Economic & Social Rights

23 August 2010: Water supplied in Gaza unfit for drinking; Israel prevents entry of materials needed to repair system

23 August 2010

Almost 95 percent of the water pumped in the Gaza Strip is polluted and unfit for drinking. This warning was recently issued by the UN Environment Programme, the Palestinian Water Authority, the Coastal Municipalities Water Utility, and international aid organizations. They estimate it will take at least 20 years to rehabilitate Gaza's underground water system, and any delay in dealing with the problem will lead to additional deterioration in the situation and thus might extend the rehabilitation process for hundreds of years. Since it began its siege on the Gaza Strip, in June 2007, Israel has forbidden the entry of equipment and materials needed to rehabilitate the water and wastewater-treatment systems there. The prohibition has remained despite the recent easing of the siege.

Child filling water from a container provided by OXFAM, at Jabalya refugee camp. Photo: Muhammad Sabah, B��Tselem, 18 Aug. ��10.
Child filling water from a container provided by OXFAM, at Jabalya refugee camp. Photo: Muhammad Sabah, B'Tselem, 18 Aug. '10.

Reasons for the water pollution in Gaza

The water crisis in the Gaza Strip arose following over-pumping of the underground water of the Coast Aquifer. It is estimated that the amount of water annually pumped from the aquifer is roughly twice the amount of water that replenishes it. The over-pumping has been going on for several decades, from the time Israel controlled Gaza, through the period in which the Palestinian Authority was in control, and now under the Hamas government. It causes penetration of saline water into the underground water system.. In addition, the poor maintenance of the wastewater-treatment facilities in Gaza, which increased following the siege, and the damage done to the wastewater-treatment facility in Gaza City during Operation Cast Lead, led to further pollution of the underground water by wastewater, and to greater salinity. Another factor for the pollution is the waste-disposal sites in Gaza, which are not properly handled. Following Operation Cast Lead, these sites received enormous amounts of waste - more than 600,000 tons - including asbestos, medial waste, oils, and fuels.

Wastewater flowing through the Rafah regional waste dump. Photo: Courtesy of EWASH.
Wastewater flowing through the Rafah regional waste dump. Photo: Courtesy of EWASH.

Water consumption in Gaza

The daily per capita water consumption in the Gaza Strip is 91 liters, slightly higher than in the West Bank, where the figure is 73 liters, yet lower than the minimum of 100 liters recommended by the World Heath Organization. By comparison, daily per capita consumption in Israel is 242 liters in urban areas and 211 liters in rural areas.

Resident of �Izbet �Abd Rabo in Jabalya refugee camp carrying home water from a container provided by OXFAM. Photo: Muhammad Sabah, B�Tselem, 18 Aug. �10
Resident of ‘Izbet ‘Abd Rabo in Jabalya refugee camp carrying home water from a container provided by OXFAM. Photo: Muhammad Sabah, B'Tselem, 18 Aug. '10

Magnitude of the pollution

The director of quality control in the Gazan Coastal Municipalities Water Utility, Eng. Majed Ghanem, told B'Tselem that an examination conducted in late 2009 in 180 wells revealed that, in 93 percent of them, the chloride level (which indicates the water's salinity) was 1,000 to 2,000 mg/liter, four to eight times higher than the 250 mg/liter amount recommended by the WHO. Water with a chloride level this high is unfit for drinking. According to Ghanem, the pollution also affects the water's color and causes its repellent odor.

In addition, an examination carried out by the UN Environment Programme on a number of wells in Gaza found that the concentration of nitrates was six times higher than the 50 mg level recommended by the WHO. This high level of nitrates is liable to cause anemia among children and methemoglobinemia (“blue infants” syndrome) among infants, which is liable to lead to choking and death. A study published in 2007, in which a sample of 340 infants from Gaza were examined, found that almost half of them suffered from troubling symptoms of the syndrome.

The Palestinian Water Authority estimates that almost 40 percent of the incidence of disease in Gaza is related to polluted drinking water. According to international aid organizations, 20 percent of Gazan families have at least one child under age five who suffers from diarrhea as a result of polluted water. A UN study published in 2009 estimates that diarrhea is the cause of 12 percent of children's deaths in Gaza. The lack of potable drinking water is liable to cause malnutrition in children and affect their physical and cognitive development.

In the absence of other materials due to the siege, parts of the old barrier wall at Rafah are used to line a wastewater treatment pond there. Photo: Courtesy of EWASH.
In the absence of other materials due to the siege, parts of the old barrier wall at Rafah are used to line a wastewater treatment pond there. Photo: Courtesy of EWASH.

The water pollution also harms the area's agricultural produce. According to Ghanem, the milk given by cows in Gaza is polluted, and farm crops that once characterized the area, such as oranges, have declined in quantity and quality.

Effects of the siege and Operation Cast Lead

Since the beginning of the siege, Israel has prohibited the entry of equipment and materials that can be used to improve water quality and taste, and to develop and rehabilitate the water infrastructure and the wastewater-treatment facilities in Gaza. The prohibition has remained in force even after the recent easing of restrictions, and despite the Cabinet's decision to allow the entry of building materials for projects that have been approved by the Palestinian Authority and are supervised by international organizations. The equipment needed includes water pumps, pipes, generators, computers, building cement, and chloride. Israel classifies these materials as dual-use items that are liable to be used for military purposes, and therefore prohibits their entry.

The Gazan Coastal Municipalities Water Utility currently requires 1,250 tons of cement just to rebuild water reservoirs. The Sufa Crossing between Gaza and Israel, which is intended, among other things, for the transfer of building materials, has been closed since March 2009. The by-laws of the international organizations prohibit them from purchasing cement smuggled into Gaza through tunnels, for the rehabilitation projects.

The lack of construction materials and replacement parts has also led to greater loss of water from the supply network in Gaza. Prior to the siege, the loss had been 30 percent of the amount of water supplied to consumers, generally resulting from leaks in the pipes. In 2009, the loss reached 47 percent, according to figures of the Coastal Municipalities Water Utility.

The Gaza Strip's power station has been working at partial output since Israel bombed it in June 2006. There is also a shortage of industrial fuel needed to operate the station, following the disputes that arose between the Palestinian Authority and Hamas regarding its funding, which has led to frequent power outages. The outages prevent the wastewater-treatment facilities from completing the 14-day treatment cycle and also impair the frequency of water supply to houses. According to UN figures, water is supplied to houses in Gaza City for four to six hours once every five days, and in the rest of the Gaza Strip for four to six hours once every three days. Due to the low pressure, the water does not reach the top floors in tall buildings.

In Operation Cast Lead, Israel damaged Gaza City's wastewater-treatment facility, leading to untreated wastewater flooding extensive farm areas. According to the Coastal Municipalities Water Utility, 30 kilometers of water networks, 11 wells, and 6,000 home water tanks were damaged during the operation, and the overall damage to the water and wastewater-treatment facilities amounted to six million dollars.

Untreated wastewater flowing daily into the sea in a-Nuseirat Camp in central Gaza Strip. Photo: Muhammad Sabah, B�Tselem, 18 Aug. �10.
Untreated wastewater flowing daily into the sea in a-Nuseirat Camp in central Gaza Strip. Photo: Muhammad Sabah, B'Tselem, 18 Aug. '10.

Most of Gaza's wastewater now flows to the Mediterranean Sea, some as raw wastewater, and some following partial treatment. International organizations have found that the shoreline near which the wastewater flows is polluted and unfit for bathing. Proper wastewater treatment would have enabled use of the treated wastewater for agricultural purposes and reduced pumping of the underground water.

Effect of the economic situation on water consumption

Due to the poor water quality, many Gazans are forced to buy water treated in facilities operated by local entrepreneurs or to use home desalination devices. The quality of the water provided in this way is unsupervised, and the lack of replacement parts and regular power supply has harmed them, too.

Since treatment of water from pollutants such as nitrates and chlorides is very expensive, the cost of a cubic meter of treated water is a high as 50 shekels (some 13 US dollars in August 2010), 10 times higher than the price paid by households in Israel. Many Gazans cannot afford this luxury: the unemployment rate in Gaza reached 39 percent in 2009, and poverty in 2007 was 43 percent. In 2007, average family expenditures in Gaza stood at slightly more than 2,000 shekels a month.

Recommendations of the UN Environment Programme

To prevent the collapse of the Gazan water economy, the UN Environment Programme recommended, a year ago, that pumping of water from the Coast Aquifer in Gaza cease. The Programme also suggested that Israel and Egypt, countries which share the water of the aquifer, formulate a joint action plan - including alternative water-supply sources, among them desalination facilities - to deal with the water crisis in Gaza. The Programme also recommended that an epidemiological survey be made to study the effects of polluted-water consumption on the Gazan population, especially on the children.

To cope with the grave water crisis in Gaza, Israel must immediately allow the entry of materials and equipment needed to rehabilitate and develop the water and wastewater-treatment systems there. Also, all the sides - Israel, the Palestinian Authority, the Hamas government, and Egypt - must take action to stop the rapid deterioration in the condition of the underground water system of the Coast Aquifer, which serves residents of the Gaza Strip, and find additional sources of drinking water for the residents. Also, Israel must take action to ensure a fair and equal distribution of the water resources shared by Israel and the Palestinians.

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This is the result of various technical difficulties, as well as the unexpected failure of new drillings in the eastern basin of the mountain aquifer – the area where Palestinian drilling was granted – and obstacles introduced by Israel, such as lengthy delays and not processing approval for projects. The Palestinian population in the West Bank, which has nearly doubled since 1995, currently receives only 75% of the agreed amount of water, while Israelis enjoy an unlimited supply. This forces the Palestinian Authority (PA) to purchase much more water from Mekorot (Israel’s national water company) than originally agreed. According to Israeli Water Authority figures, in 2019, the PA purchased an additional 93 million cubic meters from Mekorot – 79.6 for the West Bank and the rest for the Gaza Strip. Palestinian communities in the West Bank receive the purchased water from local reservoirs that are connected to Mekorot’s area reservoirs, which lie within settlements. As both the pipelines that run between Palestinian communities in the West Bank and the water grids within Palestinian cities and villages are in poor shape, about one-third of all water bought by the PA is lost to leakage. Israel refuses to approve PA proposals for projects to repair the pipes, which necessarily run through Area C. According to Palestinian Water Authority figures, Palestinians in the West Bank consumed a total of 195.8 million cubic meters of water in 2018. Due to all these factors, Palestinians in the West Bank suffer a constant shortage of water that is largely manmade. According to Palestinian Water Authority figures for the West Bank, in 2018, average water consumption for domestic, commercial and industrial uses (excluding agriculture and accounting for leakage) was 90.5 liters per capita a day. The highest rate of consumption was recorded in Jericho District, with 268.7 liters per capita a day, while the lowest rate was recorded in Jenin District, with 50.2 liters per capita a day. This falls short of the minimum recommended by the World Health Organization, which is 100 liters of water per capita a day, for personal and domestic use only. As the figures for Palestinians include commercial uses, private consumption per capita is even lower. The water shortage in the West Bank is most acute in summertime. This is partly because Mekorot cuts back on the quantities it supplies to some Palestinian communities in order to meet the higher seasonal demand in certain settlements, and also because wells in some parts of the West Bank produce less water in summer. As the reduced volume of water lowers the pressure in pipes, local Palestinian water authorities have to rotate the supply between communities and neighborhoods to ensure that all the consumers receive water. As a result, many Palestinians suffer from lengthy water outages, usually lasting several days to a week. The low pressure also means that sometimes, the water does not reach remote or elevated locations. These overall figures regarding average consumption in the West Bank do not reflect the full extent of the crisis, as the supply varies widely between communities and areas. Cities and developed communities enjoy the best services, with a network that supplies homes with running water for at least some hours every day. They also have paved roads that make it easier to transport water from alternative sources, such as springs and Palestinian drills, when Israel cuts back on the supply. Next are villages that have a water grid but are not easily accessible, making transportation of water from alternative sources when needed costly and difficult. Worst off are dozens of communities that Israel prevents from hooking up to a water grid, leaving them no choice but to buy water privately from tankers all year round, at considerable cost. The cost often rises when the water must be transported across rough terrain, because Israel does not allow the communities to pave proper access roads. A 2013 survey conducted by the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) identified 180 such communities, which are home to some 30,000 people. Their land is located entirely or in part in Area C. In these communities, Israel’s stringent restrictions on developing water infrastructure have been exacerbated by settlers and Israeli authorities taking over natural water sources the residents relied on for years, destroying cisterns and spring-fed pools and blocking access to them. All these actions are part of an ongoing effort by Israeli authorities to drive these residents from their homes. Average water consumption in these communities is a mere 20 liters per capita a day. Residents buy water at several times the price of the public service, yet it is often not safe to drink due to poor sanitary conditions in the tankers that transport it. This reality demonstrates how Israel sees water – and other natural resources in the West Bank – as its exclusive property, to be doubly exploited: both for Israeli needs – especially those of settlements – and as way to dispossess and control Palestinians. The Gaza Strip Israel has been holding the Gaza Strip under blockade for more than a decade, since June 2007. It does not allow any materials in that it considers “dual purpose”, i.e., that can be used for either civilian or military purposes. This includes construction materials, such as cement and iron, and other raw materials. All these are needed to repair Gaza’s water and sanitation infrastructure, which were heavily damaged by Israeli bombings, especially in Operation Cast Lead (which began in late 2008) and Operation Protective Edge (the summer of 2014). The estimated damage amounts to some 34 million dollars. As of the end of 2015, more than 100,000 Palestinians in Gaza were still cut off from the public water network. The coastal aquifer, on which residents of Gaza depend for water, has been polluted by over-pumping and wastewater contamination, making 97% of the water pumped from it and supplied to homes unsafe to drink. As there are no other water sources available, the over-pumping continues and the aquifer is on the brink of collapse. Residents have no choice but to cut back on drinking and buy desalinated water from private vendors. Yet an estimated 68% of this water is also polluted, increasing the risk of diseases spreading among the population. 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