The reservoirs are running out of water and the country should prepare for 2003 as a drought year like 2001, in which disruptions in the supply of drinking water are possible, says the head of the water supply department at the Israeli water company Mekorot ( http://www.mekorot.co.il), Sarah Haklai. In a Mekorot report on the state of the water reservoirs and potential for pumping from them for 2002 and 2003, Haklai recommends reducing consumption in any way possible and in all sectors (agriculture, industry and household), to accelerate projects for converting sewage water into irrigation water, and to reconnect private wells, especially along the northern coast, back to the national water supply infrastructure. A spokesperson for the Water Commission said that Commissioner Shimon Tal is aware of all the problems raised in the Mekorot report, and that if the coming winter is dry there will be no choice but to make "painful cuts" in household use, particularly for gardening, and further cuts in water for farming.

Source: Ha'aretz, 19 Jul 2002