Overview
- The reverse national carrier now diverts desalinated seawater via the Tzalmon Stream into the lake at about 1,000 cubic meters per hour in a first-of-its-kind move.
- Despite the inflow, the Kinneret is around minus 213.345 meters, roughly 34.5 centimeters below the lower red line and 4.5 meters under full capacity, after slipping another 4.5 centimeters since November began.
- Water Authority leaders report a decline rate exceeding 2.5 meters per year and say stabilizing the lake will require several-hundred-percent higher inflows.
- National pumping from the lake is being cut to 20 million cubic meters this year, while farmers say more than 30,000 dunams of Upper Galilee crops have already been dried, causing losses estimated above 65 million shekels.
- Early tests show no major ecological harm from the low-mineral desalinated water, but the current transfer adds only about 700,000 cubic meters per month, and environmental groups urge conservation campaigns and a higher-price tier for excessive use.