Hi,
The Tapline reservoir is another part of the project of the Trans-Arabian pipeline (or Tapline in short) that was carrying oil from the oil fields of Iraq or Saudi Arab to the port of Sidon in Lebanon. From there, the oil was loaded to ships and sent to Europe. The reservoir located inside the Snir Stream Nature Reserve.
I wrote to you about the Petroleum road on Golan Heights, which runs along the pipeline for 47 km in the area.
The pipe was designed on 1947 (to follow the routes of 2 earlier pipes that led oil from Iraq to Haifa) and after Israel independence, when the pipeline from Iraq to Haifa port could no longer be built (as Israel and the Arabs could not have agreed on exporting Arab oil through Israeli port) the route was diverted and the 75cm diameter pipeline was laid on 1950.
Golan Heights were conquered on the Six Day war (1967), and part of the pipe (the 47 km along the Petroleum road) came under Israeli control and kept running.
In 1969, the pipeline was sabotaged by Palestinian terrorists of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine near Ghajar , which caused the condimention of the Dan River, the Jordan River, and the Kinneret.
Following this sabotage, Israel demanded safety measures to be added: – the waters of En el-Bared springs were diverted from the Dan Stream to the Snir Stream, adding valves and dams, and building this reservoir to collect the oil in event of a leak in the pipeline and prevent contamination of the Jordan River sources.
After years of arguments between the countries the pipeline runs through, many leaks and malfunctions, and using oil tankers that shipped the oil through the Suez Canal, and the amount of oil running in pipeline was reduced from 1975 until it completely stopped orking on 1982.
The reservoir is now used for water storage from the water running from En el-Bared springs on the Nokhila stream.
A hide was installed on place to allow the visitors to watch the many water birds in place.
Take Care
Gad
The Tapline reservoir from above. In the canal between us and the reservoir flows, the Nokhila stream that comes from the area of En el-Bared springs (north of Tel Dan).
The story of the Tapline reservoir in Hebrew
The bird hide on the edge of the reservoir allows to observe birds
The view of the reservoir from the bird hide
The birds in the Tapline reservoir (mostly found here during October and March)