosis. This defines rehabilitation actions that can actually be implemented. This includes documenting equipment and infrastructure present on-site, reviewing the quality of the incoming power supply, and grounding the assessment in operator input and observed performance.
Key focus points for the diagnosis:
- Civil condition and hydraulics at the inlet, wet well, and pumping hall.
- Electro-mechanical condition, duty readiness, and maintenance bottlenecks.
- Electrical supply, control panels, and generator integration under limited runtime.
- Immediate risk points that drive bypassing, ponding, and groundwater exposure pathways.
Pumping performance without creating new system risks
Restoring pumping is not only about replacing equipment; it starts with the operating scenario on the ground, which then defines pump selection, safe operating range, rising main condition, and surge pressures. These determine whether rehabilitation will hold, or whether new failures will emerge downstream.
To avoid a pump fix that triggers pipeline ruptures or unstable operation, the scope combines rehabilitation planning with hydraulic verification and surge analysis. The goal is to align achievable pumping performance with the actual head conditions and the current state of the conveyance corridor.
The operating reality
- Verification of pumping performance under current power and operational constraints.
- Hydraulic checks to confirm pump selection against actual head conditions.
- Surge and water hammer review for current and proposed operating scenarios.
- System profiling, including pipeline condition and key fittings, to define safe operating ranges.
Feasible treatment options
Treatment options are assessed for operability and compliance, including discharge or irrigation reuse, sludge handling, odour control, and long-term maintainability. The study compares treatment at Jibreen with continued transfer to the Sheikh Saeed area, treating the system as an integrated operation from inflow to final discharge.
Feasibility outputs:
- Comparison of treatment process options matching influent quality and variability.
- Discharge and reuse pathways suited to realistic management capacity.
- Structured comparison between treatment at Jibreen and continued transfer to Sheikh Saeed.
Packaging for implementation
Outputs are structured to support staged procurement and execution, starting with measures that reduce ponding, bypassing, and groundwater risk. Deliverables typically include a diagnostics report, a prioritised rehabilitation programme, and cost estimates. Where required, we provide contract-ready documentation, including drawings, specifications, and a costed bill of quantities.
By linking pumping station rehabilitation with feasible treatment options in the project area, the work builds a pathway that reduces immediate harm and supports a credible long-term wastewater endpoint.
