Reservoir network helps Israel during desalination crisis

A microalgae bloom shut down five of Israel’s six desalination plants and exposed how much the country still depends on backup water systems. Jewish National Fund-USA pointed to its 250 reservoirs and the Ktziot Reservoir in the Negev as a key reason some farms kept irrigating during the disruption.

Why it matters: - The shutdown of five desalination plants showed how quickly a disruption to coastal infrastructure can ripple into water and food security. - Israel gets up to 80% of its drinking water from desalination, according to the Israel Water Authority. - Jewish National Fund-USA says its reservoir network provides a decentralized backstop when centralized systems fail. - More than half of Israeli agricultural water now comes from recycled water stored in reservoirs supported by Jewish National Fund-USA.

What happened: - An unprecedented microalgae bloom temporarily forced five of Israel’s six desalination plants offline. - The disruption affected facilities that supply much of Israel’s drinking water. - The Ktziot Water Reservoir in the Negev supplied irrigation water to farmers in the remote Nitzana area while restrictions hit peripheral regions. - Jewish National Fund-USA said the reservoir helped protect newly planted crops during a critical growth stage.

The details: - The Ktziot Reservoir can hold 250,000 cubic meters of water, or about 66 million gallons. - Ramat HaNegev Regional Council Mayor Eran Doron called the reservoir “a lifeline for an entire region.” - The broader Jewish National Fund-USA reservoir network includes 250 reservoirs across Israel. - Those reservoirs store recycled wastewater and runoff water for local and regional use. - Jewish National Fund-USA has also supported alternative water sources, wastewater recycling, responsible aquifer drilling, river rehabilitation, agricultural research and water-storage infrastructure. - Doron wrote in a letter to the Jewish National Fund-USA Water Task Force that the Ktziot Reservoir had proved itself to be “a strategic asset for Israel’s water and food security.” - Doron thanked the Water Task Force and donors Alan Cohen, and Valerie and Herschel (z"l) Richter for helping make the reservoir possible.

Between the lines: - The crisis reinforced the limits of relying on any single water source, even one as advanced as desalination. - Reservoirs and locally available recycled water add flexibility when coastal plants are disrupted by environmental, military or technological threats. - The episode also points to a logistics gap: more pipelines, more wastewater-treatment facilities and more reservoirs closer to farms could improve response time in future emergencies.

What’s next: - Jewish National Fund-USA said it will keep working with partners in Israel on water solutions that support emergency resilience, agriculture and regional development in the North and South. - The group is highlighting continued investment in pipelines, wastewater-treatment plants and nearby reservoirs as a priority. - Jewish National Fund-USA is directing readers to more information on its water initiatives at the organization's water initiatives.

The bottom line: - A reservoir built years earlier helped keep farms running when a national desalination shock hit, turning long-term infrastructure spending into immediate crisis protection.