[RBS] Garden Watering Ban

[Hadassah Rosenthal]

Dear readers:
Please pass on this message to all you know.



http://www.jpost.com/Sci-Tech/Article.aspx?ID=248407&R=R1
 
Water level drop brings garden watering ban
By SHARON UDASIN
12/06/2011 22:54



The Water Authority institutes a temporary ban on
irrigating public and private gardens.
Talkbacks ()
The Water Authority has instituted a
temporary ban on public and private garden irrigation, which it says will be
key to water conservation efforts in an era of rapid water loss and drought.

The four-month prohibition – which began on December 1 and will last through
April 1 – has occurred annually since around 2001 and forbids all types of
garden-watering, except in areas that fall between the southern tip of Israel
and a borderline called the “minority rains line.”
 
According to a map on the Water Authority website,
this line begins at Israel’s western border just north of the Sufa border
crossing, and heads eastward north of Tze’elim, Hatzerim, Beersheba, Kasif and
Arad. It then wraps around northward along the western coast of the Dead Sea and ending right below Yafit
before hitting Jordan, but includes Tomer, Na’omi, Nahal Elisha, Vered Yeriho,
Almog, Kalya, Mitzpe Shalem and Ein Gedi within its minority precipitation –
and therefore acceptable-to-irrigate – bounds.

“From that line toward the North you must not water at all because it’s winter
– and when there is winter, there is rain,” Water Authority spokesman Uri Schor
told The Jerusalem Post on Tuesday, noting that the rule applies to gardens
only, not potted plants inside the home.

In addition to continuing to institute this ordination, the Water Authority has
provided “10 useful tips for saving water” during the months of April through
November, when irrigating gardens is once again permitted. These guidelines
include watering plants with sprinklers before 6 a.m., when there is no breeze;
raising plants that are known to be frugal with water; allocating the amount of
water necessary for irrigation according to the weather; equipping the garden
with a computerized irrigation monitor; and covering the ground with copious
amounts of soil to prevent dehydration.

In addition, the Water Authority suggests dividing gardens into sections
according to watering needs; increasing the space between plants to strengthen
their individual absorption; mowing lawns frequently; pruning unnecessary
landscape; and using compost.

“Private gardens and public lawns are green lungs for all of us,” the authority
guidelines say.

This year’s irrigation ban comes at a time when both Dead Sea and Kinneret
water levels are incredibly low. As of December 1, the Dead Sea’s water level
was measured at 425.36 meters below sea level, a drop in 17 centimeters for the
month – following drops of 11 and 10 centimeters in October and September,
respectively.

“Seventeen is quite drastic,” Schor said. “It was a very hot November.”

Meanwhile, as of Tuesday, the Kinneret sat at 213.69 meters below sea level,
still 69 centimeters below the body of water’s bottom red line. During this
November’s rainy week, the Kinneret rose by one centimeter, two weekends ago it
dropped by half a centimeter, and last weekend, by a full centimeter, according
to Schor.

“The last seven years of drought left our main sources of water with a loss of
1.5 billion cubic meters of water,” he said. “Therefore, we need a lot of rain and to continue conserving.”   
__._,_.___ 
Reply to sender | Reply to group | Reply via web post | Start a New Topic  Messages in this topic (1)  
Recent Activity: 
Visit Your Group   
MARKETPLACE 
Stay on top of your group activity without leaving the page you're on - Get the Yahoo! Toolbar now. <img width="1" height="1" alt="" src="http://us.bc.yahoo.com/b?P=aeec18c8-210c-11e1-91b7-9b9a8cb83454&T=1c94cffcu%2fX%3d1323287415%2fE%3d1705015594%2fR%3dgroups%2fK%3d5%2fV%3d2.1%2fW%3dH%2fY%3dYAHOO%2fF%3d1324433490%2fH%3dY29udGVudD0iR3JvdXBzO0ZsaWNrcjtQb2RjYXN0cztNYWlsO1lhaG9vX1RlY2g7QnJpZWZjYXNlO0dlb2NpdGllcztHbztQaG90b3M7RXZlbnRzOyIgZGlzYWJsZXNodWZmbGluZz0iMSIgc2VydmVJZD0iYWVlYzE4YzgtMjEwYy0xMWUxLTkxYjctOWI5YThjYjgzNDU0IiBzaXRlSWQ9IjQ0NTI1NTEiIHRTdG1wPSIxMzIzMjg3NDE1NTg2MTgxIiA-%2fQ%3d-1%2fS%3d1%2fJ%3d28228962&U=13cebiimc%2fN%3dIdNrO9BDRuE-%2fC%3d493064.14543979.14562481.13298430%2fD%3dMKP1%2fB%3d6060255%2fV%3d1">    
 
Switch to: Text-Only, Daily Digest • Unsubscribe • Terms of Use     
.   

__,_._,___      
-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: <http://mailman.cs.huji.ac.il/pipermail/rbs/attachments/20111207/619b4f1e/attachment-0001.html>