Palestinian Nature
The environmental deterioration in Palestine is particularly devastating because of the country’s unique natural characteristics. The Occupied Territories are located at the bio-geographic crossroads between the European, Asian and African continents, the Mediterranean and Red Sea, and numerous botanical zones. The territories are divided into 5 agro-ecological zones (the Jordan Valley, the Eastern Slopes, the Central Highlands the Semi-coastal Plain, and the Coastal Plain) which are all vastly different in climate. As a result of this distinctive situation, the region has considerably high biodiversity. The natural ecosystems of the area are exceptionally important because of their unique intrinsic value, their stabilizing effect on the environment, and direct support for human activities such as agriculture, animal husbandry, forestry, traditional and pharmaceutical health products, tourism, and many others.
There are about 51,000 living species in Palestine, constituting approximately 3% of global biodiversity. There are an estimated 30,904 animal species, consisting of 30,000 invertebrates, 427 birds, 297 fish, 92 mammals, 81 reptiles and 7 amphibians. Palestine is a particularly important location for birds because it is the home for approximately 427 species year-round and also a critical resting point for 274 species of migratory birds during the migration season. The country also hosts 2,750 species of plants from 138 families, including 149 endemic plants that do not exist in any other part of the world. As a historic center of crop diversity and cultivation, Palestine is the birthplace of many essential crops such as wheat, barley, vines, olives, onions, and pulses. The sustainability of agricultural production is inextricably tied to the status of a diverse natural biota and environmental balance.
Unfortunately, over time the Palestinian environment has suffered tremendous degradation because of unregulated domestic practices as well as indiscriminate abuse inflicted by Israel as the occupying power. Both the Palestinian and Israeli population have placed extensive pressure on the fragile ecosystem of the Occupied Territories that will indisputably have long-term effects. Natural ecosystems have been, and continue to be, destroyed to make way for agricultural, industrial, or housing developments; and growing population pressure has led to unsustainable utilization of natural resources and pollution of the environment. The Israeli Occupation (of the West Bank, East Jerusalem, and Gaza) amplifies existing environmental problems and clearly impedes efforts to improve them. Without the ability to regulate land use, the status of the environment cannot be properly monitored and environmental protection cannot be properly implemented.
The numerous Israeli violations against the Palestinian environment include, but are not limited to, the confiscation of land, the building of settlements and military bases, the construction of the separation barrier, and the destruction of infrastructure and massive areas of agricultural land. All of these practices have resulted in extensive land fragmentation and ecosystem destruction. Due to Israeli policies and military regulations, there has been an increased rate of destruction, loss of green areas, and reduced biodiversity in the Palestinian ecosystem. Forestation programs in the West Bank and Gaza that existed during the British Mandate and Jordanian Administration were stopped under the Israeli occupation.
Consequently, a 25% effective deforestation has taken place over 30 years, mainly due to the establishment of the Israeli military camps, settlements, and “nature reserves”. The effects of this are most apparent in places such as the Eastern Slopes zone, where 85% of the land has been confiscated by the Israeli Occupying Authorities for military purposes. This has led to severe overgrazing of the remaining area accessible to the Palestinian livestock herders. Overgrazing has resulted in the loss of the vegetation cover, soil erosion, intensive desertification, and caused changes in the topography and natural stream flow routings.
As in all other countries, natural habitat destruction in Palestine occurs as a result of a variety of reasons: unplanned urban expansion, overgrazing, over-exploitation, deforestation and unplanned forestry activities, desertification and drought, hunting, invasive alien species, pollution and contamination, and accidental mortality. However, there is also a close correlation between the rapid destruction of natural resources and the construction of the segregation wall. The fragmentation of the landscape and natural ecological corridors because of the wall has proven to disrupt migration patterns and genetic contiguity, therefore threatening the viability of populations. During the last 30 years, 370 species in Palestine have changed their status to become rare or very rare. There are 22 animals facing the threat of extinction, including 5 mammals, 5 species of Herpetofauna, and 12 species of birds. Furthermore, 56 Mediterranean fish species are also officially threatened. In terms of plant species, out of the 2,076 recorded 636 are listed as endangered, 90 of which are identified as very rare. This magnitude of pressure on the integrity of ecosystem and stability of natural resources significantly increases the risk of losing the Palestinian biodiversity.
At a United Nations meeting in 2004 about the impact of the wall’s construction, it was found that at that point, 6 years ago, more than 100,000 trees had been uprooted and 36,000 meters of irrigation works had been destroyed. A recent World Bank report states that around 170km2 of fertile agricultural land has been affected by the wall, amounting to over 10% of the total cultivated land of the West Bank with an average economic value of $38 million. This amounts to approximately 8% of annual Palestinian agricultural productivity. These statistics evidence the deterioration of Palestinian natural resources the past few decades and underscore the immediate attention that is required in order to preserve the fragile state of nature that still exists.
Natural resources in Palestine are also being slowly destroyed by the Israeli construction of many “industrial zone” settlements, of which there are at least 13, occupying an area of approximately 980 hectares in the West Bank. The Israelis have designated special locations on Palestinian land to dispose waste from these industrial zones. This includes the burial of materials such as zinc, nickel, radioactive substances and industrial waste. The discharged industrial wastewater produces pollution that generates grave dangers to the environment. The toxins pass through agricultural land, damaging planted fields, affecting water resources, accumulating in lagoons and ultimately spreading different diseases and causing major health and environmental hazards. In addition to the industrial zones, dangerous waste pollution is largely produced by the Israeli residential settlements illegally (by international law) established throughout the West Bank.
Currently, more than 207 Israeli settlements are scattered all over the West Bank, including East Jerusalem. These settlements accommodate more than 480,000 Israeli settlers. The settlements are reported to release large quantities of domestic, industrial and medical wastewater and solid waste into the surrounding Palestinian environment without any restrictions. More than 90% of the untreated domestic wastewater generated by the Israeli settlers living in the West Bank is discharged directly into nearby valleys and Palestinian lands, contaminating the environment and harming the natural wildlife. In 2005, the number of the uncontrolled solid waste dumping sites (Israeli and Palestinian) increased from 89 to 161 in the West Bank, none of which were subject to monitoring or control by the Palestinian Ministry of Health or other authorities. This can be attributed to the geographical discontinuity of land under Palestinian control, as well as the implementation of the Israeli segregation plans evidenced most clearly by the construction of the segregation wall, which has hindered the implementation of several centralized projects related to waste management.
Changes in plant and animal species composition and distribution are being caused by several factors. During the Israeli Occupation, several laws have been issued for the protection of natural resources. However, those laws implemented in the Occupied Territories gave Israel full control over Palestinian natural resources, mainly land for security reasons, as Israel claims. The Palestinian state does not have sovereignty over its own natural resources, and in light of the ongoing political conflict nature has been placed low on the list of the state’s priorities. The Environmental Quality Authority is responsible for licensing sites, environmental monitoring, provision of expertise and ensuring environmental protection; however, the Israeli imposition of accessible and inaccessible areas (Areas A, B, and C) for Palestinians has made the management and conservation of natural resources a very difficult job. This major external obstacle is compounded by already existing problems which stand in the way of prioritizing the protection of natural resources and open space landscapes. These problems include the country’s limited size, lack of momentum when it comes to development, population growth rate, and other reasons.
The unique Palestinian natural biodiversity is undoubtedly at stake, for a variety of reasons. In addition to the drastic changes imposed by the Israeli occupation, including the settlements and the construction of the segregation wall, biodiversity is also threatened by the lack of law enforcement and policies concerning better environmental management and conservation. Because there is a lack of sufficient documentation concerning environmental losses in Palestine, it is difficult to quantify exactly how much harm has been done. The statistics that are available, however, indicate a grave situation that must be addressed in the near future before more irreversible damage occurs. The current amount of pressure on the already fragile ecosystem compromises the livelihood of its inhabitants as well as the historical, environmental, cultural, and economical values of Palestinian biodiversity.
Sources:
Assaf, Karen. “Water as a Human Right: the understanding of water in Palestine”, Arab Scientific Institute for Research and Transfer of Technology (ASIR), Palestine. Excerpt from the book Water As a human right: the understanding of water in the Arab countries of the Middle East- a four country analysis. Written by Karen Assaf, Bayoumi Attia, Ali Darwish, Batir Wardam, and Simone Kiawitter.
Palestinian Integrated Rural Environmental Protection Plan: Volume I Current Status and Analysis. Palestinian National Authority Environment Quality Authority, December 2003.
Isaac, Jad. “Israeli Violations Against the Palestinian Environment” Cornerstone: A Quarterly Publication by Sabeel Ecumenical Liberation Theology Center. Issue 45, Summer 2007.
“Status of the Environment in the Occupied Palestinian Territory.” Applied Research Institute- Jerusalem (ARIJ), 2007.
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