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Last update - 15:12 01/02/2008 Israeli reality TV series 'Survivor' causing ecological damage By Ofri Ilani and Idan Ring , Haaretz Correspondents Tags: TV, ecological damage, Israel  Soft sand and coconut palms surround the contestants on Channel 10's "Survivor," the backdrop for the series' intrigues. The calm seas and tropical vegetation make the perfect scenery for the toned participants. Viewers of the hit show are told little about the anonymous island, which is in fact the Los Haitises National Park in the Dominican Republic, a nature reserve in which similar productions have been filmed in recent years for a variety of television channels in countries such as Spain, Argentina and Chile. Los Haitises is hardly wild and forgotten, but in fact faces serious ecological threats. Behind the reality TV lies the harsh reality of corrupt politicians and warring interested parties. The diverse habitat is the center of a longstanding dispute between the state and local farmers, who were expelled under claims they were harmful to nature and the region's water sources. The farmers, who lived for decades in the park, now live in tin shacks in nearby villages in full view of the area from which they were expelled. Large sections of the reserve have been converted to outdoor recording studios in which various "Survivor" productions from various countries compete, sometimes more than one at a time. D Advertisement ominican president issued the order expelling the 826 families to eight villages in the area just a year ago. It followed several previous evictions in the 1990s, some violent evictions by security forces in which farmland was burned. The Dominican government claims the farmers damaged the nature reserve by felling trees and burning plots of land to clear for farming. However, according to international organizations that examined the situation in Los Haitises, the farming was causing minimal damage. They placed responsibility for the ecological damage firmly with the government itself for allowing various companies to log in the park. Last month, a long public battle ended with the Dominican Republic compensating the farmers 15 million Dominican dollars (about NIS 1.5 million). As ecology takes a more prominent role worldwide, green organizations have criticized the ecological impact that the "Survivor" series may have and the message they send. The "Survivor" series are filmed largely in nature preserves in developing nations - chosen precisely for their wild, untouched look. At the end of production, the "survivors" return to their homes, but the damage to the nature reserves remains. The Dominican Republic, which didn't hesitate to expel thousands of people from the reserve, also didn't hesitate to grant filming permits for a reality series inside park limits. Latin American animal rights group Anima Naturalis reported in 2003 on damage to Los Haitises from the Spanish production of "Survivor". "The filming left a sad souvenir in the park. The cans, bottles and plastic containers left behind, the tree stumps and uprooted bamboo, are infuriating," the report states. A park ranger told the organization that ancient trees were damaged in filming, many temporary buildings constructed for the production were built from illegally cut down trees. In addition, fishing was unregulated and campfires were lit in unauthorized areas. As in the Israeli version, Spanish crews also filmed inside caves. The ranger said some contained cave drawings of great cultural importance from the pre-Colombian period. Electricity, cables and lighting lined the caves, endangering the ancient drawings. Dominican journalists and public figures have also criticized use of the nature reserve for filming. Senator Juan Morales Vilorio, who represents the park area, has demanded that the Ministry of Environment and National Resources act decisively to reverse the park's deterioration. "It concerns me that this area is being used irresponsibly to produce reality shows that substantially damage both flora and fauna," the senator told the daily La Nacion. In keeping with the genre, the Israeli production also focuses more on the competitors and their relationships than on the locale. The participants themselves know little of the place. One competitor, who asked not to be identified, said the 20 survivors knew nearly nothing about the area. "It looked to me like a really big park, with islands going out to sea. Boats passed occasionally, but most of the time no one else was around. It's completely deserted." According to him, "Dead Man's Island looked huge to me, with a tiny beach. There are very steep rocks and swamp that no one could cross." Dominican Today editor Jorge Pineda says, "production companies love Los Haitises because it looks so wild. But there are signs these shows cause damage. The rangers cannot really cope with the television crews. Clerks are bribed to allow all sorts of things. Preservation depends mostly on the ecological awareness of the production companies. If they harm nature, the authorities can do little about it." The ecological damage of reality shows like "Survivor" is not unique to the Dominican Republic. The popular format has been filmed in a number of "exotic" locations that have suffered from enthusiastic film crews and contestants. In the second season of the original American "Survivor," runner-up Colby Donaldson broke off a piece of Australia's protected reef. Later in the same season, the production company flew a helicopter over a nature reserve where rare water fowl nest. Australian authorities investigated the incidents. The third season of the American "Survivor" apparently caused even more serious damage to the nature reserve in which it was filmed in Kenya. "The presence of 200 crew members with heavy supply trucks, caused the animals to flee the reserve," a Kenyan green group charged. Bookmark to del.icio.us   'British Oskar Schindler' Nicholas Winton, who saved 669 Jewish children during the Holocaust, is up for the Nobel. Pride of Israel Tennis: Shahar Peer beats Russia's Dinara Safina to give Israel 1-0 lead in the Fed Cup.   1.   israel is ecological damage itself 09:07  |  buyakasha 01/02/08   2.   Survivor should be changed to the Sahara Desert. 10:47  |  Stephen. 01/02/08   3.   To 1: Great damage... 12:14  |  Cristina 01/02/08   4.   Move it to the Gaza Strip 14:08  |  Buster 01/02/08   5.   Leb war caused lots of enviro damage. Israel didn`t care then.... 14:55  |  POP 01/02/08   6.   Israeli TV yawn 15:05  |  Ned Flanders 01/02/08   7.   be responsible with your bias 10:43  |  Jack 03/02/08

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