Lying at 411 meters under the sea level, The Dead Sea, a unique salt lake, an ecological and historical treasure is dying. Losing about 1 meter a year the Dead Sea has lost 1/3 of it's surface. After 75 000 years of fighting the dessert, the salt lake is drying up at an alarming rate. Far and away the biggest cause of the rapid disappearance of the Dead Sea is the lack of water coming into it from its traditional sources: the Jordan River and various side wadis (tributaries). Construction...
more »Lying at 411 meters under the sea level, The Dead Sea, a unique salt lake, an ecological and historical treasure is dying. Losing about 1 meter a year the Dead Sea has lost 1/3 of it's surface. After 75 000 years of fighting the dessert, the salt lake is drying up at an alarming rate. Far and away the biggest cause of the rapid disappearance of the Dead Sea is the lack of water coming into it from its traditional sources: the Jordan River and various side wadis (tributaries). Construction of dams, storage reservoirs, and pipelines for the desalinization and treatment of water has been greatly reducing water inflows to the Dead Sea. While much of this water is being used by the Israelis, Jordanians, and Palestinians for basic domestic consumption, most goes towards highly subsidised and inefficient agriculture.
Together with its ecological interest, the Dead Sea is rich in a wide variety of minerals, making it an attraction for millions of visitors wishing to take advantage of the therapeutic qualities of its minerals. In order to capitalize on the attractiveness of the Dead Sea region to visitors 4000 rooms are placed in a modern hotels complex and resorts who offer the visitors all the facilities with massages, mud wraps and therapeutic swims.
In addition to the diverted sources of water to the Dead Sea , Israeli and Jordanian industries on the south end of the sea are letting 180 million gallons of the mineral-rich water evaporate every day -- about 66 billion gallons a year -- to extract chemicals. The mineral extraction activities of the Dead Sea Works and the Arab Potash Company operating at the southern end of the Dead Sea have been major players in affecting the environmental stability of the region. Industrial solar evaporation ponds are responsible for 25-30% of the total evaporation of Dead Sea waters.
Industry has negative affects on air quality in the region by emitting dust and combustion gases.
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