GREENPEACE REVEALS CULPRITS OF RIVER POLLUTION LINKED TO CANCER IN ISRAELI MARINE COMMANDOS

GREENPEACE REVEALS CULPRITS OF RIVER POLLUTION LINKED TO CANCER IN ISRAELI MARINE COMMANDOS

26 May 2000

Amsterdam/Tel Aviv - Greenpeace today attacked the Israeli authorities for neglecting to stop toxic pollution in the Kishon River for many years. Reports in the Israeli press this week linked the toxic pollution in the river to various forms of cancer diagnosed in at least twenty marine commando soldiers. The Israeli commandos had been diving in the Kishon River as part of their routine training. New scientific findings released by Greenpeace today point to the culprits of the Kishon pollution.

These scientific results are the latest in a series that Greenpeace delivered to authorities over the years pointing to the Kishon as the most polluted river in Israel. Greenpeace said the marine commandos are victims of the authorities' inefficiency and negligence in controlling pollution. The commandos, the youngest in his thirties, have been reported to suffer from various cancers affecting intestines, skin and glands, as well as causing lymphoma.

Samples taken by Greenpeace directly from the effluent pipes of the six main industries in the Kishon show dangerously high levels of toxic heavy metals and other hazardous substances. The main polluting industries are US-owned Haifa Chemicals, Carmel Ulipinim, Gadot Biochemicals, Gadiv, refineries and the municipal sewage treatment plant. (1)

Since 1995, the international environmental group has delivered numerous warnings to the authorities pointing to the Kishon as the most polluted river in Israel. The presence of carcinogenic substances has been reported in a series of sampling results. For years, Greenpeace says the Kishon River is more polluted than the Yarkon River, known for causing the death of four Australian athletes who fell into the river when the bridge collapsed in the 1997 Jewish Olympics.

"The really shocking fact is that we really have no clue of the extent of damage the Kishon River has caused to public health and the environment. The cancer discovered in the marine commandos happens to be the one investigated by the University of Jerusalem. However, in addition to this, a vast number of people spend time in the Kishon, such as fishermen, divers, sailing clubs and other youth spending time by the river there regularly,'' said Mia Elasar, Greenpeace Mediterranean Campaigner in Israel. "The sea is also suffering irrevocable damage due to the extensive pollution carried by the river."

Greenpeace has condemned the recent suggestion by the Ministry of Environment to simply construct a by-pass pipe to direct the toxic effluents to the sea instead into the Kishon River. The international environmental organisation described this as nothing more than an attempt to evade any real action by deceiving the public with good intentions. Greenpeace demands a phase-out all the hazardous substances being emitted by the industry in the Mediterranean in line with the targets set by the Barcelona Convention. (2).

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION PLEASE CONTACT:
- Mia Elasar, Greenpeace Mediterranean Campaigner in Israel, Tel: + 53-225227
- Dr. Mario Damato, Executive Director of Greenpeace Mediterranean, Tel: +356-490784/5
- Dr. David Santillo, Greenpeace International Laboratories at Exeter
University, Tel: +44-1392263917
- Caroline Muscat, Media Director, Greenpeace Mediterranean, Tel: +356 942 9964
- File pictures available from Greenpeace International, John Novis, Tel: +31-20-5249580.
-- Read the scientific results in Adobe Acrobat format

(1) The Haifa Chemicals discharge pipe revealed elevated levels of the heavy metals chromium, copper and cadmium, along with tribromomethane and several other brominated and chlorinated organic compounds. Chlorinated benzenes were found in the municipal sewagetreatment plant effluent, suggesting a significant additional input of industrial effluent to the municipal sewers. Elevated concentrations of chromium were found also in the effluents of Carmel Ulipinim. Gadiv plant was shown to be a significant contributor of complex hydrocarbon mixtures into the Kishon River. Benzene and chlorinated organic compounds were also found in Gadot Biochemicals effluents. The scientific analysis was carried out at the Greenpeace International Laboratories at Exeter University in the United Kingdom.

(2) The Barcelona Convention for the Protection of the Marine Environment and Coastal Region of the Mediterranean includes six protocols, which if implemented by Mediterranean governments, would lead to the effective protection of the most important economical and environmental resource in the region. These protocols ban industrial and other toxic discharges along the coast and in rivers, waste dumping at sea, toxic and nuclear waste trade in the basin, and protect the biodiversity of the basin. Mediterranean governments have been dragging their feet since the conception of the initial framework for this convention, over twenty years ago.