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Israel Gulf of Aqabaenvironmental Action Plan Public Disclosure Authorized November6, 2000

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Israel Gulf of Aqabaenvironmental Action Plan Public Disclosure Authorized November6, 2000 ReportNo. 21060-IS Israel Gulf of AqabaEnvironmental Action Plan Public Disclosure Authorized November6, 2000 EuropeanUnion-Taba-Eilat-Aqaba-Macro Area (TEAM) Project Preparedin Partnershipwith: the Governmentof Israel,the Municipalityof Eilat,the EuropeanUnion and the World Bank RuralDevelopment, Water and EnvironmentDepartment Middle Eastand North Africa Region FOROFFICIAL USE ONLY ** ** Public Disclosure Authorized * ** Public Disclosure Authorized Public Disclosure Authorized Documentof the EuropeanUnion and the WorldBank Thisdocument has a restricteddistribution and may be usedby recipients only in the performanceof their official duties.Its contentsmay not otherwise be disclosedwithout EuropeanUnion and World Bankauthorization. CURRENCY EQUIVALENTS Currency unit = Shekel (Shk) US$1.00 = Shk 4.07 Shk 1.00 = US$0.25 WEIGHTS AND MEASURES m meter km kilometer km2 square kilometer m3 cubic meter ABBREVIATIONS AND ACRONYMS EEPC Eilat Environmental Protection Committee EIS Environmental Impact Statement EREU Eilat Regional Environmental Unit EU European Union GAEAP Gulf of Aqaba Environmental Action Plan GOI Government of Israel LMP Local Masterplan ME Mtmicipality of Eilat MOE Ministry of the Environment MOI Minristryof the Interior NGO Non-Governmental Organization NMP National Masterplan NRNPA Nalture Reserves and National Parks Authority RMP Regional Masterplan Regional Vice-President: Jean-Louis Sarbib Sector Director: Doris Koehn Sector Manager: Salah Darghouth Task Tearn Leader: Nicole Glineur FOR OFFICIAL USE ONLY ACKNOWLEDGMENTS The Gulf of Aqaba Environmental Action Plan (GAEAP) is the result of a partnership between the Government of Israel, the Municipality of Eilat, the European Union and the World Bank, during the period May 1997 through November 2000. The preparation of the GAEAP was coordinated by Mr. Ram Aviram, Director of Multilateral Peace Talks, Coordination and Water Issues, in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Instrumental support was provided to the preparation team by Mr. Gabi Kadosh, Mayor of Eilat and the higher staff of the Municipality, including Mr. Jacob Storch, Head of Strategic Planning and Information, Ms. Osnat Post, City Engineer, and Mr. Yehiam Shlezinger, Head of the Regional Environmental Unit, as well as in the Ministry of Environment in Jerusalem by Mr. Dror Amir, Director, Division of International Relations and Special Projects and Mrs. Valerie Brachya, Head of Planning. In Eilat, valuable collaboration was extended by Messrs. Avi Baranes, Jonathan Erez, Amazia Ganin and Anton Post from the Inter-UniversityInstitute; Hillel Gordin, Noam Mozes and Amoz Tandler from the National Center for Mariculture; Rami Klinger from the Port Authority; and Aharon Dekel from the Eilat Hotel Owners Association. This exercise was led by Mr. Anthony Knott, Principal Administrator, Technical Unit for Mediterranean, European Commission, Brussels. The report was drafted by a team lead by Ms. Nicole Glineur, Task Manager, Senior Environmental Specialist in the Middle East and North Africa Region of the World Bank, and including Mme./Messrs. Isabel Braga, James Harrington, Jean-Pierre Villaret and Philip Warburg, consultants. The GAEAP is based on the findings of the Baseline Report, prepared by a local team headed by Mr. Aharon Zohar and presented in an Annex of the GAEAP report. The peer reviewer in the Bank is Mr. Stephen Lintner, Lead Specialist in the Environment Department. The GAEAP preparation process benefited from the advice and support of Mr. Salah Darghouth, Sector Manager, Water and Environment, Ms. Marjory-Anne Bromhead, Principal Natural Resources Economist, and Mr. Sherif Arif, Regional Environinental Coordinator, in the Rural Development, Water and Environment Department of the Middle East and North Africa Region. Administrative and secretarialassistance was provided by Ms. SyviengxayCreger. This document has a restricted distribution and may be used by recipients only in the performance of their official duties. Its contents may not be otherwise disclosed without World Bank authorization. THE GULF OF AQABA ENVIRONMENTALACTION PLAN, ISRAEL TABLEOF CONTENTS Page no. FOREWORD EXECUTIVESUMMARY ......................................................... i-v I. CONTEXTOF THEGAEAP .......................................................... 1 H. EXISTINGAND POTENTIAL ENVIRONMENTAL THREATS ...................................... 2 III. LEGISLATIONAND REGULATIONS .......................................................... 3 IV. INSTITUTIONALRESPONSIBILITY .......................................................... 4 V. STRATEGYFOR ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION .................................................... 6 VI. THEGULF OF AQABAENVIRONMENTAL ACTION PLAN ................... ..................8 A. Strengtheningof the Local EnvironmentalCapacity ............................................ 8 B. Improving the Legal and RegulatoryFramework ................................................. 9 C. Environment-SupportingInvestment Projects ................................................... 11 Cl. Prevention of Marine Pollution from Land-based Sources .......................11 C2. Prevention of Marine Pollution from Marine Sources.............................. 11 C3. Management of the Nature Reserve Areas................................................ 11 C4. Monitoring and Research................................................... 1I C5. Public Awareness in EnvironmentalMatters ............................................12 C6. TransboundaryEnvironmental Cooperation.............................................. 12 TABLES Table 1: Summary of Actions, Responsibilityand Priority. iii-v Table 2: Process for Updating the Statutory Masterplans.13-14 Table 3: Monitoring and Research Program.15 Table 4: CorrespondingReferences in Baseline Report .16 ANNEX TO THE GAEAP, ISRAEL: BASELINE REPORT MAPS Location Map (IBRD 30250) Map 1: Land Use Map for the Eilat Region (IBRD 30251) Map 2: Nature Preservation and Tourism (IBRD 30252) Map 3 Eilat Region - Infrastructure(IBRD 30253) Map 4: Eilat's Ports (IBRD 30254) Map 5: Eilat Region - EnvironmentalConflicts (IBRD 30255) FOREWORD The Gulf of Aqaba Environmental Action Plan (GAEAP) represents for the Government of Israel a step towards achieving the national environmentalobjectives outlined in its legislation. The proposed actions, both curative and preventive, will protect the Gulf's land and water interface and ensure conservation of natural resources within a framework in which economic development can take place. The Israeli GAEAP is a component of the Taba-Eilat-Aqaba-MacroArea (TEAM) project which is sponsored by the European Union (EU) within the framework of the Regional Economic Development and Environment Multilateral Working Groups of the Middle East Peace Process. The preparation of the GAEAP was funded by a European Union grant of US$200,000. The Israeli GAEAP is the result of a cooperative vision between the Government of Israel, the Municipality of Eilat, the European Union and the World Bank. As part of GAEAP preparation, a comprehensiveBaseline Report on all environment-relatedissues on the Israeli coast of the Gulf of Aqaba has been assembled by an Israeli consulting team lead by Mr. Aharon Zohar to provide the detailed description of the background situation and proposed actions. The Baseline Report is presented in an Annex to the GAEAP. Table 4 hereafter indicates the sections of the Baseline Report relevant to each action proposed under the GAEAP as summarized in Table 1. Links With National and Regional Initiatives In addressing existing threats and preventing further damage to the environment of the Gulf of Aqaba, the GAEAP will support priorities outlined in the relevant Israeli master plans. In addition, it will provide for integrated management of environmental issues affecting the Israeli coastal area of the Gulf of Aqaba. The proposed plan will also complement existing efforts to combat water pollution in the Gulf of Aqaba supported by the Oil Spills ContingencyPlan co-financed by EU. Regional Importance All the riparian governmentsrecognize that effective environmental managementand pollution control programs are needed to protect the Gulf of Aqaba's natural resources, especially its valuable and vulnerable coral ecosystems,while allowing for development of the region's trade, industry and tourism. They also recognize that some environmentalproblems may not be contained by national boundaries and that regional environmentalprotection mechanisms are required. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 1. The Israeli portion of the Gulf of Aqaba is limited in size (14 km of the shoreline) and includes a unique but limited and fragile set of natural resources, including sand beaches, clean waters, coral reef and desert inland. 2. These sensitive ecosystems are under pressure from the booming economic activities in the Eilat region, all competing for use of the limited natural resources. In addition to tourism, Eilat's economic base includes oil import and mineral and chemical exports through the commercial port, navy operations, fish farming, lagunas and hotels, all of which generate marine pollution and/or risks of toxic spills. 3. The rapid expansion of tourism (1.3 million tourists recorded in 1995, a 57% increase over a five-year period) and the associated growth of the city of Eilat constitute the dominant economic activity and pose a major threat to the environment from unsustainable pressure on the marine and desert ecosystems. Under current plans, hotel capacity
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