Morocco looking for Israel to help its water recycling

Morocco's popular Hespress news details Israel's record in recycling water and how important that is to Morocco and the Arab world.

The drinking water crisis has begun to present itself gradually in the Kingdom as a result of the climatic impacts on water resources in recent decades, especially in the southern and eastern regions, and this dilemma is exacerbated in the summer period with less rainfall.

The crisis has appeared in the Draa-Tafilalet region, especially in the city of Zagora, which witnessed what were called “thirst protests,” prompting the state to launch projects for water treatment plants. However,  the projects are too little and too late compared to the presented environmental challenges.

In light of the resumption of diplomatic relations between Tel Aviv and Rabat, Moroccan officials can benefit from the Israeli experience in the field of water recycling, after it succeeded in overcoming drought, which made it a pioneer in the level of recycling and using wastewater in agriculture.

A news article published in the Israel Valley newspaper, which specializes in trade relations between France and Israel, indicated that Tel Aviv recycles more than 80 percent of the wastewater that is used to irrigate nearly 20,000 hectares, which represents 16 percent of Israel's water needs.

Israel, along with Kuwait and Singapore, is among the most advanced countries in the field of wastewater recycling.

The international scientific journal “Water” published a recent study alerting the great water shortages afflicting the Moroccan southeast, stressing the fragility of the water balance in the region, in addition to the challenges related to the quality of groundwater used for drinking and agricultural irrigation.

In this context, Abdel-Rahim Kassiri, the national coordinator of the Moroccan Coalition for Climate and Sustainable Development, said, "Israel is a world power in the development of water resources, as it invented water distillation and succeeded in greening dry desert spaces."

Al-Kusiri added, in a statement to  Hespress: "The return of political relations would transfer Israeli technologies to Morocco, and from there to Africa."

This article is being widely quoted in other Arabic media outside Morocco.

The UAE has also expressed interest in Israeli water tech.

Can we call this...water-washing?

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