Arava--Youths' Challenge to Nature By ILANA LEVINE (Copyright 1971, JTA, Inc.) - Relevance, communal living, im- plementation of values, protection of the environment are catchwords and deeply-felt goals of the young generation throughout the western world. Unfortunately, efforts to achieve these goals often erupt in senseless rioting and rock-throwing; not be- cause the desired end is unworthy, but rather because the young peo- ple do not really know it can be brought about. A• happier example is to be found in Israel, where the development of the Arava valley by young set- tlers of kibutzim (collective vil- lages) and moshavim (cooperative villages) are using their abundant energy to create a hospitable en- vironment for man in a harsh desert. Arava is a 115-mile long rift, stretching from the southern tip of the Dead Sea to Eilat. With the kingdom of Jordan immediately to the east, the Maya is Israel's longest continuous frontier and is the central artery connecting the center of the country with the Red Sea through which all maritime trade to Africa and Asia must pass. In biblical times, the Maya rf. ill PIEDMONT AUTO Hi ELECTRIC SERVICE il Passover Greetings Motor Tune-Up Specialist Trucks and Passenger Cars E. E. Harison Plymouth i:19215 2 • • • 41 BR 2-1600::: • • • • • • • • • • • • • • .• • • • • t, • • • Passover Greetings AWNING CO. .• •_ QUALITY Everything in Aluminum • • Canvas, Fiberglass Awnings • • /.„,.),}• "7937 Schaefer at Tireman • •• • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • • was part of the area of Sodom and Gomorra destroyed by God in his wrath against the sins of man. Since that day, thousands of years ago, the Arava was an endless desert, with the mono- tony of its parched earth re- lieved only by occasional tired gray thistles. Its only function was as a travel and trade route. Most scholars be- lieve that the Israelites journeyed through the Arava in their exodus from Egypt. The route was later used by the Queen of Sheba on her fabled journey to meet King Solo- mon. The Romans established for- tified stations along the way to protect their trade; and centuries after occasional Bedouin caravans traveled the Arava, often for smuggling operations. However, there is no evidence, written or archeological, of perma- nent settlement in the valley until the area became part of the state of Israel in 1949. The first agricul- tural experimental station was opened one year later in an effort to find productive use for the land, which, as a border area, had to be populated. For the past 20 years, the Arava has drawn young people searching for ways of creating something new. Most settlers are in their 20s or early 30s, from both rural and urban backgrounds. In creating an economic base for the eight villages established to date in the valley, the settlers make use of a factor which was once considered a hindrance to habitation—the climate. High tem- peratures are the rule the year- round and 100 degrees F. is com- mon for most of the long summer. The fact that fruit, vegetables and flowers could be grown also in winter, when in Europe they are in short supply, has turned the Arava into a major exporter of agricultural produce and an im- portant source of foreign currency for Israel. However, though it has been -.=Best Wishes for a Joyous Holiday Season PAUL INMAN ASSOCIATES ••=.0.=*=.=-=-=.t. Ham Passover to Our Relatives and Friends - - - , MIDWEST WASTEMATERIAL CO. Rol and Cotton Rags 1947 E. Kirby 923-6400 LAFAYETTE STEEL CORPORATION Extends Its Heartfelt Best Wishes ' for a Happy Passover 6837 Wyoming, Dearborn 584-6888 Happy Passover DUNK DONUT SHOPS 149 W. 6 Mile near Woodward, Highland Park TO 9-9499 Wishing All Our Friends and Customers A Happy, Healthy, Peaceful• Passover The Robert Hirsch Company and Famil CARPETS GREEN4 SHOPPING CENTER 21184 GREENFIELD ROAD OAK PARK, MICH. 48237 proven that the Arava is econo- mically viable, its problems are far from ended. Each site to be farmed, each plot for a house, must undergo extensive reclama- tion.. For the Jewish National Fund, Israel's land development authority, the opening up of the Arava entails a number of spe- cial difficulties and the need to devise new methods of preparing land for settlement. The basic factor determining the site of a new village is the discov- ery of a source of underground water, since rainfall is less than two inches annually. Once a well has proven successful, the Fund has to make the best of whatever land surface is in the vicinity. In a number of cases, there is almost no soil at all, just layer after layer of gravel washed down from the Edom Mountains to the east. Thou- sands of tons of fertile earth are brought to the sites from areas as far as the Galilee and either spread as a deep blanket or placed in channels. In other instances, soil is there but its high salinity content de- stroys fertility. The JNF, together with the ministry of agriculture, initiated a soil rinsing program. Sprinklers are operated 24 hours a day, with the water saturating the earth and forcing the salt and other undesirable minerals deep enough into the ground so as not to affect the top soil. Such treat- ment of a plot normally takes one week and 1,000 cubic meters of water. Once the soil problem is solved, the JNF is faced with the diffi- culty of protecting the newly re- claimed lands. The villain is flash- flooding. Though total seasonal rainfall is extremely low, the rain that does come descends in torren- tial storms which sweep through the valley floor and destroy every thing in sight. Therefore, the Fund digs deep channels edged with high earthen embankments which direct the flow away from the populated and cultivated sites. This year, for the JNF's 70th anniversary, the further develop- ment of the Arava has been chosen as the central project. JNF has undertaken to reclaim an additional 30,400 dunams of land which will permit the ex- pansion of the existing eight vil- lages and the establishment of six new ones by 1973. New settlements are of vital im- portance since the wide spaces be- tween the present villages afford a convenient access for infiltrators across the Jordanian border. Most of the settlements in the area have had incidents of minings and shell- ings. Especially since the Six-Day War, large groups of terrorists have been caught by the defense forces in the unpopulated gaps in the valley. • Together with its reclamation work, the Fund also is engaged in afforestation in the Arava. Trees are planted in the settlements to serve as shelterbelts shielding crops from wind and storms and to afford a bit of greenery for the otherwise desolate landscape. In addition, the JNF has begun to plant small groves along the Arava highway for which it also provides picnic facilities. The groves have become popular relaxation sites for travelers on their way to and from Eilat. The development of the Arava is progressing. Some of the older set- tlements already have such lux- uries as swimming pools and the possibility of sending many of their members to universities. Even the newer villages have installed air conditioning. In fact, the solution to the Arava's climate problem has been found in air conditioning the houses and working in the fields in the early morning hours. Economic prospects are encouraging, but substantial work still is required to come to terms with nature. There are optical illusions In time as well as in space. —Marcel Proust. THE DETROIT JEWISH NEWS Friday, April 9, 1971-25 Passover Best Wishes Happy Passover McNICHOLS HARDWARE BEDROOMS Inc. Detroit's Only Exclusive Bedroom Store Dishmaster Sales • Service 13320 W. McNICHOLS 5802 E. 8 Mile TW 1-1720 Next to Sofas, Inc. UN 3-0838 Happy Passover To Our Friends and Patrons Passover Greetings MIDWEST FIRE ADJUSTERS, INC. Mr. and Mrs. J. BERKOWITZ Mackey Co. Chas. I. Jacobson, David Gross and Allen Gross 14744 FEN.KELL BRoadway 3 9450 - PASSOVER GREETINGS Best Wishes For A Happy Passover Oakland Waste Material Co. 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