Gaza thirsts as sewage crisis mounts
By Heather Sharp, BBC News, Gaza Gaza’s aquifer and only natural freshwater source is “in danger of collapse,” the UN is warning. Engineers have long been battling to keep the densely populated strip’s water and sewage system limping along. But in September the UN Environment Programme warned that damage to the underground aquifer – due to the Israeli and Egyptian blockade, conflict, and years of overuse and underinvestment – could take centuries to reverse if it is not halted now. … Lagoons designed to allow treated clean water to infiltrate through Gaza’s sandy soil back down into the aquifer are instead funnelling sewage straight back into the groundwater. In addition, with several years of drought and the digging of hundreds of illegal, unregulated wells, the UN Environmental Programme says at least three times more water is extracted than is replenished each year. As the level is dropping in the aquifer, sea water is invading. With nitrates from the sewage and salt from the sea, only 5-10% of the water in Gaza’s wells – and therefore its taps – now meets World Health Organization guidelines, even after it has been chlorinated. The aquifer has been in decline for years. But Oxfam’s Mark Buttle, who co-ordinates international organisations working in the water sector, says the pressures are adding up. Gaza faces a “pending environmental disaster” he warns. …
