Water in the Middle East

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Water in the Middle East

• October 2008

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Why we worry

• Middle Eastern nations in the past have
  illustrated their willingness to resort to force
  in settling disputes over issues less serious
  than shortage of water
• Water sources cross borders and can involve as
  many as nine sovereign states  
• Adel Darwish- Geneva conference on Environment
  and Quality of Life June 1994

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Where does the ME get its water?

• Rivers
• Tigris-Euphrates
• Nile
• Jordan
• Aquifers
• Renewable groundwater
• Non-renewable or fossil groundwater
• Desalination
• Brackish groundwater is economically possible
• Seawater is expensive

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Who has water

• Iran, Iraq, Lebanon, Sudan, Syria, and Turkey
  have a lot of water
• Israel, and Egypt form a middle group
• water in the West Bank used in Israel
• Gaza Strip is perennially short of water
• Jordan, Libya, and countries of the Arabian
  Peninsula have least amount

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Water, water, everywhere?

• Water is the limiting resource for development
• Not a lot of rain
• ME has 5 of worlds population, 0.9 of global
  water resources
• ME consuming water at a higher rate than can be
  replenished
• Crisis zones have emerged along major rivers

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Turkey-Syria-Iraq

• Turkey is building dams on headwaters of Tigris
  and Euphrates Rivers
• Threatens Syria and Iraqs amount and use
• Even though Syria and Iraqs governments are at
  odds, this may cause them to create an alliance
• Regional conflict is likely

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Jordan-Israel-Palestine Authority

• Jordan and Israel have conflicts over Jordan and
  Yamouk Rivers
• Israel and the Palestinians both rely on same
  aquifer-a source of conflict

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Saudi Arabia

• No rivers, so relies on underground water sources
• 90 of non-renewable water used for agricultural
  purposes
• Conflicts with Qatar, Baharain and Jordan over
  use of various aquifers

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Sources of Water Stress

• Rapid population growth is biggest obstacle
• Booming economic growth
• Rapid urbanization which increases the demand for
  high-quality water
• Demand for irrigation- irrigation takes close to
  80 of total water

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Sources of Water Stress

• Demand for fresh water in the region exceeds the
  naturally occurring, renewable supply
• Much of the region's limited water is being
  polluted from growing volumes of human,
  industrial, and agricultural wastes
• Salt water intrusion into over-taxed aquifers

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Water use in the Region

• Per capita water availability is worst in world
• Water use is unsustainable
• Only way to significantly improve is to improve
  water efficiency in existing uses and to shift
  water from low-productivity to high-productivity
  water sectors

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The future

• Proposed efforts at water sharing not working
• Regional fears of dependence
• Historic distrust

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Some Hope

• Grow plants that require less water
• More efficient irrigation- drip irrigation
• Treat waste water for agricultural use
• Practical desalination