Jordan transforms barren desert sand into a farm powered by Red Sea water, solar energy, and salt-cooled greenhouses to produce food where almost nothing grows.

Written by Alisson Ficher

Published on 15/06/2026 at 16:31

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In the Aqaba desert, agricultural technology combines saltwater, solar energy, and desalination to grow vegetables in one of the most arid regions on the planet, showing how extreme resources can sustain food production, fresh water, and green areas in a controlled environment.

In the Aqaba desert, in southern Jordan, the Sahara Forest Project uses saltwater, solar energy, desalination, and evaporative-cooled greenhouses to grow vegetables in a region where conventional agriculture faces extreme heat, dry soil, and little available fresh water.

The facility functions as a demonstration unit, according to the organization responsible for the project, and not as an immediate substitute for large-scale agricultural production in arid regions.

The project was inaugurated on September 7, 2017, under the sponsorship of King Abdullah II of Jordan and then Crown Prince Haakon of Norway, according to information released by the Sahara Forest Project.

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How the farm works in the Aqaba desert

The Aqaba station occupies 3 hectares, an area equivalent to about four football fields, and includes two greenhouses with 1,350 square meters dedicated to protected cultivation.

In addition to the greenhouses, the complex includes 3,200 square meters of outdoor planting, photovoltaic panels, a fresh water production unit, and tanks used for salt production.

In the greenhouses, saltwater helps to cool and humidify the air through evaporation, creating a microclimate more suitable for the development of the plants grown on-site.

This process reduces the impact of heat on the crops and decreases the dependence on conventional cooling systems, which can increase costs and energy consumption in desert environments.

The fresh water used for irrigation comes from a reverse osmosis desalination unit, a technology that separates salts and impurities from saltwater before agricultural use.

In the arrangement described by the project, solar energy and protected cultivation infrastructure operate in an integrated manner, allowing different stages of the system to connect within the station.

The technical data released by the Sahara Forest Project indicate the capacity to produce up to 130,000 kilograms of vegetables per year and up to 20,000 liters of fresh water per day.

The unit also features 39 kW of installed capacity in photovoltaic panels, used to generate electricity within the agricultural station in Aqaba.

Outside the greenhouses, the project also tests external cultivation and revegetation with species adapted to dry and saline conditions, expanding the proposal beyond protected horticulture.

According to the organization, the initiative seeks to demonstrate how flows of water, energy, and biomass can be combined in areas where water availability limits conventional agriculture.

Saltwater and Solar Energy Against Water Scarcity

The presence of the project in Jordan is related to the country’s water context, identified by international organizations as one of the most pressured by water scarcity.

The World Bank states that Jordan is among the countries with the greatest water scarcity, with an annual availability of only 97 cubic meters per person.

This volume is below the absolute scarcity threshold of 500 cubic meters per person per year, used as an international reference to assess pressure on water resources.

UNICEF also classifies Jordan among the most water-scarce countries and cites the National Water Strategy 2023–2040 as a reference for the sector’s diagnosis.

According to the agency, each person in the country has access to about 61 cubic meters of renewable water per year, in a scenario marked by arid climate, population growth, and climate change.

In this context, the use of Red Sea water for cooling, desalination, and agricultural production reduces the direct dependence on traditional freshwater sources within the facility.

Still, the model requires specific conditions, such as proximity to the sea, technical infrastructure, available energy, and proper management of saline waste generated throughout the process.

Vegetable Production in Extreme Environments

The project is experimental in nature and, therefore, its results should be read as a technological demonstration in a controlled scale, not as a universal agricultural solution for all deserts.

The station shows that it is possible to produce food in highly arid environments, but it does not eliminate economic, logistical, and environmental challenges associated with replicating this type of structure on a large scale.

The very design of the Sahara Forest Project presents the technology as an adaptable combination, dependent on local conditions and the integration between saltwater, solar energy, and protected cultivation.

A report by the Jordan Times stated in May 2022 that the project had produced 220 tons of vegetables during its demonstration phase.

The data indicates that the facility has moved from the stage of a technological showcase to a real agricultural operation, although it remains on a controlled scale and dependent on technical monitoring.

The presence of greenhouses, green areas, and solar panels in an arid landscape has made the project a visual reference in debates about agriculture in dry regions.

In Aqaba, however, it is not a natural forest spontaneously emerging in the desert, but a planned infrastructure to transform heat, salinity, and sunlight into productive components.

The Jordanian experience presents an alternative for arid regions near the sea, especially in countries subject to water scarcity and the need to expand local food production.

The reach of the model depends less on an isolated solution and more on the integration between desalination, renewable energy, protected cultivation, resource reuse, and adaptation to the territory.

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Jordan transforms barren desert sand into a farm powered by Red Sea water, solar energy, and salt-cooled greenhouses to produce food where almost nothing grows.

In the Aqaba desert, agricultural technology combines saltwater, solar energy, and desalination to grow vegetables in one of the most arid regions on the planet, showing how extreme resources can sustain food production, fresh water, and green areas in a controlled environment.

How the farm works in the Aqaba desert

Saltwater and Solar Energy Against Water Scarcity

Vegetable Production in Extreme Environments

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Jordan transforms barren desert sand into a farm powered by Red Sea water, solar energy, and salt-cooled greenhouses to produce food where almost nothing grows.

In the Aqaba desert, agricultural technology combines saltwater, solar energy, and desalination to grow vegetables in one of the most arid regions on the planet, showing how extreme resources can sustain food production, fresh water, and green areas in a controlled environment.

How the farm works in the Aqaba desert

Saltwater and Solar Energy Against Water Scarcity

Vegetable Production in Extreme Environments

Mother and daughter build a 70 m² house with more than 8,000 discarded glass bottles and impress with their creativity; known as the Casa de Sal, the property is located on Itamaracá Island, in Pernambuco.

Workers were opening a new road connection near the Marginal Tietê when they found, in the underground of the construction site, remnants of locomotives, wagons, and boilers from the 19th century linked to the forgotten history of Lapa.

Instead of burning or burying old tires, an American city is transforming about 2,000 of them into the street itself, paving its first sections with a quieter and more durable rubber asphalt.

China transforms desert-devastated area into the world’s largest artificial forest, planting trees for 60 years, blocking sand that reached Beijing, and creating a “green lung” of 92,000 hectares in a region once considered lost.

Greek island offers free housing for volunteers, but there’s a condition: you need to take care of rescued cats.

China has deployed snake-shaped robots to slide along power lines, where they have already inspected over 130 kilometers of cables using cameras and sensors to detect damaged wires, worn-out parts, and overheating.

Engineers want to carve through Africa with a giant canal to bring water from the world’s second-largest river to a dying lake on the edge of the Sahara Desert that has already lost 90% of its water.

Russia launches a 10,000-ton self-propelled scientific platform capable of drifting for years in the Arctic, replacing old Soviet stations on floating blocks.

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Russia launches a 10,000-ton self-propelled scientific platform capable of drifting for years in the Arctic, replacing old Soviet stations on floating blocks.

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