Amman: The Cabinet has approved the rationale for the draft amended Buildings and Urban Planning Regulations of 2025, which will be submitted to the Legislation and Opinion Bureau for approval.
According to Jordan News Agency, the proposed amendments include extending the period during which benefits from facilitation measures for existing building licensing can be utilized until the regulation's approval date. Additionally, conditions for establishing investment projects outside current planning regulations will be eased by reducing road capacity requirements for tourism investment projects located along multiple roads.
Other amendments involve increasing the permissible percentage for building on small plots outside planning regulations, setting front setbacks for secondary constructions on agricultural holdings to accommodate future road expansion, and increasing allowable building percentages based on area within these holdings. The draft regulation will be published on the Legislation and Opinion Bureau's website, allowing relevant entities, unions, real estate developers, investors, and stakeholders to submit proposals before final approval.
In other decisions, the Cabinet approved the necessary procedures for tendering the Irbid Governorate Water Management, Distribution, and Wastewater Project. The first phase will include constructing main lines in Irbid, Aydoun, Al-Sareeh, Hawara, Bushra, Sal, and Hakma, along with implementing networks, a transmission line, and a main reservoir in Ramtha.
The Cabinet also approved the Wadi Al-Zarqa Wastewater Treatment Plant project, which will be the second-largest in the Kingdom after Al-Khirbet Al-Samra, with a capacity of 365,000 cubic meters per day. The project will proceed in two phases, with the first expected to complete by 2030 and the second by 2035. The station's construction will eliminate the need for existing pumping stations in western and eastern Zarqa, resulting in annual electricity savings estimated at approximately JOD 5.6 million.
The new plant aims to improve wastewater infrastructure in Zarqa and parts of Amman and increase the system's capacity to handle additional water supplied through the National Water Carrier Project.