The Israelis know a thing or two when it comes to managing dry arid lands, and making them flourish, even when the rains don’t fall “in their time.”
So when it came to getting some help for the poor farmers of California, who have suffered massive financial losses as a result of the dry weather, California Governor Jerry Brown contacted Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and the two men signed a strategic cooperation agreement earlier this year as part of which Israel, a world leader in the field of water, would help out the arid state.
The droughts have already purportedly cost the state’s economy a whopping $2.2 billion and has left more than 500,000 acres of fields fallow in its wake.
Being that California is the source for more than 50 percent of US fruit, vegetables and nuts, and almost 90 percent of America’s strawberries, olives, broccoli, nectarines and garlic, it’s vital that the state finds ways to cope with the rainless situation they are faced with.
As part of the Israeli efforts to come to its closest allies’ aid, Prof. Eilon Adar , a world expert in groundwater flow systems, will work to help the state work out solutions to the issue.
During a recent visit to San Fransisco and the Silicon Valley, Professor Adar toured numerous salination plants in northern California, and participated in a state-wide conference in which a wide range of technological solutions were presented.
Adar said, “If we managed to overcome the water issues in the Middle East, we can do it anywhere in the world. Nonetheless, (to address the issue) they will need to improve the management and efficiency of the water market and increase and optimize the coordination between the water companies.”
At the same time, the Israeli consul to California, Andy David, said to reporters, “We are pushing ahead with the water issue and branding Israel as part of the solution, an ally with the knowhow whom can come to help in a time of need.”