Local Government Profile Acre/ Akko – Israel Mayor: Mr. Shimon Lankri

Local Government Profile Acre/ Akko – Israel

"Aerial view of Acre 1" by israeltourism from Israel - AERIAL VIEW OF ACRE Licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0 via Commons - https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Aerial_view_of_Acre_1.jpg#/media/File:Aerial_view_o f_Acre_1.jpg

Mayor: Mr. Shimon Lankri Website of the city: http://akko.muni.il/?CategoryID=497 Size: 1202 hectares Population: 2013 - 54000

Part of: Israel

ויצמן 53, ת"ד. 7002, עכו 71542, טלפון 01-6632000, פקס. 01-6632424 35 Weizmann, POB 2007, Akko 24316, Israel, Tel. 04-9956000, Fax. 04-9956161 شارع فايتسمن 53، ص.ب 7002، عكا، ميكود 71542، تلفون: 9956000-04، فاكس: 01-9956161 www.akko.muni.il

ROLE MODEL CITY

Integrated flood and environmental management, climate change adaptation and community participation within areas of high cultural heritage value; environmental management to preserve the city´s current form and development

HAZARD AND VULNERABILITY PROFILE

Background

Acre (the Old City of Akko) is situated on a peninsula, on the northern coast of the Haifa Bay alongside a natural harbour of the eastern Mediterranean Sea. Adjacent to the city is an ancient international crossroads and as a result of this geographic location, the city became an important trade centre in ancient times. Twice in its history, Acre became an international city - in the thirteenth century, as the crusader capital city of the Latin Kingdom of Jerusalem and in the nineteenth century, under El-Jazzar Pasha, the Ottoman ruler. Despite the many years that have passed, authentic archaeological and historical evidence from these two periods still remain in the city recognized as a UNESCO World Heritage site. Within the remains from these periods reside a multi – cultural population.

Threats

Potential natural hazards and climate change risks are high on the city agenda together with socio-economic issues and the fluctuations of the tourist economy.

The threats include earthquakes, sea level rise and coastal erosion, effects of global warming and flooding after flash storms. All these aspects directly affect the physical fabric of the city and the authenticity of the urban heritage. "A trend of rising seawater levels, totalling more than 10 cm, was recorded in the Mediterranean Sea over the past two decades, consistent with scenarios which range from 1 to 10 cm per decade. Such a rise is associated with increased flooding along the coastal plain and increased intrusion of seawater to the coastal aquifer which leads to salinization. Wave storms with wave heights exceeding 3.5 meters have also increased along with exceptional storms with a wave height of more than 6 meters, which are expected to pose major risks to the sea walls and to the collapse of the coastal cliff." (Israel Ministry of Environmental Protection, 2014)

Furthermore, the past years has seen extreme temperatures with the local residents adding air conditioning units and solar energy elements, this together with changes in the underground structures creates new problems of stability demanding new and innovative solutions that can sustain the cultural heritage values.

DISASTER AND RISK REDUCTION ACTIVITIES

The city hosted the second UNESCO World Heritage workshop on 'Disaster Risk Reduction to Cultural Heritage', 2009, Acre, Israel Link: http://whc.unesco.org/en/events/610

At a national level, the Israel Antiquities Authority (IAA) has prepared a risk evaluation study for earthquake preparedness with the University of Padua and at the local level provides detailed guidelines for conservation to the community through the Old City of Acre Corporation. Furthermore the IAA has a capacity training centre in the Old City of Acre- the International Conservation Centre/Città di Roma, which serves as a place of study for researchers, students, and emerging professionals from Israel and abroad and supported by the Municipality of Acre and ICCROM.

The city with the Israel Antiquities Authority is partner to a EU security proposal Cultural Heritage - Adaptation, Mitigation & Preparedness (CHAMP). The aim of the CHAMP project is to develop an integrated risk management (IRM) framework for urban cultural heritage, exposed to climate change and natural hazards, within the broader context of urban planning, resilience and sustainable development. This is coordinated by the Bezalel Academy of Arts and Design.

A strategy to address flood risk problems in the municipality is being developed, especially relating to the protection of cultural heritage. Disaster risk reduction is a prioritized field in the municipality the together with the Home Command. A detailed GIS data base is being prepared to determine the vulnerabilities of the infrastructure and historic buildings to include how they can be protected from flooding.

Socio-economic resilience is being developed through a development plan and includes community engagement through the City Without Violence programme of the Ministry for Homeland Security.

Community engagement focuses on cultural heritage and the activities for environmental protection that might be developed through an awareness programme. This blend of archaeological historical layers from the past and modern life, exist together and nourish each other and as a result, the residents have a local identity and a diverse collective memory of a rich and distinguished past in the city.

Sea walls at Acre- Wikimedia

Conservation activities have focused on the built heritage of the city and been connected to the development of the tourist industry in the city. They are mostly implemented through local, national, international and private organizations and include a legal conservation mechanism for the city. Greater effort is now being given to integrate the environmental conditions for a more resilient city programme.