Mediterranean–Dead Sea Canal
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The Mediterranean–Dead Sea Canal (MDSC) is a proposed project to dig a canal from the
Mediterranean Sea The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean Basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Western and Southern Europe and Anatolia, on the south by North Africa, and on the ea ...
to the
Dead Sea The Dead Sea ( he, יַם הַמֶּלַח, ''Yam hamMelaḥ''; ar, اَلْبَحْرُ الْمَيْتُ, ''Āl-Baḥrū l-Maytū''), also known by other names, is a salt lake bordered by Jordan to the east and Israel and the West Bank ...
, taking advantage of the 400-metre difference in water level between the seas. The project could correct the drop in the level of the Dead Sea observed in recent years. The canal could also be used to generate
hydroelectric power Hydroelectricity, or hydroelectric power, is electricity generated from hydropower (water power). Hydropower supplies one sixth of the world's electricity, almost 4500 TWh in 2020, which is more than all other renewable sources combined and ...
because of surface difference and maybe by
salinity gradient power Osmotic power, salinity gradient power or blue energy is the energy available from the difference in the salt concentration between seawater and river water. Two practical methods for this are reverse electrodialysis (RED) and pressure retarde ...
, and desalinate water by
reverse osmosis Reverse osmosis (RO) is a water purification process that uses a partially permeable membrane to separate ions, unwanted molecules and larger particles from drinking water. In reverse osmosis, an applied pressure is used to overcome osmotic pre ...
.


History

The idea was first proposed by
William Allen William Allen may refer to: Politicians United States *William Allen (congressman) (1827–1881), United States Representative from Ohio *William Allen (governor) (1803–1879), U.S. Representative, Senator, and 31st Governor of Ohio *William ...
in 1855 in a work called "The Dead Sea – A new route to India". At that time it was not yet known that the Dead Sea lies below sea level, and Allen proposed this canal as an alternative to the
Suez Canal The Suez Canal ( arz, قَنَاةُ ٱلسُّوَيْسِ, ') is an artificial sea-level waterway in Egypt, connecting the Mediterranean Sea to the Red Sea through the Isthmus of Suez and dividing Africa and Asia. The long canal is a popular ...
. Later, many engineers and politicians picked up on the idea, including
Theodor Herzl Theodor Herzl; hu, Herzl Tivadar; Hebrew name given at his brit milah: Binyamin Ze'ev (2 May 1860 – 3 July 1904) was an Austro-Hungarian Jewish lawyer, journalist, playwright, political activist, and writer who was the father of modern p ...
in his 1902 novel ''Altneuland''. Most of the early proposals used the East bank of the
Jordan River The Jordan River or River Jordan ( ar, نَهْر الْأُرْدُنّ, ''Nahr al-ʾUrdunn'', he, נְהַר הַיַּרְדֵּן, ''Nəhar hayYardēn''; syc, ܢܗܪܐ ܕܝܘܪܕܢܢ ''Nahrāʾ Yurdnan''), also known as ''Nahr Al-Shariea ...
, but a modified form, using the West bank, was proposed after the separation of
Transjordan Transjordan may refer to: * Transjordan (region), an area to the east of the Jordan River * Oultrejordain, a Crusader lordship (1118–1187), also called Transjordan * Emirate of Transjordan, British protectorate (1921–1946) * Hashemite Kingdom of ...
from the Palestine Mandate. The idea was discussed at some length by
Willy Ley Willy or Willie is a masculine, male given name, often a diminutive form of William or Wilhelm, and occasionally a nickname. It may refer to: People Given name or nickname * Willie Aames (born 1960), American actor, television director, and scree ...
in ''Engineers' Dreams'', but it was then politically impractical; even the route west of Jordan would have to cross the 1949 armistice line twice. A 1975 detailed project study utilizing the difference in water levels between the Mediterranean sea and the Dead Sea for power generation was the subject of a first publication by the engineers Wendt and Kelm in the German trade journal ''Wasserwirtschaft''. For this proposal, water from the Mediterranean sea is led through a pressure duct starting at the Israeli town of
Ashdod Ashdod ( he, ''ʾašdōḏ''; ar, أسدود or إسدود ''ʾisdūd'' or '' ʾasdūd'' ; Philistine: 𐤀𐤔𐤃𐤃 *''ʾašdūd'') is the sixth-largest city in Israel. Located in the country's Southern District, it lies on the Mediterran ...
and flowing into a storage pool situated directly at the steep descent to the
Dead Sea The Dead Sea ( he, יַם הַמֶּלַח, ''Yam hamMelaḥ''; ar, اَلْبَحْرُ الْمَيْتُ, ''Āl-Baḥrū l-Maytū''), also known by other names, is a salt lake bordered by Jordan to the east and Israel and the West Bank ...
from where it will drop almost 400 m through a pressure shaft to drive three
Francis turbine The Francis turbine is a type of water turbine. It is an inward-flow reaction turbine that combines radial and axial flow concepts. Francis turbines are the most common water turbine in use today, and can achieve over 95% efficiency. The proces ...
s with an output of 100 
MWe The watt (symbol: W) is the unit of power or radiant flux in the International System of Units (SI), equal to 1 joule per second or 1 kg⋅m2⋅s−3. It is used to quantify the rate of energy transfer. The watt is named after James Watt ...
each. The sketch of the projected system illustrates the continuous supply of water from the Mediterranean sea (west to east) by a 7 km long free-surface flow channel, a 65 km long pressure tunnel and a 3 km long storage pool. This underground power station design is the world's first planned high-pressure seawater power station. The approx. 8 m diameter pressure tunnel is designed for a maximum flow rate of 2.5 m/s deducting pressure losses and allowing a given slope of the tunnel in direction to the Dead Sea. By means of this shaft the Mediterranean sea and the storage pool behave according to the principle of
communicating vessels Communicating vessels or vasesMario Bunge, ''Philosophy of Science: From Explanation to Justification'', 1998, , p. 369 are a set of containers containing a homogeneous fluid and connected sufficiently far below the top of the liquid: when the l ...
. Hence the storage pool automatically supplies
potential energy In physics, potential energy is the energy held by an object because of its position relative to other objects, stresses within itself, its electric charge, or other factors. Common types of potential energy include the gravitational potentia ...
to comply fully with the widest range of potential requirements. Due to the climatic conditions between 60–70 m3 water evaporate from the Dead Sea per second. At present these quantities are not replaced by natural influent resulting in a steady drop of the Dead Sea's level while increasing concentration of dissolved salts. If only the evaporation losses are replaced by water from the Mediterranean sea the power station will have an average output of 160 MWe. A total of 300 MWe is available at short time for peak loads. The underground power station is designed to allow a wide variety of requirements. Before being fed into the turbines, the artificially stored water from the Mediterranean can be used as cooling water for a thermal power station with an output of approx. 1000 MWe. The waste heat, in turn, can be used for desalting the seawater. The resulting fresh water can be used to irrigate the arid areas around the Dead Sea. The idea was revived during the 1980s for the purpose of power generation following the
1973 oil crisis The 1973 oil crisis or first oil crisis began in October 1973 when the members of the Organization of Arab Petroleum Exporting Countries (OAPEC), led by Saudi Arabia, proclaimed an oil embargo. The embargo was targeted at nations that had supp ...
. The Mediterranean–Dead Sea Company studied various alternatives and recommended a route from the
Gaza Strip The Gaza Strip (;The New Oxford Dictionary of English (1998) – p.761 "Gaza Strip /'gɑːzə/ a strip of territory under the control of the Palestinian National Authority and Hamas, on the SE Mediterranean coast including the town of Gaza.. ...
to
Masada Masada ( he, מְצָדָה ', "fortress") is an ancient fortification in the Southern District of Israel situated on top of an isolated rock plateau, akin to a mesa. It is located on the eastern edge of the Judaean Desert, overlooking the Dea ...
. However, the project did not commence due to economic and financial doubts. The idea was brought up again during the 1990s. In addition to the Gaza Strip–Masada route, two other alternatives were considered, namely a
Red Sea–Dead Sea Water Conveyance The Red Sea–Dead Sea Conveyance (RSDSC), sometimes called the Two Seas Canal, was a planned pipeline to run from the coastal city of Aqaba by the Red Sea to the Lisan area in the Dead Sea. Its abandonment was reported in June 2021. It was ...
and a northern route from the Mediterranean to the
Bet She'an Beit She'an ( he, בֵּית שְׁאָן '), also Beth-shean, formerly Beisan ( ar, بيسان ), is a town in the Northern District (Israel), Northern District of Israel. The town lies at the Beit She'an Valley about 120 m (394 feet) below se ...
Valley. As of 2009, the Red Sea–Dead Sea Water Conveyance was a joint
Jordan Jordan ( ar, الأردن; tr. ' ), officially the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan,; tr. ' is a country in Western Asia. It is situated at the crossroads of Asia, Africa, and Europe, within the Levant region, on the East Bank of the Jordan Rive ...
ian,
Israel Israel (; he, יִשְׂרָאֵל, ; ar, إِسْرَائِيل, ), officially the State of Israel ( he, מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל, label=none, translit=Medīnat Yīsrāʾēl; ), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated ...
i and
Palestinian Palestinians ( ar, الفلسطينيون, ; he, פָלַסְטִינִים, ) or Palestinian people ( ar, الشعب الفلسطيني, label=none, ), also referred to as Palestinian Arabs ( ar, الفلسطينيين العرب, label=non ...
project. In 2011, the
World Bank The World Bank is an international financial institution that provides loans and grants to the governments of low- and middle-income countries for the purpose of pursuing capital projects. The World Bank is the collective name for the Interna ...
released a study with recommendations for moving forward.


References

*In
Hebrew Hebrew (; ; ) is a Northwest Semitic language of the Afroasiatic language family. Historically, it is one of the spoken languages of the Israelites and their longest-surviving descendants, the Jews and Samaritans. It was largely preserved ...
: רון שפיגל, תעלת הימים בראי התקשורת 1994–1987


External links


June 25, 2007, rawstory.com: Eleven firms qualify for Dead Sea–Red Sea canal: Jordan
Quote: "…Once the proposals are in hand, representatives from Israel, Jordan and the Palestinian Authority will meet in Paris with the World Bank to examine the offers and announce two winners, he said…"
Information from Israel Ministry of Foreign AffairsDead Sea Project''The Jerusalem Post'', The Med–Dead/Red–Dead headache
{{DEFAULTSORT:Mediterranean-Dead Sea Canal Proposed canals Dead Sea Eastern Mediterranean Water transport in the Mediterranean