The Carmel Olfins company from the Bezan group was fined NIS 18.7 million for exceeding the permitted emissions

The Ministry of Environmental Protection informed Hai Pa News Corporation:

The polluter pays dearly: the Ministry of Environmental Protection imposed a financial sanction on the Carmel Olfins company of the Bezan Group in the Haifa Bay (as OEL) in the amount of NIS 18.7 million for exceeding the air emission standards.

The Ministry of Environmental Protection imposed a financial sanction of NIS 18,658,920 on the Carmel Olpinim company (as above) of the Bezan Group in the Haifa Bay, for exceeding the emission values ​​set for the company in the plant's emission permit under the Clean Air Law - one of the highest amounts imposed by the Ministry of Environmental Protection on a company or some factory. The completion of the administrative enforcement procedure comes after the ministry informed the company of its intention to impose a sanction in 2023.

Kaol is a wholly owned subsidiary of Bezan that deals, among other things, in the production and marketing of polymers used in the plastics industry at a plant located in Haifa Bay. The activity of the factory facilities is a source of emissions required by an emission permit from the Ministry of Environmental Protection according to the Clean Air Law.

the emission permits

In the original emission permit granted by the ministry to the plant in 2016, it was required to reduce emissions of nitrogen oxides from the steam boilers by February 28, 2018. After repeated inquiries from the plant and many discussions, in the amendment to the emission permit dated March 9, 2020, the company was required to submit a plan and install measures to reduce emissions by January 1, 2021 , which included giving the plant a reasonable preparation time to complete the move and install the required emission reduction measures.

The company did not meet the deadlines as established by the Ministry, and did not prepare properly with the establishment of pollutant treatment facilities as required by the permit, and beginning in the beginning of 2021, deviations from the updated emission values ​​for nitrogen oxides that the company was required to meet were measured.

Administrative enforcement procedure against the company

Therefore, the Haifa district of the ministry initiated an administrative enforcement proceeding against the company, in which the district issued an administrative order pursuant to Section 45 of the Clean Air Law, in which stringent emission values ​​were set for the pollutant nitrogen oxides from the company's cracking furnaces, with the aim of immediately reducing the overall emissions of the plant and the harm to air quality , until the installation of the emission reduction measures is completed, as the Ministry required in the permit. At the same time as the administrative enforcement procedure, the Ministry of Environmental Protection continued the enforcement procedure to exhaust the law against the plant.

In May 2022, and about a year and a half late from the date set in the emission permit, the plant completed the installation of emission reduction measures. Therefore, and due to the deviations from the nitrogen oxide pollutant's emission values ​​measured starting January 2021, the Ministry of Environmental Protection imposed a financial sanction on the Carmel Olefins company in the amount of approximately NIS 18.7 million.

In recent years, the Ministry of Environmental Protection has conducted several enforcement procedures against Kaol and other companies in the Bezan group, including financial sanctions, warrants, warnings and criminal investigations. In 2017, Kaol was fined NIS 2.17 million for violating the Clean Air Law. In June 2022, the ministry filed an indictment against the company and three of its employees for causing air pollution and repeated violations of the terms of the emission permit and the business license.

Director of the Air Quality and Asbestos Division at the Ministry of Environmental Protection, Reut Rabi:

The Ministry of Environmental Protection's requirements to reduce pollutant emissions from industry protect the public. The KOL plant was delayed for about a year and a half in installing facilities for a significant reduction of nitrogen oxide emissions from steam boilers, and for that reason we imposed a financial sanction on it, one of the highest the Ministry has imposed to date. The Ministry of Environmental Protection will continue to stand firm against any environmental violation or offense, and will enforce and exhaust the law in order to protect public health and the environment.

The Ministry of Environmental Protection operates through its requirements within the emission permits for factories to reduce air pollution from industry. The Ministry will not allow the violation of the conditions of the emission permit, with the aim of protecting public health, and will use the means at its disposal to take legal action against companies and enterprises that violate the requirements of the law. The Ministry of Environmental Protection continues to work for the promotion and development of Haifa Bay, including the cessation of refining and the closing of the petrochemical industry in Haifa Bay as soon as possible, as part of the government's decision on the matter.

Dr. Lehi Shahar Berman, CEO of the Association of Haifa Bay Area Cities for Environmental Protection:

The application of the polluter pays principle is a cornerstone in an effective and determined fight against those who harm public health. The decision of the Ministry of Environmental Protection to impose sanctions amounting to NIS 18.7 million on the Carmel Olphin plant of the Bezan Group in the Haifa Bay, is a landmark in the fight against the polluting plants in the bay. Carmel Olphin has disregarded for years, not only the provisions of the law and the directives of the Ministry of Environmental Protection, but mainly in their commitment to the protection of Public health and well done by the ministry that chose to take a heavy-handed policy against those who thought they could save on the backs of residents and residents of the Haifa Bay area and their health. On a regular basis with the Ministry of Environmental Protection in order to share emissions data and exceptions and promote effective enforcement. The financial sanctions imposed today and the conduct of the factories that led to their imposition are another reminder of the importance of the quick evacuation of the polluting factories from Haifa Bay, as stipulated in the government's decision and the national outline plan, TMA 75 for the development of Haifa Bay.