Dead Sea Rescue One Step Closer
by Matthew Sparkes, London, UK on 05. 7.07
The Dead Sea is shrinking. Every year, for the past 25 years, it has slid back to reveal another 3 feet of shore. At this rate it will be entirely gone by 2050, taking its unique ecosystem with it.
When Jordan and Israel signed a peace treaty in 1994, they began investigating plans to reverse the process. One plan was to draw water from the Red Sea via an underground pipeline, but this was shelved when peace negotiations broke down.
The feasibility study for the project finally began this year though, but the pipeline will cost $1 billion, and full funding has not yet been found. Plans for a $1.5 billion plant to desalinate Red Sea waters for use by Jordan, Israel and the Palestinians are also being discussed.
"The Red-Dead project is very significant to Israel because the surrounding area is water-poor and in 10 or 15 years, there will be no water there," said Israeli Foreign Ministry official Jacob Keidar. :: ENN
