Economic Benefits of Access to a Healthy Lower Jordan River for the Palestinian Economy
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Economic Benefits of Access to a Healthy Lower Jordan River for the Palestinian Economy February 2011 EcoPeace/Friends of the Earth Middle East Bethlehem, Palestine Jesse Baltutis, EcoPeace/FoEME Nader Khateeb, Editor, EcoPeace/FoEME Gidon Bromberg, Editor, EcoPeace/FoEME Mira Edelstein, Editor, EcoPeace/FoEME Elizabeth Ya’ari, Editor, EcoPeace/FoEME FoEME would like to recognize and thank the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), the Richard and Rhoda Goldman Fund and the Global Nature Fund/ Ursula Merz Foundation for their support of this project. The views expressed are those of FoEME and do not necessarily represent the views of our funders. TABLE OF CONTENTS Introduction................................................................................................................................................1 Chapter 1: Obtaining Palestinian Riparian Rights to the Waters of the Lower Jordan River ........................................................................................................................................2 Chapter 2: Baptism Site along the west side of the Lower Jordan River............................3 Chapter 3: Development of Tourism Industry at the Mouth of the LJR as it flows into the Dead Sea........................................................................................................................5 Chapter 4: Tourism in Jericho City.....................................................................................................7 Chapter 5: Eco-Tourism in the Jordan Valley ................................................................................8 Chapter 6: Facilitating Trade Between Palestinians and Arab Countries in the Region ................................................................................................................................................10 Chapter 7: UNESCO and Palestinian Support for the Jordan Valley / Dead Sea as a World Heritage Site........................................................................................................11 Conclusions and Final Remarks........................................................................................................13 Next Steps ................................................................................................................................................14 Works Cited .............................................................................................................................................15 Introduction FoEME has undertaken this report to highlight the importance of access to a healthy Lower Jordan River (LJR) for the economic development of Palestinian communities along the river. For the purposes of this report, on a north – south axis, the area in question is from the point that the LJR crosses the 'Green Line' in the north to the mouth of the LJR at the northern head of the Dead Sea. Specifically, tourism in Jericho, the Baptism Site along the western shore of the Lower Jordan River, the Northwestern shores of the Dead Sea, and at specific sites of archaeological interest along the LJR will be considered as rich in potential for further development, albeit in a sustainable and managed fashion. In addition, the trade with Arab neighbors in agricultural goods produced in the Jordan Valley can also act as an economic driver, assuming unhindered transportation flows across the several bridges linking Palestine and Jordan. In order to allow for diversified economic growth of the Jordan Valley, it must be recognized by all that the LJR is “in urgent need of rehabilitation undertaken by the river’s riparians in accordance with the level of damage caused by each country”1. The FoEME report Towards a Living Jordan River: An Environmental Flows Report on the Rehabilitation of the Lower Jordan River (2010) outlines the quantities required for a rehabilitated LJR, and shows this to be economically feasible in the complementary report Towards A Living Jordan River: An Economic Analysis of Policy Options for Water Conservation in Jordan, Israel and Palestine at, prices lower than the current marginal cost of water2. This report summarizes existing reports and data available to highlight potential Palestinian development options in the Jordan Valley. The options are presented as chapters, and each option could be considered as one piece of a larger plan towards the sustainable development of the entire Palestinian economy. However, the point of departure for this report must be to highlight the necessity of securing fair access and equitable allocation of fresh water resources to Palestine, as stipulated under Oslo II. Without fair allocations of water, development initiatives in Palestine will be severely limited, and economic growth curtailed. This report can serve as guidance to decision makers and the general public with regards to realistic economic and environmental options available for sustained economic growth. 1 FoEME, “Towards a Living Jordan River: An Environmental Flows Report on the Rehabilitation of the Jordan River”, May 2010. http://foeme.org/uploads/publications_publ117_1.pdf 2 FoEME, “Towards a Living Jordan River: An Economic Analysis of Policy Options for Water Conservation in Jordan, Israel and Palestine”, 2010. http://foeme.org/uploads/publications_publ118_1.pdf 1 Through the identification of a multitude of economic benefits derived from a rehabilitated Lower Jordan River, it is hoped this report will foster the necessary Palestinian political and public support for the rehabilitation of the LJR. A new era of Palestinian economic growth in the Jordan Valley’s agricultural, industrial and tourism sectors has the potential to drastically change the economic landscape for Palestine, bringing employment to thousands of people, creating new industries and industrial hubs, and lifting entire communities out of poverty. With this aim, FoEME has undertaken this short report. Chapter 1: Obtaining Palestinian Riparian Rights to the Waters of the Lower Jordan River Currently, Palestinian water rights to the Lower Jordan River are denied, despite Palestine being a river riparian, and having historical claims to the waters of the Lower Jordan River. FoEME believes concerted efforts should be directed towards establishing Palestinian water rights, in the recognition of the finite and interconnected nature of the regional water resources.3 Further, water rights must be defined based on a formula of equitable sharing, to ensure the basis for sustained management of these limited water resources.4 International legal agreements exist for the equitable and reasonable allocation of freshwater resources between riparians in a river basin.5 Such legal agreements could provide a framework in which freshwater is shared between Israel and Palestine in an equitable manner, and which takes into consideration environmental concerns and future water needs. Needless to say, current restrictions on Palestinian water use do not meet the criteria for equitable sharing between riparians of the Jordan River basin. Further, to enable the equitable distribution of waters from the Lower Jordan River to all riparians including Palestine, the river must see an increase in its flow, as at current rates it is completely over-utilized, with some 98% of its natural flow diverted upstream from Palestinian territory. Rehabilitation of the Lower Jordan River to at least a 400 mcm annual flow, and increasing to 600 mcm annual flow, is essential to the longevity of the Lower Jordan River ecosystem, and for the Dead Sea, which relies primarily on the waters of the Jordan River for its inflow. 3 FoEME, “Lower Jordan River Rehabilitation Project Transboundary Diagnostic Analysis Palestine.” December 2009. Pg. 43. http://foeme.org/uploads/12936079411~^$^~JR_TDA_Palestine.pdf 4 Ibid 5 The Helsinki Rules, or the 1997 UN Convention on the Law of the Non-Navigational Uses of International Watercourses are two of the most referenced and developed of international legal agreements on the uses of transboundary watercourses. 2 Chapter 2: Baptism Site along the west side of the Lower Jordan River Just 9 km southeast of Jericho City lays a site of religious and historical importance for Christians and Jews: the believed site of the baptism of Christ, and where the Israelites crossed over into the Holy Land. The West Bank Baptism Site, located north of the Dead Sea along the west side of Jordan River, is an important destination for religious pilgrims, both locally and from around the world. Unfortunately, it is a heavily armed and mined area, and under the management of the Israeli Nature and Parks Authority.6 The Israeli Nature and Parks Authority has plans to open the site to international and Israeli visitors,7 though Palestinians would not have access to it, nor would they benefit from the opening of the site to tourists, as it is in Area C – land in the West Bank under Israeli administrative control. Revenue earned from the expansion of tourism in the Jordan Valley to include the baptism site would boost Jericho’s tourism and general economy8, which itself holds much potential for tourism (see Chapter 3). Further upriver, the Yardenit baptism site in Israel sees on average 500,000 tourists (95% foreign) a year, illustrating just how big of a potential tourist draw the baptism site 9 near Jericho could become. Last year the Yardenit site had Credit: FoEME 700,000 visitors in line with record tourist visitation to the area in 2010. Despite health warnings,