The driest November ever
Barring significant rain between now and Tuesday, which seems unlikely given this coming weekend's expected unseasonably warm temperatures, this month will go on record as the driest November in 83 years - which is as long as records have been kept. And it's not just this month. With no significant rainfall thus far, the dire predictions regarding this winter have become a reality, the Water Authority said Thursday. With November nearing its end, Lake Kinneret will likely receive the least amount of water it has ever received since records started being kept in 1927.Read the whole thing.
No rain, the dryness and warm temperatures have increased the evaporation rates off the lake, such that it is losing about half a centimeter a day. It is already a meter below the bottom red line. The lake is also expected to break the record set in 2001 for least amount of drinking water available in the month of November.
After the driest November in the north in 48 years, it doesn't look like the situation will be getting any better next month either, the Water Authority said. Their forecasters fear the dry spell will continue into December and further lower the water levels in the aquifers and springs, in addition to Lake Kinneret.
The cabinet is set to discuss an emergency water plan to take the country through the next two years next Sunday. After seven years of little rainfall and no bumper years expected in the near future, the situation is expected to get worse before it gets better.
The situation will only begin to get better, the Water Authority believes, in 2013, when all of the desalination plants will be producing 600 million cubic meters of water a year. While that amount won't erase the deficit caused by seven or maybe even nine straight years of little rainfall, it is believed that it will eventually enable the stabilization of the situation. By taking the full burden of providing water away from Divine will, it should provide a buffer to enable the natural reservoirs to gradually replenish.
The situation would be considerably worse right now if three desalination plants weren't producing 300 million cubic meters of water a year already.
What they're not telling you here is that Israel is the World leader in desalination technology, but the government kept watching its technology leaders sell their wares to others instead of buying it themselves for years on end. Last year was the only year in the last seven that we exceeded the average annual rainfall, and we didn't exceed it by much. It wasn't enough.
And it gets worse. If - God forbid - Israel turns over control of Judea and Samaria's water resources to the 'Palestinians,' it will be turning over control of one billion cubic meters of water per year. By comparison, our entire residential consumption (which is still considered quite high for this region) is between 600 and 700 million cubic meters.
On Monday, we will have our second fast for rain this month. Things are getting desperate here.
Labels: drought, Kineret, rainfall
posted by Carl in Jerusalem @ 8:30 AM
6 Comments:
Israel is wealthy enough to haul a couple of icebergs from the Arctic. Now might be a good time to do it.
What could go wrong indeed
If the Arabs start bathing or start washing the donkey sung from their streets,Israel is finished.
If the Arabs start bathing or start washing the donkey sung from their streets,Israel is finished.
The Torah tells us why we are in the current situation. It's just that we refuse to listen and do something about it. We won't turn to haShem either, we turn to being more strict of the rabbinical commandments. Its finished, we can't see it, nor want to listen.
Shiloh,
I actually saw something in town today that said that a lack of rain is punishment for not being careful about Trumoth u'Maasroth (tithing), but I did not have time to read the entire poster.
Carl, giving charity is certainly good, but it won't attone for our transgressions.
I don't know if you live in a bubble, but with an example of 85% of Israeli couples admitting to extra marital affairs, charity won't do much. Today, the midot in Israel is let's just say, not up to par. In business you have to watch every move one makes. This is just a small example of the woes we have today. I don't know how much further we can go down, but it's sad to watch. I am holding back on what I really need to say, but I think we are too far gone for any good to come out of it. Shavua Tov.
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