The primary study site of the MedWater project is the Western Mountain Aquifer (a.k.a. the Yarkon-Taninim Aquifer) in Israel and the Palestinian territories. The aquifer extends over an area of more than 9000 km2 and is an important water supply source for both Israel and the Palestinian territories. It has been used intensively since the 1950s. As a result, a large set of long-term monitoring data is available for the aquifer, making it an ideal case study for the MedWater project.
The WMA is recharged by rainfall in the outcrop region covering an area of 2000 km2, mainly located in the West Bank. Natural discharge occurs via two major springs, the Yarkon and Taninim springs. The hydraulic behavior of the aquifer is strongly influenced by highly permeable conduits. Karst elements of the WMA extend to large depths, even to depths of 1800 m below ground level. The distribution, the type of karst feature, and therefore the response to recharge events is highly uncertain.