Wazzani Spring Assessment of the present international water conflict between Lebanon and Israel - concerning the Wazzani Spring and Hasbani River - seen within an Arab-Israeli context. BY ANDERS OMBERG HANSEN CAND.SCIENT THESIS IN RESOURCE GEOGRAPHY DEPARTMENT OF GEOSCIENCES UNIVERSITY OF OSLO SPRING 2005 ii Disclaims The denominations used and the line boundaries shown on any maps do not imply any judgment on the legal status of any territories or any endorsements or acceptance of such boundaries. Unless otherwise stated all the interpretations and findings set forth in this publication are those of the author and should not be assumed to reflect the views of any particular persons or organisations. iii iv Foreword The situation in the Middle East has over the last centuries received much attention from the international community. There is a long history of disputes over natural resources like oil and land in the Middle East, and on some occasions these disputes have resulted in warfare among neighboring states. Even though water has always been a source of conflict in the region, it’s only in the recent years that more focus has been placed on the scarce fresh water resources in the region, and the management of them. In the arid Middle East region water is scarce both in terms of the quantity and quality. This constitutes a great challenge for the countries in the region, because water is probably the most fundamental natural resource for humans and the societies in which they live. The fundamental role that water resources play in a society is also the cause of tension between different users of the same water resources. This is also the case with the Jordan River Basin, which have five riparian states struggling over the same water resources. Due to the political situation among the riparians to the basin, this area is probably one of the most disputed and tense river basins in the world. Unless the riparian states cooperate and negotiate on how to manage their common resources in the best way possible – overt conflict may occur. In the case of the Wazzani Spring and the Wazzani/Hasbani River system, these water resources, along with Dan and Banias Rivers, provide a substantial contribution to the Jordan River, and they constitute the tributaries of the Upper Jordan River, which eventually empties into the Sea of Galilee, Israel’s main fresh water reserve. It is within this context that the Wazzani Spring conflict evolved after the Israelis withdrew there troops from South Lebanon, and thus giving up their control over the water resources of Wazzani Spring. In addition to the control and utilization of water recourses in the Middle East, the water also has a more strategic and complex role, since the water resources are inseparable linked to socio-economic development, as well as to national security, politics and ideology. The thesis does not go into a traditional quantitative analysis that deals with the hydrological data alone, but rather focus on carrying out a comprehensive assessment and qualitative analysis of the above mentioned data. Relevant data have been collected, classified, described, assessed and analyzed. This thesis is probably the first in its kind regarding the Wazzani Spring water resource conflict. 17th of February 2005 v Acknowledgment In my work on this thesis I have received vital help and support: In this respect I would like to thank Professor Dr. Jon Martin Trondalen for giving me the opportunity to benefit from CESAR’s resources as a scholarship recipient. I would also like to thank him for his guidance and insightful comments regarding my work on this thesis. I would also like to thank Associate Professor Tormod Klemsdal for inspiration and counselling throughout my studies at the Department of Geosciences. Finally, I would also like to thank my father Øyvind Hansen for his continued interest in my work and studies – always supportive and full of advice. vi Table of Content Disclaim Foreword Acknowledgement List of figures INTRODUCTION Chapter 1: Introduction 1.1 Presentation of the Objectives and Approaches in the Thesis………………………. 1 1.2 The Structure and Main Elements in the Thesis………………………………..….... 3 PART I: THEORY AND METHODS Chapter 2: Theory and Concepts in the Discipline of Resource Geography 2.1 Resource Geography – The Paradigm…………………………………………..….... 5 2.2 Resources……………………………………………………………….……...……... 6 2.2.1 Water Resources………………………………………………………….. 8 2.3 Human Needs……………………………………………………………………….... 9 2.4 Behavioural Geography……………………………………………………………... 10 2.5 Resource Conflict Theory…………………………………………………………... 11 2.5.1 International Environmental Conflicts (IECs)………………………...… 12 2.5.2 The ABC Model………………………………………………………… 12 2.5.3 The Escalation Model…………………………………………………… 14 Chapter 3: Methods in the Discipline of Resource Geography 3.1 Methodology………………………………………………………………………... 17 3.1.1 Case Studies……………………………………………………………... 17 3.1.2 Systems Approach………………………………………………………. 17 3.1.3 Qualitative Analysis & Chronological Analysis……………...………… 18 3.2 Conceptual Model of the Study……………………………………………………... 19 3.3 Information and Sources……………………………………………………………. 22 3.4 The Middle East Excursion of Marsh 2004………………………………………… 23 vii PART II: LEBANON AND ISRAEL – IN A HISTORICAL, SOCIO- ECONOMICAL, MILITARY, POLITICAL, GEOGRAPHICAL AND HYDROLOGICAL CONTEXT Chapter 4: Lebanon 4.1 The History of Lebanon…………………………………………………………….. 26 4.2 Ethnic, Demographic and Socio – Economic Aspects of Lebanon 4.2.1 Ethnics and Demographics………………………………………………………... 32 4.2.2 Socio – Economy………………………………………………………... 34 4.3 Political Aspects of Lebanon………………………………………………………... 36 4.4 Military Aspects of Lebanon……….……………………………………………….. 36 4.5 Geographical Aspect of Lebanon 4.5.1 Topography……………………………………………………………… 37 4.5.2 Climate………………………………………………………………….. 38 Chapter 5: Israel 5.1 The History of Israel………………………………………………………………… 41 5.2 Ethnic, Demographic and Socio – Economic Aspects of Israel 5.2.1 Ethnics and Demographics……………………………………………… 44 5.2.2 Socio – Economy.………………………………………………….……. 46 5.3 Political Aspects of Israel………………………………...………………………… 48 5.4 Military Aspects of Israel………………………………………………………….... 49 5.5 Geographical Aspect of Israel 5.5.1 Topography……………………………………………………………… 50 5.5.2 Climate………………………………………………………………….. 52 PART III: WATER MANAGEMENT REGIMES IN LEBANON AND ISRAEL Chapter 6: Water Resources and Management in Lebanon……………………………………………….. 55 6.1 Lebanese Water Law and Water Authorities………………………...……………... 57 6.2 Water Resources…………………………………………………………………….. 58 6.3 Water Quality……………………………………………………………………….. 59 6.4 Water Supplies, Demand and Use.………………………………………………….. 59 Chapter 7: Water Resources and Management in Israel……………………...……………………………. 61 7.1 Israeli Water Law……………………………………...……………………………. 61 7.2 Water Resources…………………………………………………………………….. 61 7.3 Water Quality……………………………………………………………………….. 65 7.4 Water Supplies and Demand………………………………………………………... 65 7.5 Water Conservation and Water Use Efficiency……………………...……………... 67 Chapter 8: Concluding Summary of Chapter 6 & 7………………………………...…………………….. 69 viii PART IV: INTERNATIOANL WATER LAW Chapter 9.1: International Law………………………………………………………………..…………… 70 Chapter 9.2: International Water Law……………………………………………………………………... 72 Chapter 9.3: The United Nation Convention on the Law of the Non-Navigational Uses of International Watercourses……………………………………...………………………… 74 Chapter 9.4: International Water Law and the Middle East……………………………………………….. 78 PART V: WATER CONFLICTS IN THE JORDAN RIVER BASIN AND THE HYDROLOGICAL & HISTORICAL RELEVANCE TO THE WAZZANI SPRING WATER RESOURCE CONFLICT Chapter 10: The Arab-Israeli Water Conflict – Historical and Hydrological Perspectives……………….. 83 PART VI: ASSESSMENT, ANALYSIS, DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSION REGARDING THE WAZZANI SPRING WATER RESOURCE CONFLICT Chapter 11: The Escalation of the Wazzani Spring Water Resource Conflict………………………….... 102 11.1 Prelude to the Wazzani Spring Conflict………………………………………….. 104 11.2 Wazzani Spring Conflict – The Spring of 2001………………………………….. 104 11.3 Wazzani Spring Conflict – The Autumn of 2002……………………………...… 107 11.4 Postlude to the Wazzani Spring Conflict…………………………………...……. 139 Chapter 12: The Parties’ Interests and Position Regarding Wazzani Spring……………..…………….... 141 Chapter 13: The Chronological Analysis of the Wazzani Spring Conflict applied on the Escalation Model………………………………………………………...………………… 144 Chapter 14: The Wazzani Spring Conflict and the ABC-model Analyzed in View of a Systems Approach………………………………………………………….……………… 146 Chapter 15: Analysis of International Law and their Relevance in a Dispute Settlement of the Wazzani Spring Conflict………………………………………………..……………... 151 Chapter 16: Conclusion…………………………………………………………………………………... 154 LITERATURE AND REFERENCE LIST 155 - 164 ix List of Figures: Figure 1.1: The Jordan River Basin Figure 2.1: Man-land Relationship Model Figure 2.2: A Resource Continuum Figure 2.3: Model of Mental Processes and Behaviour in the Geographical Space Figure 2.4: The ABC-model Figure 2.5: The Escalation Model Figure 3.1: A Conceptual Model of the Study of the Wazzani Spring Water Resource Conflict Figure 4.1: Political Map of the Middle East Figure 4.2: A Conceptual Model of the Study of Wazzani Spring Conflict - Lebanon Figure 4.3: Lebanon Figure 4.4: The Sykes – Picot Agreement of 1916 Figure 4.5: The Lebanese Population in the 1932 Census Figure 4.6: Foreign Forces in Lebanon, as of July 1992 Figure 4.7: Lebanese Population Density Figure 4.8: The Distribution of Religious Groups