Environmental Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
farming and sustain their livelihoods. Of course, their ultimate goal is to recover their
lands. In practical terms, however, their largest concern is the improvement of the
marketing position of their products and a decrease in their production costs. Both the
Palestinian Authority and the international community can provide support. Currently,
an action plan is being prepared for the second phase of the project.
Based on all of the above, one can see that Palestine does have water resources from
a geological, geographical and hydrological point of view. However, Palestine cannot
utilise these resources due to the current political situation, especially the extraction
practices of the Israelis both within the West Bank and along the Israeli side of the West
Bank's Green Line. Additionally, it is extremely important that the water resources that
are being utilised in Palestine are protected from contamination. Since Palestinians
have no access to the waters of the Jordan River Basin, the onus is on the groundwater
resources that are being used and that need to be protected. The increasing consumptive
use of water due to population growth and the extreme need for development results
in the full use of existing resources and accentuates the pressing need for new sources
and efficient use of the existing resources.
The Palestinians do, however, need to be observant. Increasing industrialisation
and economic growth without pollution prevention inevitably leads to more hazardous
waste generation. Economic utilisation of water and pollution control are basic tools
to avoid irreversible deterioration of water sources that will impair the future devel-
opment of existing and potential areas. Every cubic meter of water deemed unusable
due to poor quality or improper utilisation is in reality a direct loss in the water supply
for all Palestinian user sectors (Assaf 2004b).
Rational water management in Palestine should be founded upon a thorough
understanding of all the types of water available and its movement. A major objective
should be to view hydrological processes in relation to the environment as well as
human activities, emphasising the multi-purpose utilisation and conservation of water
resources to meet the needs of economic and social development throughout the area.
Water management, especially in this semi-arid area, should strive towards the formu-
lation and implementation of a sustainable socio-economic development policy with
corresponding regulations and guidelines (Assaf 2004a).
Yemen
In some cases dating back roughly 2000-3000 years, Yemen's water rights systems
have long defined the usage of groundwater at the base of the Arabian Peninsula. The
old rules dictate that the right to water usage is determined by land ownership; people
have the right to use the groundwater that flows under their land. These rules stem from
times when upstream users used a marginal quantity of the groundwater flow, leaving
ample resources to their downstream neighbours. Today, however, water is scarce,
and with everyone trying to use as much as possible, those residing downstream are
losing their drinking water. Groundwater use and the correspondent drop in the water
tables have been the main elements in the water debate in Yemen for the last twenty
years. In recent years, a number of doomsday scenarios were predicted. While the
problems are undeniable, the gloomy predictions have yet to materialise. This does not
mean that groundwater problems are not serious. One can, for example, point to real
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