The Negev Desert of Israel – A Conceptual Plan of a Progressive Development Project for an Arid Region

Abstract

This Negev Desert is situated on the intersection lines between climatic zones, geological provinces, ecological systems, and human societies. Due to its special situation one can find in it most types of desert environments, on most scales of aridity. These environments comprise rolling sand dunes, mountainous rocky terrains, loess plains, savannas, alluvial fans and salt marshes. While the Mediterranean climate affects its northern part, its eastern part is affected by the down faulted rift valley (“graben”) topographic features of the Arava Valley, part of the Syrian-African Rift system. This major rupture in the earth’s crust, a geological embryonic phase of a new ocean, contains the Dead Sea in its deepest section, and the Red Sea in its most southern part. Since it was formed, just a few millions years ago, it has caused the deep gorges which flow into it, to cut down and expose a geological section from the most ancient to the youngest layers. In the rocks one can find the most ancient fossils, while in the river terraces the most ancient artifacts. The various types of rocks also produce all land forms of erosion.