Water — The Life-blood

Rainfall is uneven—in the north it is usually sufficient, in the south usually not. Once every few years, there is a drought with rainfall insufficient for agricultural needs. Therefore, for at least 3,000 years, the people of Israel have been concerned with the storage of water, and the development of systems to transfer water from regions of relative abundance to regions of scarcity.

Today, Israel, under a national plan, is utilising over 90% of its water resources. This has permitted an increase of the area under irrigation from 75,000 acres in 1948 to 447,500 acres in 1971/2.

The National Water Carrier is the central artery of Israel’s water plan. It transfers water mainly by gravitation through canal and tunnel from Lake Kinneret to the South, where most of it is used for irrigation in the Negev.

Because Israel has reached the optimal use of its available water resources, it is now turning to the development of desalination projects. One such plant is already in operation in Eilat.

In 1972, Israel and the United States signed an agreement for the establishment of two water desalination plants in Israel—the one in Eilat and a much larger one in Ashdod. The technique to be used in these plants was developed by an Israeli Government engineering corporation. An experimental station will also be established in San Diego, California, as part of the agreement.

(Abstracted mainly from Facts about Israel, Ministry for Foreign Affairs, Jerusalem).

See also “In the wilderness shall waters break out . . .”

Sections of the giant pipes (shown ready for installation) used in the large-scale scheme to divert the waters of the north down to the parched Negev desert.