220
of the recycled water and the brine from the mini Red Sea–Dead Sea Project will be
suffi cient to stabilise the Dead Seat at its current level.
An advantage of this alternative is that it does not require investment in a largescale conveyance project, such as those considered in the Red Sea–Dead Sea and
Southern Mediterranean–Dead Sea Projects.
11 Moreover, the 367 × 10
6 m
3 /year of
brine discharge in the Dead Sea is below the 400 × 10
6 m
3 /year fl ow considered safe
(i.e. unlikely to give rise to gypsum crystallisation, stratifi cation or algae bloom) by
the Dead Sea study (TAHAL and GSI 2011 ). Disadvantages are the potential risks
associated with letting 400 × 10
6 m
3 /year of recycled water fl ow into the Dead Sea
(e.g. effect on algae bloom), and these risks will need to be investigated and are
likely to have ramifi cations regarding associated recycling technologies and costs.
To sum up, population growth will require increasing the supply of potable water
to satisfy the needs of the growing population. As the natural water sources are
already fully exploited, this will require better management of existing water
sources (e.g. by pricing water to refl ect true costs of supply) and increasing the supply of potable water from an alternative source such as desalination. Environmental
standards require appropriate treatment of all sewage, implying, given the current
recycling technology, that 60 to 65 % of the total domestic water consumption will
be available for reuse, mostly in irrigation and environmental restoration. Given the
population projections of Fig. 14.2 , by 2050 the supply of recycled water will
exceed 2,000 × 10
6 m
3 /year. About 400 × 10
6 m
3 /year of this supply can be allocated
for the joint purpose of partial restoration of the lower Jordan River and the Dead
Sea. The additional 300–400 × 10
6 m
3 /year required to stabilise the Dead Sea at its
current level may come from a mini Red Sea–Dead Sea Project that will desalinate
300 × 10
6 m
3 /year at Aqaba (100 × 10
6 m
3 /year) and near the Dead Sea (200 × 10
6 m
3 /
year) and will discharge 367 × 10
6 m
3 /year of brine in the Dead Sea. The mini Red
Sea–Dead Sea Project will serve the dual purpose of alleviating the shortage of
potable water in the region (mainly in Jordan) and contributing to the stabilisation
of the Dead Sea.
The cost of recycled water is estimated at USD 0.45/m
3 (the cost of conveyance
to Naharayim–Bakura of USD 0.19/m
3 plus USD 0.26/m
3 compensation to irrigators). The benefi t due to partial restoration of the lower Jordan River was estimated
between USD 0.23/m
3 and USD 0.87/m
3 , where restoration by recycled water is
receiving the lower values. The net cost left for the Dead Sea reclamation is therefore below USD 0.22/m
3 (= USD 0.45/m
3 minus USD 0.23/m
3 ). The costs of the
brine discharge from the mini Red Sea–Dead Sea Project are comparable to the
costs of the full-scale project reported in Figs. 14.3 and 14.4 .
scarcity problem (see discussion in Tsur ( 2014 ). The brine discharge in the Dead Sea is a
by-product that contributes to stabilising the Dead Sea.
11 The infrastructure investment required by the Red Sea–Dead Sea Project was estimated above
USD 10 billion (Coyne et Bellier 2014 ).
A.I.H. Malkawi and Y. Tsur
of the recycled water and the brine from the mini Red Sea–Dead Sea Project will be
suffi cient to stabilise the Dead Seat at its current level.
An advantage of this alternative is that it does not require investment in a largescale conveyance project, such as those considered in the Red Sea–Dead Sea and
Southern Mediterranean–Dead Sea Projects.
11 Moreover, the 367 × 10
6 m
3 /year of
brine discharge in the Dead Sea is below the 400 × 10
6 m
3 /year fl ow considered safe
(i.e. unlikely to give rise to gypsum crystallisation, stratifi cation or algae bloom) by
the Dead Sea study (TAHAL and GSI 2011 ). Disadvantages are the potential risks
associated with letting 400 × 10
6 m
3 /year of recycled water fl ow into the Dead Sea
(e.g. effect on algae bloom), and these risks will need to be investigated and are
likely to have ramifi cations regarding associated recycling technologies and costs.
To sum up, population growth will require increasing the supply of potable water
to satisfy the needs of the growing population. As the natural water sources are
already fully exploited, this will require better management of existing water
sources (e.g. by pricing water to refl ect true costs of supply) and increasing the supply of potable water from an alternative source such as desalination. Environmental
standards require appropriate treatment of all sewage, implying, given the current
recycling technology, that 60 to 65 % of the total domestic water consumption will
be available for reuse, mostly in irrigation and environmental restoration. Given the
population projections of Fig. 14.2 , by 2050 the supply of recycled water will
exceed 2,000 × 10
6 m
3 /year. About 400 × 10
6 m
3 /year of this supply can be allocated
for the joint purpose of partial restoration of the lower Jordan River and the Dead
Sea. The additional 300–400 × 10
6 m
3 /year required to stabilise the Dead Sea at its
current level may come from a mini Red Sea–Dead Sea Project that will desalinate
300 × 10
6 m
3 /year at Aqaba (100 × 10
6 m
3 /year) and near the Dead Sea (200 × 10
6 m
3 /
year) and will discharge 367 × 10
6 m
3 /year of brine in the Dead Sea. The mini Red
Sea–Dead Sea Project will serve the dual purpose of alleviating the shortage of
potable water in the region (mainly in Jordan) and contributing to the stabilisation
of the Dead Sea.
The cost of recycled water is estimated at USD 0.45/m
3 (the cost of conveyance
to Naharayim–Bakura of USD 0.19/m
3 plus USD 0.26/m
3 compensation to irrigators). The benefi t due to partial restoration of the lower Jordan River was estimated
between USD 0.23/m
3 and USD 0.87/m
3 , where restoration by recycled water is
receiving the lower values. The net cost left for the Dead Sea reclamation is therefore below USD 0.22/m
3 (= USD 0.45/m
3 minus USD 0.23/m
3 ). The costs of the
brine discharge from the mini Red Sea–Dead Sea Project are comparable to the
costs of the full-scale project reported in Figs. 14.3 and 14.4 .
scarcity problem (see discussion in Tsur ( 2014 ). The brine discharge in the Dead Sea is a
by-product that contributes to stabilising the Dead Sea.
11 The infrastructure investment required by the Red Sea–Dead Sea Project was estimated above
USD 10 billion (Coyne et Bellier 2014 ).
A.I.H. Malkawi and Y. Tsur