Red Sea–Dead Sea Water Conveyance number of international donors. The water level in the Dead Sea is shrinking at a rate of more than one metre per year, and its surface area has shrunk by about 30% in the last 20 years. This is largely due to the diversion of over 90% of the water of the Jordan River. In the early 1960s, the river moved 1,500 million cubic metres of water every year from the Sea of Galilee to the Dead Sea. Dams, canals, and pumping stations built by Israel, Jordan and Syria now divert water for crops and drinking, and have reduced the
Dead Sea salt minerals and salts. Major ion concentrations in the water of the Dead Sea have given the following results (which do not necessarily reflect those of Dead Sea "salt"): The major minerals present in Dead Sea mud—the result of runoff streams flowing into the Dead Sea and bringing large deposits during the Holocene era—have been shown to be the following: Dead Sea salts have been claimed to treat the following conditions: "Rheumatologic Conditions" – in balneotherapy of rheumatoid arthritis, psoriatic arthritis, and osteoarthritis. The minerals are absorbed while soaking, stimulating blood circulation. "Common skin ailments" – for treating skin disorders such