Water

• Some preparedness official announced last week that we should have three liters per person on hand in case of an earthquake. I thought, "So after the earthquake we dig through the rubble to find our water bottles?" Eventually my slow brain figured out that we’re to store water in case an earthquake breaks the water mains. (See http://jerusalemblog.blogspot.com/2006/05/water-on-jerusalem-day.html and http://jerusalemblog.blogspot.com/2006/06/fountains.html )
• "Water mains" includes the large pipes that bring water from the Kinneret (Sea of Gallilee) and from the desalination plant, built with typical bureaucratic idiocy in the wrong place. Its water is pumped south, but it lies south of the population centers and the pipes and pumps are not configured to move the water north. The builders knew that but figured the water would be used for agriculture. Unfortunately, desalinated water is not good for agriculture. I think it is like distilled water (maybe it is distilled water) and lacks minerals crops need. Don't people need them, too? Yes, but if the plant had been properly placed, water from it could have gone into the system with very hard water from other sources, ending up with water that was good for plants and humans both. It could also have been situated where its water could be mixed with purified sewage water to be used for agriculture. Or ... well, there were probably lots of other choices, but they didn't get picked.
• I now have juice and soda bottles full of water in the refrigerator. In the summer, three liters each would last us for about a day . And Jerusalem's not like Madison where you could take your Brita filter down to a lake! Ah well, what are the odds there'll be an earthquake?
• (Brackish water is good for crops like tomatoes, but I guess that if they added sea water to the system they'd have to separate the agricultural water system from what goes to people's houses.)

Copyright 2006 Jane S. Fox