Mediterranean–Dead Sea Canal in 1855 in a work called 'The Dead Sea – A new route to India'. At that time it was not yet known that the Dead Sea lies below sea level, and Allen proposed this canal as an alternative to the Suez Canal. Later, many engineers and politicians picked up on the idea, including Theodor Herzl in his 1902 novel "Altneuland". Most of the early proposals used the East bank of the Jordan River, but a modified form, using the West bank, was proposed after the separation of Transjordan from the Palestine Mandate. The idea was discussed at some length
Săsar River Săsar, locally known as the "dead river," is unsuitable for bathing, washing, or fishing. The World Health Organization has identified the Baia Mare region as a "health risk hotspot." The Săsar River flows into the Lăpuș River, which in turn flows into the Someș River, a tributary of the Danube. Pollution in the Săsar thus eventually reaches Romania, Hungary, Serbia, and Bulgaria. The following rivers are tributaries to the river Săsar: Săsar River The Săsar River () is a right tributary of the river Lăpuș in Maramureș County, Romania. It discharges into the Lăpuș in Lăpușel, southwest of Baia Mare.