- Mekorot
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Mekorot (Hebrew: מקורות) (lit. "Sources") is the national water company of Israel and the country's top agency for water management.[1]
Mekorot was founded in 1937. It supplies 90% of Israel's drinking water and 80% of its water supplies. The company runs 3,000 installations throughout the country for water supply, water quality, infrastructure, sewage purification, desalination, rain enhancement, etc. Mekorot oversees operations of 800 pumping stations, 1,200 wells, 2,400 pumps, 10,500 km of large-diameter pipes, 750 concrete and steel reservoirs and 90 large earth reservoirs.[2]
Contents
National water carrier
Mekorot's National Water Carrier, known in Hebrew as Hamovil ha'artzi, runs from Lake Kinneret in the north to the Negev Desert in the south. The system has been expanded to pipe water from desalination plants on the Mediterranean coast.[3]
Water tariffs
Water tariffs are set by the Ministry of National Infrastructure and Ministry of Finance, and approved by the Knesset Finance Committee. Tariffs are updated from time to time according to changes in the Consumer Price Index, electricity rates and the average wage index.[4] The rates vary according to use: domestic, consumption and services, industry and agriculture. Rates for industrial and agricultural use are lower than those for domestic consumption and services.[5] The bulk water tariff is the same throughout the country, regardless of the difference in supply costs.[6]
Water filtering
In 2008, Mekorot established a central water filtering plant for water pumped from Lake Kinneret. The company also improved quality control. As a result, water quality has improved and less chlorine is being added as a disinfecting agent.[7]
See also
References
- ^ Israel's water is getting cleaner and people consuming less, Haaretz
- ^ Israel Industry Center for R&D, Mekorot Water Company, Ltd.
- ^ Israel Increases Rates to Pay for Desalinated Water, Circle of Blue Water News
- ^ Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs. "Israel's Water Economy - Thinking of future generations." 10 Aug 2002.
- ^ Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs: Israel's Water Economy - Thinking of future generations, 10 Aug 2002
- ^ EMWIS: Local Water Supply, Sanitation and Sewage – Country Report Israel, November 2005, p. 16, quoting the Ministry of Infrastructure
- ^ Israel's water is getting cleaner and people consuming less, Haaretz
External links
Categories:- Government-owned companies in Israel
- Hydraulic engineering
- Utilities companies of Israel
- Water supply and sanitation in Israel
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