The hydro-geomorphic response of the ephemeral lower Nahal Tzalmon stream to experimental flow releases towards replenishment of the Sea of Galilee, NE Israel
Study region: The Sea of Galilee’s western watershed includes the Lower and Upper Galilee subregions in northern Israel. Nahal Tzalmon stream (110 km2) is one of the major gravel-bed channels draining those subregions into the lake. Study focus: The study focus was to monitor the immediate effects o...
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| Language: | English |
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Elsevier
2025-10-01
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| Series: | Journal of Hydrology: Regional Studies |
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| Online Access: | http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2214581825005518 |
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| author | Nathaniel Bergman Noam Greenbaum Eyal Weinberg Iyad Swaed |
| author_facet | Nathaniel Bergman Noam Greenbaum Eyal Weinberg Iyad Swaed |
| author_sort | Nathaniel Bergman |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Study region: The Sea of Galilee’s western watershed includes the Lower and Upper Galilee subregions in northern Israel. Nahal Tzalmon stream (110 km2) is one of the major gravel-bed channels draining those subregions into the lake. Study focus: The study focus was to monitor the immediate effects of introducing “hungry water” from the newly mega-project of the “Reverse National Water Carrier” (RNWC). The project was designed to convey desalinated water from the Mediterranean coastal desalination plants through a 5 km open channel into the lower Nahal Tzalmon stream in order to replenish the Sea of Galilee. During a 2-day experimental flow releases with three different peak flow discharges, the hydrologic and geomorphic outcomes were documented. New hydrological insights for the region: The three flow releases showed significant discharge attenuation (67–39 %) due to the large transmission losses over a dry bed (91 %) that was significantly reduced when the alluvium was moist (52 %) or wet (30 %). The suspended sediment concentrations and yields were low compared to natural flow events but also when compared to other Mediterranean streams. Bedload transport under the hydrological conditions of the experiment did not cause a major disruption to the armored channel bed. A conceptual model is proposed for the new hydrologic-geomorphic conditions the RNWC offers for channel restoration, making the stream a prominent perennial tributary to the Sea of Galilee. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-a3d3b16904be4628b02575824a4b30cc |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 2214-5818 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-10-01 |
| publisher | Elsevier |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Journal of Hydrology: Regional Studies |
| spelling | doaj-art-a3d3b16904be4628b02575824a4b30cc2025-08-23T04:48:29ZengElsevierJournal of Hydrology: Regional Studies2214-58182025-10-016110272210.1016/j.ejrh.2025.102722The hydro-geomorphic response of the ephemeral lower Nahal Tzalmon stream to experimental flow releases towards replenishment of the Sea of Galilee, NE IsraelNathaniel Bergman0Noam Greenbaum1Eyal Weinberg2Iyad Swaed3School of Environmental Sciences, University of Haifa, Haifa, Israel; Department of Geology, Portland State University, OR, USA; Correspondence to: School of Environmental Sciences, 8007 Rabin Building, University of Haifa, 199 Aba Kaoushy Av., Mt. Carmel, Haifa 3498838, Israel.School of Environmental Sciences, University of Haifa, Haifa, IsraelIsrael Hydrological Service, Israel Water Authority, IsraelIsrael Hydrological Service, Israel Water Authority, IsraelStudy region: The Sea of Galilee’s western watershed includes the Lower and Upper Galilee subregions in northern Israel. Nahal Tzalmon stream (110 km2) is one of the major gravel-bed channels draining those subregions into the lake. Study focus: The study focus was to monitor the immediate effects of introducing “hungry water” from the newly mega-project of the “Reverse National Water Carrier” (RNWC). The project was designed to convey desalinated water from the Mediterranean coastal desalination plants through a 5 km open channel into the lower Nahal Tzalmon stream in order to replenish the Sea of Galilee. During a 2-day experimental flow releases with three different peak flow discharges, the hydrologic and geomorphic outcomes were documented. New hydrological insights for the region: The three flow releases showed significant discharge attenuation (67–39 %) due to the large transmission losses over a dry bed (91 %) that was significantly reduced when the alluvium was moist (52 %) or wet (30 %). The suspended sediment concentrations and yields were low compared to natural flow events but also when compared to other Mediterranean streams. Bedload transport under the hydrological conditions of the experiment did not cause a major disruption to the armored channel bed. A conceptual model is proposed for the new hydrologic-geomorphic conditions the RNWC offers for channel restoration, making the stream a prominent perennial tributary to the Sea of Galilee.http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2214581825005518Experimental flow releasesTransmission losses, suspended sediment transportBedload transportEffective discharges, environmental flows |
| spellingShingle | Nathaniel Bergman Noam Greenbaum Eyal Weinberg Iyad Swaed The hydro-geomorphic response of the ephemeral lower Nahal Tzalmon stream to experimental flow releases towards replenishment of the Sea of Galilee, NE Israel Journal of Hydrology: Regional Studies Experimental flow releases Transmission losses, suspended sediment transport Bedload transport Effective discharges, environmental flows |
| title | The hydro-geomorphic response of the ephemeral lower Nahal Tzalmon stream to experimental flow releases towards replenishment of the Sea of Galilee, NE Israel |
| title_full | The hydro-geomorphic response of the ephemeral lower Nahal Tzalmon stream to experimental flow releases towards replenishment of the Sea of Galilee, NE Israel |
| title_fullStr | The hydro-geomorphic response of the ephemeral lower Nahal Tzalmon stream to experimental flow releases towards replenishment of the Sea of Galilee, NE Israel |
| title_full_unstemmed | The hydro-geomorphic response of the ephemeral lower Nahal Tzalmon stream to experimental flow releases towards replenishment of the Sea of Galilee, NE Israel |
| title_short | The hydro-geomorphic response of the ephemeral lower Nahal Tzalmon stream to experimental flow releases towards replenishment of the Sea of Galilee, NE Israel |
| title_sort | hydro geomorphic response of the ephemeral lower nahal tzalmon stream to experimental flow releases towards replenishment of the sea of galilee ne israel |
| topic | Experimental flow releases Transmission losses, suspended sediment transport Bedload transport Effective discharges, environmental flows |
| url | http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2214581825005518 |
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