Concept Document towards the Dead Sea Basin Biosphere Reserve and World Heritage Listing.

This report has been presented to the public and to political decision makers both regionally and internationally in order to gain further support for the concept and to lobby the Israeli, Jordanian and Palestinian authorities to register the Dead Sea Basin as a Biosphere Reserve with UNESCO.

This study investigates the non-market economic value of

conservation of the Dead Sea basin using stated and

revealed preference studies. Study results indicate that all

3 local populations are willing to pay to preserve the

cultural and environmental heritage of the region.

� This brochure describes the wonders of the

Dead Sea, the environmental degradation of

the sea, and suggestions for taking action.

� Proceedings of two parallel conferences in Ein

Bokek, Israel and Amman, Jordan.

The two conferences brought together the

experience of similar lakes from around the

world. The institutional structures in place for

the management of saline and/or terminal

lakes were presented with an emphasis on

basins that cross political boundaries.

� This flyer was developed with the Youth Water

Trustees of the Tamar Regional Council. It

describes the unique qualities of the Dead Sea

and compares the different alternatives

suggested for saving the Dead Sea.

� For clues to resolving the Middle East conflict,

consider the case of the embattled Dead Sea.

Excerpted from the July/August 2004 WORLD

WATCH Magazine

� This report highlights the rapid pace of development around the Dead Sea and stresses the need to address environmental concerns resulting from these developments. The report is the culmination of two public meetings held in Tel-Aviv and Amman on the Future of the Dead Sea. It concludes that since the Dead Sea is a single ecosystem, there is an urgent need to develop an overall strategy and master plan for the Dead Sea, irrespective of national borders.

� Final Report - Symposium on Promoting an Integrated Sustainable Regional Development Plan for the Dead Sea Basin.

The report includes summaries of presentations and discussions, as well as annexes including a brief version of a project proposal for an integrated development plan for the basin, and a concept paper presenting the idea of establishing a jointly managed "free tourism area" in the north of the Dead Sea which would include open borders

The Jordan River is unique in its natural and cultural wealth, but is

threatened by excessive water diversion and pollution, treated as a

backyard dumping ground

� Diversion of over 98 per cent of its fresh water, in addition to discharge of large quantities of untreated sewage, threatens to irreversibly damage the River Valley. Israel, Jordan and Syria have all diverted its upstream waters for domestic and agricultural uses, leaving precious little fresh water for the river and its once thriving ecosystem.

The Jordan River Valley, situated in the Great Rift Valley is of cultural, religious and geographical importance. The river is significant to billions of people from diverse religions and countries worldwide but is presently under threat.

Historically, the River Jordan

has always been a meeting

place and crossing place for

plants, animals, and human

societies. The most concrete

visual example of the

historical tradition of river

crossings can be seen at a

spot appropriately named

"Old Bridges" where 3

bridges cross the river's

width; a 2000 year old

Roman Bridge, an old

Ottoman Bridge, and a more

recent British Mandate

bridge.

� Plenty of archaeological evidence on either side of the rivers' banks, from cities like Beit She'an (Israel), Pella and Umm Qais (Jordan), also shows commercial and cultural connections between major cities of the Valley. Parallel developments through several historical periods -similar types of pottery, mosaics and iron tools - indicate that cities across the valley had the same type of population from an anthropological perspective.

Set in a fold of the hills that overlook the Jordan Valley, Pella was perfectly situated, not least because of its perennial springs. Their lack of abundance today is due to the modern pump house, which has blemished one of the loveliest sites in Jordan.

Excavations (by Americans in 1958 and 1967; since 1979 by Australians) are stripping back the complex layers of Pella’s story. The main tell, inhabited since Neolithic times, includes Chalcolithic and Early Bronze Age settlements; but by far the most significant early monument is on the south side of the tell - a large Middle Bronze Age temple with massive stone walls, built over an earlier mud brick version. This was again rebuilt, but in a smaller form, perhaps after an earthquake. More destruction in the Iron Age, in both the 10th and 9th centuries BC, led to more rebuilding, each smaller than the one before.

� Part One: An Economic Analysis of Different

Water Uses Affecting the Dead Sea Basin

Part Two: Sustainable Management of Dead

Sea Basin Water Resources - A Comparative

Analysis with North American Experience

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