Last update - 03:04 19/07/2007
Poisonous fumes threaten building plans in Dan region
By Zafrir Rinat
The Water Commission warns of possible exposure to poisonous fumes that could spread from polluted land and water sources on sites planned for construction projects in the Dan region, which includes Tel Aviv and Givatayim. Such plans include the "City Project," located in a major commercial and industrial area in the Givatayim municipality, just south of the diamond exchange. The Water Commission has been running tests of the ground water and land pollution levels in the Dan region for the past three years.
The pollution, caused by industries that operated in the area over a period of decades, has spread by sublimation of poisonous fumes. An American company recently completed testing nine sites suspected of being heavily polluted.
Following the tests, Sarah Elhanani, head of the Water Commission's Water Quality Division, has sent letters to a number of water experts and planning committees about the findings, which she says, "give a particularly disturbing picture of sites with serious ground water pollution," Elhanani wrote.
According to Elhanani, the Tel Aviv municipality has plans to build on a site at the corner of Yigal Alon and Arvei Nachal Streets, adjacent to the site planned for Givatayim's City Project. "If pollution in this area is not treated," she wrote, "there is a danger of human exposure to fumes of volatile poisons. These materials could spread and harm residents of the area, both during development works and in the future."
Extensive pollution was also found at the former location of the Israel Military Industries (IMI) in northern Tel Aviv. A residential neighborhood was constructed on the site, thought the polluted ground water was not treated. The most polluted areas at the site are currently out of reach for testing, since apartment buildings have been constructed over them. Nevertheless, tests carried out nearby show that the pollution continues to spread.
Elhanani warns that unless all polluted spots are treated, drinking water drill-sites will continue to close down. There is also a growing concern about possible exposure to polluted fumes which could penetrate existing and future buildings in Givatayim, Ramat Gan, Bnei Brak and Tel Aviv, she added.