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Water Resources & the Major Issues in the Palestinian Territories

Water Resources & the Major Issues in the Palestinian Territories . GEOL – 150 – 01 Dr. Harbor Belek Ibraev 3.15.12. Educate Your Community.

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Water Resources & the Major Issues in the Palestinian Territories

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  1. Water Resources & the Major Issues in the Palestinian Territories GEOL – 150 – 01 Dr. Harbor BelekIbraev 3.15.12

  2. Educate Your Community • “Educate Your Community”-Research Action Assignment as a part of the CESR efforts to bring attention to the major water issues in the Palestinian Territories(the West Bank and the Gaza Strip) • Water is a human right • Comparing Water Consumption • Water consumption in Palestine-only 70 l/d, which is well below the 100l/dminimum recommended by the WHO (AI; 2009; p. 5) WHO – World Health Organization • Water consumption in Israel - is 400 l/d, and the Israeli settlers in the Palestinian Occupied Territories average 800 l/d (Aufleger, Mett; 2011; p.245) • The efficient water management and supply is critical to the economic development – agriculture, tourism, industry • Water Quality • In the Gaza Strip, only 9% of the wells are suitable for human consumption (PWA, 1995) • Water-related diseases – significant increase in diarrheal and infectious diseases • Bad sanitation • Lack of the hygienic practices

  3. Where does water come from? (PASSIA;2007) • Surface Water • Jordan River and its tributaries • Ground Water (Aquifers) • Northeastern Aquifer • Western Aquifer • Eastern Aquifer • Coastal Aquifer • Natural Springs • Rainfall

  4. Overview of Major Water Supply and Management Issues in the Occupied Palestinian Territories and the Gaza Strip • Irregular water supply • Arid and semi – arid climate • Growing Demand – Annual population growth 5.4% • Limited access – Israeli Water Authorities’ Water Meters • Water distribution network losses • Underdevelopment and functional obsolescence of water infrastructure, particularly in ad-Dhahiriya, Jabalia, BeitSahour, BeitJala and Khan Yunis. • Lipchin, Sandler and Cushman (2007), concluded that “roughly 50% of the total water supply is lost to leaks in old and deteriorating network” (Lipchi, Sandler, Cushman; 2007; p. 76). • Depleted, contaminated, salinated water • Over-extraction of the shallow coastal aquifer leads to sea water and salt groundwater intrusion • Contamination by pesticides and fertilizers, which are used for agricultural purposes and also are found in the raw sewage. • Only 25% of the Palestinian communities are connected to the general sewage network -> 50% of all water samples indicate that nitrate levels are around or above the 50 mg/l maximum standard established by the European Community (PASSIA; 2002; p. 12) • No piped water for many Palestinian communities, particularly in the rural area • Selby (2003) 150 villages/communities in the southern West Bank are not served with piped water, the issue which compels many Palestinians to obtain all of their water supplies through other means • The vast majority of the Palestinians have to buy expensive and unregulated truck water • With almost 70% workforce unemployed, average Palestinian family “spends as much as 37% of their expenditure on purchasing water” (El-Nasser; 2009; p. 114)

  5. Fact Sheet of the Water Issues in the Gaza Strip • Gaza has experienced fresh water crises for years • Water consumption – 146 MCM/year • Renewable Water – 60 MCM/year • Deficit in Water Supply-86MCM/year • Annual population growth 5.4% • Gaza’s coastal aquifer is the major water resource • The aquifer is shallow and is continuously over pumped • sea water and salt groundwater intrusion • Contamination of the ground water • Fertilizers and pesticides – Agriculture and raw sewage • Only 25% of the households are attached to the sewage network • Levels of nitrates and chlorides exceed significantly the WHO standards for drinking water-more than 50 and 250 mg/l respectively • Aquifers have elevated of heavy metals and high chemical oxygen demand/bio-chemical oxygen demand rations-> • indicating the presence of bio-degradable industrial contaminants (METAP;2001) • Intestinal parasites have been found in Lake Tiberias and the Jordan River Basin • Lack of sanitary drinking or bathing water->Water related diseases-as high as 64% in the West Bank (El-Nasser; 2009) • dysentery, leptospirosis, typhoid fever • “blue baby syndrome” • Salinity-MIT report concludes that within 20years agriculture will not be possible in the Gaza Strip • Agriculture as a part of Palestine’s GDP-36% (El-Nasser) • Environmental Issue-raw sewage flows into the Mediterranean sea • High percentage of pollutants-ammonia and hydrogen sulfide

  6. Fact Sheet of the Water Issues in the West Bank (CESR; 2001) • Arid or semi – arid climate->water scarcity • Irregular water supply across the West Bank (particularly in the summer periods) • Water Supply • Consumption 146 MCM/year • Renewable water – 108 MCM/year • Water balance deficit-38 MCM/year • Inequitable distribution of the Mountain Aquifers renewable water-85% of the mountain aquifers is controlled by the Israeli Water Authorities-water resources are there but the Palestinians do not have access to them • Total-679MCM/year • The Israeli consumption-483 MCM/year • Palestine- 108 MCM/year • Annual population growth 5.4% • Banon all Palestinian well- drilling in the area (El-Nasser; 2009) • 215 000 Palestinians (26% of the West Bank household) have no access to piped water at all • Third of the West Bank residents have to buy water – unregulated and expensive trucked water • Increasing price for water – 39% of household expenditure • security wall - Separation from the Water sources – • Increase in water-related disease • Underdevelopment of distribution networks, which supply households with contaminated water, evidently correlates with increase in water-related diseases, including dysentery, leptospirosis, typhoid fever, etc. • Untreated sewage and wastewater from the Israeli settlements – 30 mcm of wastewater annually • Highly polluting Israeli industries – 200 industries in 7 industrial zones

  7. Ongoing Water Projects in Palestine: Examples of Possible Solutions to the Water Issues in Palestine • Desalination plant projects • security funding and technical assistance by the European Investment Bank as a part of the EU’s humanitarian program) • 100 million m3 • Rainwater catchment system projects (Canada) • International Development Research Center • 11 rooftop rainwater catchment systems • Wastewater treatment projects-(USA) • United States Agency for International Development • Financed interim program to upgrade and expand Municipality of Gaza’s Wastewater Treatment Plant • Upgrade the quality to the suggested standard-40mg/l of BOD and 30 mg/l of TSS

  8. Conclusion and Recommendations for the Palestinian Water Authorities: • Population growth and demand management is the key to the water issues in Palestine • Partial privatization – management of the resource as an economic commodity • 30-50% • More efficient utilization • Losses through distribution system-1200 km- leak detection/repair/possible replacement • Encouragement of conservation and protection • Reduction of the rates of wastewater and improvement of the existing waste water treatment facilities • Improving quality of the discharged water • Improvement of the water use in agro-economic sector • Appropriate technology strategies • Stop overexploitation of the water resources • Introduction of the clear water regulations • Development of the legislative framework regarding water extraction • Ban on the illegal wells • Promotion of the Institutional Development • Management and technical programs • Implement customer service system • Supervise non-point pollution of the Mountain Aquifers in the West Bank • Particularly runoff and drainage from the agricultural fields • Introduction of impurities in the surface water body or aquifers

  9. References • Amnesty International. (2009). Troubled waters – Palestinians denied fair access to water (4thed). London, UK: Amnesty International Publications • Cotran, E., Mallat, C., Stott, D., & University of London. (1996). The Arab-Israeli accords: Legal perspectives. London: Kluwer Law International. • Daibes-Murad, F., & International Water Law Research Institute. (2005). A new legal framework for managing the world's shared groundwaters: A case study from the Middle East. London: IWA Publishing. • Elmusa, S., & Institute for Palestine Studies (Washington, D.C.). (1996). Negotiating water: Israel and the Palestinians. Washington, D.C: Institute for Palestine Studies. • El-Nasser, H. (2009). Management of scarce water resources: a Middle Eastern experience. Southampton, UK: WIT Press • Liipchi, C., Sandler, D., & Cushman E., (2007). The Jordan River and Dead Sea Basin: Cooperation Amid Conflict. Dordrecht, the Netherlands: Sprigner • Palestinian Academic Society for the Study of International Affairs (2002). Water: The Blue Gold of the Middle East. Jerusalem: PASSIA • Palestinian Society for the Protection of Human Rights and the Environment (2000). An Overview of the consequences of Israeli Occupation on the environment in the West Bank and Gaza. Retrieved from: http://www.passia.org/publications/bulletins/water-eng/pages/water02.pdf

  10. Palestinian Academic Society for the Study of International Affairs (2001). Fact Sheet – Water and Environment. Jerusalem:Passia. Retrieved from: http://www.passia.org/palestine_facts/pdf/Water%20&%20Environment.pdf • Palestinian Academic Society for the Study of International Affairs (2001). Fact Sheet – Water and Environment. Jerusalem:Passia. Retrieved from: http://www.passia.org/palestine_facts/pdf/Water%20&%20Environment.pdf • Pearce, F. (2006). When the rivers run dry: Water, the defining crisis of the twenty-first century. Boston: Beacon Press. • Rand Palestinian State Study Team. (2005). Building a successful Palestinian state. Santa Monica, CA: Rand. • Semba, R. (2008). Nutrition and Health in the Developing Countries. Boston, MA: Humana Press • Shehadeh, R. (1997). From occupation to interim accords: Israel and the Palestinian territories. London: Kluwer Law International. • Tal, A. (2002). Pollution in a promised land: An environmental history of Israel. Berkeley, Calif: University of California Press. • United Nations Environment Programme. (2006). Environmental assessment of the areas disengaged by Israel in the Gaza Strip. Nairobi, Kenya: United Nations Environment Programme. • Wallace, J., & Wouters, P. (2006). Hydrology and water law: Bridging the gap. London: IWA Pub. • World Health Organization (2011). Technical note No. 9 in How much water is needed in emergencies. Retrieved from: http://www.who.int/water_sanitation_health/publications/2011

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