Israel/Palestine

The Oslo Accords perpetuated the discrimination in allocation of water between Israel and the Palestinians. They allotted 80% of the water pumped from the mountain aquifer – one of three underground water reserves shared by Israel and the Palestinians – to Israel and only 20% to the Palestinians. They Accords further established there would be no cap to the supply of water to Israelis, whereas the water supply to Palestinians would be limited to predetermined amounts, namely approximately 118 million cubic meters (mcm) from drilling points active prior to the signing of the Accords and another 70-80 mcm or so from new ones.

At present, Palestinians in the West Bank must purchase from Mekorot (Israel’s national water company) double the amount water specified in the accords, an amount that now equals about one third of available water in the West Bank.

In the absence of a final status arrangement, the Oslo Accords, meant to be valid only for five years, are still in place today. Yet even so, the measures set forth are only partially satisfied: while Israelis receive an unlimited water supply, Palestinians receive only about 75% of the stipulated quota. This situation is the result of several reasons, one being that under the temporary accords, Palestinians were to obtain some 118 mcm from independent drilling points, whereas in practice Palestinians yield only 73% of that amount. They fail to reach the designated amount due to technical limitations of their equipment, the particular properties of the aquifer and its water level, as well as the failure of U.S.- and German-aided attempts to drill for water in the aquifer’s eastern basin. As a result, Israel gets 86% of the aquifer’s water and the Palestinians only 14%. Even though Israel’s national water company Mekorot currently sells Palestinians 53 mcm of water a year – twice the amount stipulated in the Oslo Accords – it is a far cry from meeting demand.

Due to the inequitable distribution, Palestinians must make do with less water than Israelis. The World Health Organization and USAID both recommend a minimum of 100 liters of water per person/per day. This amount includes is not only for domestic use but includes supply to hospitals, schools, businesses, and other public institutions. Palestinian average daily consumption of water is about a third less than the recommended amount. The figures on water allocation make the discrimination between Israelis and Palestinians patently palpable:

Average water consumption in the West Bank for domestic, urban, and industrial purposes is approximately 73 liters per person/per day. In the northern West Bank average consumption is even lower. According to 2011 figures, a mere 38 liters in the Jenin area and 52 liters in the Tubas area.

Average water consumption in Israel is much higher. According to the Israeli Water Authority, average consumption is 183 liters per person/per day– more than twice the corresponding consumption in the West Bank. The lack of water in certain areas of the West Bank is exacerbated by Palestinian farmers’ illegal tapping into pipes supplying water to Palestinian villages. This occurs primarily in Area C, where Israel is directly responsible for law enforcement.

The report “Troubled Waters – Palestinians Denied Fair Access To Water”, published by Amnesty International on 27 October 2009 details the extent to which Palestinians in the Occupied Palestinian Territories (OPT) do not have access to adequate, safe water supplies, largely as a result of direct restrictions put in place by the Israeli authorities. Currently, Palestinian daily water consumption barely reaches 70 litres a day per person, which is well below the World Health Organisation’s recommended minimum, compared to over 300 litres a day per capita in Israel.