Seedlings of hope and a spice trail in the regenerating grove in the Romema neighborhood in Haifa
The great fire that broke out in Haifa on November 24, 2016, severely damaged the thick forest that was then in the Romema neighborhood. We all remember the harsh sights of huge flames that rose to a height of tens of meters, from the old pine trees. The latter disappeared from the surface and left behind bare ground and a real danger of mudslides.
Restoration of fire damage
The City Improvement Department, headed by Eli Alkabatz, leads the rehabilitation process. Eli harnessed the veteran agronomist Hanoch Burger to the task and together they manage the restoration project. We joined them on a field trip, which started at 19 Dekar Submarine Street and ended on Hankin Road, at the entrance to the Ramot Sapir neighborhood
Map - the starting point for the tour in the grove below Zalman Street Shazar - 19 Tzolalat Dekar St.
Eli Alkabatz: Immediately after the fire, we sat down and started planning the restoration process. Areas where there was intensive gardening before the fire (public gardens) we simply cleaned and replanted. That was the easy part, relatively speaking. The restoration of the natural forest was more complex, because there is a lack of knowledge in the world regarding the restoration of such a pine forest. This is where it comes in Agronomist Hanoch Burger With his ideas…
Enoch Burger: We didn't have a book to open and read what to do. We learned on the go. Dekar Submarine Street forms a drainage basin for Nahal HaGivori, which eventually drains into Kishon. The rains that fell after the fire created a mudslide, because the soil was exposed and the plants disappeared. We were afraid of the increased drift and mudslides, therefore, down the stream we created rock barriers called "meander" (a Turkish term) that were designed to slow down the flow in the stream and stop the landslide.
Enoch Burger: After the fire, we created paths, which will allow the movement of firefighting forces, if and when the next fire breaks out. Hydrants are planned next to the paths, but these have not yet been approved for planning. Fires break out and we have no control over it, so we must also prepare for the next fire.
Enoch Burger: What is the value of a dunam of natural forest? It is hard for us to grasp it in our everyday life. There are different valuation methods. The Haifa municipality realized that the forest that burned had great value for the city's residents, and therefore great efforts are being invested in its restoration.
Eli Alkabatz: We formulated several guidelines for the restoration of the forest. The first principle: we didn't work the first winter. In the winter there was a serious drift of soil and remnants of burnt material. Gradually we recognized the natural vegetation that emerged from the ruins, at the end of the first winter.
Eli Alkabatz: It was a year we dedicated to planning and thinking with experts from a variety of institutions and universities. We held public participation here with the residents of the neighborhood. We had to conjure false rumors (fake news), which people spread that where the forest burned, houses would be built.
Enoch Burger: The burning creates an opaque layer that prevents water penetration. We decided that we don't touch the burnt ground and we don't turn it over. In addition, we decided that material does not come out of the burning area. We shredded the branches as a substrate for the path. The shredded material turns into soil within a few years.
Eli Alkabatz: We left the pine trunks in the field and used them for the purpose of creating railings, which will stop the soil erosion in the place where we broke the spice path, which is also a fire path.
Enoch Burger: There are different approaches to restoring a forest that has been burned. The first approach: don't touch. The forest will restore itself. The second approach: build the forest like a garden.
We chose a combined approach: in a place where there was a dense pine forest, planted by KKL-Junk. We replanted endemic trees (trees that are part of the natural flora of the Land of Israel). The pine planted in the neighborhood was not an endemic species to Israel. In a certain section we chose to create a spice trail, in the form of a garden. We will tell about this later...
It is important to note that the endemic species are less sensitive to fires than the pine trees.
Eli Alkabatz: Seedlings of many endemic species arrived "on occasion" from Kibbutz Yachiam in the Western Galilee. They were evacuated from there for the expansion of a new neighborhood. The trees arrived at the nursery we set up. They were supposed to be turned into coals and we actually saved them.
Enoch Burger: The trees bear a number that indicates their original location in Kibbutz Yachiam. We created "clusters of trees" based on the natural Israeli texture: oak, olive and carob are trees that love sunlight. That's why they were loaded at the southern turn, under the sunny Zalman Shazar Street.
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The spice trail:
Eli Alkabatz: A spice trail is the only intervention we created in the format of a garden. We are interested in encouraging Haifaites to travel here and pick spices. We planted endemic spices (Israeli land): biblical moss (zaatar), rosemary and more. Suddenly, among them, a natural sage also emerged.
Eli Alkabatz: Breaking the spice path, which is an access path for the firefighters, was complex. The slope is very steep and it was very difficult to pass here with a bulldozer. We lifted the logs from the wadi with a winch and created the drift barrier above the path. It was a Jewish-Arab collaboration. We trusted each other during the project.
Enoch Burger: We spread a coconut blanket sheet on the side of the mountain. We did this to stop the drift and allow the plants to cling to the ground. It worked. The natural plants grew and rose from the ground and as the vegetation gets stronger, the plants will hold the ground by themselves. The trees are all watered in an irrigation system, at this stage, in order to ensure their absorption in the soil.
Enoch Burger: Along with the endemic trees, invasive plants also arrived. For example: this poisonous tobacco tree, which we uproot and kill with a special substance that we apply to the stump.
It is important to note - the path that was broken is in a steep and dangerous area
Eli Alkabatz: A railing is planned at the edge of the path, to protect against falling. We plan to do it this spring.
The route ends at Hankin Road
The route ends in front of the Ramot Sapir neighborhood. Here, too, the fire damaged intensive gardening that was in the area of the road.
Eli Alkabatz: The intensive gardening that we did in the traffic island and on the side of the road is new.
Eli Alkabatz: Above Hankin Road we made a new water crossing made of cast concrete, which is intended to regulate the flow and drift towards the road.
This is the place to thank Eli Elkebatz and Hanoch Burger for the fascinating tour. We at System Hai here will continue to follow the efforts to renew the forest in Haifa and update our readers on what is happening.
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