Israel's circular water economy model: How it reduces greenhouse gas emissions and minimizes environmental damage
Irit Ben-Abba, the Ambassador of the State of Israel in Beijing
The global climate crisis and the global water crisis are two sides of the same coin
As the climate crisis progresses, it creates a growing shortage of water. The paradox is that attempts to meet this shortage intensify the climate crisis. Therefore, it is critical to find applicable and effective ways to break this positive feedback loop. In other words, we need to separate the global climate crisis from the global water crisis
In this article, I would like to present Israel's experience in the circular water economy and point out some simple but effective methods aimed at creating such an economy that is indeed economical in resources and low in the emission of greenhouse gases.
Israel's challenges
The Israeli experience arose out of necessity, and necessity, as the saying goes, is the mother of all inventions. Israel is located in a dry region with little precipitation. In fact, about 60% of its area is desert and the rest is semi-arid. Israel's main water sources are water from Lake Kinneret (the Sea of Galilee), groundwater, desalinated water and purified wastewater, which is used for agricultural purposes.
This presents a significant challenge: how to bring water at an equal price to every citizen, regardless of where they live or how far they are from the water source? How to maintain quality of life and even constantly improve it? How to make sure that the water is of a high quality, clean and healthy? And how to leave enough water in the environment for nature and ecosystems?
Moreover, Israel supplies water to its neighbors: about 100 million cubic meters of water are delivered to Jordan annually and close to that amount to the Palestinians. On the agenda is increasing the amount of water transferred to Jordan by an additional 200 million cubic meters each year, in the framework of the Israel-Jordan-United Arab Emirates trilateral agreement. This demonstrates that not only does Israel meet its own water needs, but increasingly also helps its neighbors meet theirs.
Desalination
Desalination of water in Israel, the vast majority of which comes from the Mediterranean Sea, produces about 600 million cubic meters per year. On the agenda is the desalination of an additional 300 million cubic meters annually until 2030. This strategic move will ultimately result in the majority of fresh water in Israel being comprised of desalinated seawater.
Israel's Circular Water Economy
Israel's circular water economy is characterized by four steps: seawater desalinization; desalinated water for urban needs; wastewater treatment; and agricultural water practices.
The aforementioned seawater desalination is the first step in Israel's circular water economy. It is done at several facilities spread along the Mediterranean coast, at relatively short distances from consumers. Today, about 600 million m3/year, about 80% if the country's potable water, us sourced by desalination.
The second station is the use of desalinated water for urban needs. About 92% of Israel's population lives in cities, and cities are the its main consumers of water. The desalinated water is mixed with groundwater to improve its quality and undergoes processes that guarantee its healthiness to consumers.
At the end of its use, almost all water is transferred to wastewater treatment plants, the third station in Israel's circular water economy.
Purification is done in waste water facilities that are operated on an economic basis, usually with several cities or local authorities joining together to purify their sewage in one central facility.
The wastewater is purified to different levels in accordance with its intended use in agriculture. Unpurified wastewater has many negative environmental consequences.
The sludge that is the byproduct of the process is used as fertilizer, while biogas is produced in the treatment process. Today there are interesting ideas on how to produce environmentally friendly energy substitutes, such as hydrogen, from the sludge.
Use in agriculture is the fourth and final stop on the water's route. Almost 90% of all domestic wastewater is reused for irrigation, which is a world record. About half of Israel's agricultural crops use water that has undergone treatment and purification on the basis of strict regulation designed to ensure that this water will not cause harm to health or the environment. Reused water is the basis for Israel's fresh food security, especially in the arid areas of the Western and Northern Negev desert.
Without this water source, agriculture would have been greatly reduced, dependence on food imports would have increased and Israel's land would have changed and its desert spread.
Given the above water scarcity, it is not surprising that Israel is also a global leader in efficiency in the use of water in agriculture. Drip irrigation was invented in Israel in the 60's and today most orchards and vegetables are nurtured with drip irrigation, which is about 50% more economical in comparison to the world's most common irrigation method of flooding agricultural areas. Not only is drip irrigation economical in water, it also increases the yield by dozens of percentages compared to other irrigation methods and prevents plant diseases that are caused by unnecessary moisture and wasted fertilizers. In Israel, agricultural varieties that save water and are resistant to drought are constantly being developed, including rice grown with drip irrigation rather than flooding. Potentially, this can make a great contribution to increasing global food security and reducing greenhouse gas emissions, since the rice sector is responsible for approximately 10% of global methane emissions.
Reinforcement Policies
The effectiveness of Israel's water strategy is reinforced by additional policies that are based on two main pillars: prevention of water loss in the water systems and conservation/awareness of water use.
Israel probably holds a world record in preventing water loss. While in many cities and countries around the world dozens of percentages of their water is lost as a result of leaks, malfunctions and theft, in Israel the water systems lose only a few percent.
Reducing leaks, preventing evaporation, loss and theft are key steps in reducing greenhouse gas emissions in the global water sector, and Israel is a leader in the strategy and application of advanced technologies in this field, some of which were developed in Israel.
The second pillar is conserving water and creating widespread awareness of its importance.
The average Israeli is well aware of the water shortage, the result of decades of education via public campaigns that call for water conservation. As a direct result, per capita water consumption in Israel is one of the lowest in the developed world. At the same time, the standard of living has not been affected and no shortage of water is felt. Long-term planning, until the year 2050, which takes into account the growing population, climate change, the nature of future water consumption and more, ensures that this situation will not deteriorate.
Pricing and Reinvesting Profits
It is important to note that a professionally managed water system, one guided by a long-term vision, supported by appropriate legislation and regulation, with a clear price policy will create equality and provide growth opportunities.
Profits from the sale of water to consumers are invested in improving the water system, enhancing infrastructure and managing the system.
The fact that Israel has one unified water system for the whole country, which is feasible due to its small territorial size, contributes to the efficiency of the water system.
In Israel the price of water is uniform for all consumers according to their use, and this is the real price of water without subsidies. All water consumption is measured, reported and priced accordingly. This is possible thanks to smart measurement and control systems deployed in every home, factory and field.
In conclusion, we believe that the Israeli water model provides one of the world's best models for dealing with the climate crisis. Given the importance of water management, it is our hope that this model will serve as a source of inspiration for other cities, regions and countries the world. Its application, whether partially or fully depending on the unique characteristics of each country and climatic region, can significantly help reduce emissions of greenhouse gases, thereby contributing to global mitigation of the climate crisis. Israel's model can also play an essential role in building resilience and adaptation in the face of the intensification of the global water crisis. Long term trends and recent events have clearly demonstrated that without comprehensive and methodical global handling of the water issue, we will not be able to reset global emissions or provide the resource most needed for our lives - water.
The Israeli water sector, together with its broader climate tech ecosystem, are open for cooperation with other countries to share knowhow and develop climate resilience and sustainable water supply under changing climate and growing demand for the world's most precious resource.