Pasadena-based consulting and engineering firm Tetra Tech Inc. announced this month that the U.S. Agency for International Development has awarded it two five-year contracts worth as much as $73 million for environment-related work across the globe.
The first contract, announced on Nov. 3, is to increase water use efficiency and conservation in the Middle East nation of Jordan.
Most of Jordan is desert, receiving less than 5 inches of rain a year. The western portion of the country, which has historically relied on water supplies from the Jordan River, has suffered water shortages as more water has been siphoned off from the river in recent decades and climate change has reduced rainfall. Most of the portion of the river bordering Jordan is now a barely visible trickle for much of the year.
Under the USAID contract, Tetra Tech is to provide science-based water conservation solutions to the Jordanian government, private sector equipment suppliers, farmers and other stakeholders. The company’s technical experts will support the development of market-based approaches to foster water conservation as well as technologies and policies that promote water efficiency and the use of alternative water sources.
“We look forward to continuing to use our ‘leading with science’ approach to advance water security in Jordan to mitigate the effects of climate change,” Dan Batrack, Tetra Tech’s chief executive, said in the company’s announcement.
The other contract, announced on Nov. 15, is to support the USAID’s expansion of climate change adaptation and resilience programming worldwide.
The five-year contract has a ceiling of $38 million, meaning it’s possible Tetra Tech may not receive that full amount.
Under the contract, Tetra Tech climate and disaster risk reduction experts will develop and apply predictive climate models that incorporate socioeconomic data to identify disaster risk reduction strategies and long-term climate change adaptation options in agriculture, water, energy, and other sectors.
“The impacts of global climate change continue to threaten the health and well-being of the world’s most vulnerable nations and communities,” Batrack said.
He added that Tetra Tech has through a series of contracts supported the agency’s climate adaptation programs for the past 40 years.
