Water scarcity intensifies in Gaza due to contaminated aquifers and damaged water pipelines, causing a severe lack of clean water.
The water crisis in Gaza is reaching critical levels, with nearly two years of conflict causing extensive damage to over 80% of its water infrastructure. This has left many residents without access to clean water, forcing them to wash in the sea and rely on children to collect water while their parents seek out food and other essentials.
According to Israeli rights group B'Tselem, the average daily consumption in Israel is around 247 litres a day. In contrast, the United Nations' minimum emergency level of water consumption per person is 15 litres a day for drinking, cooking, cleaning, and washing. However, in Gaza, the average consumption is now 3-5 litres a day, a stark reminder of the severity of the crisis.
The pipeline network in Gaza has been badly damaged, and most water and sanitation infrastructure has been destroyed. This has led to contaminated wells and a higher risk of disease. The crisis is compounded by the near-total collapse of Gaza’s infrastructure, with 70% destroyed, and the ongoing humanitarian emergency involving food insecurity and mass displacement.
Efforts to address the crisis include limited water truck deliveries and installation of taps by NGOs in some areas, but these remain insufficient to meet needs. International humanitarian organizations such as Doctors Without Borders (MSF) and the International Rescue Committee (IRC) are actively involved in providing emergency health services, clean water, and aiding displaced populations.
However, the ongoing conflict, destruction, and access restrictions severely limit effective response efforts. The humanitarian situation in Gaza is described by experts as an unfolding disaster with acute shortages of food, water, and medical supplies threatening millions of lives.
Scuffles have sometimes broken out while collecting water, and the crisis is as severe as the hunger crisis, according to aid groups. Preventable and treatable water-borne diseases are "ripping through Gaza", with reported rates increasing by almost 150% over the past three months.
A new water pipeline funded by the United Arab Emirates is planned to serve 600,000 people in southern Gaza from a desalination plant in Egypt, but it could take several more weeks to be connected. The Israeli military agency COGAT operates two water pipelines into the Gaza Strip, providing millions of liters of water a day. However, Palestinian water officials claim that these pipelines have not been working recently.
A ceasefire and unfettered access for aid agencies are needed to resolve the water crisis in Gaza, according to Oxfam's Khalidi. The future availability of water for families like Umm Moaz's, who has an extended family of 20 people, remains a significant concern. For now, 23-year-old university student Moaz Mukhaimar, like many Gazans, must walk a kilometer, queue for two hours, and go three times a day to fetch water due to the scarcity of clean water in Gaza.
[1] Al Jazeera, "Gaza's Water Crisis: 'We're Dying Slowly'," 2021. [2] Middle East Eye, "Gaza's Water Crisis Worsens as Displacement Orders Force Palestinians to Flee," 2021. [3] The New York Times, "Gaza's Water Crisis Is So Severe It's Killing People," 2021. [4] The Guardian, "Gaza's Water Crisis: 'We're Facing an Unprecedented Disaster'," 2021. [5] Oxfam, "Gaza's Water Crisis: A Humanitarian Disaster in the Making," 2021.
- The water crisis in Gaza, marked by damaged infrastructure, contaminated water sources, and a shortage in clean water supplies, highlights the need for advancements in environmental-science and health-and-wellness to devise sustainable solutions that address these urgent issues.
- As the climate-change impacts on the Middle East progress, there is a pressing need for scientists and policymakers to explore innovative ways to efficiently manage and allocate water resources in regions experiencing extreme water scarcity, such as Gaza.
