34°21′08″N 36°22′23″E / 34.35222°N 36.37306°E
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]
34°21′08″N 36°22′23″E / 34.35222°N 36.37306°E
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]