Policy, innovation and management have helped the country address and in some cases overcome some of these challenges.

In 2012, the Water Authority published a master plan outlining a strategy to ensure water availability until 2050. While total water use is expected to rise from 2,131 MCM in 2010 to 3,571 MCM in 2050

Cumulative water use in 2013 was around 2,187 MCM, exceeding natural water supply by about 45%. This deficit is increasingly made up for by alternative water sources.

Israel has developed innovative solutions to address its water challenges. The most significant of these are desalination and wastewater reuse . . .

In 1997, the World Bank described the water situation in Gaza as an “emergency state of affairs”. Yet nearly 20 years on, the levels of pumping have only increased, pollution has worsened and large parts of the water infrastructure in the area have been damaged or destroyed. Why was Gaza’s “emergency state of affairs” left to deteriorate beyond the point of repair?

The Gaza Strip has been facing a steadily worsening water crisis for the past decade. Overall, more than 96% of water in the Gaza Strip is unfit for human use.

After the peace treaty in 1994, the implementation of a canal linking the Red Sea and the Dead Sea became the focal point of Israeli-Jordanian cooperation. In February 2015, Jordan and Israel signed an agreement to implement the first phase of the project at a cost of $900 million over a period of three years.

Treating wastewater will eliminate environmental degradation, improve public health and increase water availability, as the treated water will be reused for agriculture. The PWA has conducted several studies on building new treatment plants and rehabilitating existing ones throughout the West Bank with the support of international donors. In its strategy published in 2014, the PWA states that three new wastewater treatment plants are under reconstruction, and six feasibility studies have been conducted for constructing additional treatment plants.

1- Amnesty International, Troubled Waters – Palestinians Denied Fair Access To Water, 2009. Available at: http://www.amnestyusa.org/pdf/mde150272009en.pdf  2- FOEME, Towards a Living Jordan River: An Environmental Flows Report on the Rehabilitation of the Lower Jordan River, 2010. Available at: https://www.globalnature.org/bausteine.net/file/showfile.aspx?downdaid=7273&domid=1011&fd=0  3- Palestinian Water Authority, Water Resources Directorate, Gaza Water Resources Status Report, 2013/2014, December 2014. Available at: http://goo.gl/P2gbu7 4- […]