| Breathe in the sulfur dioxide
Haaretz 19/2/2007 By Zafrir Rinat The Finance Ministry this week continued to vigorously promote the privatization of the Haifa-based Oil Refineries (Bazan). This process will inject hundreds of millions of dollars into the state's coffers, based on the estimated value of the facility's stocks. But residents of the Haifa Bay area, who have lived for years in the shadow of the smokestacks, are not interested in the projected profits. They are mostly concerned with the impact the continued operation of the largest polluter in the Bay will have on their health: In recent years, there have been reports of particularly high rates of heart disease and cancer in the area, followed by new information on the increasing severity of the air pollution over the last three decades. Last week, the Guardians of the Bay Area, a Haifa-based environmental union, launched a newspaper ad campaign demanding that stricter environmental standards be included in the requirements for the Oil Refineries sale. According to surveys conducted by the environmental union, the Oil Refineries currently emit pollutants at a rate three to four times higher than the standard for refineries in countries like Holland and Belgium. The union is demanding that new standards be implemented to bring about a 70-percent reduction in pollutants. The Environmental Protection Ministry claims it has already set new, stricter pollution control requirements for the Oil Refineries, as part of a personal directive that places direct responsibility for the matter on plant managers. But according to the Guardians of the Bay Area, this, too, is not enough. "Meeting our demands, whose implementation would require applying the best available air pollution prevention technologies, would yield an additional reduction of 1,100 tons in the amount of sulfur dioxide emitted each year, and 1,100 tons in the amount of nitrous oxides," noted the union's deputy director general, Dr. Bernanda Felikstein, during a public hearing on pollution in the Haifa Bay held at the Samuel Neeman Institute at the Technion - Israel Institute of Technology, three weeks ago. MK Moshe Kahalon, a Haifa resident and chairman of the Knesset Economics Committee, which deals among other things with infrastructure facilities, seconds the demands of the Guardians of the Bay Area. "Setting stricter standards would mean the addition of $30 million to the amount the plant would have to allocate for this purpose, beyond the Environmental Protection Ministry's requirements, and that is spread out over the course of 15 years," he said. "This is a large amount for this type of facility. It should be noted that we are dealing with human lives and saving on the cost of medical treatments resulting from the damages inflicted by air pollution." The demand to set stricter standards comes at a time when an improvement has been noted in Haifa's air quality. Felikstein says Haifa's air quality, except for a few isolated incidents, met the standards in 2005. 500 more cancer patients Nevertheless, environmental and health experts in Haifa are convinced there is a need for an additional reduction, primarily given the excess pollution already absorbed in the past by regional residents and the worrisome figures on the incidence of cancer. Deputy director of the Haifa district in the Health Ministry, Dr. Jonathan Dubnov, said at the hearing organized by the Samuel Neeman Institute that according to the updated figures, the incidence of cancer in the Haifa district was more than 20 percent higher than in other parts of the country. This percentage translates to around 500 more cancer patients each year. Dr. James Krikun is one of the most consistent and aggressive advocates of setting stricter standards and imposing more requirements on industrial facilities. Krikun, together with Dr. Stephen Garnett, founded the Coalition for Public Health in the Haifa area, whose members include environmental activists and experts. Krikun moved to Kiryat Motzkin some 10 years ago. "After I saw the smokestack of the plant emitting pollutants, and I also smelled it, I decided to learn about the severity of the problem," he says. "I agree with Bernanda Felikstein that in recent years there has been an improvement, but the situation is still catastrophic." Krikun was at first perceived by the establishment as a pesky environmental activist who exaggerated his description of the dangers and overlooked the accomplishments in this area. But today his knowledge and assessments are being taken more seriously. Some of recent findings about the impact of pollution in the Haifa Bay were presented two months ago at a conference on the health and environmental impacts of aerosols (solid or liquid particles that disperse into the air) at the Technion. Amir Zalel and Dr. David Broday, of the Technion's department of environmental and civil engineering, presented a study on the dispersion into the atmosphere of two substances, vinyl chloride and dichloroethane. The first is known to be a carcinogen and the second is suspected as such. The source of these substances was the Electrochemical Industries plant that operated south of Acre until 2003 and manufactured PVC (polyvinyl chloride). According to the researchers' assessments, which were based on measurements taken at some of the plant's facilities in 2001, each year it emitted at least 100 tons of dichloroethane and 90 tons of vinyl chloride. These quantities are much larger than those emitted by a facility of this type in the United States. Kibbutz Ein Hamifratz and Kibbutz Kfar Masaryk absorbed, according to the assessment, quantities of vinyl chloride that were three to five times higher than the recommended standard in the U.S. for preventing an increased risk of cancer. The amount of dichloroethane increased in 14 places in the Haifa Bay area by 10 times the recommended standard in the U.S. "There are several gaps in the knowledge about the amount of pollution and the way in which it disperses, but based on the data, there is a possibility that these pollution levels increased the likelihood of a higher incidence of illness in certain places," said Broday. Krikun has no doubt that all the toxic materials that have spread, and are still spreading, in the Haifa Bay area are causing an increase in the incidence of disease and mortality. He worked together with Dr. Ella Berlin of the Guardians of the Bay Area and Ella Naveh, of the University of Haifa, to gather data on the amount of toxic metals that polluted the bay in the past. They estimated that, each year, hundreds of thousands of kilograms of different types of metals were emitted into the Haifa Bay. The source of the emissions was the petrochemical plants, the Oil Refineries and the metal recycling facility operating in the Krayot vicinity (a metal recycling plant operates at the same site). Vehicles also emit metals, but on a much smaller scale. Among others, metals such as chrome 6, manganese, lead and cadmium were emitted. These are metals that may cause cancer, damage the nervous system and DNA and affect the functioning of internal organs. Krikun notes that, in recent years, the quantity of metals in the air has declined, but that some industrial plants still emit substantial amounts. Four months ago, a committee of experts completed their research on the health impact of air pollution in Haifa; the committee met at Environmental Protection Minister Gideon Ezra's initiative. The committee's report stated it was still impossible at this stage to establish a causal link between the higher incidence of disease in Haifa and pollution, but given what was known about the severity of the pollution, vigorous steps should nonetheless be taken to reduce it. The committee recommended, among other things, setting stricter emissions standards for plants, increasing the number of emissions tests for motor vehicles, and speeding up the laying of the natural gas pipeline to Haifa. Other recommendations included promoting the use of gas-powered buses and requiring gasoline stations, each of which emits large amounts of carcinogenic gasoline fumes into the air, to install devices to absorb the fumes. Another central recommendation was to try and punish factory managers responsible for deviating from the standards. According to the committee chairman, Prof. Yoram Avnimelech, there is no reason why Israeli industry should not adopt a policy of "zero malfunctions" and adhere to maintenance levels equal to the standard in European and U.S. industry. This week, Avnimelech noted that the Environmental Protection Ministry had not bothered to address the recommendations. |
| Haifa Pollution |
| Pollution is a "charged" subject, and Haifa, because of the importance of the chemical heavy industries,has the label of a polluted city although a lot of progress has been achieved in the past years with a lot of efforts on the part of the green associations. I bring a few examples of articles about the air, the sea and the Kishon bad news in grey progress and good news in green In spite of all this grey, and a lot has still to be done, the indexes of pollution are under the level permitted by the EPA (US reglementation). |
| Excuse me, how do I get to the most polluted street? Haaretz
5/7/2007 By Zafrir Rinat Local councils typically fear exposure of pollution and other hazards that threaten the quality of life of their residents, but the Tamra Municipality, in the Western Galilee, decided to openly address these problems. In collaboration with green and social justice organizations, Tamra recently published the first map of its type, pinpointing the location of environmental hazards around the city. The map illustrates the immediate need to treat sewage flowing in the streets, garbage mounting beside homes and animal pens containing livestock in residential neighborhoods. These sanitation problems all emit hazardous fumes and other forms of pollution. The findings will be published in conjunction with a project that maps environmental hazards in Arab local councils. The initiative is a joint project of the Abraham Fund Initiatives, an organization that promotes collaboration between Arabs and Jews, the Adam Teva V'Din - Israel Union for Environmental Defense, and The Arab Center for Alternative Planning. The project, which began in Tamra, is expected to expand to other communities. "The goal is to change the mistaken perception that environmental hazards are part of the culture of Arab communities and that they are fated to exist," explains Abraham Fund Initiatives Director Amnon Be'eri-Sulitzeanu. Tamra is a characteristic example of cities that develop rapidly, without basic sanitary and environmental infrastructure. Fifty years ago, only 4,000 people lived in what was then a village. Now, almost 30,000 residents inhabit less than 3,000 dunams, in what is now the city of Tamra. Some of the city's waste is collected in pipes, but these pipes are not connected to a treatment facility and thus raw sewage flows from the main pipe to a stream in the area. Animal pens flank many of the homes in one neighborhood. Acting Mayor Ahmad Hijazi, responsible for urban planning in the city, notes, "Residents live alongside thousands of sheep and 150 cows. There is inadequate infrastructure to treat sewage and effluents produced in animal pens." The mapping project relied on information provided by the municipality, tours of the city and questionnaires, in which residents reported the location of hazards and expressed their opinion on environmental issues and possible solutions. Noise pollution In addition to identifying the locations of animal pens, sewage leaks and waste disposal sites, the project exposed Tamra's proximity to a quarry that generates noise and air pollution, and deprives the city of vital open space. The map separates "pirate" hazards, like unapproved animal pens and garbage dumps, from hazards derived from defective planning, like an incinerator established next to the city. The next phase of the project will include planning and legal measures to deal with the hazards. "Our goal is not to 'catch' the municipality as part of central government, but to represent a public that suffers from discriminatory urban planning and investment in infrastructure," explains Arab Center for Alternative Planning director Enaya Bana. Adam Teva V'Din attorney Anat Moseinko adds, "Our goal is to work with the municipality to handle hazards and persuade a variety of authorities to lend a hand." Hijazi says some of the hazards, which now appear on the map, were not known to city officials, and that the problem of the animal pens and raw sewage is already being tackled. The municipality also finished developing a program that would allocate land outside residential neighborhoods to animal pen owners who would transfer their operations to those sites. That program is currently awaiting approval from planning authorities. The Tamra Municipality plans to connect its sewage system to a waste treatment facility slated to be built in Acre. City officials admit that residents currently employ illegal, independent methods to connect to the main sewage system, but they say this is preferable to permitting raw sewage to flow into the environment. Hijazi says that the municipality persuaded the quarry to alter its activities to reduce its environmental impact. Double exposure "It is not easy for us to expose these hazards and expose ourselves to public criticism, but we believe in transparency," Hijazi says. "The map helps us know where we stand and it helps us apply pressure to ministries to obtain assistance." Despite that, the establishment of parks and gardens in the city is still mired in problems that derive from a lack of open space. The municipality cleaned up two empty lots that contained trash and transformed them into small gardens. But Tamra still lacks space for a park or garden that would suit the size of the city, and there is still not a single playground for children. Tamra will be forced to request such space from government officials because most available space is privately owned. Gov't urged to clean up Jordan River Jerusalem Post 12/6/2007 By RON FRIEDMAN Environmental activists are urging the government to rehabilitate the lower Jordan River after the cultural landscape was declared an "Endangered Cultural Heritage Site" by the leading international body for the protection of monuments. According to Friends of Earth-Middle East (FoEME), a regional environmental organization of Jordanians, Israelis and Palestinians, "90 percent of the Jordan River's natural water flow has been diverted by Israel, Jordan and Syria for domestic and agricultural use, with sewage flowing in its place. The region's current policies treat the river as a backyard dumping ground, resulting in its ecological devastation." The lower Jordan River is arguably the most famous river in the world, with heritage values to half of humanity. Today, however, the beauty and cultural heritage values of the lower Jordan River have been severely compromised, FoEME said. The World Monuments Fund declared it an endangered site at a press conference in New York last Wednesday. Announced every two years, the World Monuments Fund's watch list acts as a call to action, drawing international public attention to threatened cultural heritage sites across the globe. The list of 100 declared sites shows that human activity has become the greatest threat to world cultural heritage. "The Watch List of the World Monuments Fund is now sounding the alarm bell loud and clear to all those who care about the Jordan River," said Mira Edelstein, FoEME's Tel Aviv campaigner for the rehabilitation of the Jordan River. "There is a law in Israel that states that nature is a legitimate user of water. We should look at our water management and see what we can do for the Jordan River." Edelstein suggests that instead of handing out subsidies to farmers who grow water intensive crops, the government should be conserving the water and encouraging the region's tourism potential. Government water and sewage authority spokesperson Uri Schor said the government shared concerns for the southern Jordan River. "However, we have to take into account the current water crisis in Israel and the region," he said. "We are on the heels of a two-year drought and we don't know what next year will be like. The whole world is drying up because of global warming and that, too, has to be taken into account." Schor said that any solutions would have to be dealt with on the highest levels as part of a regional agreement between Israel and its neighbors. With the inclusion of the Jordan River on the World Monuments Fund's 100 Most Endangered Sites, Edelstein said FoEME is hopeful that the international attention brought to bear will foster both the political will and cooperation needed to rehabilitate the river valley and remove it from the endangered list as soon as possible. 120,000 Shekel Fine to Haifa for Marine Pollution Updated: 04/19/2007 Israel Ministry of Environmental Protection The Haifa Magistrates Court imposed a 120,000 fine on the Haifa Municipality for offenses under the Water Law and for marine pollution offenses. In 2000, the sewage pipeline located within the jurisdiction of the municipality which connects Shemen Industries Ltd. to the municipal sewage system in the Shemen industrial zone collapsed. As a result, on different occasions during the year, oil and wastewater were discharged to municipal drainage canals and from there to the sea on the Shemen beach. The municipality and principal office holders were indicted for offenses under the Water Law 1959, Prevention of Sea Pollution from Land-Based Sources, 1988 and the Maintenance of Cleanliness Law 1984. In a plea bargain agreement dated March 6, 2007, the municipality admitted to contravening the provisions of the Water Law and Prevention of Sea Pollution by Land Based Sources Law and the office holders were not charged with the offenses. The municipality was fined 120,000 shekels and signed a 250,000 shekel financial undertaking to refrain from committing similar offenses for a period of three years. In his sentence, the judge related to the issue of fining a public entity such as a municipality and noted: "A public entity that commits an environmental offense is guilty of abrogating its obligations two times: once when it does not utilize its powers to prevent pollution events in due time when there is a risk that they may occur;...and once more when the entity itself becomes an environmental offender when the pollution takes place in practice." |
| Gov't urged to clean up Jordan River
Jerusalem Post 12/6/2007 By RON FRIEDMAN Environmental activists are urging the government to rehabilitate the lower Jordan River after the cultural landscape was declared an "Endangered Cultural Heritage Site" by the leading international body for the protection of monuments. According to Friends of Earth-Middle East (FoEME), a regional environmental organization of Jordanians, Israelis and Palestinians, "90 percent of the Jordan River's natural water flow has been diverted by Israel, Jordan and Syria for domestic and agricultural use, with sewage flowing in its place. The region's current policies treat the river as a backyard dumping ground, resulting in its ecological devastation." The lower Jordan River is arguably the most famous river in the world, with heritage values to half of humanity. Today, however, the beauty and cultural heritage values of the lower Jordan River have been severely compromised, FoEME said. The World Monuments Fund declared it an endangered site at a press conference in New York last Wednesday. Announced every two years, the World Monuments Fund's watch list acts as a call to action, drawing international public attention to threatened cultural heritage sites across the globe. The list of 100 declared sites shows that human activity has become the greatest threat to world cultural heritage. "The Watch List of the World Monuments Fund is now sounding the alarm bell loud and clear to all those who care about the Jordan River," said Mira Edelstein, FoEME's Tel Aviv campaigner for the rehabilitation of the Jordan River. "There is a law in Israel that states that nature is a legitimate user of water. We should look at our water management and see what we can do for the Jordan River." Edelstein suggests that instead of handing out subsidies to farmers who grow water intensive crops, the government should be conserving the water and encouraging the region's tourism potential. Government water and sewage authority spokesperson Uri Schor said the government shared concerns for the southern Jordan River. "However, we have to take into account the current water crisis in Israel and the region," he said. "We are on the heels of a two-year drought and we don't know what next year will be like. The whole world is drying up because of global warming and that, too, has to be taken into account." Schor said that any solutions would have to be dealt with on the highest levels as part of a regional agreement between Israel and its neighbors. With the inclusion of the Jordan River on the World Monuments Fund's 100 Most Endangered Sites, Edelstein said FoEME is hopeful that the international attention brought to bear will foster both the political will and cooperation needed to rehabilitate the river valley and remove it from the endangered list as soon as possible. |
| 120,000 Shekel Fine to Haifa for Marine Pollution
Updated: 04/19/2007 Israel Ministry of Environmental Protection The Haifa Magistrates Court imposed a 120,000 fine on the Haifa Municipality for offenses under the Water Law and for marine pollution offenses. In 2000, the sewage pipeline located within the jurisdiction of the municipality which connects Shemen Industries Ltd. to the municipal sewage system in the Shemen industrial zone collapsed. As a result, on different occasions during the year, oil and wastewater were discharged to municipal drainage canals and from there to the sea on the Shemen beach. The municipality and principal office holders were indicted for offenses under the Water Law 1959, Prevention of Sea Pollution from Land-Based Sources, 1988 and the Maintenance of Cleanliness Law 1984. In a plea bargain agreement dated March 6, 2007, the municipality admitted to contravening the provisions of the Water Law and Prevention of Sea Pollution by Land Based Sources Law and the office holders were not charged with the offenses. The municipality was fined 120,000 shekels and signed a 250,000 shekel financial undertaking to refrain from committing similar offenses for a period of three years. In his sentence, the judge related to the issue of fining a public entity such as a municipality and noted: "A public entity that commits an environmental offense is guilty of abrogating its obligations two times: once when it does not utilize its powers to prevent pollution events in due time when there is a risk that they may occur;...and once more when the entity itself becomes an environmental offender when the pollution takes place in practice." |
A river unlike any other Haretz 20/11/2006 By Zafrir Rinat I had a nightmare a few days ago. In my dream, I was sitting in the office and suddenly a shelf fell on me. The shelf was stuffed with reports, surveys and documents on the rehabilitation of the Kishon River, and the weight of the pamphlets and voluminous books knocked me to the floor. While struggling to breathe, the sad thought occurred to me that I could not even take consolation in knowing that all these documents had at least resulted in the river's rehabilitation. I was inspired to invent this dream by the public hearing the Ministry of Environment conducted about the river's rehabilitation. This hearing, which took place in Haifa several weeks ago, reminded me of the fact that there is probably no other river section in the world (seven kilometers at the Kishon's polluted slope) that has received so much attention without the anticipated results - a halt to pollution and the return of flora and fauna. These seven kilometers have been the focus of several engineering companies, a commission of inquiry that examined the activity of the naval commando unit, and dozens of attorneys who waged pollution-related battles. A master plan and blueprint have been prepared for the river's slope and its other sections, and a panel of experts have set a water quality standard for the projected rehabilitation. During the past decade, eight environment ministers and a similar number of ministry directors general have visited the Kishon. Several Likud activists were dispatched to manage the river authority and even they - with all their skills and abilities - could not tackle the rehabilitation. The main problem continues to be the flow of industrial waste. The quality of these wastes improved about six years ago, but no further progress has since been made and the river continues to be polluted, with the rehabilitation's goals far from being realized. The government set new standards for the flow of waste into Israel's rivers about two years ago. The problem is that several of the factories located along the Kishon are unable to meet these standards without making considerable investments. The Ministry of Environment is considering to spare them this heavy economic burden and to allow them to channel waste into the sea, and in this way make progress on rehabilitating the river. This approach assumes that the sea can dilute the waste better than the river. No one doubts the strong desire of Environment Ministry officials to rehabilitate the Kishon. But after more than a decade, they have not resolved the issue of treating the waste - even though there is a mandatory standard for the flow of waste to rivers. Instead, they are returning to the alternative of channeling the waste to the sea, an option that was already considered in the past. It is no wonder that one senior ministry official, who is opposed to dumping the waste into the sea, noted in the public hearing that there is no reason to set a standard for the flow of waste to rivers if the ministry itself does not intend to implement it. The Ministry of Environment's loss of direction and confusion was well-described by attorney Yariv Abramovich, the director general of the environmental NGO Zalul, who spoke at the hearing. "If the factories have to make substantial investments, they should make substantial investments," he said to the ministry officials. He noted that just as it would be inconceivable for a driver to cancel his mandatory car insurance because it is too expensive, a factory cannot pollute the environment because it is too costly to treat the pollutants. There is one way for rehabilitating the Kishon and there should be no confusion about implementing it: A factory must meet the standards and then it can channel the waste into the river. The sea is not an alternative for dumping waste, as Yehiel Aberjil, the head of the Kishon region fishermen's organization, noted at the hearing, addressing the Environment Ministry's intentions of endangering his livelihood and that of his colleagues. Aberjil's remarks were reinforced by Professor Bella Galil of the Israel Oceanographic and Limnological Research Institute, who clearly stated: "We are about to destroy the richest region of animal life on the Mediterranean coastline and the source of a third of all the fish in Israel. If we were sitting by the shores of a huge ocean, then the pollution from the waste would not have a major impact. But here we are talking about a semi-enclosed bay located within the Mediterranean Sea, which is itself a sort of bathtub." |
| River in rehab: Rare plants back on Kishon banks
Haaretz 25/5/2007 By Fadi Eyadat Friends of botanist Yoav Gertman call him "the clover finder." During a hike on one of the interim days of Passover 1998, he found a group of 3,000 narrowleaf crimson clover (Trifolium angustifolium), after other botanists thought it had disappeared from Israel. After this group was destroyed by the paving of a road, he found another group in the lower Kishon Stream, now undergoing rehabilitation. This is the only place in Israel they can be found. The rare clover was discovered during an ecological survey the Kishon Stream Authority conducted two weeks ago, along with other rare species, such as catchfly and Lobularia arabica. Gertman, the chief botanist of the Yagur nurseries and a senior observer for Rotem, the Israel Plant Information Center, says the narrowleaf crimson clover is particularly rare although the Carmel area is considered its cradle, along with wheat and legumes. According to Gertman the clover, an annual that blooms March and April, "penetrates damaged and saline areas where there is no strong vegetation," but disappears due to competition with other plants. Gertman said he was so surprised to find it that he sent samples to three other major botanists who said they, too, thought it was extinct. That year, the narrowleaf crimson clover was crowned "the botanical find of the year." However, the plant's rare status did not keep the Israel National Roads Company from paving a road to a new neighborhood in the Carmel town of Nesher soon after the clover was found, destroying it. "For this find alone the Kishon should be protected and restored," Gertman says. "Today this clover is found nowhere else in the country. I understand there are already plans to turn this into a back area of the Haifa Port. We have to fight to save it." Gertman said some of the clover sent to the Hebrew University will serve as a breeding nucleus. Another rare plant found only in the Kishon is Cardopatium corymbosum. |
| Study: 'Green' education at schools is in poor shape
By Zafrir Rinat Haaretz 16/7/2007 A few weeks ago, several school principals gathered excitedly at the Environment Ministry to receive their "green accreditation," certifying that their schools are committed to educating their pupils to protect the environment. To win accreditation, a school must devote at least 30 hours to environmental studies, make intelligent use of resources including water and energy, and operate a program involving community-oriented activity. Green accreditation has been awarded so far to 90 schools and 25 kindergartens. But while the phenomenon is growing, a new study claims that the levels of pupils' knowledge and commitment to the environment are still in desperate need of improvement. The findings, by Maya Negev and Gonen Sagi, researchers at Ben-Gurion University (BGU) of the Negev and the Arava Institute for Environmental Studies, will be reported on tomorrow at the Knesset, during an environmental-awareness day being held there. In their study, entitled "Environmental Literacy in the Israeli School System," Negev and Sagi examined the knowledge, positions and conduct of 7,635 pupils in grades 6 through 12 at 182 schools. "The study indicates an enormous gap between the declarations about the purpose and extent of environmental education, and its implementation," says Prof. Alon Tal of BGU, one of the people behind the study. "Anyone who thinks that environmental education is in good shape needs a reality check." According to Tal, there are substantial gaps in knowledge among pupils concerning various environmental subjects, and they are not familiar with the most basic issues. The report's conclusions state that most local pupils have not been exposed to the subjects in question in a productive way. There are hardly any up-to-date materials on ecological issues, and curricula rarely include a practical component like helping to improve the environment in the school vicinity. In questionnaires distributed to the pupils, many answered only half or fewer of the questions correctly. The most significant finding, in Tal's view, is the difference between knowledge and commitment to environmentally helpful behavior. "For example, we found that at Arab schools that scored low on environmental knowledge, environmental behavior got the highest score. There were schools in economically strong areas where the level of knowledge was high, but commitment was low." The study suggests considering additional avenues for changing pupils' behavior, including via the family and local authorities. The researchers claim that even at schools taking part in special programs sponsored by the Society for the Protection of Nature in Israel and the Environment Ministry, only some of the showed higher levels of environmental literacy and committed behavior, in comparison to other schools. Tal says that the Education Ministry is aware that instilling knowledge of environmental issues is not enough, and it is planning to introduce new initiatives through which schools will adopt sites for preservation and improvement. |
| 2006 report: 46% of factories exceed pollution standards
By Tzafrir Rinat, Haaretz Correspondent , 28/05/2007 The Environment Ministry published on Sunday its annual report which revealed that 46 percent of factories tested in 2006 exceeded air pollution standards. The figure represents a 20 percent decrease from the previous year. 2006 was the sixth year during which spot checks have been carried out on factories in Israel, as part of an Environment Ministry initiative to enforce environmental regulations. The ministry attributed 2006's drop in pollution to the spot checks. Excess emissions were discovered in 22 of 48 factories over 334 spot checks carried out in Israel's northern industrial areas. The emissions included known carcinogens as well as substances damaging to the kidneys, heart and liver, respiratory and nervous systems, and substances that can cause eye and throat irritations. According to the report, several chemical plants exceeded acceptable carcinogen levels by up to 3000 percent. Many facilities also surpassed permissible levels of poisonous dioxin, methanol and pollutant particles known to penetrate and seriously damage the respiratory system. The Israel Union for Environmental Defense (Adam Teva V'Din) said the report illustrates the urgency of passing the Clean Air Law, which gives measurable targets and schedules for reducing pollution in Israel. The legislation is currently awaiting second and third readings by the Knesset's Environment and Interior Committee. Chairman of the committee, MK Dov Khenin has vowed to increase pressure on lawmakers to authorize it. Environment Minister Gideon Ezra said he will continue to take steps to force factories to abide by air pollution regulations, including closing down factories that will not take steps to reduce excess emissions. |
| Etude de la distribution des polluants de l'air dans la baie de Haifa 05/24/2007 Le Ministere de la Protection de l'Environnement a alloue un million de shekels a l'etude le la qualite de l'air dans la baie de Haifa. Ce projet qui doit commencer le 10 Juin 2007 mesurera les polluants qui ne sont pas mesures habituellement dans les stations de surveillance, tels que les dioxines, des furannes, des composes organiques volatiles, des polyaromatiques, les particules, des metaux lourds, l'ammoniaque, des mercaptans et l'hydrogene sulfureux emis par les industries et les moyens de transport . Quatre series de mesures sont prevues: ete et automne 2007, hiver et printemps 2008. Mr Robert Reuven directeur du Ministere de la Protection de l'environnement pour la region de Haifa a annonce que les echatillons seront preleves a 20 endroits differents proches des installations industrielles et dans les quartiers residentiels Le projet vise a donner une idee des conditions de qualite de l'air et de la localisation des endroits les plus pollues. Le projet sera continue si les resultats preliminaires s'averent interessants et si un budget peut etre accorde par la suite |
| Haaretz 26/12/2007
Haifa, Israel n'est pas la ville la plus polluee d'Israel Par Fadi Eyadat La qualite de l'air dans la region de la baie de Haifa est meilleure qu'elle ne l'est dans la region de Dan, a Jerusalem et a Ashdod, Haifa, d'apres une association de sauvegarde del'environnement a Haifa De plus, la principale source de pollution en Israel est les vehicules, qui sont responsables des emissions de protoxyde d'azote et de particules, d'apres les donnees des Gardiens de la Region de la Baie et du Ministere de la protection de l'environnement. Tant en 2005 et 2006, les ecarts par rapport aux normes de qualite de l'air ont ete observees a Jerusalem et dans la region de Dan trois a quatre fois plus que dans le secteur de la baie de Haifa. Pendant des annees, Haifa a ete consideree comme une ville polluee en raison de sa proximite avec les raffineries de petrole et les usines petrochimiques situees dans la baie. Mais les donnees des Gardiens de la Baie de Haifa indiquent que la qualite de l'air est meilleure que dans les autres grandes villes israeliennes. La principale raison en est l'augmentation du nombre de voitures - une source principale de pollution de l'air – dansles autres regions. Dans la zone de Haifa, il y a actuellement environ 200000 vehicules, qui sont responsables de 44% de l'oxyde nitreux dans la baie. De plus, des vehicules de transport sont responsable de 18% de toutes les emissions de particules et de 24% des composes organiques qui s'evaporent dans l'air. "Les gens pensent que Haifa a la pire qualite d'air en Israel, mais ceci est tout simplement inexact", dit le directeur general adjoint de Igud Arim de Haifa, le docteur Bernanda Felikstein. "Demandez a quiconque sur les ecarts en Israel et il accusera aussitot Haifa et de la baie de Haifa! Personne ne pense que la situation est meilleure ici que dans la region centrale Dan ou a Jerusalem." Malgre les chiffres encourageants, Felikstein dit qu'il ne faut pas en conclure que les industries a Haifa font assez. "L'industrie devrait reduire la pollution au niveau le plus bas possible, et ne le fait pas. Elle n'applique pas les normes d'emissions les plus avances. Le fait que la qualite de l'air est bonne a Haifa ne peut etre une des raisons pour lesquelles l'industrie ne doit pas s'ameliorer dans ce domaine , dit-elle. Meme le fait qu'en 2009 le gaz naturel sera importe pour etre utilise dans cette region ne peut la convaincre. "Pendant des annees, j'ai entendu que le gaz naturel allait tout de suite arriver." Meme si il vient, cela ne resoudra pas le probleme des emissions d'oxyde nitreux, " dit Felikstein. |
| From H a a r e t z Haifa - not Israel's dirtiest city By Fadi Eyadat The air quality in the Haifa Bay area is better than it is in the Dan Region, Jerusalem and Ashdod, a Haifa-based environmental union found. Furthermore, the dominant source of pollution in Israel is vehicles, which are responsible for emissions of nitrous oxide and particles, according to data from the group the Guardians of the Bay Area, and the Environmental Protection Ministry. Both in 2005 and 2006, deviations from air quality standards were observed in Jerusalem and in the Dan Region three to four times more than in the Haifa Bay area. For years, Haifa was considered a polluted city due to its proximity to the oil refineries and petrochemical plants in the Haifa Bay. However, the Bay Guardians data indicate that Haifa has better air quality than other large Israeli cities do. The main reason for it is the increase in the number of cars - a primary source of air pollution - in other areas. In the Haifa area, there are currently some 200,000 vehicles, which are responsible for 44 percent of the nitrous oxide in the bay. In addition, vehicular transportation is responsible for 18 percent of all particle emissions and 24 percent of the organic compounds that evaporate into the air. "People think Haifa has the worst air quality in Israel, but that is simply incorrect," says the deputy director general of the Haifa Union of Cities, Dr. Bernanda Felikstein. "Ask anyone about deviations in Israel and he will point to Haifa and the Haifa Bay. No one would believe that the situation here is better than in Gush Dan or Jerusalem." Despite the encouraging figures, Felikstein says one should not conclude that the industries in Haifa are doing enough. "Industry must reduce pollution to the lowest possible level, and it is not doing so. Industry is not applying advanced emission standards. The fact that air quality in Haifa is good cannot be a reason why industry doesn't have to improve in this area," she says. Even the talk about the fact that in 2009 natural gas will be imported for use in the area does not convince her. "For years I've been hearing, 'natural gas is coming any day now.' Even if it comes, it doesn't solve the problem of nitrous oxide emissions," Felikstein said. |