The Dead Sea

Global warming is a world wide crisis. The Dead Sea is shared by several countries such as jordan, israel, and palestine. But the sad story is that the Dead Sea is drying up. The fate of the Dead Sea lies in the fate of the River Jordan. The Dead Sea Works extract collossal amounts of minerals from the Dead Sea. However the Dead Sea does not sustain any form of life. Jordan is on the shores of the Dead Sea. Bedouins live by the shores of the Dead Sea because it is cooler. Working the fields is becoming a hazard because gaping holes are starting to appear in the soil. The ground is collapsing near the Dead Sea. Eventually the whole area will subside. It will become too dangerous to work the land. No one knows why the ground is collapsing. Some say that the water underground is getting less and causing a vacuum. The sink holes are caused by the sinking of the Dead Sea.

The Dead Sea is the saltiest body of water in the world as well as being very low in altitude. Jordan, Israel, and Palestine border the Dead Sea. Human activity is the cause of this environmental disaster. In Israel there is a tourist area by the Dead Sea but troops still guard the check points in and out of the Dead Sea Tourist area. Tourists love the Dead Sea because it is easy to float. The shore line has changed dramatically over the years. The Dead Sea has receded from where hotels once were on the edge of the water.

People have to catch a shuttle bus to the sea. The Dead Sea receded gradually and the people have adapted so they can have their swim in the Dead Sea. Environmentalists search for the clues to this disaster. One third of the sea has dried up in the last hundred years. The first hotel built on the Dead Sea is now miles from the water. The Jordan River flows into the Dead Sea but now the River Jordan is now no more than a creek before it enters the sea. Ninety percent of the water has been diverted mostly for agriculture. The Jordan River starts at the Sea of Gallillee and is reduced to trickle by the time it reaches the Dead Sea.

Farmers pump water from the River Jordan and further south water is pumped from the Dead Sea to the Dead Sea Works which extract minerals from the waters of the Dead Sea. But the water is evaporated in ponds and thus all that water is lost into the atmosphere. The extraction plant provides work that supports up to a thousand families. Experts say that the plant is responsible for one third of the loss of water in the Dead Sea. If nothing changes the entire sea could turn into barren land or desert. Some scientists say that the area is headed for disaster because ground water is flowing into the Dead Sea. Sink holes in Israel are connected to the level of the sea. The drop in ground water causes the ground to collapse. Some people have proposed a pipeline from the Red Sea to the Dead Sea. But opponents say the waters are different and would have environmental problems. Unless something is done about the level of the Dead Sea there could be dire consequence.

Dead Sea Resources

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