Two of Five Israeli Desalination Plants Resume Operations After Algae Bloom

Two of five desalination plants that were shut down on Saturday have resumed operations, according to the Water Authority. Officials are hopeful that a third plant will also return to service soon. The restoration of these facilities has led to the resumption of water supply to agricultural farms in the southern part of the country.

However, the two southernmost plants, located in Ashkelon and Ashdod, remain offline. In total, five out of six desalination facilities along the southern and south-central Mediterranean coast were forced to temporarily cease operations. The disruption was caused by a bloom of microalgae, carried north from the Nile Delta region by ocean currents.

These algae pose a risk to the sensitive filtering membranes used in the desalination process. Authorities are continuing to monitor the situation and aim to gradually restore the functionality of the remaining affected plants.