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Posts Tagged ‘Dead Sea’

A fresh glass of cool, clear water is a luxury in many places of the world. For example, take the Dead Sea in the southern part of Israel. It is truly an exceptional spot on earth. First it is 1385 feet below sea level, the lowest place on the surface of the earth. Being the lowest, water cannot flow out of it and, thus, only evaporation allows water to escape, leaving behind all the solids dissolved in the water that flows in from the Jordan River. In that sense it is a natural waste dump for Israel and Jordan.

Secondly, at 8.6 times saltier than the oceans, the Dead Sea is second saltiest body of water on earth. That means a cup of water from the Dead Sea is 33.7% salt. Deeper water is even saltier so that, below 300 feet, the salt crystallizes and falls to the bottom. Third, at 42 feet long, 11 miles wide, and 1240 feet deep, it is the deepest salt lake in the world.

Because of the fact that the mineral laden water escapes only by evaporation, vast stores of potash, bromine, caustic soda, magnesium, and sodium chloride have dissolved in its waters over the last several thousand years. It was estimated that the Dead Sea area holds at least two trillion dollars worth of fertilizer compounds (presently 1.9 billion tons of potash), awaiting extraction. Ironically, what makes the Dead Sea dead has contributed to giving its homelands life.

The bad news is that the water level in the Dead Sea is dropping at an alarming rate of three feet a year. Since 1970, the level has dropped 72 feet. Why is this happening? The first reason is that very little rain feeds it directly. The northern part of the Dead Sea gets less than 4 inches of rain a year, while the southern part only gets about two inches. Also, manufacturing in the northern part of the country, and irrigation take away 90% of the normal amount of water flowing through the Jordan River.

The salts are reported to have therapeutic value and are taken out of the Dead Sea and sold for this. Desalination plants located in the southern part of the Sea both remove valuable products and provide fresh, clean water. This has also lowered the water table in the country, affecting the ability to provide enough water for the citizens and increasing the need to take water from the Jordan.

The entire country has been affected by this drop in water level. The Dead Sea has actually changed its shape. The bottom third of the Sea has always been much shallower than the rest. Some conjecture that the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah, mentioned in the Old Testament book of Genesis, were located in this area. But with the water level dropping, this southern area is drying up and is now the Lisan Peninsula (Arabic for “tongue” because of its shape) has completely separated the northern and southern parts of the Sea.

Of course, the Dead Sea is a great tourist attraction and a continued drop in its level may have an effect on this source of income. But the Dead Sea is, frankly, a healthy place to be, for it has a low level of allergens, increased air pressure, decreased ultra-violet solar radiation, and high levels of oxygen.

Presently Israel and Jordan are examining the possibility of a joint project called the “Two Seas Canal”. If it happens, a 125 mile pipeline would pump salt water from the Aqaba region of the Red Sea to the Dead Sea. As the water falls into the Dead Sea, it would generate hydroelectricity and the water would then be desalinated, providing 850 million cubic meters of fresh water a year.

A glass of fresh, clean water is surely something people in the west take for granted. Other nations must go to great trouble to provide it for their people, and often must limit its use so there is enough. Though even our dependable sources of water are threatened, wise stewardship will hopefully continue to permit us to enjoy this life-giving liquid for years to come.

But if you’re going to an area where the water is not pure, consider the Berkey Water Filters. The Berkey Light, or any of their models, ship with Black Berkey Filters that are so powerful, they are able to remove microscopic bacteria without taking out the minerals beneficial to your health. There is virtually no other water filter system that can do this.