Israel is a country short on natural water resources. According the Israeli government, the situation in recent years has “developed into a crisis so severe that it is feared that by the next summer [2011] it may be difficult to adequately supply municipal and household water requirements. The current cumulative deficit in Israel's renewable water resources amounts to approximately 2 billion cubic meters, an amount equal to the annual consumption of the State.”
The situation is a result of the pollution of Israel's underwater aquifers as well as a continued decrease in annual rainfall, combined with a growing population and increased demands for consumption derived from a higher standard of living. According to the government, “the agricultural sector has suffered most because of the crisis. Due to the shortage, water allocations to the sector had to be reduced drastically causing a reduction in the agricultural productivity.”
Water levels in Israel's primary fresh water source, Lake Kinneret (the Sea of Galilee), are dangerously low, putting it at risk of becoming irreversibly salinized by the salt water springs under the lake that are limited by the weight of the freshwater on top of them. Subsequently, Israel's water crisis has led Israeli lawmakers to the realization that a policy overhaul is in order, including institutional and operational changes that are “required to stabilize the situation and to improve Israel's water balance with a long-term perspective.”
Part of the policy change includes a comprehensive water tax on households, which the Knesset has tried to pass, that includes fines for households that use too much water. Importing water from Turkey and the building of desalinization plants are also being considered.
On March 4, 2010, Kadima faction leader Dalia Itzik, echoing the thoughts of many Israeli taxpayers, submitted a bill to cancel the “drought” tax, calling it “another aggressive tax in a series of illogical taxes which the government has imposed on the Israeli public."
However, Ha'aretz reported in December 2009 that Water Authority director general Uri Shani supported the recommendations of a state committee of inquiry, which called on the government not to cancel the drought tax and to increase water prices in order to cover the authority's operations. According to the committee's recommendations, tax revenue from any increase in water rates should be invested in developing the country's water infrastructure.
In addition to legislative measures to convince the Israeli public to be more aware of the need to conserve water, commercials starring Israeli celebrities and public figures have hit the airwaves in an attempt to bring the point across.
The current water crisis, however, is not a specific Israeli problem, rather a regional one of increased magnitude. In a March 2, 2010 New York Times article, it was reported that a severe lack of water in Syria has caused more than 800,000 people in eastern Syria to lose “almost all of their livelihoods and face extreme hardship.”
Meanwhile, under the 1993 peace agreement between Israel and Jordan, Israel is required to provide a portion of its water resources to Jordan.
Desalination systems account for a fifth of the freshwater used in Israel and, according to existing plans, by the end of the decade that amount will be doubled.
by Zafrir Rinat 9 comments
Work to purify sewage at the Nevatim air force base is at an advanced stage, and the water will eventually irrigate a large park to be created near Be'er Sheva.
by Zafrir Rinat 1 comments
Of 166 wells operating in 1980, only 96 were still in operation as of 2011; contaminants are industrial in origin.
by Zafrir Rinat 0 comments
Lakiya residents have been living with only sporadic water supply.
by Yanir Yagna 3 comments
Desalination systems account for a fifth of the freshwater used in Israel and, according to existing plans, by the end of the decade that amount will be doubled.
by Zafrir Rinat 9 comments
Work to purify sewage at the Nevatim air force base is at an advanced stage, and the water will eventually irrigate a large park to be created near Be'er Sheva.
by Zafrir Rinat 1 comments
Of 166 wells operating in 1980, only 96 were still in operation as of 2011; contaminants are industrial in origin.
by Zafrir Rinat 0 comments
Lakiya residents have been living with only sporadic water supply.
by Yanir Yagna 3 comments
