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A man overlooking a burst sewage pipe that leaked pollutants into the Kishon River last month. (Doron Golan) del.icio.us Digg It!  new Last update - 11:11 17/10/2007 Study: Israel is biggest polluter in eastern Mediterranean By Reuters Israel is the biggest polluter in the eastern Mediterranean, dumping over 140 tons of heavy metals into the sea every year with government approval, an environmental group claimed in a recently published report. According to the Zalul organization, more than 100 permits for discharging wastewater into the sea are granted by a government committee every year -sometimes very close to bathing beaches. "The state of Israel's coastal waters is appalling," the environmental group Zalul said in its State of the Sea Report for 2007. Advertisement "There is a big problem in Israel confronting industries and municipalities and the government doesn't want to invest money," Yariv Abramovich, Zalul's managing director, told Reuters. The 21 countries ringing the Mediterranean share problems like coastal overdevelopment, over fishing and pollution but in Israel, long preoccupied with security issues, environmental awareness has been slow to take hold. After a successful battle against fish cages destroying the coral reefs of the Red Sea, Zalul is focusing its clean-up fight on wastewater permits issued by a government committee. Of the heavy metals and pesticides discharged into the sea under government licenses, are 130 tons of pesticides, 5 tons of arsenic, 1,300 tons of ammonia and a ton of cyanide, the Zalul report said. "There are concerns that industries important to the Israeli economy are treated leniently when the conditions of the permits are drawn up," the report said. The Environmental Protection Ministry said Zalul's report was not accurate and beaches were much cleaner than they used to be. "Israel is in one of the better positions in this area," a ministry spokesman said. The most recent United Nations report on the Mediterranean ranked the greater Tel Aviv area as one of the 10 most polluting urban centers in the Mediterranean. Israel's largest polluter is the Shafdan, or the Dan Region Association of Towns for Sewage and Environmental Issues. It is responsible for the sewage of the greater Tel Aviv area, consisting of 26 municipalities. Shafdan spokesman Amnon Liebermann said 96 percent of the area's waste was recycled as water. However, the remaining 4 percent is discharged as sludge into the sea. Following a government decision, the Shafdan began preparations to burn the sludge. But the Environmental Protection Ministry now says it wants to look at agricultural solutions, such as turning the sludge into fertilizer. Sagit Rogenstein, Zalul's national projects director, said burning the sludge would release harmful chemicals. "So you would be breathing it instead of swimming in it," she said. Liebermann said the Shafdan was open to other options. It invested 50 million shekels (e12.5 million) to experiment with a solution called enviro, which mixes the sludge with calcium. The end product can be used for agriculture or building material. "We believe that in six months we will use enviro on 15 percent of the sludge," Liebermann said. Ironically, a government proposal to help clean up the polluted Kishon River in northern Israel could increase the problems in the Mediterranean. The plan calls for a pipeline to take waste from the factories along the river, including Israel's biggest oil refinery, and spill it directly into the sea. "We've been working with the ministry and bringing experts from abroad to prove there are ways of further reducing pollution from factories and the worst idea is to divert it to the sea," Rogenstein said. Environmental consultant Daniel Levy said some progress has been made in recent years in reducing pollution. "I would give the government credit...But we have reached a plateau," he said. Bookmark to del.icio.us Administrative orphans Six Hebron children, whose parents were arrested, were left with their grandmother. Change the past Father of Jewish psychology suggests avoiding picking away at the scars of the past.   1.   Boker tov Eliyahu 10:43  |  sh 17/10/07   2.   MONEY HUNGRY 10:48  |  VIPER 17/10/07   3.   Obviously 10:50  |  Koppers 17/10/07   4.   Biggest manufacturer and therefore... 11:00  |  Margie in Tel Aviv 17/10/07   5.   `The love of money is the root of all evil` St.Paul`s 11:03  |  lakshmi 17/10/07   6.   Viper`s smear 11:21  |  Margie in Tel Aviv 17/10/07   7.   Everyone should care 11:29  |  Anne 17/10/07   8.   The good days of a green Israel track record are long gone 11:33  |  WWACD 17/10/07   9.   Margie, number 4 11:38  |  Maral 17/10/07   10.   Pollution all over the Mediterranean 11:50  |  Natalija 17/10/07   11.   What a surprise 11:54  |  peter 17/10/07   12.   Strident title. 11:58  |  S 17/10/07   13.   Poorer industrialized countries are forced to pollute 12:04  |  Global Observer 17/10/07   14.   biggest everything.... 12:05  |  ravi 17/10/07   15.   Israel has crapped all over its own Coastal Aquifer 12:07  |  Clickfool 17/10/07   16.   Maral 12:17  |  Margie in Tel Aviv 17/10/07   17.   Margie, of course 12:34  |  Maral 17/10/07   18.   peter 12:37  |  Maral 17/10/07   19.   #6 Dishonest Margie lies again 12:44  |  Labhras 17/10/07   20.   Is This Too To Be Denounced as Anti-semitic? 12:45  |  Yaakov Sullivan 17/10/07   21.   Is there one, just one, body of water??? 12:48  |  Yaakov Sullivan 17/10/07   22.   to Clickfool, 12:51  |  dovale 17/10/07   23.   Maral the cleaning lady 13:01  |  peter 17/10/07   24.   THE ASBESTOS DISASTER IN ISRAEL 13:16  |  Kooky Dennt 17/10/07   25.   Yaacov Sullivan 13:25  |  Walid 17/10/07   26.   Who me? got to be kidding. 13:29  |  joe 17/10/07   27.   Yaakov Sullivan, it is anti-semitism when? 13:34  |  FOX 17/10/07   28.   Shame on Israel 13:34  |  Walid 17/10/07   29.   The technology is there - the will is missing 13:36  |  Raymond from DC 17/10/07   30.   pollution by israel 13:37  |  accountability 17/10/07   31.   Who me? got to be kidding. PART 2 13:39  |  joe 17/10/07   32.   The ever-frustrated peter 13:44  |  Maral 17/10/07   33.   Israeli Dumping on the WB 13:46  |  Walid 17/10/07   34.   For Dovale # 22 13:47  |  Clickfool 17/10/07   35.   Pity the Poor WB Palestinians 13:50  |  Walid 17/10/07   36.   Nablus is not Spared by Dumping 13:57  |  Walid 17/10/07   37.   Conclusion on Israeli WB Pollution 14:10  |  Walid 17/10/07   38.   Fox on Disgust 14:19  |  Yaakov Sullivan 17/10/07   39.   My cousin lives in Zurich, his father wants to open huge factory 14:27  |  Tamir Palestine 17/10/07   40.   Zionist poop 14:28  |  Hannah 17/10/07   41.   Other polluters at work: (apologies to Viper) 14:43  |  Margie in Tel Aviv 17/10/07   42.   Maral 14:46  |  Margie in Tel Aviv 17/10/07   43.   Inevitably, Industry Spawns Pollution 15:00  |  MIKE 17/10/07   44.   Take your own advise Sullivan #38 15:08  |  FOX 17/10/07   45.   Margie v. Maral Slapdown 15:10  |  iKeltin 17/10/07   46.   Zurich Manufacturing Magnate 15:14  |  iKeltin 17/10/07   47.   hannah 40 15:19  |  iKeltin 17/10/07   48.   To Clickfool 15:24  |  dovale 17/10/07   49.   small country 15:28  |  soggy liberal 17/10/07   50.   Zalul 15:33  |  Dan 17/10/07   51.   #47, iKeltin 15:55  |  Hannah 17/10/07   52.   maral the cleaner 16:18  |  peter 17/10/07   53.   Margie in Tel Aviv.... 16:31  |  Tess 17/10/07   54.   To Hanna - shame on you 16:36  |  Karl 17/10/07   55.   To Walid 16:44  |  Karl 17/10/07   56.   TO THE HATERS OF ISRAELIS & JEWS 16:47  |  Kooky Dennt 17/10/07   57.   HANNAH 16:55  |  Sandokan 17/10/07   58.   I Went For A Swim Once In Yugoslavia 16:56  |  Yosemite 17/10/07   59.   Karl on shitholes 16:57  |  Yaakov Sullivan 17/10/07   60.   Mizrahi culture 16:59  |  Gene 17/10/07   61.   What about hatred of pollution??? Kookie Dennt 17:06  |  Yaakov Sullivan 17/10/07   62.   To Yaakov Sullivan - you assume to know 17:17  |  Karl 17/10/07   63.   # 61 Mr. Sullivan 17:36  |  Kooky Dennt 17/10/07   64.   karl, do the state of israel a favour.... 17:44  |  Yaakov Sullivan 17/10/07   65.   Soviet Israel 17:47  |  Danite 17/10/07   66.   Yaakov Sullivan 17:53  |  Murray of Montreal 17/10/07   67.   Polution in the Nile Delta 17:53  |  Karl 17/10/07   68.   Tess 17:59  |  Margie in Tel Aviv 17/10/07   69.   Yosemite/to swim in Yuogoslavia 18:00  |  Anne 17/10/07   70.   To Kooky Dennt 18:02  |  dovale 17/10/07   71.   Murray on Pollution #63 18:16  |  Yaakov Sullivan 17/10/07   72.   Taking a dip in Israeli water..... 18:39  |  Clickfool 17/10/07   73.   By the way..... 18:41  |  Clickfool 17/10/07   74.   Industrialization = pollution duh (USA) 18:53  |  Devin 17/10/07   75.   #63 Murray regarding Sullivan #63 19:00  |  FOX 17/10/07   76.   Doesn`t surprise me, Israel being the last modern country to 19:13  |  Rachel 17/10/07   77.   Raymond DC #29 19:21  |  FOX 17/10/07   78.   walid .....shame on palestinians 19:25  |  maria 17/10/07   79.   BEFORE BASHING ISRAEL DO YOUR HOMEWORK 19:37  |  Kooky Dennt 17/10/07   80.   Lakshmi, don`t get us started on pollution in India 19:52  |  Jacob Blues 17/10/07   81.   israel pollutes so much because of lazy politicians 20:01  |  s BSc 17/10/07   82.   Actually Rachel 20:16  |  Margie in Tel Aviv 17/10/07   83.   FOX re "Yaakov" (2ndtry) 20:36  |  Danite 17/10/07   84.   Costs of endless "Palestinian" violence 20:46  |  Scharker Yid 17/10/07   85.   What is wrong with loving Money? 21:04  |  Astronaut 17/10/07   86.   Hey Danite, #80 21:27  |  FOX 17/10/07   87.   Clickfool, bring your bathing suit 21:30  |  FOX 17/10/07   88.   Rachel somewhere in Europe 21:36  |  FOX 17/10/07   89.   Karl 21:44  |  Walid 17/10/07   90.   Devin 21:49  |  Walid 17/10/07   91.   #71, Sullivan 22:00  |  Murray of Montreal 17/10/07   92.   Dismal Israeli records on the Environment 22:15  |  Fortuna Benmayor 17/10/07   93.   #75 FOX :o) 22:23  |  Murray of Montreal 17/10/07   94.   Hannah #51 23:16  |  iKeltin 17/10/07   95.   #90 Murray 23:24  |  iKeltin 17/10/07   96.   FOX re Sullivan 00:28  |  Danite 18/10/07   97.   the one and only 00:43  |  edgar 18/10/07   98.   Tess 00:54  |  sh 18/10/07   99.   Pollution 01:32  |  SEAN 18/10/07   100.   Like duh! 01:55  |  Mark Lincoln 18/10/07   101.   Fox 03:59  |  living in Gods world 18/10/07   102.   Fox 03:59  |  living in Gods world 18/10/07   103.   Cities and Factories come with Pollution 04:25  |  Efox 18/10/07   104.   re: SEAN 04:31  |  Efox 18/10/07   105.   Fortuna Benmayor #91 06:26  |  S 18/10/07   106.   haanah re `zionist poop` 06:48  |  danny 18/10/07   107.   yakov kishon sullivan 08:03  |  ka 18/10/07   108.   Who? We? 08:42  |  Anton 18/10/07   109.   Because Israel is not permanent fixture just an exotic getaway 20:42  |  african american 18/10/07   110.   Pork, not fish 17:36  |  rob 20/10/07

Today Online Israel rejects UN envoy's bid to open talks on Shaba Farms Responses: 458 Aluf Benn: Iran nuclear threat seems far more frightening from Israel Responses: 239 President Peres calls for more inclusive definition of Judaism Responses: 118 FM Livni condemns Belarusian President for anti-Semitic jibe Responses: 119 Firillas: On Armenia, what can Turkey learn from German reaction to Holocaust Responses: 84 Report: Israeli mole took pictures of Syrian nuclear facility Responses: 201 Rosner's Domain * Israel's fear: Will Rice put a bridging proposal on the table? * WTR: 75% of Americans don't believe in peace process * Egypt blames IDF soldiers for arms smuggling to Gaza * Guest: Should the Saudis attend Annapolis? More Headlines 03:37 Conflict in coalition as Annapolis summit nears 04:20 ANALYSIS / Hamas also awaiting Annapolis peace summit 04:58 Nasrallah: I did everything I could to solve Arad mystery 05:45 Report to address possible effects of dividing Jerusalem 00:58 Britain's chief rabbi blasts multiculturalism in new book 01:23 Former Hamas spokesman blasts takeover of Gaza Strip 05:18 University heads order strike after talks with Tamir fail 03:27 IAF strike kills two Islamic Jihad men off coast of Gaza Strip 23:27 Gaza woman, 51, killed in Rafah clashes between Hamas, Jihad Previous Editions Select Day 19 oct 18 oct 17 oct 16 oct 15 oct 14 oct 12 oct 11 oct 10 oct 09 oct 08 oct 07 oct

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