By Lorenzo Tondo in Jerualem and Seham Tantesh in Gaza for the Guardian
Five desalination plants shut down for days, while Gaza remains in grip of severe water and sanitation crisis
Israel is facing weeks of water shortages after an exceptional algae bloom crippled much of its desalination capacity, in a crisis scientists say was triggered when Israeli attacks destroyed much of Gaza’s wastewater infrastructure, causing a massive discharge of untreated sewage.
“Pollution does not recognise political borders,” said the Zalul Environmental Association, an Israeli NGO dedicated to protecting the country’s seas and shores. “The discharge of untreated sewage from the GazaStrip into the sea is contributing to the worsening crisis affecting the Israeli desalination facilities. The wastewater contains nutrients such as nitrogen and phosphorus, which feed microalgae and cyanobacteria and may intensify their blooms.”
Despite last year’s US-brokered ceasefire, Gaza remains gripped by a severe water and sanitation crisis. The Palestinian territory is plagued by rodents, and sewage floods its coastline after Israel destroyed its wastewater treatment plants.
Just across the border, a vast bloom of microalgae stretching up to 60 miles (100km) long has clogged filters at five of Israel’s six main desalination plants, which were shut down for days and have since been operating at a reduced level.