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From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Ain ez Zarqa (also spelled Ayn ez Zarqa or Ain-el-Zerqa) is a natural artesian karst spring located south of Hermel in the Beqaa Governorate, in central Lebanon.[1] Producing an average of 3,435 gallons per second, it is the main source of the Orontes River.[2][3] Because of its heavy flow, it is characterized as a first-magnitude spring.[4] It sits beneath the caves at Deir Mar Maroun, an ancient monastery carved into the cliffs that surround the spring.[5] Melting snow from these nearby heights supplements the spring's large groundwater reservoir, in the Jurassic and Cretaceous strata.[2] It is estimated that the spring's phreatic zone reservoir contains as much as 10 billion cubic metres of storage.[3] As a result, its flow has been less affected by overpumping and drought than other springs in the Orontes river basin.[6]
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