Most major facilities halted as authorities prioritize drinking water; only Hadera remains operational among six large plants

Most of Israel’s privately operated desalination facilities have been temporarily taken offline after unusually high seawater turbidity caused by recent weather conditions disrupted the filtration process, according to the Water Authority.

The shutdowns began Saturday, but officials did not publicly disclose the disruption until Monday. The resulting reduction in available freshwater has affected agricultural supplies across southern Israel, with water deliveries to farms in the Ramat Negev Regional Council suspended entirely.

The desalination plants in Hadera and Eilat remain operational, along with 20 smaller facilities operated by national water company Mekorot.

The Water Authority said the country’s national water system remains stable and that Mekorot has increased production from every available source.

“According to current estimates, some of the desalination facilities will resume operations soon,” the authority said. “Professional teams are closely monitoring water quality and are prepared for every scenario, with the goal of returning all facilities to operation as soon as the seawater becomes clearer.”

High turbidity makes desalination difficult because suspended particles in seawater can clog filtration membranes and interfere with the plants’ ability to process water.

By Monday afternoon, Hadera was the only one of Israel’s six major desalination plants still producing water.

The Ashkelon and Ashdod facilities were shut down Saturday, followed by the Sorek and Palmachim plants, which stopped operating Sunday afternoon or during the overnight hours.

“There is hope that Sorek B will begin operating soon because the samples from there look good,” Water Authority Director-General Yehezkel Lifshitz said.

The Hadera desalination facility produces approximately 120 million to 130 million cubic meters of water each year.

Despite the widespread shutdowns, the facilities are expected to resume production once seawater turbidity returns to acceptable levels.

Together, the major facilities currently offline have an annual production capacity of roughly 750 million cubic meters, not including Sorek B at full capacity. As a result, only an estimated 15% to 17% of normal annual desalination production is currently operating.

The timing of each plant’s restart could vary even among facilities located relatively close to one another because their seawater intake points differ in both depth and location.

Southern Israel faces the greatest impact

Southern Israel is experiencing the most significant effects because its water network has less capacity to move supplies from other regions of the country.

With available supplies constrained, authorities are giving priority to household drinking water rather than agricultural and landscaping needs.

Officials are also working to increase water production from the Sea of Galilee and from groundwater wells to help offset the reduced desalination capacity.

Northern Israel has experienced considerably less disruption because the region depends more heavily on the Sea of Galilee and groundwater rather than desalinated water.

Farmers who primarily use treated wastewater have also been largely spared from the restrictions. The measures are focused mainly on southern agricultural operations that depend on freshwater, including water produced through desalination.

The Eshkol Regional Council issued an urgent notice to farmers, asking them to immediately cut back on freshwater use for irrigation and landscaping.

“Following disruptions at national desalination facilities caused by the rains, there is interference with the national water supply,” the council said.

“Farmers and those responsible for landscaping are asked to immediately reduce all use of fresh water for agriculture and gardening. Treated wastewater may still be used.”

The council cautioned that continued agricultural consumption of freshwater could place additional pressure on supplies needed for household use and drinking.

In the Ramat Negev Regional Council, authorities have gone further, suspending freshwater deliveries for agricultural purposes entirely.