Another warning to the municipality of Haifa • and this time - pollution of Nahal Saadia "The drainage system belongs to the municipality"

A warning letter to the Haifa municipality from the Ministry of Environmental Protection

The Ministry of Environmental Protection informed Lahi Pa - the news corporation:
The Ministry of Environmental Protection issued a warning letter to the Haifa municipality following the contamination of the Saadia river with sewage; The municipality is required to take all measures to immediately stop the flow of sewage from the drainage system.

Shlomo Katz, director of the Haifa district of the Ministry of Environmental Protection:

The phenomenon of river pollution with sewage is serious, dangerous, and seriously harms man and the environment. We take these infections seriously, and will continue to deal with and enforce against the parties involved in order to keep the streams and the environment clean and healthy for the public.

The drainage system belongs to the Haifa municipality

The Ministry of Environmental Protection issued a warning letter to the Haifa Municipality regarding the contamination of the Saadia River with the sewage that flows into the natural drainage system, and from there into the Saadia River from the municipal drainage outlet. The alert was issued according to the water law and the law on maintaining cleanliness.

Drainage lines of the industrial area at Check Post in Haifa Bay, connect to a drainage channel that connects to Nahal Saadia, adjacent to the Check Post intersection. The drainage system belongs to the Haifa municipality.

cloudy water and a foul smell

As part of inspection tours by the Ministry of Environmental Protection, it was found that the drainage canal that connects to Nahal Saadia from the direction of the check post and to which the drainage lines of the check post area are connected, was filled with dark colored cloudy water, and a foul smell was felt at the place. A sampling of the water in the drainage channel indicated contamination with signs of sewage.

Sewage intrusion into the drain

Following the fear that arose from the results of the samples for the infiltration of sewage into the drainage lines, samples were taken in the drainage channel and the drainage line on Maklef Street, which was full of water. Much higher concentrations of pollution were found in these samples, concentrations that unequivocally indicate the infiltration of sewage into the drainage.

In light of this, the ministry required the municipality to take an internal photograph of the drainage line to locate the sources of the pollution. The municipality, in coordination with the ministry, carried out a test using a dye (fluorescein) to check if there is a leak from the Carmel water sewer line to the drainage line, which showed no evidence of such penetration. The Carmel Water Corporation reported to the ministry that it had upgraded the sewer line and also provided a photograph that testified that the line was in good working order.

Stop the flow of sewage from the drainage system

In the notice issued by the Ministry of Environmental Protection, the Municipality of Haifa is required to take all measures to stop the flow of wastewater from the drainage system it owns into the natural drainage system and into the Saadia stream. The municipality was required to submit to the office a plan for internal photography of the drainage line for the purpose of locating prohibited connections, and for disconnecting any sewer connections that are located and connecting them to the sewer system - so that the plan will be carried out no later than October 15, 2021.

The Ministry of Environmental Protection takes seriously the pollution of the river water by sewage, and will continue to monitor the pollution of the river, and carry out enforcement actions against the polluting factors as necessary.