The objective of this proposal is to find an innovative approach in dealing with Israel’s impending water crisis, specifically in Jerusalem. Our proposal analyzes the basic factors of the water crisis such as: the climate, the water resources, and it reevaluates the main sources of the problem. These issues include overpopulation of the city and overpumping of the main water sources. Our proposal also discusses significant conflicts over water, and it demonstrates that war over water may be inevitable in the future. With this in mind, we created analysis criteria that a viable solution would adhere to: have long term benefits, be cost effective, work in an arid climate, replenish the water sources in Israel and the Occupied Territories, not rely on another country, and in time, benefit all citizens, regardless of ethnicity. With this criterion, the research we conducted examines the solutions that Jerusalem has put in place and explains why each does not fit within our criteria.
We believe that the water crisis in Jerusalem may diminish through the implementation of rainwater harvesting. This is a process that has been used for centuries all over the world such as Gansu, China, and Sri Lanka. We are suggesting the creation of Water Alliance Towards Equal Rights (W.A.T.E.R.), an international, non-partisan, nongovernmental advocacy organization promoting water rights for all. W.A.T.E.R. will help implement rainwater harvesting and innovative water technologies to help the impending water crisis. Through the implementation of rainwater harvesting, our analysis criteria would be fulfilled and would, in turn, create a just Jerusalem.
