Israel: A Global Leader

in Water Management
and Technology

State of israel
Ministry of Foreign Affairs

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 When the poor and needy seek water, and

there is none, and their tongue faileth for thirst,

I the Lord will hear them, I the God of Israel will

not forsake them.

I will open rivers in high places, and fountains

in the midst of the valleys: I will make the

wilderness a pool of water, and the dry land

springs of water.

Isaiah 41:17-18

Ministry of Foreign Affairs

Media and Public Affairs Division
Information and Visual Media Department
Director: Mordehay Rodgold
Project Manager: Ariella Charny
Design: Batel Leibowitz
Editing: Michal Horneman

Special thanks to Abraham Tenne, former Head of the Desalination

Division at the Israel Water Authority and former chairman of the Water
Desalination Administration for his leadership in this project.

State of israel
Ministry of Foreign Affairs

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Contents:
1. Historical background
2. Quantities and qualities
3. Technology and integrated water management
4. Water conservation
5. Desalination
6. Water reuse
7. Agriculture
8. River rehabilitation
9. International cooperation
10. Water as a bridge to peace

The Sea of Galilee 3

 1. HISTORICAL BACKGROUND

Over 60 percent desert,

Israel is located in a semi-
arid climate zone. For
thousands of years, the
history of the Land of Israel
has been influenced by the
scarcity of water.

The ancient nation of

Israel faced many cases of
water shortages and found
creative solutions; one of
the most famous stories in
the Bible is that of Moses
drawing water from a rock
during the Israelites’ 40- Moses drawing water from the rock, Joachim Wtewael, 1624
year journey back to Israel
from Egypt through the arid
desert.

In the modern era, as one couldn’t rely on the old “technology” Moses used, Israel needed
to create new solutions to address water scarcity in order to survive - and indeed thrive.

In the early years after Israel was established, the population grew rapidly with the influx
of immigrants. As the tiny country struggled with a significant water shortage, its leaders
launched an initiative to close the gap between demand and the available renewable fresh
natural water (RFNW) in the country. RFNW came from the mountain and coastal aquifers
and the only body of freshwater, the Sea of Galile.

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The national authorities
together with the private
sector developed a number The Mountain Aquifer between the
of water-related initiatives all Mediterranean Sea and the Jordan River
over the country, including:
storage solutions, water transfer
by gravity and pumping
stations, water drills, water Gilboa The Sea of
quality inspection and control, Taninim Springs Galilee
wastewater collection, and water Springs
Mediterranean
and wastewater treatment. Over Sea
time, other Israeli breakthroughs Yarkon
were made in desalination, Springs Kingdom of
Jordan
public education, irrigation,
water pricing policy, and water Tel Aviv
recycling. Israel also set up Jerusalem
and implemented the legal and
regulatory framework necessary
for establishing an efficient Dead Sea
water sector.

Beer Sheva
In recent decades, cutting-edge
innovations developed in Israel
to tackle the water shortage
helped position Israel as a world
leader in all aspects of water
management.
Western aquifer

Northeastern aquifer

Eastern aquifer

Major springs

Major water flow direction

Red Sea

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2. QUANTITY AND QUALITY

Quantity

In 2015, the total demand for water in Israel was about 2.2 billion cubic meters (BCM).
Meanwhile, the average yearly enrichment of water in the Sea of Galilee and the main
aquifers for the last 10 years was slightly less than 1.2 BCM. Thus, the gap between demand
and natural resources in 2015 should have been more than 1 BCM.

The major achievement of the Israeli water sector was that it succeeded in closing that
significant gap and supplying the demand in a sustainable way. This was done by (1)
saving water, (2) reusing wastewater and (3) desalinating sea and brackish water, thereby
increasing available supply by more than 1 BCM annually. With the introduction of recycled
and desalinated water, Israel no longer relies exclusively on RFNW (Renewable Fresh
Natural Water); as a result, since 1967, per capita consumption of RFNW has dropped
dramatically.

Decrease in per-capita consumption of RFNW (Renewable

Fresh Natural Water) in million cubic meters per year

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But the challenge persists. The demand for water is still increasing from year to year
due to population growth (the population has increased tenfold since the country’s
establishment), and the rise in the standard of living. Meanwhile, the amount of
precipitation is decreasing at an average of 10-15% every 30 years due to climate change.

With current projections, the demand for water in 2050 will be about 3.5 BCM annually. At
the same time, the average amount of natural enrichment will be less than 1.1 BCM a year,
which will result in an annual shortage of 2.4 BCM – more than twice the gap faced in 2015.

In order to close the gap in the coming decades, Israel will continue saving water and
increasing water treatment, recycling and desalination.

Quality

The quality standards for water and wastewater used in Israel are based on the most
advanced international standards of the EPA, WHO, and the EU. Adding increasingly more
desalinated water to the national grid increases the quality of the drinking water. It is safe
to drink tap water everywhere in the country. The high standard of wastewater treatment
allows Israel to reuse effluents for unlimited irrigation in agriculture and in public and
private gardens.

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 3. TECHNOLOGY AND INTEGRATED
WATER MANAGEMENT

Until recent years, only natural potable water was available in Israel for drinking, irrigation,
industry, and personal use. In 1937 the national utility “Mekorot” was established to manage
the pumping and transfer of water to plants all over Israel. From 1959-1964, the National
Water Carrier was built to transfer water from the north, where precipitation is higher, to
the arid southern part of Israel.

Next, from 1990-2010, stormwater was harvested for agriculture while many new drilling
sites were constructed across the country, providing volumes of water with varying
qualities and compositions.

In 1985 Israel began reusing treated wastewater for agricultural irrigation, and constructed
and managed new regional water grids providing recycled water.

In 2005, Israel introduced desalinated water into the national grid.

In 2007, in order to control and regulate all water and wastewater issues, the governmental
Sewage and Water Authority was created to become a one-stop-shop for managing all
water issues, including water utilities, water conservation, water reuse, water quotas,
desalination, water technologies, hydrology and pricing.

Establishment of ‫״‬Mekorot‫״‬ Establishment of Construction of the Introduction of treated Introduction of

to manage the pumping the state of israel National Water Carrier wastewater into agriculture; desalinated water into
and transfer of water to transfer water from Introduction of recycled the national grid
north to south water into grids

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 The Water Authority published a
Master Plan for the next 40 years, to be
updated every five years, and drafted
numerous regulations and standards
to manage the complex sector. All
of the water in Israel passes through
sophisticated metering systems.

The startup ecosystem in Israel gave

rise to numerous water technologies,
some of which were used and tested
in beta sites and in water utility
companies, with a government-
approved budget for each project.
These technologies were later adopted
by the water sectors of many countries
around the world. Among the systems
invented in Israel are: drip irrigation,
advanced filtration, advanced water
leakage detection, rainwater collection
and treatment systems, water security
and smart-city technologies.

Creation of the Nearly half of all water

Sewage and Water consumed in Israel is
Authority of Israel desalinated or recycled
water (1 BCM)
Drip irrigation technology
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 4. WATER CONSERVATION
As a response to water scarcity, Israel launched several large-scale campaigns to promote
water conservation.

1. Education: The Israel Water Authority launched a series of programs for children that
taught them how to save water using simple means, thus building a new generation of
conscientious citizens.

2. TV campaigns: The Israeli Water Authority periodically launched TV, radio and internet
campaigns that addressed the water scarcity in Israel as an ongoing situation and urged
the public to save water. One major campaign, which featured celebrities, ran in 2009 and
achieved the astounding result of an 18% reduction in water consumption in urban areas.

Israeli supermodel Bar Rafaeli in the 2009 water conservation

campaign video called “Israel is drying out”

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 3. Water management: Israel maintained
and operated the main water piping
and pumping systems with efficient
budget allocation and water metering.
With proper piping management, Israel
succeeded in reducing its countrywide
water loss to less than 10%.

4. Water tariffs: As of 2008, water in

Israel is no longer subsidized by the
government, which means that the water
sector is an economically stable market
and that the money collected from
the end users covers the investments
needed for the sector.

5. Irrigation: More than 50% of Israel’s

water demand comes from agriculture
and gardening. (In many countries,
agricultural water usage can reach up to
70-80%.) Using advanced methods such
as drip irrigation (which was invented
in Israel about 50 years ago), Israel was
able to cut down by more than 30% the
amount of water needed for irrigation.

Drip irrigation technology

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 5. DESALINATION
In 1999, the Israeli government initiated a long-term,
large-scale SWRO (Seawater Reverse Osmosis)
Israeli desalination plants and their
desalination program. The program was designed to
production capacities, in million
answer the growing demand for Israel’s scarce water
cubic meters (MCM) per year
resources, and to mitigate the drought conditions that
have characterized most years since the mid-1990’s.

Construction of the first large-scale (120 MCM/year)

desalination facility was initiated in 2003 by private Sea of
Mediterranean Galilee
companies that won the government’s public tenders Sea
for construction, maintenance, and operation of the 130 Hadera
facility.
150
Sorek
Subsequent desalination facilities were constructed 45
Kingdom
of Jordan
Palmachim
and operated following the same fundamental 100
Ashdod
procedures of public tendering and bids by the private 120 Ashkelon
sector. Israel’s long-term, large-scale reverse-osmosis
seawater desalination program began contributing Dead
Sea
potable water to the national water grid in 2005.

Since the initiation of the desalination program,

there have been several shifts in government policy
regarding the targeted annual output of desalinated
water. In July 2007, following several years of drought,
the targeted desalinated water production-capacity
was set to 505 MCM/year, to be reached by the year
2013. In 2008, following another year of drought, the
target capacity was increased to 750 MCM/year, to be
reached by the year 2020.
Red Sea

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Israel’s desalination facilities are essential to sustaining potable water in Israel, since they
supplement the severely limited natural resources to a level that meets existing national
potable water demands. Desalinated water allowed Israel to close the gap between natural
water resources and demand, and to realize plans to maintain this sustainable consumption
rate in the upcoming decades.

The five Israeli seawater desalination plants are among the twelve largest plants globally;
the Sorek plant is the largest in the world. In addition, there are about 30 smaller facilities
for desalinating brackish water from groundwater wells, as opposed to seawater, that are
located in Eilat, the Arava Desert, the Negev region and the southern coastal plain of the
Carmel. The seawater desalination facilities provide 585 MCM/year and the 30 brackish
water desalination facilities provide another 65 MCM/year. As of 2015, the desalination
plants altogether provide 650 MCM of Israel’s potable water (to all sectors).

According to targets set in the Water Authority’s Master Plan for Water Sector
Development, for the years 2015, 2025, and 2050, the construction of additional
desalination facilities is expected to increase desalinated supplies to approximately 30%,
40%, and 60% of all national potable water demands, respectively. Any supplementary
desalinated water that is not utilized during these years will be used to replenish Israel’s
natural water systems.

The rise in desalination (in million cubic meters)

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 6. WATER RECYCLING
Utilizing municipal wastewater as a new resource (mainly for agriculture) proved to be a
major element in closing the gap between consumer demand and available resources in
Israel. Wastewater is a constant source of water throughout the year, and is not dependent
upon fluctuations in climate. It depends only on population growth and the standard of
living. Reusing water requires collecting all the wastewater and treating it to a secondary
or tertiary treatment, then sending the treated effluent to reservoirs, pumping stations and
piping systems, and from there to the fields. It also involves a very sophisticated regulatory
and tariff system.

The Shafdan wastewater treatment plant in central Israel

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From 1985 to 2015, Israel succeeded in reclaiming more than than 500 million cubic
meters a year for agricultural irrigation. By 2015, Israel was treating and recycling 86%
of its wastewater for use in agriculture - ranking Israel as the number one global leader
when it comes to water recycling. Within the next decade, Israel plans to reach 90% water
reclamation. At the same time, Israel is upgrading its wastewater treatment to tertiary
treatment, which will allow for unlimited irrigation.

Israel ranks first in the world in wastewater recycling

Israel Spain Australia Italy Greece C. Europe

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 7. AGRICULTURE
Water and food security is a major concern for our Earth's rapidly growing population. As
resources dwindle and the population rises, smart solutions for better agriculture and safer
food storage become essential. No other country – certainly not one as young and as tiny
as Israel – has contributed more breakthroughs in the field of agriculture in arid regions
than Israel.

In recent decades, Israeli farmers succeeded in doubling the agricultural yield from each
cubic meter of water used for irrigation. This is especially significant considering that
agriculture accounts for some 50% of the water consumption in Israel, or about 1 BCM of
water annually. Israel is also an exporter of water-intensive produce like tomatoes, peppers
and melons.

Improving whole-plant water use efficiency at the

16 Vulcani Institute for Agricultural Research
 One of the keys to Israel’s success in agriculture is the close collaboration and interaction
between Israeli agricultural research institutes, farmers, and extension services (which
facilitate the transfer of agricultural research and techniques to the field level).

For years, the trend in Israeli agriculture has been to use more recycled and stormwater,
and less potable water, to irrigate crops. In 2015, more than 50% of the water used in
Israel’s agriculture (more than 500 MCM) came from storm and recycled water. This also
allowed the price of agricultural water to stay relatively low compared to that of potable
water for the end users.

Israel is constantly developing new methods of irrigation and crop cultivation in hot, arid
regions such as the Israeli Negev; most notable among them is the highly efficient drip
irrigation system. With these innovations and a plentiful supply of recycled, reasonably
priced water, Israel has become a role model for other arid countries and regions around
the globe.

Orchards in the arid desert Cherry tomatoes grown with drip irrigation17
 8. RIVER REHABILITATION
River contamination is a critical issue all over the world, with numerous countries investing
heavily in preventing river contamination and initiating cleanup efforts.

Over the past years, the Israeli government invested in cleaning contaminated rivers and
streams across Israel. The cleaning process involves physical and chemical treatment of
the contaminated water and sediment, as well as filtration of the contaminated materials
that are collected during the process. A great deal of regulation was implemented in the
country to prevent further river contamination, including standards dictating to what
degree wastewater must be treated prior to its introduction into rivers or streams.

Two examples of rehabilitated rivers include the Kishon River in the north and the Yarkon
River in central Israel. In the past, wastewater from industry and municipalities flowed into
these two rivers; the contamination remained in the water for many years. Hundreds of
millions of dollars were and continue to be invested in these rivers’ clean-up projects.

Major Rivers in Israel

Lebanon
Mediterranean Dan
Sea Snir 20 km
60 km
Syria

Sea of
Hakishon Galilee
70 km
Yarmouk
70 km

Jordan
251 km
Yarkon Kingdom
28 km of Jordan

Dead Sea

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The Yarkon River in central Israel
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 9. INTERNATIONAL
COOPERATION
Since the 1950's, Israelis have not only been finding groundbreaking ways to make their
own deserts blossom, but have shared their technologies far and wide through channels
such as MASHAV, Israel’s Agency for International Development Cooperation at the Ministry
of Foreign Affairs.

MASHAV’s activities abroad are based on Israel’s own agricultural development experience;
MASHAV introduces regions to innovative Israeli irrigation techniques, which revolutionize
farming in arid and semi-arid lands; shares post-harvest know-how, and works to enhance
economic viability through storage, transport, and financial solutions.

The GalMobile, a first of its kind, Israeli-made portable emergency water Implementing agro-technologies in India
purification and desalination system; it was deployed by MASHAV in the
Marshall Islands in 2015
MASHAV and SINADCO – International Agricultural Development Cooperation – conduct
regular seminars and training programs both in Israel and abroad on water, agricultural
technologies and agro-food management to share Israeli knowhow with developing and
developed countries.

Seeking to share its experience and solutions to alleviate global water scarcity, Israel has
signed memorandums of understanding (MOUs) with numerous countries, regions and
cities. Israel has shared and adapted water technologies, among others, in China, India,
Vietnam, Taiwan, Italy, Brazil, Mexico, South Korea, Poland, Russia, Canada and the United
States.

MASHAV's vision:

"We envision a world in which those living in

poverty are empowered to improve their own lives."

Growing lettuce in Senegal using drip irrigation

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 10. WATER AS A BRIDGE
FOR PEACE
Israel provides large amounts of water to both the Palestinian Authority and the Kingdom
of Jordan. Israel, the Kingdom of Jordan and the Palestinian Authority have formed several
joint committees for managing water issues.

Israel also goes to lengths to share its knowledge on water management and technology
with its neighbors, offering seminars to Palestinian and Jordanian counterparts in
wastewater collection and treatment, water reuse, desalination and tendering procedures.
Theoretical lessons as well as practical work is offered at some of the water management
plants in Israel.

A tremendous regional project between Israel, Jordan and the Palestinian Authority
called “Red Sea-Dead Sea” is set to contribute dramatically to the water security of all
three parties in the coming years. The project includes the construction of an extensive
pipeline from the Red Sea to the Dead Sea; a large desalination facility north of Aqaba,

The Dead Sea

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Jordan; piping systems to supply water from
the facility throughout the region; and a
hydroelectric power plant. While the project,
as of 2016, is still in the tender-bidding stage,
it is set to produce some 70 million cubic
meters of desalinated water and to transfer
some 300 million cubic meters of water from
the Red Sea to the Dead Sea.

Natural water resources, which transcend

political boundaries, can be managed in a
cooperative, sustainable manner to maximize
the prosperity of all players in the region;
collaboration on water issues can truly serve
as a bridge for peace in the Middle East.

The Red Sea - Dead Sea Project

Amman

Waterline

Discharge
Diffuser

Hydroelectric
plant

Egypt Kingdom of
Kingdom of
Pipeline Jordan
Jordan

Desalination
plant

Intake Pumping
Station

Red Sea

The Red Sea

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Israel: A Global Leader in Water Management and Technology
In the past decades, Israel achieved a water miracle. By adopting a
holistic approach to water consumption that encompasses good
management, high tech development and public education, Israel
transformed from a water-parched nation to a global leader in
the water sector.

State of israel
Ministry of Foreign Affairs