TRANSBOUNDARY WATER
By Clive Lipchin (adjunct professor: Environmental Studies, Tel Aviv University) & Richard Friend (senior lecturer: Human Geography, University of York) Water is a central element of the war between Israel and Hamas in the Gaza Strip. Israel controls several water pipelines entering Gaza. But water can also be a source of hope for an alternative future.*
COLLABORATIVE WATER MANAGEMENT: A PATH TO ISRAELI-PALESTINIAN PEACE
T
he Middle East is an arid region that is highly vulnerable to the effects of climate change. There is an essential need for solutions that offer equitable access to water and sanitation, and that protect Israel and the Palestinian territories’ shared water resources. A dry region with a growing population Israelis and Palestinians living in Israel, Gaza, and the West Bank have a combined population of roughly 14 million. Both populations are growing at nearly 2% annually, compared with 0.4% per year for high-income countries. As the populations grow, so does demand for water.
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The average yearly water supply for the region is less than 500 m3 per capita. According to the United Nations and other experts, this amount is at the upper threshold of absolute water scarcity – the level at which nations can’t meet all demand, especially the large amounts needed for agriculture, and have to restrict water use. For comparison, in 2015 the US used 1 207 m3 per capita of water. Israel and the Palestinian territories’ main freshwater resources are the Jordan River system and two groundwater aquifers – one along the Mediterranean coast and the other beneath the central Judean Mountains. Palestinians in the West Bank have access mainly to
the mountain aquifer system, and those in Gaza to the coastal aquifer. Israel uses both. The 1993 Oslo peace accords included provisions allocating water between Israelis and Palestinians, but ongoing conflict and continued disagreements have hindered updating these agreements to reflect rising water demand. Unequal access to water From the foundation of the state of Israel, access to water resources has been as central to the nation’s conflict with the Palestinian people as competing claims to land. Israel has partially decoupled itself from water scarcity by
