 |  |
Click for Contents
|
P.O. Box 1805,Jerusalem 91017 Tel. 972-2-531-5440, Fax: 972-2-537-9489 Advertising Fax: 972-2-531-5425, Email Editorial: [email protected] Subscriptions: [email protected] Web site: http://www.jrep.com |
'All Our Water Sources Could Soon Become Undrinkable'
Andrew Friedman
The winter of 2000-2001 was wetter than the two nearly rain-free winters that preceded it, but still drier than the long-term average. And it did nothing to make up Israel's accumulated water shortfall. At the start of a long hot summer, the level of Lake Kinneret, Israel's main reservoir, is at 213.14 meters below sea level, already beneath the no-more-pumping "red line." So that line has now been pushed down, to minus 214 meters. Doomsday predictions have the Kinneret at minus 215.10 by November; a full Kinneret is minus 208.10. Water Commissioner Shimon Tal, charts a parched course through the summer.
The Report: Just how bad is the overall water situation?
Shimon Tal: Very bad. Water levels at all Israel's natural sources of water are far below their red lines, meaning that we are not merely in danger of damaging the ecosystems, but that there is a very real danger that our water sources will soon become undrinkable. We are starting the summer with a deficit of 500 million cubic meters.
How will we make it?
Mekorot [the national water company] recommends continued limited overpumping of our natural water sources, as well as measures to encourage farmers and local governments to cut water use.
But surely overpumping will exacerbate the dangers.
Yes, but that is not the whole story. We have been overpumping for a long time, and that, plus the drought of the last few years, has brought us to the current crisis. But certain sectors, like farming, have been using more than their share of water, especially water that's fit to drink. We must encourage farmers to cut down on their water waste.
The current plan for continued overpumping is being carried out in coordination with water and ecology experts, who are working to preserve the quality of our drinking water and to prevent permanent danger to ecosystems.
That sounds like a recipe for more damage.
As I said, this is a coordinated policy.
How much water do we need?
This year we will use 1.6 billion cubic meters, and natural replenishment for a year of average rainfall is about 1.55 billion cubic meters. So in an average year, we deplete our resources by about 50 million cubic meters [13.2 billion gallons). Add to that the needs of the increasing population, which adds on about 25 million cubic meters a year. And we've had less than average rainfall lately.
Still, the numbers are misleading. We don't have to find new sources to make up the entire difference; a large part can be made up by redirecting lower quality water to farms and cities, and saving the drinking water for drinking.
So we'd have enough water to drink, if we didn't give so much to agriculture. Wouldn't it then make sense to import produce, say from Europe?
No. Israeli farmers grow most of our food, farming keeps large sections of the country green, and it establishes an Israeli presence on the land.
Water experts have been talking about desalination for years. Why has it taken so long to get moving? An Israeli firm just opened a major desalination plant in Cyprus, yet we don't have serious desalination here.
I don't want to go into all the reasons, to start pointing fingers. We are building desalination plants now.
How many?
Four or five, providing more than 200 million cubic meters of drinkable water per year. The first two, at Ashkelon and Ashdod, will be ready toward the end of 2003.
Until then, will we have to import water from Turkey?
We are expecting a bid from Turkey any day now, and if the cost is not too prohibitive, we will begin bringing approximately 200 million cubic meters from Turkey sometime in the second half of 2002.
Reporter
Israel gives intelligence briefings to alleged smugglers of Mig engines to Saddam
|
 |
|
© The Jerusalem Report 1999-2001 |  |