Jordan Delta

The Jordan Delta (Arabic: مصبّ الأردنّ muṣabb al-urdunn) is an estuary, or river mouth formed where the River Jordan empties into the Dead Sea, about 10 km southeast of Jericho. The estuary is known for its shallow riverbed and floodplains, covered by mineral-rich sediments spread over a deeper layer of dense rock containing magnesium, iodine, calcium, sodium, potassium, bromide, sulfates and carbonates, which is harvested, processed into nutritional or cosmetic products, and sold for a premium by the fifteen or so companies which constitute Jericho's boutique natural cosmetics and homeopathic industry. The West Bank Combined Authority operates a canal-lock-dam diversion system about 4 km upriver from the mouth, which channels part of the river's Dead Sea-bound freshwater into a reservoir, providing potable water for much of the West Bank. A similar, separate system is used by New Canaan Fusion Station.