A voyage at sea: The research team that set out to closely study the algae drift from the south that is plaguing Israel's beaches

A team of researchers from the Israel Oceanographic and Limnological Research Institute embarked on a voyage in the Mediterranean Sea to closely study the greenish algae drift that has been plaguing Israel's beaches for nearly two weeks. The crisis has caused the shutdown of most desalination plants. The bloom layer extends 7–15 km from the shore at a thickness of 20 meters, mainly off the southern beaches, but the possibility that the algae are moving northward is being examined.

Nearly two weeks of unprecedented murky pollution along Israel's coasts have created a real crisis in the Israeli water economy, with the shutdown of most desalination plants. A team of researchers from the Israel Oceanographic and Limnological Research Institute, including marine biologists, physicists, and chemists, set out on a voyage in the Mediterranean Sea to closely study the greenish algae drift that refuses to leave. According to the latest findings, the bloom layer extends up to 7 to 15 kilometers from the shore at a thickness of no less than 20 meters. The most significant concentration is seen off the southern beaches, but the possibility that the algae are moving northward toward Hadera is being examined. Despite repeated declarations of the crisis ending, the departure of the algae is not in sight, and the water level in the Sea of Galilee is dropping due to increased pumping. An understanding is emerging that the phenomenon may not be an exceptional one-time event, but a new reality.

A voyage at sea: The research team that set out to closely study the algae drift from the south that is plaguing Israel's beaches