The Dead Sea is rapidly becoming shallow: the famous SPA resorts are farther from the coast

The Dead Sea, located on the border of Israel and Jordan, is rapidly becoming shallow. Its level has dropped by 25 meters over the past century and continues to fall by 1 meter annually. Some sanatoriums and hotels today are already several kilometers from the water's edge. Due to the excessive flow of water from the Jordan River and the merciless exploitation of the mineral resources of the sea, mankind risks soon losing the famous resort.

The Dead Sea is located in a huge hollow in the middle of the desert, and its coast is the lowest point of land on the globe - 430 m below sea level. In fact, this, of course, is not the sea, but a large drainage lake with an area of about 800 km2. It got its name because fish and other large aquatic animals are not found in it, although this reservoir cannot be called completely uninhabited. In the Dead Sea, there are several types of simple microorganisms. Such a low biodiversity of the reservoir is due to high salinity - 300-310 ‰.

Thanks to mineral mud, high salinity, which allows you to stay on the water without any effort, rocky landscapes and a hot climate, the Dead Sea coast has become a resort of world scale.

The second important reason for the shallowing of the lake, experts call the extraction of minerals. The unique riches of the Dead Sea caused its predatory exploitation. In 1977, the sea turned out to be divided into two isolated sections - northern and southern. The southern part of the Dead Sea was divided into segments in which industrial companies mine valuable minerals: bromine, potassium chloride and others.

General warming and desiccation of the climate also affects the current situation. The reduction in rainfall in the region has reduced the amount of water in the Jordan River, most of which is dismantled for household needs.

In addition to the shallowing of the sea itself, other problems intensified in the region. After the retreat of sea waters, hundreds of karst dips formed on land. This has already caused the death of several people, as well as led to numerous destruction of infrastructure in the region.

According to experts, if the situation with the withdrawal of water from the Jordan River does not change, then in the near future it will turn into a muddy salted stream and will cease to feed the Dead Sea. And after 50 years, the famous sea will dry completely.

To prevent this from happening, today projects are being developed to transfer water from the Mediterranean and Red Seas to replenish the Dead Sea. But the difficult political situation in the region can reduce all efforts to naught. And only the wisdom and tolerance of the leadership of countries located in the Dead Sea region can save a unique reservoir.