Editor's Letter

The Waste Of Water

I

n the arid Middle East, fresh water should never be
taken for granted. It's a precious sustainer of life. It's also
a core discussion point of the on-again, off-again peace
talks between Israel and the Palestinian Authority (P.A.),
which controls the West Bank. Access to water will certainly
be a fundamental component of any future agreement.
Despite reports to the contrary,
the amount of water that Israel pro-
vides and makes available to the P.A.
exceeds the terms set forth in the
Oslo II Accords (the 1995 Israeli-
Palestinian Interim Agreement on the
West Bank and the Gaza Strip).
Equally significant, the P.A. has
mismanaged its water resources
at an alarmingly high loss rate
— a third of its total water sup-
ply. Mismanagement includes the
illegal diversion of water from the
Israeli water provider, Mekorot, which supplies both Israel
and the P.A. The consequence is a water shortage in Hebron
and other Palestinian towns. In contrast, the Israeli water
network's average water loss is just 11 percent.
It's distressing that the Palestinians
knowingly skirt the Israeli-Palestinian Joint
Water Committee. They could easily tap into
Israel's Eastern Aquifer for water. Instead,
they have dug 250 wells that lead mainly to
the Northern Aquifer — without committee
approval and in violation of Oslo II.

Ungrateful Recipients
I share this water watch because it's yet
another stark example of how Israel has
extended thirst-quenching support to the
West Bank only to be rebuffed by the so-
called beneficiaries. The findings comprise
a telling 2010 report issued by the Israel
Project, an independent organization dedi-
cated to accurate Middle East reporting.
Surprises emanating from the Fatah-led P.A. never cease.
The Palestinians invoked politics to reject a plan that would
have created a water desalination plant in the Israeli coastal
city of Hadera specifically to serve the West Bank. The sur-
real claim: They shouldn't have to pay for water derived from
Israeli access to the sea. "The U.S. had set aside $250 million
for the project, which could have yielded a huge increase in
the amount of available water for the Palestinians:' reports the
Water Authority of the State of Israel.
And because the Palestinian Water Authority didn't build
enough water treatment centers as delineated by Oslo II,
65 percent of West Bank wastewater flows untreated into
streams and the countryside. Israelis also are subject to the
pollutants.
For example, according to the Israeli water authority, the
Hebron stream that flows toward the Beersheva Valley is now
polluted; nearby Palestinian and Israeli communities suffer
from polluted water, bad odors, flies and mosquitoes. The
Nablus stream, which flows westward, also pollutes water
inside Israel. Many other streams have become wastewater
channels for Palestinian towns. The untreated water eventu-
ally caused the Northern Aquifer to become polluted. That

prompted the contamination and closure of wells in the
Bethlehem district, Jerusalem district and Jordan Valley.

A Better Way
The civilized world should condemn the intentional screw-up.
Notes the Israel Project: "The wastewater could be treated and
reused for agricultural purposes to free up fresh water sup-
plies for human consumption, as is done in Israel!'
International donors have pledged $300 million to the
Palestinians to achieve that — to no avail. The net result
according to Israel's water guardians: The Palestinians'
untreated effluent pollutes the environment and contaminates
the wells and aquifers of the West Bank.
Think about the harmful ramifications of that Palestinian
Authority blunder!
The Israel Project sums it up bluntly: "If the Palestinians
were to enact measures to prevent water losses, reuse treated
water and utilize the Eastern Aquifer, problems of water
access and distribution could be ameliorated."
Indeed, they could.
The fact remains that the P.A. considers the State of Israel
part of its ultimate domain so probably figures ifs fine to
beset Israelis with the same bad water and health concerns
that West Bank residents have long endured.
Notably, the Palestinian Authority's official
television station, P.A. TV, still teaches in its
twice-weekly children's program "Katakit"
("Chicks"), that all of Israel is part of the
"state of Palestine."

The Israel Model
While the P.A. has seeming little regard for
Israeli water support, Israel continues to
lead by example in the realm of prudent
1120 usage. Its treated wastewater, desalina-
tion facilities and other water-saving proce-
dures add 28 million cubic feet per year to
its water supply, amounting to 33 percent of
the state's total water usage.
According to a 2005 report by the
European Commission, Israel uses more wastewater effluents
on a percentage basis per capita for agricultural irrigation
than any other country in the world. Israel also excels in over-
all wastewater use.
Water usage, treatment and distribution may not grab
headlines like terror, violence and politics, but let there be no
doubt: It matters.
It's not a stretch to think the Palestinians would legitimately
fear for their lives with a severe shortage of clean water were it
not for the common sense and high-tech savvy of their Israeli
neighbors when it comes to generating fresh water.
I am flummoxed why the Palestinians can't see that their
way of life, and the welfare of the region, is strengthened
because of the knowledge and know-how of the tiny, but oh-
so-inventive State of Israel. ❑

401-

BERT AND SAMANTHA GREEN

THANK YOU to over 100

enthusiastic volunteers,

including many from Jewish

Federation's It's a Mitzvah

Day, for coming out and

making JARC homes

"bloom" with springtime.

Special thanks to Harry's

Garden Center in Warren

for the thousands of

beautiful flowers and to

John Marx for all of his

hard work as Chair of our

2010 Flower-A-Thon.

Whether as a volunteer or

donor, your generous support

will benefit the men, women

and children JARC serves.

Help JARC continue...

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t -- •
Palestinians' waste of water?
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I— 0
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the Palestinian culture of
6 oz Can
inefficient
services be changed?
a. IL

248.538.6611

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June 17 • 2010

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