Who will save the springs?

In order to heal the dying stream, the Nature and Parks Authority reached an agreement with the Water Authority. The settlement states that in the next decades fresh water will be pumped into the river, the settlement also states that the cost of the pumping will be paid by the KIL complex, which was caused by leaks from sewage ponds that were supposed to be sealed

The cliffs of the Judean desert that rise west of the Dead Sea keep a well-known secret - water. The water bursts in springs at the foot of the cliffs and creates special oases, starting from rock springs (Pescha) in the north through the four springs in Ein Gedi reserve, small springs in Nahal Tzalim to tiny springs at the foot of the marl cliffs between the mouths of Nahal Ashlim and Nahal Peres. In between are abundant springs that feed the flow of water in Nahal Bokek.

To the south and above the mouth of the stream are the remains of a Roman fortress and above it a tiny spring whose water is warm (up to 39 degrees Celsius) - Ein-Noait which the local veterans called two (2) because of the number shape produced by the vegetation. With the establishment of the hotel complex at the mouth of Nahal Bokek, the main source was "seized" to supply water to the hotels, the flow dried up almost completely and in order to revive the stream it was agreed that the "seizure" would release enough water to allow flow almost all the way to Highway 90. The stream came back to life and was a short and pleasant excursion route for On the hotel island.

In the XNUMXs, the factories - "Pericles" and "Rotem Ampert", the two factories belonging to KIL, were established on the eastern edge of the Rotem plain. These factories utilize the minerals from the Dead Sea (which are transported on a conveyor belt) and the phosphates from the streams of Zapa and Apea to produce various chemicals, some of which are toxic. By-products are toxic and acidic effluents that collect in ponds that are supposed to be protected and sealed.

So far I have written as a road teacher, from here I will continue as an ecologist.

Over the years there have been several incidents in which flocks of migratory birds - mainly storks, landed in the toxic ponds. The result was hundreds of dead birds. The operators of the complex promised to do something to prevent the landing but did nothing.

Back to Nahal Bokek and Ein Bokek. As I mentioned, for a while the water was used for hotels, but already at the end of the seventies the use stopped due to an increase in the salinity of the water. The hotels received water from the Mekorot company and water flowed again in Nahal Bokek as before, but not exactly. Over time it turned out that the vegetation in the stream was suffering, water insects, crabs and frogs dwindled and disappeared, in other words - the stream is dying.

Tests revealed that the salinity of the water exceeded the level that allows life. It turns out that the "sealed" pools of Pericles and Rotham are leaking. What was supposed to be sealed is not sealed and water with high concentrations of acids and salts contaminates the aqua (aquifer) that feeds the springs at the foot of the cliffs, therefore in Ein Bokek salty water springs up.

In order to heal the dying stream, the Nature and Parks Authority reached an agreement with the Water Authority. The settlement states that in the next decades fresh water will be pumped into the river, the settlement also states that the cost of the pumping will be paid by the KIL complex. These days, work is being done to regulate the flow of fresh water into the stream. It can be hoped that after several years in which living water will flow into the stream, life will return to the stream.

Several questions are asked:
What happened to the tiny springs in Nahal Ashlim at the foot of the cliff to the east of the toxic pools?
What happens to the tiny outcrops at the foot of the marl cliff between the Dead Sea factories and the Naot HaKar junction? Most likely these will also be salted and poisoned. What happens to lakes and seasonal pools of water in the wadis east of the toxic pools?
As I mentioned Nahal Bokek is an oasis and an accepted and well-known hiking route. Who will compensate the travelers for the lack, for the dwindling flora and fauna. Who will compensate nature and the environment for the damage?
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As in the disaster in the past, so also in Ein Bokek, the obligation exists for the Green Patrol and the Nature and Parks Authority to investigate and prosecute the polluters. It is to be hoped that, as in the Evrona disaster, here too there will be someone (the hotels?) who will file a class action lawsuit, since it is the duty of everyone who cares about the environment to show the polluters their place.