Innovating for a water-starved planet
By Paul Driessen
More than 3,400 years ago, God told Joshua to lead the Hebrew people across the Jordan River into the Promised Land that is now Israel. If they worked hard and followed his commandments, it would become “a land flowing with milk and honey.”
At least the central, northern and Galilee (Kineret) regions would; they generally received enough rainfall to sustain ancient nomadic and agricultural communities. The south, the Negev Desert around and below Be’er Sheva and Abraham’s famous well, was too parched for much more than camel stops. In 1900 Be’er Sheva was home to just 300 hardy souls, and even today most of the Negev gets a fraction of Arizona’s annual rainfall.
