Minister of Environmental Protection Avi Gabbay warned the industrial interests in Haifa Bay that his office will work to decrease the industrial activities in the polluted zone.
At the Environment 2050 summit in Tel Aviv on Monday, Gabbay said: “The story of Haifa Bay is difficult. When you look at the significant spread of factories operating in the bay, you see a massive bloc of factories strewn within an urban population; even if each of the factories was up to environmental standards we still have a problem on our hands.
“Each factory contributes a little, but it accumulates and turns into air pollution. We will curb the industrial zone in Haifa Bay because the present situation must not continue.”
In his remarks at the conference, Gabbay announced a new national plan that will soon be implemented by his office to reduce air pollution from industrial sources, energy production, and transportation across the country. Gabbay said the plan will set designated milestones.
“We have already succeeded in reducing our use of coal for energy generation, and we will continue on that path. That effort is the most important factor in the reduction of air pollution in Hadera and Ashkelon. There is a variety of figures on premature deaths in Israel due to air pollution the lowest estimate is 1,500 deaths annually. That number is three times greater than all early deaths from traffic accidents and murders, and we are not even including the hundreds of thousands of Israelis whose quality of life is lowered,” said Gabbay.
The minister said tacking air pollution in Israel is one of the major goals of his office. “The reason I am personally handling the natural gas issue is simple it is one of the keys to making a dent in air pollution in Israel.”
Manufacturers Association of Israel president Shraga Brosh also participated in the environmental summit. He called on Gabbay to soften environmental regulation and the bureaucracy that supervises industry. “We are the top of the list of those who suffer from environmental protection the amount of permits required and bureaucratic procedures we must undergo is excessive.”
Published by Globes [online], Israel business news - www.globes-online.com - on March 2, 2016
© Copyright of Globes Publisher Itonut (1983) Ltd. 2016