The Ministry of Environmental Protection began last Thursday to transfer the funds to local authorities due to the expenses incurred by them due to the cleaning of the beaches.
Following the incident of pollution of the Mediterranean shores in Israel in large quantities of tar along 160 km, and due to the need to rehabilitate the damaged beaches in the event, minimize environmental and ecological damage and damage to biodiversity, it was agreed that the Ministry of Environmental Protection will allocate NIS 45 million. NIS 30 million to the authorities and the Nature and Parks Authority; NIS 10 million for the removal of tar waste from the beach and its treatment and NIS 5 million for research, monitoring and surveys.
The fund’s management has decided to transfer up to NIS 30 million in assistance from this amount to reimburse expenses to local authorities and the Nature and National Parks Authority, which owns beaches in the Mediterranean that were affected by the tar incident (up to NIS 250,000 per kilometer of shoreline), for treating pollution on beaches, including animals Who were harmed by it. Of this amount, an advance will be transferred as immediate assistance in the amount of NIS 62.5 thousand.
The rest – up to 75% of the total of NIS 250,000 per kilometer will be given to the authorities for damaged beaches according to the following criteria: length of the damaged beach (with accurate documentation), full documentation of expenses according to receipts, invoices and work diaries and approval of the Ministry of Environmental Protection.
So far, the authorities that have already received the advances are Netanya, Mate Asher, Hof Hacarmel and Jisr a-Zarqa.
The Minister of Environmental Protection, Gila Gamliel, said: “The Ministry of Environmental Protection pays advances to local authorities for the expenses incurred by them due to the cleaning of the beaches. The mechanism is fast and efficient, any local authority that completes the process and submits the request for assistance – will immediately receive the indemnity, amounting to up to NIS 30 million for all local authorities and the Nature and Parks Authority from the budget we transferred in the government decision. “We will continue to work to open the bathing season on time, advance research into the ecological damage and locate the offender who caused the disaster.”
