1. Middle Eastern Environment
Water Pollution and Unequal Distribution of Water

2. GPS and E.Q.
GPS: SS7G6a. Explain how water pollution and the unequal distribution of water impacts irrigation and drinking water.
E.Q.: How do water pollution and the unequal distribution of water impact irrigation and drinking water?

3. "Many of the wars of this century were about oil, but the wars of the next century will be about water." –Former World Bank Vice President Ismail Serageldin

4. Vocabulary
Irrigation - To supply (dry land) with water by means of ditches, pipes, or streams; water artificially.
Underground aquifers – layers of underground rock where water runoff from rains and streams is trapped.
Fossil water – water that has been underground for centuries
Desalination – the process of removing salt and other chemicals from seawater
Hydroelectric power – electricity produced from the energy of running water

5. Water
Water is a natural resource that is unequally distributed in the Middle East.
Turkey and Iraq share the Tigris and Euphrates river systems.
Israel, Syria, and Jordan share the Jordan River.
Saudi Arabia has almost no water and is made up of mostly desert.
Iran has access to rivers in some areas, but is mostly desert.
Irrigation is necessary for farming.

6. Irrigation Methods: water wheels, irrigation ditches and canals
animal power to lift water from underground wells.
Israel and Saudi Arabia use drip irrigation – the use of computers that measure out how much water each plant receives.
Desalination is expensive and complex in technology.

7. Water Pollution
Water pollution has been a growing problem in the Middle East.
Increased demand for irrigation causes overuse of rivers and streams.
Chemical fertilizers used by farmers have caused contaminated water supplies.
Constant planting and fertilizer use have led to the build-up of salt levels in soil, which destroys the soil.
Many cities and towns have grown rapidly, but there are not many effective ways to manage garbage and treat sewage.

8. Conflict
Access to water causes conflict because countries have to share.
Water is unequally distributed across the region.

9.
Fresh water losses from in SW Asia – note drought In 2007.

10. CRCT Test Prep pages 82-83
233. Which river do Syria, Israel, and Jordan share?
A. Euphrates
B. Jordan
C. Nile
D. Tigris

11. CRCT Test Prep pages 82-83
234. How has the building of dams created problems for countries sharing rivers in SW Asia?
A. Dams are too expensive to build to be practical.
B. Dams limit the water available to countries further downstream.
C. Few countries have the technology needed to be able to build dams.
D. Countries in SW Asia are not allowed to build dams along shared rivers.

12. CRCT Test Prep pages 82-83
235. What is one problem chemical fertilizers cause for farmers?
A. Chemical fertilizers make farm animals sick.
B. Chemicals have led to the build-up of salt levels in the soil.
C. Fertilizers are too expensive for anyone in SW Asia to use.
D. Few countries in SW Asia have factories to make fertilizers.

13. CRCT Test Prep pages 82-83
236. How has the use of chemical fertilizers affected water supplies in many countries in SW Asia?
A. Use of chemical fertilizers means crops must be watered constantly.
B. Enormous amounts of water must be used to produce chemical fertilizers.
C. Water supplies have been contaminated by the chemicals through run-off from the fields.
D. Chemical fertilizers have had very little effect on local water supplies in SW Asia.

14. CRCT Test Prep pages 82-83
237. Why aren’t desalinization and drip irrigation used more in SW Asia?
A. Most countries do not know about these technologies.
B. Drip irrigation is not very effective in a hot, dry climate.
C. Few countries in SW Asia have access to seawater.
D. These technologies are very expensive for the countries to use.

15. The Middle East Water Crisis Copy this Graphic Organizer
Causes
Dry Land
Drought (Little Rainfall)
Population Growth
Water use per Person
Agriculture (Farming and Irrigation)
Pollution
Solutions
Desalination (Removing Salt from Seawater)
Alternative Water Sources (Storing rainwater, capturing winter thaw from mountains, etc.)
Importing Water (Buying from another country)
Conservation (Saving Water)
Treating Waste Water (Yummy!)

16.
NATO vid on water conflicts