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The Dead Sea is the lowest point on Earth – at around 400 meters below sea level. Its shores run for more than 60 miles through Israel, the West Bank, and Jordan.
Now scientists are warning that the salt lake is slowly shrinking – as climate change and water consumed by nearby factories and other businesses deplete it.
By 2050, the Dead Sea, which was around in ancient times, could almost disappear within our lifetimes – if nothing changes.
“If we keep on taking fresh water from nature, from the Sea of Galilee or from the Euphrates, for example, we will eventually ruin the local environment. We are standing where we can learn the first lesson of we can’t exploit all the water the way we want to. We need to take care of nature as well or else we will all sink with it,” Dr. Ofir Katz of the Dead Sea & Arava Science Centre said.
Several thousand sinkholes along the banks already exist, as the earth collapses due to underground salt being dissolved by fresh water. Environmentalists say if the lake is to be restored, there’ll need to be more trust and cooperation in the region.
“Manufacture more water in the Mediterranean, produce renewable energy in the desert areas and create healthy interdependencies amongst us, Israelis, Palestinians, Jordanians first. Or we’re going to see, potentially, more conflict arising out of these increasingly scarce water resources,” co-founder of Ecopeace Gidon Bromberg said.
It’s now clear that much larger efforts are needed to preserve the Dead Sea as a natural treasure.
