Bardala presents an example of the Israeli water domination policies; it, in the past, used to be one of the main sources of water in the Jordan Valley area. The Israeli Occupation Authorities dug water wells nearby the Palestinian ones in the area (4 wells), they deviated the water path to their wells . the locals now totally depend on water provided by the Israeli Water Company (Mikrot) on their water supply.
It must be noted that the Israeli Authorities built a water well in February, 2008 nearby the main and only well in Qa’un area, 3 km away from Bardala village, a water well known as “Al Que’ni”. The aforementioned water well (not in use at the moment) used to supply more than 1200 dunums of extremely fertile lands with water. The Israeli measures drastically affected farming in the area; Al Qui’ni water well was the only source of water in the area.
The farmers were forced to start rain-fed farming as an alternative solution as a result. This resulted in increasing the unemployment rates in the area. 70 families depend on aids provided by the WFP, 20 depend on Ministry of Social Affairs donations, and 60 on UNRWA aid.
The Israeli Policy in the Jordan Valley:
The northern parts of the Jordan Valley are considered the most fertile in the West Bank. It is known for citrus, vegetables, and cereals plantation; more than 27,000 dunums are planted yearly; besides, 400 dunums of greenhouses and thousands of dunums used for rain-fed cultivation.
The area is known for its frtility, productivity, and variety of crops. However, since the Occupation of the West Bank in 1967, the Israeli took over the water resources and monopolized water drilling. “Mikrot”, the Israeli Water Company, dug tens of water wells, on much deeper levels than the Palestinian wells, deviating the water to water tanks in the nearby colonies. Now, the Palestinians are forced to buy their own water from Mikrot!
In addition, the Israelis created a one to five km wide buffer zone separating the Palestinians from the Jordan River; thus, destroying thousands of dunums of agricultural lands by depriving the Palestinians from their share in water. According to recent statistics, an Israeli colonist in the Jordan Valley share of water is 20 times a Palestinian share.
Moreover, the Israelis are drilling for water nearby the Palestinian wells; what happened in Bardala and Ein al Baida provides an example. Mikrot dug two water wells (Bardala 1 and Bardala 2) which pump more than 1500 m3/hour in those villages. These water wells dried out 4 Palestinian wells and 22 water spring which used to provide the Palestinians with around 6 million m3 per year; thus, increasing the cost of agriculture production.
Prepared by
The Land Research Center
LRC
The Land Research Center
LRC
