January 2009

U.S. Water News Online

SOUTHERN SHUNEH, Jordan — The head of the Palestinian Water Authority says seawater and sewage are polluting Gaza's drinking water and putting the coastal strip at risk of water shortages and waterborne diseases like cholera.

Shaddad al-Attili made the warning at a recent water conference in Jordan.

Officials from countries around the Mediterranean attended the conference to discuss projects such as a proposed conveyance canal between the Red Sea and the Dead Sea to help save the rapidly evaporating desert sea. Jordan, Israel and the Palestinians are examining the feasibility of the World Bank-backed project.

Al-Attili, however, said he was skeptical of it, suggesting that addressing water problems in overcrowded Gaza was a higher priority.

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