Rosh Carmel Sea Nature Reserve in Haifa - the official announcement • Map with the boundaries of the reserve

Ahead of Independence Day, the Minister of the Interior, Aryeh Deri, signed 17 sites as new nature reserves and national parks. It is about 111,000 dunams, which include a wide variety of habitats and extend over areas from the north of the country to the area east of Lakish in the south.

The official announcement on Rosh Carmel Sea Nature Reserve, was received with great excitement among Haifa's community of sea guards. Along with the joy, many were disappointed by the fact that the reserve does not include the section of the sea adjacent to the Shikmona Promenade, Huldah Promenade and Bat Galim Promenade.

The reserve is located in the maritime space between Haifa Bay and the Shikmona Marine Reserve and from the coastline westward to the edge of the western escarpment of the Rosh Carmel spur (at a depth of approximately 370 m), at a distance of approximately 10 km from the coastline. Very steep areas and almost flat areas.These differences produce a wide and unique variety of marine habitats and great species richness.

The boundaries of the Rosh Carmel Sea Nature Reserve in Haifa

• Northern border: south of the extensive Gulf Sands Reserve.
• Southern border: intersection of road 672 - road 4.
• Area of ​​the reserve: 46.307 square kilometers.
• Maximum distance of the western border from Haifa: 12 km
• Length of the coastline: 4.642 km
• The maximum depth in the reserve: 320 m

Below is a list of additional nature reserves that were announced on Independence Day:

• Teva Nature Reserve promised
  It is located on the northeastern coast of the Sea of ​​Galilee, and includes the delta of the Golan streams (Daliyot, Yehudiya, and Shushes) in their flow to the Sea of ​​Galilee. It is a system fed by stable, fresh, clean water that is prone to flooding, creating a dynamic ecosystem. In the reserve, the water level changes frequently throughout the periods of the year, which dictates the essence of the special habitat of swamp, lagoons and lake and the close interrelationships between them. It is of great importance to preserve the area's natural dynamics.
• Majestic Nature Reserve
  It is located in the northeast of the Sea of ​​Galilee and includes part of Nahal Daliot flowing into the Sea of ​​Galilee. In the area of ​​the reserve is the "wet track" - a section of a stream that is about 800 meters long for walking in the water of the stream, suitable for a trip in the spring, summer and autumn months. The program regulates the way of access to the site and the system of receiving the audience in it.
• Mount Sasa Nature Reserve
  It was approved by the District Committee for Planning and Construction of the North District, as part of a plan for "Mount Sasa Forests and Nature Reserve". The reserve is an area division of a dense and high-quality Mediterranean forest, located in the north of the country, directly next to the Mount Miron reserve. The amount of groundwater injection areas in the Upper Galilee has been decreasing recently due to accelerated development. The Mount Sasa Nature Reserve, with an area of ​​approximately 11,655 dunams, will ensure the protection of an area for the introduction of rainwater into the groundwater, due to the dense vegetation that reduces runoff.
• Mount Miron Nature Reserve Extension, Nahal Kaziv Upper
  The Kaziv stream is one of the few streams in the country that maintains a stream habitat with a constant flow of clean water from springs that originate in the channel. Upper Kasziv Stream - is a section in the center and upstream of the Kasziv River, which connects the Mount Miron Reserve to the Kasziv Stream Reserve and is the main strand in an important ecological corridor in the Galilee.
• Keri Naaman Nature Reserve
  It is the last remnant of the marshes of the northern coastal plain in Israel and is of great ecological-environmental importance. It has moist depressions, ponds, flooded areas and marshy meadow areas. The site is integrated into the master plan and outline of the entire Nahal Na'aman, which is based on landscape and nature tours in a number of reserves along the Na'aman and the Na'aman fields as a whole.
• Nahal Taninim beach nature reserve
  It is located along the coast of the Mediterranean Sea, west of Kibbutz Ma'gan Michael and north of the settlement of Jasser a-Zarqa. This stretch of coast combines within its boundaries wetlands and salt marshes, dunes, river estuaries and brackish water sites, which together form a habitat for large and diverse populations of winged, migratory, springing and wintering birds. In the area of ​​the plan in the south, there is the "Wilhelm Bridge". An ancient arched bridge built by the Turkish government for the visit of the German Emperor Wilhelm II in 1889. The plan designates the bridge as a conservation site.
• Caesarea Hippodrome National Park
  The Eastern Hippodrome is outside the Crusader walls of Caesarea, east of the declared National Park. The hippodrome complex is unique in Israel and unique in the world in terms of the level of preservation of some of its components. This is one of the most complete evidences of an important element in the urban culture of the Roman-Byzantine Empire. The plan includes the area of ​​the ancient hippodrome (Kirkos), as well as an entrance system as an area for receiving the public, while preserving the archaeological finds and the 'spirit of the place'.
• Caesarea Extension National Park
  An addition of space to the declared National Antiquities Park of Caesarea, in order to allow the arrangement of parking and a reception system for the large crowd that frequents the site both for tours of the site and for shows in the famous Roman theater.
• Nahal Rubin National Park - extension
  Nahal Sorek begins its journey in the Jerusalem mountains and flows into the Mediterranean Sea north of Kibbutz Palmahim. In this western part, the stream is called by its Arabic name Wadi Rubin. The area of ​​the national park in this area includes a stream, coastal dunes, kurkar ridges, a beach and the meeting of the fresh stream water with the sea water. The variety of these habitats sustains many different ecological niches here, and becomes a habitat for many species of waterfowl and shorebirds, as well as sea turtles, some rare crabs, and minnow species that find refuge from the winter storms in the shallow estuary waters.
• Berachet Rehovot Nature Reserve
  is among the agricultural areas

Shaul Goldstein, CEO of the Nature and Parks Authority, told Lahi Fa:

"God willing, the State of Israel can be proud of preserving its nature both in front of itself and in front of the world! The announcement of the Minister of the Interior shows the great importance that the Minister, as well as the other partners in the long process, sees in preserving the natural assets, the landscape and the heritage of this country. Within these numbers hides a rich nature, natural habitats for the local animals, heritage sites that tell the ancient story of the country and landscapes that were used and are used for historical dramas on the one hand and inspiration for generations to come. This month, in which we left Egypt, passed Holocaust Day, remembered the fallen and celebrated independence, is the month in which we must remember what we fought for and what we sacrificed for.
As the Minister of the Interior wrote in his blessing, the Nature and Gardens Authority will maintain the new reserves and gardens and make what is available accessible to visitors.
My thanks to all my companions on the way.'

Sara Ohion handed over to Hai Fa

(Sarah Ohion, marine ecologist, one of the founders of the Rosh Carmel marine community)

When we established the community, in 2017, as a move to support the promotion of the Rosh Carmel Marine Nature Reserve, we did not know how long it would take until the reserve was declared. We were prepared for an extended period. The pace of declaring marine reserves, until today, has been very slow.

To our great joy, the process of approving and declaring the Rosh Carmel Sea Reserve progressed at a very fast pace in the planning institutions, thanks to the cooperation between many parties, including the Nature and Parks Authority, the Society for the Protection of Nature, and the communities of the people of the Mediterranean, primarily the Rosh Carmel maritime community.

The announcement of a large and significant marine nature reserve is a real gift to Haifa and the State of Israel, on the 73rd Independence Day of the State of Israel and is a good reason for celebration.