Israel gets its water from a mix of desalination plants along the Mediterranean coast, natural freshwater sources like the Sea of Galilee and underground aquifers, and an extensive system for recycling wastewater. Roughly half of the country’s drinking water now comes from desalinated seawater, making Israel one of the most desalination-dependent nations on Earth. The rest is drawn from natural sources and managed through a national grid that moves water from the wetter north to the arid south.
Desalination: The Biggest Single Source
Israel built five major reverse osmosis desalination plants along its Mediterranean coastline between 2005 and 2015: Ashkelon (2005), Palmachim (2007), Hadera (2009), Sorek (2013), and Ashdod (2015). These facilities pull in seawater, force it through membranes that strip out salt and impurities, and produce freshwater at industrial scale. As of 2020, desalination supplies approximately 50% of Israel’s domestic water needs.
That percentage is set to grow. Israel’s national water master plan projects the country will need to roughly double its artificial water production by 2050, increasing desalinated and imported water from about 750 million cubic meters per year to around 1.5 billion. Climate change is expected to reduce natural water availability by up to 15% over that same period, making desalination not just convenient but essential for long-term survival.
The Sea of Galilee and the National Water Carrier
Before desalination took over as the primary source, the Sea of Galilee (called Lake Kinneret in Hebrew) was the backbone of Israel’s water supply. This freshwater lake in the country’s northeast sits about 209 meters below sea level and historically supplied roughly a third of the nation’s annual water needs. Around 450 million cubic meters of water per year have been drawn from it to serve consumers across the country.
Getting that water from the north to where people actually live required a massive engineering project. The National Water Carrier, completed in 1964, stretches about 130 kilometers and uses a system of aqueducts, tunnels, reservoirs, and large pumping stations to move water south to the population centers and the Negev desert. Most of Israel’s other water infrastructure connects into this carrier, making it the spine of the national water grid.
Today, the Sea of Galilee’s role has shifted. With desalination shouldering more of the load, water managers can keep the lake at lower levels during autumn and early winter to maximize its capacity as a strategic reserve rather than draining it as a primary supply. This has helped the lake recover from dangerously low levels it hit during extended droughts in the 2000s and 2010s.
Underground Aquifers
Israel also draws significant quantities of water from two major aquifer systems. The Coastal Aquifer runs beneath the Mediterranean coastal plain, while the Mountain Aquifer sits under the central highlands extending into the West Bank. These underground reservoirs are replenished by rainfall seeping through soil and rock, but decades of heavy pumping have led to over-extraction and, in the case of the Coastal Aquifer, saltwater intrusion as seawater creeps into depleted underground layers. Desalination has helped relieve pressure on these aquifers by replacing some of the freshwater that used to be pumped from them.
Recycled Wastewater for Agriculture
One of Israel’s most distinctive water strategies is its massive reuse of treated wastewater for farming. Agriculture is by far the country’s largest water consumer, and Israel has systematically shifted farms away from freshwater toward recycled sources. In 2007, treated wastewater already made up about 31% of all water used by the agricultural sector and 17% of total national water consumption. Brackish water pumped from underground boreholes added another 17% of agricultural supply.
Israel recycles a higher share of its wastewater than virtually any other country. The national master plan projects treated wastewater volumes will more than double, from about 400 million cubic meters per year in 2010 to roughly 900 million cubic meters by 2050, as urban populations grow and produce more sewage that can be captured and treated. This creates a somewhat unusual dynamic: population growth actually increases one category of water supply.
Farms also capture stormwater runoff, which in 2007 accounted for about 4% of agricultural water use. Every drop of collected stormwater went to the agricultural sector, reflecting how carefully Israel allocates each water source to its most practical use.
Water Sharing With Jordan
Israel’s water picture extends beyond its own borders. The Jordan River basin is shared with Jordan, Syria, and Lebanon, and water allocations have been a persistent source of tension in the region. The 1994 Israel-Jordan peace treaty was the first agreement to legally define water allocations between the two countries. Israeli and Jordanian water officials meet regularly, sometimes every two weeks during summer, at informal sessions near the confluence of the Jordan and Yarmuk Rivers to discuss flow rates and manage shared resources in real time.
Historical negotiations under the Johnston Plan of the 1950s proposed allocating 400 million cubic meters per year to Israel and 720 million cubic meters to Jordan from the shared basin. While the Johnston Plan was never formally ratified by all parties, it established the framework that still influences regional water diplomacy. Israel’s growing independence from natural freshwater sources through desalination has, in some ways, reduced the pressure on these shared river systems.
How the Pieces Fit Together
Israel’s water system works because no single source carries the full burden. Desalination handles the bulk of drinking water. The Sea of Galilee and aquifers serve as reserves and supplements. Recycled wastewater and brackish groundwater keep agriculture running without competing for the same freshwater that fills taps in Tel Aviv and Jerusalem. The National Water Carrier and connected pipelines tie it all into one integrated grid that can shift supply where it’s needed.
The country’s 2050 master plan makes clear that this balancing act will only intensify. Natural water supplies are expected to shrink by up to 15% due to climate change, while demand will rise with population growth. The plan calls for significant increases in water allocated to natural ecosystems as well, meaning the squeeze on human-use water will tighten from both directions. Israel’s answer, as it has been for the past two decades, is to build more desalination capacity and recycle more aggressively.