Agriculture, Recreation, Water Quality and Nature Protection in the Hula Valley, Israel 70 Years of a Mega-Ecological Project

About this book

The anxious search for agricultural income resources, and assurance of the national water supply in the northern newly created state of Israel initiated the national project of the Hula Drainage. The implementation of this project was accompanied by research and monitoring of the ecological traits aimed at crop harvest improvement in the Hula valley and prevention of water quality deterioration in Lake Kinneret. Forty years later a reclamation project to improve peat soil properties and renovate the hydrological system was carried out. This book documents the scientific research carried out during this mega-ecological project. Several issues of the ecological renovation and its impact on the Hula valley management and water quality in lake Kinneret are presented in this book.

The newly created shallow lake Agmon-Hula contributed to nutrient dynamics, hydrological control, avian presence (among others cranes, storks, pelicans, and flamingoes) and renewed plant growth. In turn, these have affected tourism, the potential impact of nitrogen and sulfate migration from the Hula valley on Lake Kinneret water quality, the role of climate change on the ecology of the Hula Valley and Lake Kinneret nutrient availability and phytoplankton community, the subterranean migration of water and nutrients, and water loss. Further proposals for future development are under consideration.

This book presents a comprehensive review of the practical management implementation of a long-term ecological project. Results of scientific and monitoring research which followed the project's implementation benefit international and national communities.

Contents

Chapter 1. Historical implementation of the Hula Drainage and followed "Hula Project".- Chapter 2. Regional Geographical and geological system structure.- Chapter 3. Meteorology: Climate change: air temperature, precipitation, dryness and desertification trends.- Chapter 4. Hydrology: Hydrological System structure: Head waters. Valley Canals (efore and after "Hula Project, agricultural development, Agmon-Hula, River Discharge, Runoff, Subterranean flows, Ground water Table, the impact of seasonal and multi-annual fluctuations of climate change on Hula Valley water balance.- Chapter 5. Nutrients: Water quality in River discharges, Hula Valley canals, and underground flows; the impact of Hula Valley on Nutrient inputs into Lake Knneret through Jordan River, Seasonal and long term fluctuations, the impact of climate change on nutrients dynamic.- Chapter 6. Agricultural management in the Hula valley: Crops diversity, irrigation policy, prevention of soil deterioration and linkage with touristic function maintenance.- Chapter 7. The Peat- Soil Convention: Conceptual and practical implementation: prevention of soil deterioration by moisture level control.- Chapter 8. The Agmon-Hula system: The impact of Agmon-Hula system on Nutrients removal from the Kinneret loads, Agmon water and nutrient balances, plants and birds distribution.- Chapter 9. Eco-tourism and ecological management of the the Hula Project: The Crane Case: Tourism-agricultural linkage.- Chapter 10. Conclusions and future perspectives of management.

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Biography

Professor Moshe Gophen studied Biology and Limnology at the Hebrew University Jerusalem and specialized as a Senior scientist and director in the Kinneret Limnological Laboratory of the Israel Oceanographic and Limnological Research Co. Ltd. The author expanded his scientific education through international collaborative projects in Limnology and wetlands ecology with scientists in Egypt, Germany, Brazil, China, Mexico, Kenya, and the USA. The author's practical usage of his scientific education in limnology and wetlands ecology was implemented as the Hula Reclamation Project's scientific coordinator and chairman of the Hula committee.