Israel approves a national climate change calculator

The new center will be operated by the Meteorological Service of the Transportation Ministry under the direction of a steering committee composed of the chief scientists of the Environmental Protection, Agriculture, Energy and Innovation, Science and Technology, and Water Authority ministries.

Due to the need for accurate data to deal with the climate crisis and its far-reaching consequences, Israel has decided to allocate NIS 20 million for the project over the next five years. Climate change, they said, has far-reaching implications for all sectors of the economy – agriculture, the energy sector, transport, water and drainage basins, biological systems and ecosystems, the built-up environment, and even national resilience and security

Government ministries map climate risks and build sectoral preparedness plans, under the direction of the National Preparedness Administration at the Ministry of Environmental Protection, but are required to base their actions and decisions on prevention and adaptation, in-depth research, and scientific insights

For detailed simulations and significant computing resources, a “supercomputer” with thousands of processors and storage resources is required. The climate calculation center will make it possible to strengthen climatic research and establish an open database of detailed climatic forecasts so as to create a proper knowledge infrastructure for decision-making and to deal with climate change in Israel.

The ministries said that Israel is in a region that is heating up faster than the world average and is very sensitive to climate change – partly due to the limited natural water resources and proximity to the desert strip. Within the small geographical area, there is a wide topographic and climatic range, requiring high-resolution simulations to accurately describe local meteorological processes and climate change on coastlines, mountain ranges, the Jordan Valley, and the Arava.

Since the simulations will be of the entire region around us, the open information base of the high-resolution forecasts could be used by countries in the region to make informed and coordinated decisions.

Minister of Environmental Protection MK Tamar Zandberg added that “in an era of the escalating climate crisis, the establishment of a climate calculation center is a necessary step. Accurate data on Israel’s situation and a high level of analysis for formulating forecasts are critical tools for Israel’s coping with the climate crisis.

With proper, data-based preparedness, one can reduce the level of risk, help populations and infrastructures at risk reduce their vulnerability, and prevent suffering and damage to property.

Advanced climatic calculations will contribute to the accuracy of future forecasts of the supply of natural water sources and will enable better estimates of the extent of desalinated water required for the State of Israel in the future.