The Dead Sea is rapidly disappearing

Photo: Jason Jones Travel Photography / Getty Images

The Dead Sea, located on the border of Israel, Jordan, and the Palestinian territories, is the lowest land point on Earth — about 430 meters below global sea level. The water here is almost 10 times saltier than ocean water, creating a unique density that allows people to float effortlessly on its surface.

However, this unique body of water is slowly dying: each year, the water level drops by approximately 1.2 meters. Over the past half-century, the sea's area has shrunk by a third. As the water recedes, it leaves behind a new landscape of gigantic sinkholes and salt-crusted shores. This area is transforming into a dangerous zone that looks stunningly beautiful but simultaneously serves as an ominous reminder that the future of the Dead Sea hangs by a thread.

CNN reports on the details of the situation.

Human factors and industry

The main reason for the degradation of this body of water is human activity. This enclosed salty body of water is technically a lake. Water flows into it from the Jordan River, which originates on the border of Syria and Lebanon, flows through the Sea of Galilee in northern Israel, and then heads south to the Dead Sea, with Jordan on one side and Israel and the occupied West Bank on the other.

For decades, the Jordan River and its main tributary, the Yarmouk, have shallowed due to the construction of dams and water diversion by Israel, Syria, and Jordan for the needs of the population, agriculture, and livestock. Once, the river brought 1.3 billion cubic meters of water to the Dead Sea; now, this volume has shrunk to approximately 100 million cubic meters.

The second important factor is the mining industry. In the late 1970s, the sea split into two basins: the natural northern one and the artificial southern one, which consists of evaporation ponds. Industrial enterprises pump water to extract potassium and magnesium, which only accelerates the drying process. Just one Israeli enterprise extracts about 160 million cubic meters of water annually.

Climate change also affects the situation. Droughts are becoming more severe and prolonged, and rainfall is becoming rarer. According to experts, even without river water diversion and industrial activity, there is evidence that climate change would cause the Dead Sea to shrink, albeit much more slowly.

Landscape changes and danger

As it dries up, the Dead Sea changes and becomes even saltier. Since the 1980s, the salt concentration in the water has become so high that it can no longer remain in solution and precipitates, forming intricate sculptures on the bottom, resembling mushrooms or domes. But beneath this beauty lies a deadly threat — sinkholes.

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One of the sinkholes. Video screenshot (AI-enhanced): CNN10 /YouTube

Due to the falling sea level, fresh groundwater begins to dissolve ancient salt layers beneath the ground. This creates gigantic voids that suddenly collapse.

Today, there are more than 6,000 such sinkholes around the sea. Because of them, popular resorts and beaches are permanently closed, roads are destroyed, and infrastructure is abandoned. Tourism on the Israeli side has now almost entirely shifted to the zone of artificial pools in the south, where water is maintained artificially.

Searching for solutions

The need to stop the degradation of the Dead Sea is critical, but there is no simple and cheap solution.

One of the most well-known projects was announced in 2013 — the construction of a desalination plant on the Red Sea coast and the laying of a pipeline more than 160 kilometers long. Through it, the brine remaining after desalination was supposed to flow into the Dead Sea to maintain its level.

However, scientists expressed concern that mixing different types of water could alter the chemical composition of the Dead Sea and lead to unpredictable consequences. Currently, the project is frozen due to its multi-billion dollar cost and difficulties in regional cooperation.

Another option is to restore the natural inflow through the Jordan River. This can be achieved by reducing water diversion or discharging treated wastewater into the riverbed.

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Photo: AP Photo / Ohad Zwigenberg

But experts warn: in this arid region, the need for water is so acute that any additional resource will be taken for human needs even before it reaches the sea. Without creating a full-fledged alternative for supplying the population with water, this path remains unrealized.

The third direction is industrial reform. Some specialists call for a complete halt to pumping water for mineral extraction, while others propose introducing a fee for resource use and directing these funds to environmental projects.

Ecologists and researchers agree on one thing: it is unlikely that the Dead Sea can be returned to the state it was in a few decades ago. Now the main goal is at least to stop its further rapid shrinkage.

At the same time, as experts note, the main problem is a lack of political will. The danger has been discussed for many years, but large-scale actions are still absent.

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