Environment Minister Gideon Ezra ordered on Wednesday an extensive examination of a bad smell coming from the Ramat Hovav industrial zone in the Negev, after receiving a slew of complaints from Be'er Sheva residents Tuesday night.

The ministry said Wednesday that the monitoring station for Ramat Hovav recorded an unusually high level of pollutants, and air samples taken from the homes of complainants in Be'er Sheva confirmed the existence of hazards in the area.

The Ramat Hovav regional council said Wednesday that while there was a bad smell coming from the industrial zone, the emissions did not exceed the maximum permitted levels. The council said the problem reinforced the need to ensure the factories dealt with the pollution they emitted.

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Last month the regional council reported an increase of 125 percent in justified complaints of bad smells during the first quarter of 2007, and a rise in two compounds known to cause a bad smell has also been recorded. The regional council said test runs for sewage purification facilities, which the factories recently completed, are one of the main causes of the bad smell.

However, the council said last week that the air quality improved in May and June, which it attributed to demands that Ramat Hovav factories reduce the air pollution they emit. The council said the sewage purification facilities at two factories will ultimately help reduce the bad smell coming from Ramat Hovav.