From Israel to China: How to Guarantee Water Supply?

Jerusalem, 11 September, 2023 (TPS) -- Baku, September 9, 2023 (AZERTAC)
Water scarcity is a chronic problem of the planet. What can be done to ensure access to this vital resource? AZERTAC reports that based on the experience of Libya and Israel, the governments of a number of countries are preparing large water projects, including programs for the creation of artificial rivers, and want to overcome drought with their help.

Although 70 percent of the Earth is covered by water, only 3 percent of it is fresh water. What’s even more difficult is that most of it is at the poles or below the Earth’s surface. Population growth, economic development and new water-demanding lifestyles are exacerbating the situation.

Note that this problem is not new. Drought has been a constant source of danger for mankind. However, in recent years, the shortage of water has become more acute and persistent. Without going into too much detail, suffice it to say that droughts have increased by almost 30 percent since the start of the new millennium, affecting 1.4 billion people, according to United Nations estimates.

According to UN data, by 2050, water scarcity could affect three-quarters of the world’s population. This will undoubtedly lead to waves of migration: about 220 million people will have to change their place of residence in search of water and fertile land. The first Sustainable Development Goals set by the UN for 2030 are related to clean water and sanitation, and zero hunger.

In addition to major global summits aimed at halting climate change and ensuring universal access to water, several engineering projects are underway that promise some promising results. But obtaining and distributing this vital resource requires a huge infrastructure that is lacking in many places. For example, according to the American consulting company McKinsey, annual expenses for water infrastructure are about $50 billion.

The situation is not much different in the rest of the world.

China is preparing to build the huge Three Gorges Dam (which took 18 years to build) on the Yangtze River to connect it with Beijing. The project, which costs about 9 billion euros, will be part of a network of canals with a total length of about 20 thousand kilometers.

Another example is Egypt, one of the countries where the problem of water scarcity is the most acute. In order to get out of the difficult situation in this country, a 114-kmlong artificial river known as the “New Delta” is being built that is longer than the Nile. This is considered a challenge to nature and raises concerns about the feasibility of the ambitious project. When it becomes fully operational, it will be possible to transport more than 10 million cubic meters of water daily, both to ensure drinking water supply and to expand agricultural activities in the country.

The length of the artificial river projected in Saudi Arabia will be 12 thousand km. In this case, the water will be taken from huge desalination plants.

Another artificial river plan is for Libya, where 90 percent of the territory is desert.  There are areas of Libya that have not received any rainfall since the beginning of this century. Libya’s artificial river is a network of pipes built in the 1980s to supply water to the Sahara desert from fossil aquifers. There are more than 1,300 wells, most of which are more than 500 meters deep, and provide water to the city of Tripoli. The total cost of the Libyan infrastructure is estimated at more than $25 billion.

Those are the largest water projects in the world.

Israeli Innovation

When we talk about eliminating water scarcity, we should pay attention to the only country that has managed to reduce the area of ​​desert areas in the last 50 years – Israel.

Israel’s innovative methods for sustainable management of water resources and irrigation systems are now being used in China and more than 100 developing countries around the world. Thanks to modern technology, Israel has ceased to be a water-dependent state in the last few years, fully meets its needs and even supplies the Palestinians with water.

Today, only half of the water consumed by Israelis comes from natural sources, and the other half is provided artificially – through recycling and desalination. Israel is a leader in the production of fresh water from sea water.

In recent years, four desalination plants have been built here, and the fifth one is being prepared for operation. These measures were in response to the prolonged drought that ravaged Israel in the mid-2000s.

Sorek, the largest and most modern desalination plant in the world, is located on the Mediterranean coast – fifteen kilometers south of Tel Aviv – and covers about six football fields. This enterprise is the largest and most advanced company of its kind in the world. Its facilities produce 624,000 cubic meters of desalinated water per day, and the cost is one of the lowest in the world.