The study area (65 km²) is almost a flat area with a gentle decline of 1.5% towards the east. It is the lowest land on earth with ground levels ranging between 200 meter below sea level (mbsl) near the Jordan Rift fault, which is the site of contact between the Mountain Aquifer and the Quaternary Aquifer, in the west, and 400 mbsl near the Dead Sea shores, in the east.