תAnd those returning from the Verdia neighborhood and the Geula dormitory neighborhood in Haifa woke up one morning and discovered that they were living very close to a quarry, due to the fact that contractors had received permission to build close to 500 units after "flattening the area". The meaning of the action is that over a long period of time the place became a quarry What this means: clouds of dust, noise, generators that run on diesel, everyday dirt in the residential apartments, etc. According to tenants who contacted Hai Fa, even if a decision was made to carry out these actions, there are many ways in which the damage to their quality of life could be reduced, but references theirs to the municipality do not receive a sufficient response and the result on the ground is a serious damage to the quality of life of thousands, over time. We reported on a similar phenomenon here a few months ago:
It is important to understand that what happened to the residents can happen to many more residents, in light of the intention to build more and more new neighborhoods in the coming years. Obviously, those who buy an apartment near a green lung or an area designated for construction in the future, understand the meaning of these things, and there is still a difference between living near a construction site and finding yourself living for an extended period near a place from which a cloud of dust rises.
Councilwoman Sharit Golan Steinberg rushed to help the residents of Mordia and Geola dormitories. "Already two weeks ago, I arrived at the site on Friday. There were works there, bins, which created unbearable clouds of dust. I visited the height of the houses. After that, I acted in front of Ofer Dressler, the competent authority, and claimed that the required wetting was insufficient or not being done and another solution was needed. We talked about expensive equipment of a water cannon that creates a cloud of drops over the quarrying area, this is in addition to constant wetting throughout the day of the access roads.
Also a heavy smell of diesel engines: Because of the diesel smells from the work tools and generators, I requested that there be monitoring. Dr. Ofer Dressler, CEO of the Association of Haifa Cities, will send a drive with a mobile device this week, which will monitor the air pollution, and then we will think about how to solve the problem. The diesel issue will be reduced in about three weeks, when the drilling will be finished and only the quarrying will continue. I requested that in future projects like this, the requirement for a water cannon be included as part of the permit conditions at the very beginning and not that we reach this date, and indeed Dr. Dressler, in cooperation with the city engineer, Ariel Waterman, agreed to implement my recommendation. In addition, it was agreed that if the contractor will work on two sites, he will have to bring Another cannon".
Watch the video: Omri Shafer reports from the field:
Environmental activist Omri Shafer met with the residents of the neighborhood and reported to Haifa about what he saw at the meeting and his shock at the condition of the residents: "In front of the residents of Mordia and Gaola dormitories are 7 years of very intense quarrying work. They just decided to lower the mountain there and during the whole day dust rises Towards the residents' homes because of careless work. All over the world, water is sprayed on the quarrying sites to prevent the dust from rising. There are also acceptable ways to deal with the dust instead of throwing it in such a way that it will be dispersed by the wind. It can be transported in a way that takes into account who lives around and we will demand from the municipality. No doubt, it harms the quality of life of the residents and their health. The dust enters the lungs, it also enters the houses and they have to clean all day long."
A disturbing report about the abandonment of houses and damage to the property of the residents of the nearby neighborhoods
According to Shafer, he was approached by a number of residents who abandoned their homes and went to live elsewhere, because they were unable to cope with the situation. "These residents return to their homes once a week to clean the house, because they are afraid that they will return home at the end of the period and everything will be one lump of dust and sand. In addition to the damage to their health, the residents complain about the destruction of electrical appliances and furniture. There are also huge generators, which run on diesel, that are located nearby very much for the residents' homes. Instead of the quarrying devices being connected to the electrical system, they operate on these generators, which harm the health of the residents. One of the women who lives here turned to me and asked me painfully, why does she need such a beautiful yard with swings, if she doesn't allow More for her grandchildren to reach her, because she is afraid of harming their health."
In the absence of proper supervision and when there are no proper conditions for carrying out the works, the residents are exposed to severe nuisances throughout the city of Haifa:
What worries Shafer is that in his opinion any resident of the city may find himself in the situation of the residents of Bordia. "The next quarry could be in the house of each of you or even very close to your yard. It is impossible to be indifferent to these things, since every new neighborhood that is built in the city may harm the health and quality of life of the residents who live nearby, and this must not be allowed to happen. We will demand from the municipality Enforce the law and the basic standards. We must contact the contractors and ask them for another solution for the generators."
The municipality said in response:
5 new neighborhoods are currently being built in Haifa, along with a long line of regeneration complexes in which old "railway buildings" are being demolished and modern buildings are being built in their place, including spacious apartments, protected areas and elevators. In the meantime, the city is undergoing a construction boom as part of strengthening buildings against earthquakes, which is made possible thanks to TMA 38.
Naturally, projects of building new neighborhoods next to old ones, as well as urban renewal that takes place within the fabric of the old city, are complex projects that require careful attention to the environment and the residents who live near them, and the municipality acts accordingly. For this purpose, the municipality established a dedicated department that accompanies the projects that sets strict requirements regarding safety and prevention of nuisances. In this context, the promoters are required to regulate the construction site and present in advance the safety arrangements that are examined as part of the construction permits in coordination with the various enforcement agencies, including the Israel Police and the General Inspection Division.
As the municipality works in all the projects carried out in the city, so it works in everything related to the Vardia Slopes project - a project that is in the quarrying and excavation phase, which is the most difficult phase in terms of dust nuisances. The construction supervision department closely monitors the works being carried out on site and is in regular contact with the Union of Cities and the construction site in order to reduce as much as possible the nuisances caused by the works being carried out on site to the minimum necessary.
The Union of Cities regularly inspects the site and even found that the site is regularly wetted with large amounts of water until receiving fines from the Carmel Water Corporation for excessive consumption! Meanwhile, the site was given additional guidance from the Union of Cities to use water cannons. The municipality's construction supervision division will continue to monitor the issue and maintain regular contact with the Union of Cities in order to make sure that the union's guidelines are implemented as written.