News from the future! Dead Sea renamed “Living Sea”

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In an act that would have been unimaginable a decade ago, government officials from Israel, Jordan, and Palestine issued a joint decree to rename the Dead Sea the Living Sea yesterday.

Back in the early 2000s, the water level of the Dead Sea was dropping about one metre per year and scientists feared the sea would disappear altogether. Thanks to cooperative efforts to reduce water diversion and pollution by the region’s citizens, however, the sea has now surpassed its original water levels and is no longer considered hypersaline.

“It’s an unbelievable situation,” says hydrogeologist Herbert Kisara, “The water has improved so much that we expect to see fish and other wildlife living in the lake for this first time in thousands of years!”

Some tourists are less enthusiastic about the lake’s new status though.

“You can’t even float properly anymore! Why would I come here instead of any other lake?,” asks a disgruntled Julia Milner.

An anonymous, long-time visitor counters this complaint by highlighting a practical benefit of the change. “Hey! At least it doesn’t burn when you pee now!”

One thing is certain, with the increased focus on water conservation and management around the world, we can expect to see many more Living Seas.