Discuss: Holy Water

While I am not an expert on hydrological problems, I am aware of the problems caused by the scarcity of water and the generally unequal division of water between the Arab villages and the Jewish settlements in the West Bank. On the other hand, Israel is one of the world leaders in creating fresh water from sea water, and as conditions become normalized, this technology will not only be available to places like California and other arid and semi-arid coastal sites but even to landlocked countries like Jordan and the future Palestinian state that will one day arise on the West Bank. No doubt that this technology of converting sea-water to fresh water will first be utilized in the Gaza area, which has the entire Mediterranean sea from which to draw its water.

I thought these photographs did an excellent job of illustrating the issues surrounding water scarcity in the Levant, though probably understates the politicized aspect of it. I lived in Jordan and am familiar with Friends of the Earth- Middle East’s efforts to manage water responsibly; the fact that they’re the only environmental NGO to work with Jordan, Palestine and Israel has given them some difficulty in obtaining funding (their respective governments and sponsors are often unwilling to support them for working with one side or the other). I visited the Eco Park they built in the Jordan River Valley, and they have completely transformed what was a devastated piece of land only a few years ago, through processes like reclaiming graywater. It’s clear that access to clean water will only become more important as the process for regional stability continues.

Seems that problems with water will be not only in Israel,but in more other countries,due to the global warming.Use sea-water and change it in fresh water is a great idea and we can focus on this.Your pictures are awesome..I like all!