Israel, being on the “land bridge” that links it with Africa and Asia Minor, has always been well known for a number of biblical fruits. These include: the multi-seed pomegranates, grapes from which superb wines are now made; and of course several varieties of dates and olives. Another iconic fruit, although not native, comes from the genus opuntia and is known as the prickly pear or “Sabra” cactus.

The fruit received its “Israeli” name as a way to compare it to the personality of native born Israelis or Sabras; who are often said to be hard and prickly on the outside but sweet and soft on the inside.

Now, this national plant symbol is being threatened by the invasion of a species of parasitic aphid that has been attacking Sabra cactus plants in the far north of the country and threatens to spread over other parts of Israel as well.

The aphid, which scientists think may have “hitched a ride” into the country from abroad, attacks the cacti and secretes toxins into the tissues of the plant in order to make it easier for it to suck its food from the plant.

According to Zvi Mendel of the Volcani institute, a research center under the ministry of agriculture, “The aphid damages those parts of the plant which are vital for food supply and, in the end, the plant  dies.”

The invading aphid species, Dactylopius opuntiae, inadvertently introduced to Israel from its native South America, has no natural predators in Israel, allowing it to multiply freely. The aphid invasion is currently confined to cacti located in Israel’s Hula Valley, according to an article in The Times of Israel.

By spraying the cacti with poisonous pesticides, Israeli agricultural experts are hoping to limit the spread of the parasite, which they think may have been brought to Israel by someone who purchased a cactus plant in Central or South America, the natural home of the cacti.

“It would be enough for him to have brought one leaf to Israel and planted it, and that is how the insect – which is difficult to see on the cactus – grew and spread,” says David Brand, the Jewish National Fund’s head forester.

Sabra fruit is harvested in late summer and is often sold in roadside fruit kiosks in both Israel and in the Palestinian Authority. The fruit is best served chilled and it is recommended that one wear gloves when peeling them to avoid being stuck by numerous cactus spines.

Read more on other iconic fruit indigenous to Israel and the Holy Land:

Pomegranate Seeds removed in 10 Secs With Wooden Spoon (Video)

Dates, A Global History, by Nawal Nasrallah Book Review

4 Summer Rose Wines from the Middle East

Olive Season is Here: Buy Local of DIY

Photo of Aphid Giving Birth: Wikipedia

The post Israel’s Iconic Sabra Cactus Endangered by Invading Aphids appeared first on Green Prophet.

Chronic and even acute supplies of fresh water in Israel and other parts of the Middle East has resulted in over-dependence on desalination. Even more ominous are predictions for the future of inadequate fresh water supplies following a NASA Image Technology survey of the accelerated disappearance of a large underground fresh water sea under Syria, Turkey, Iraq and Iran.

While Israel’s increasing reliance on obtaining adequate fresh water supplies through desalination is becoming obvious, its over use of its natural water resources, was exemplified in a recent news report that the country’s leading bottled water company, Mayanot Eden (Eden Springs) is being sold  to an American investment company, Rhone Capital, for an amount of 70 Million Euros.

The news, as reported in Haaretz, is said to be causing a stir among local investors and environmentalists due to fear that the water used to make the company’s main product will now be controlled by entities outside of Israel. The Eden Springs bottling plant is located on the disputed Golan Heights; a region being claimed by both Israel and Syria (one of the countries under which the large but disappearing subterranean fresh water sea is located.

According to the Haaretz article, the CEO of the company’s subsidiary in the Netherlands, Raanan Zilbermsn, will continue running the company’s European operations which plans to market more mineral water to European markets, especially those in Eastern Europe. Mayanot Eden had accumulated large debts due to loses it accumulated against posted revenues (829,000-euro losses against revenues of 60.5 million euros in 2012).

The environmental issues regarding mineral water plants using “public water sources” to supply water for profit was explained by Abraham Diskin, head of the School for Interdisciplinary Studies in Administration, Government and Law at Sha’arei Mishpat College: Assets that were owned by the state and weren’t utilized efficiently were passed into private hands without protecting the public’s interest.”

In the case of water from the Salukia Spring on the Golan Heights, the primary water source for Mayanot Eden, it was based on the principle of “first come, first served.” Whoever found a spring was simply given a permit by the Israel Water Authority to pump water from it, at an exceptionally low price”. Mineral water companies pay the industrial rate of NIS 6 per cubic meter, much lower than the regular rate charged to households; and resell it to the public at a much higher price.

With Mayanot Eden being sold to new owners outside of Israel, more and more of this water will be exported to other countries; resulting in even less fresh water supplies available to local residents.

More on fresh water issues:
NASA Watches Underground Fresh Water Sea Vanish from the Middle East
Why It’s Hard to Celebrate World Water Day in the Middle East
Israel’s Mekorot Builds Global Connections Through Water
Israel Sends Wrong Message About Desalination

Photo: Banias in Spring by Shutterstock:

The post The Absurdity of Selling Israel’s Private Water to the Highest Bidder appeared first on Green Prophet.

The food industry is anything but shaky around the world these days, from meat glue to horse meat in “beef” burgers. Who are we to trust? The latest scandal is fake olive found in Israel, including organic varieties. Watch out for it anywhere. We sum up where to buy, and what to avoid. Some are not safe for your consumption.

An Israeli watchdog TV show is good at uncovering scandals. They’ve found toxins in ceramic coated cookware, and slaughterhouse cruelty. Now, Kolbotek a consumer watchdog TV show found on Channel 10 began its 2013 season with a bang by revealing some unpleasant findings about olive oil being manufactured in Israel. Some of the olive oil being sold on the Israeli market is unfit for human consumption. We can assume the issue is more or less the same in other Middle East countries where testing standards are less developed. American sources have suggested that about 70 percent of virgin olive oil is a fake.

The program covered various types and grades of olive oil including that being marketed by companies that virgin and extra virgin olive oil, including organic varieties.

Kolbotek sent 15 olive oil samples for testing at a special laboratory, Kemi Service, that included 9 bottles of oil from one company EVO Israel Ltd.

EVO distributes its products to well known natural and whole foods stores in Israel. The company was reported to have imported more than 44 tons of olive oil from Spain, which is one of the world’s largest olive oil exporters.

September 2012, a company working with EVO and located in the northern Galilee town of  Rosh Pina, Chosen Galil Industries, was found to have larges amounts of this oil that was not for human consumption after lab reports came in.

By this time, more than 20 tons of this oil had already been sold, according to Kolbotek.

Kolbotek’s Rafi Ginat tells it like it is

Although in Hebrew, this link of the Kolbotek program is none-the-less revealing enough:

When asked what they thought about these events, Yigal Friedman, a food quality engineer for the Ministry of Defense said “I don’t have an answer to these allegations.”

Another official, Shai Chen Institute manager for the Health Ministry, replied: “I don’t know what to say.”

When Green Prophet tried to contact EVO’s offices in Tiberius, a recorded message from the Bezeq telephone company said that the number is no longer in service.

To indicate the scope of the laboratory findings, of 15 samples tested, 13 were found to  have much higher levels of mono saturated fats and stearic acids than is acceptable, with an average level of 8 times the acceptable amount of mono saturated fats and 6 times the accepted level of stearic acid.

Print this sheet and take it with you to the supermarket:

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Some of Israel’s most well known stores including the Eden Teva Market whole foods chain, and the Rami Levi discount supermarket chain. Both were found to be selling EVO’s lab failed olive oil, under such brands as Gaya, Gaya Organic, Adama and Kedmah Hagalil.

Brands of olive oil that did pass laboratory inspection include “Zita” olive oil, distributed by the Wissotzky Tea Company, Etz HaZait (Shemen Industries Ltd), Sh Sol (a “house brand” from the Shufer Sol supermarket chain), Meshek Ahiya (in the West Bank); and Yad Mordechai, distributed by the Strauss Group.

What was perhaps the most disturbing findings were of “gephet” olive oil, made from olive residues and supposedly designated for use only for soap or cosmetics. In September, 2012, a large quantity of this oil, not suitable for human consumption, was found in EVO’s Chosen production company.

So much for ‘store bought’ olive oil. What was found to be offered by various local restaurants and coffee shops is no less disturbing.

Kolbotek’s investigators checked selected branches of chains such as Cafe Cafe, Cafe Greg and Aroma Cafe and Expresso Bar and found the following:

Cafe Cafe’s Beach branch in Herzlia Petuach served a mixture of what appeared to be canola and soya oil as olive oil.

Cafe Greg at the Tel Aviv Port , also what appeared to be a mixture of canola and soya oil. Their branch at the Rehovot Mall, however, serves real olive oil.

Aroma’s branch at the Hadera Gate Mall has what appears to be an inferior grade of non-virgin olive oil.

Another Aroma branch, in Netanya, also serves a lesser non-virgin type of olive oil.

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As a result of Kolbotek’s investigations, some changes have occurred. The Rami Levi chain discontinued to stock the Gaya olive oil brands distributed by EVO. The chain’s branches were given orders to remove these brands from their shelves.

This goes for the Adamah brand of oil as well. As for EVO, they have rejected Kolbotek’s findings and their lawyer rejected all accusations against them. The Israeli Health Ministry notes that although EVO oils failed lab tests,  the ministry insists that not all findings are forbidden for health reasons.

A total recall request was not made by the ministry; but it did note that new testing would be required. A court case  instigated by EVO was heard in the city of Nazareth; and the judge ruled that products distributed by EVO and Chosen Galil Industries Ltd are unfit for consumption.

A spot check at the Eden Teva store in Netanya confirmed that the brands like Gaya, Adama and Kidmat Hagalil distributed by EVO and Chosen Galil had been removed from stock.

“These brands were being sold at lower prices,” said the stock manager, who declined to be identified. He did not give Green Prophet an answer as to whether the store chain was aware of the type of olive oil that these companies had been distributing.

This latest watchdog report on olive oil follows on the heals of an earlier Kolbotek program involving alleged poisonous metals being found in ceramic cookware being produced by companies producing cookware brands such as Neoflam.

Neoflam, a Korean based company, later sued Kolbotek and the network which ran the program for allegedly giving false information regarding the toxic metals and other materials being used in the cookware they produce. The results of which have not been reported.

Taking all of this into account the time-worn saying Cavaet Emptor (let the buyer beware) holds true in this case for sure.

Read more on food related issues uncovered by Kolbotek:
Israel’s Cruel Meat Industry Exposed by Watchdog TV Show
Ceramic Coated Cooking Pans May be Killing You With Color
Neoflam Ceramic Pans Are Allegedly Carcinogenic, Causing Panic in Israel

Image of testing oil from Shutterstock

The post Fake Organic Olive Oil is Latest Food Scam in Israel appeared first on Green Prophet.

Mid East Green building projects like those in Abu Dhabi’s much publicized Masdar City,  green building construction plans for Saudi Arabia, and a newly completed green building in Amman Jordan are indications that a number of countries in this region are interested in making commercial and residential buildings more environmental friendly. This also holds true for Israel with an “eco tower” now being built in Tel Aviv, and what is being touted as the country’s first green shopping mall now under construction in the coastal city of Netanya.

Ir Yamim Mall skylights

The Netanya mall, known as the Ir Yamim (Sea City)  Shopping Mall is nearing completion in the city’s new upscale Ir Yamim residential neighborhood.

The 80,000 sq meter building, scheduled to open its mid March, 2012, is being built with special glass “sky lights” in the upper floors to let it utilize natural lighting during the daytime.

The AC system will be more energy saving and the water from condensation from its cooling coils will be used for irrigating the lawns and gardens that will surround the mall. Rain water during the winter rainy season will also be collected in special pools for use in watering the greenery around the building as well.

Mall food court area: LED and special florescent lighting

Under construction since early 2009, the mall will have more than 100 stores and food vendors and will include special areas for people to park bicycles and other green vehicles like electric powered carts and scooters.

In addition to the natural light sky-lighting in its two upper floors the building will feature energy saving LED and florescent lighting that have not been previously used in shopping malls in Israel due to either not being available or their high costs.

“We thought about using solar panels to provide electricity, but came to the conclusion that presently solar panels are not advanced enough yet” says Liora Renat-Engle, who, along with Gabi Gal are the two project architects with the Moore Yasky Sivan (MYS) architectural company that is involved in designing the mall’s unique features, including landscaping around the mall.

MYS’s Rinat-Engel also noted the special water saving landscaping around the mall:

 “We are landscaping this mall with 25 dunam of special greenery that does not require large amounts of water. This includes planting trees like palm, carob, tamarask and sycamore. These trees need less water than other species. In other words, our aim is to provide ample greenery for the mall and use less water.”

MYS and Liora Rinat-Engel are involved in other green building projects as well, including a 75,000 sq meter shopping mall, Neot HaMidbar  (Desert Oasis), that will be constructed in Israel’s largest desert city. Says Rinat-Engel:

“We have learned a lot from other shopping mall building projects regarding the need to build more ecological friendly buildings. This idea is also being taken into account when designing other projects, especially ones the Neot Midbar mall being built in water scarce locations like the Negev desert city of Beersheva”.

Read more on Middle East green building projects and ideas:

 Jordan’s Princess Samaya Praises Kingdom’s First Green Building

Saudi Arabia’s Green Construction Potential: Insurance for a New Green Economy?

Masdar City Open House Photos

Azouri Brothers Eco Tower Planned for Tel Aviv

The post Shopping Malls Go Green in Israel appeared first on Green Prophet.

The momentous event staged at the Dead Sea  by American photographic art producer Spencer Tunick at the Lowest Point on earth is now over ; and those who participated in this historical event, including Alex Gutman, who contributed his personal account of “getting naked” for it, have gone away with a feeling that they participated in an exceptional event.

An earlier Dead Sea art shot by Sigalit Landau

For his part, Tunick, himself Jewish and originating from an Orthodox Jewish family, admired Israelis for being so willing to participate, despite so many objections from religious Jews in Israel who lambasted the event by comparing it to the story of Sodom and Gomorrah in the Bible. Prior to the actual “immersion” Tunick said:

“In some places this work is a little bit more controversial, and then in other places the works are accepted as a litmus test for how free a country is, or how open a country is, and how full of rights a country is.”

But now that the event is over, the real “litmus test” will be what is done to save this body of water that has been nominated for designation as one of the World’s Seven New Natural Wonders .

“Up front and personal” at LJR’s source

The Dead Sea, which is still one of Israel’s most popular tourist attractions,  is unfortunately shrinking at the rate of one meter (39 inches) a year, and could be almost non –existent by the year 2050. The world’s lowest and saltiest lake is mostly fed by the inflow from the Lower Jordan River (LJR), itself a mere trickle of its former self; and occasional run-offs from flash floods that occur during the winter rainy season.

I was fortunate to participate along with Green Prophet Editor Karin Kloosterman (see left) in a media tour of the Lower Jordan, in May, 2010 . The tour, sponsored by the NGO Friends of the Earth Middle East ((FOEME) and led by Israel Director Gideon Bromberg, gave participants a real glimpse of the current state of a stream that has been so much mentioned since Biblical times. The real eye-opener of the tour was an “up-front and personal” view of the “source” of the Lower Jordan: a saline and raw sewage runoff from the actual Jordan River, from which most of its water has been diverted for human and agricultural use.

Bring on more naked Israelis!

Unless some adverse repercussions from non-accepting elements in Israel and elsewhere in the region prevent this from happening, Spencer Tunick might consider staging yet another nude happening event in some other location, such as the Mediterranean beachfront (to bring attention to the plight of this body of water), the Sea of Galilee, or elsewhere.

Staging a similar event at the Lower Jordan might be a bit more problematic, due to the religious sensitivity of the location. But the reason for doing so is as urgent as the Dead Sea one since the Lower Jordan itself could dry up if one of its main sources, the sewage inflow, is itself diverted for reclamation by sewage treatment plant being constructed nearby.

Judging from the current view of the Lower Jordan’s current state of purity, it would not be advisable for people to swim naked or otherwise there however. Maybe just posing there, au natural, would be enough to make a point about the stream’s ecological plight.

Read more on issues involving the Dead Sea and Lower Jordan River:
Time Running Out for Saving Dead Sea Hotels
Despite Everything, Shrinking Dead Sea is a Popular Tourist Attraction
That “Sinking Feeling”: Dead Sea Sinkhole Swallows Student
Protect the Middle East’s Natural Wonders: Vote Today
Unholy Waters: The Lower Jordan River is Nearly Dead

The post Following Naked Dead Sea – Would You Strip for the Jordan River? appeared first on Green Prophet.

“Israel is not a theocracy, it is a democracy. We want to create a work that would probably not happen anywhere else in the Middle East.” Spencer Tunick, photographer.

If all goes according to Spencer Tunick’s plan, the Dead Sea will serve as the backdrop this Saturday September 17 for his next photographic installation: hundreds of Israelis appearing naked at what some have hailed as the world’s deepest natural wonders. Any would-be gawkers please take note: the exact location is top secret.

Update: Read Full Frontal Exposure: World Reacts to Naked Israelis for more on the Naked Sea Project, including photos.

Models will be bussed in from outside locations the morning of the shoot, explained the organizers. All together, the kickstarter fundraising campaign raised $116,000, well over the $60,000 needed to fund the Naked Sea project, and 3000 signed up to participate with 1000 selected to pose.

Environmental or pornographic art?

To some, this is a controversial shoot in a region already beset by political and cultural turmoil; for others including the artist, it’s a visual testament to the frailty of the planet, the Dead Sea in general, and humanities role in the mismanagement of our planet’s resources.

Tunick’s naked art is hardly pornographic, insists the artist. “The (human) body is vulnerable. Our bodies, which are so fragile, are driving this amazing sea to destruction,” he said in an interview earlier this year.

Supporters of his work point out that there is no sexual context to his creations – intended to deliver potent messages – which is in this case highlighting the plight of the Dead Sea.

Red tape could derail the event. Some religious officials want to stop the shoot, and local officials have claimed that necessary permits were never requested and therefore not granted, reports Ynetnews.

Dead or Dying Sea?

Experts warn that the Dead Sea could dry out by 2050. Historically, the Jordon River fed the sea, but now fresh water is diverted by Israel, Jordon and to a smaller degree by Syria. Extensive mineral harvesting by Israel and Jordon, the countries bordering the world’s deepest body of water, are depleting the sea as well. It’s a popular tourist destination, with luxury hotels on both sides catering to those who want to bathe in its waters or partake of the renowned health benefits. Combined, these factors highlight that nature knows no boundaries, and efforts to restore habitat require collaborative cross-country solutions.

“Hopefully my work with this will be associated with the human-made natural disaster at hand, and not with war,” Tunick said.

Some estimates show that the surface level of the Dead Sea is shrinking by a meter (three feet) each year. The shoreline is also receding at alarming rates.

The Dead Sea is currently in the running as one of the New 7Wonders of Nature campaign, a list that includes Australia’s Great Barrier Reef, the Amazon, Grand Canyon in the United States and sites in Lebanon and United Arab Emirates.

Read more green love and art news:

Tinamarie is a regular contributor to Greenprophet.com. Follow her @ModernLoveMuse. She blogs at www.tinamariebernard.com.

The post Deepest Wonder of the World About to Get Naked appeared first on Green Prophet.

Following last year’s mass poultry culling in the Tulkarem area of the West Bank, due to fears of  Avian Flu virus, it has been recently discovered that more than 1.5 chicken carcasses that were buried in northern Israel following a poultry epidemic are now feared to be seriously polluting the ground water in the region. The revelation as reported in Haaretz includes the dumping of the carcasses by poultry farmers, and whose decomposition into the soil is now threatening to create an environmental hazard and endangers the water supply, according to Israel’s Environmental Protection Ministry.

Illegally buried chickens – yuck!

This kind of environmental contamination is especially noteworthy in light of the March 28 approval by Israel’s parliament of the Environmental Protection Law.

In regards to what has been done illegally  by the poultry farmers, the new law specifically states that:

“The law establishes new ‘game rules’ whereby no one in the State will be immune from environmental inspection and enforcement. Polluters will no longer be able to shirk their responsibility for environmental degradation under the umbrella of the law, so that environmental enforcement will be significantly improved and damage to public health and well being will be prevented.”

The acts by the poultry farmers involve the creation of an environmental hazard that according to the Environmental Ministry “some of the carcasses were concealed in locations that were likely to risk contaminating ground water. The chickens were buried without suitable sealing, posing a risk that as the carcasses decomposed, constituents may permeate the ground water.”

The killing of the chickens resulted from their being infected by an avian virus known as Newcastle Disease also known as “Avian Distemper“.

The carcasses should have been disposed of by shipping them to government approved burial sites, which were far away from the poultry farms. In light of the adverse publicity caused by animal diseases like Avian Flu, and the H1N1 or “swine flu” virus that resulted in more than 300,000 swine being slaughtered in Egypt.

The poultry farmers appeared to be fearful of  creating a panic among the public by sending the suspected chickens to the regulated waste sites, mostly located in southern Israel. Although the Environment Ministry has stated that diseased birds must be culled and removed so as not to infect healthy ones, it also does not allow the unauthorized burial of the birds in pits dug next to poultry runs.

This appears to have been a very “fowl” act indeed!

::Haaretz.com

Read more about Mid East animal disease issues:

Renewed Avian Flu Scare Prompts West Bank Chicken Cull

Swine Flu Cull Harms People and the Environment in Egypt

Green Prophet Flies to the “The Gaza Islamic University’s Environmental Engineering Blog

The post Are “Sick Chicks” Poisoning Israel’s Ground Water? appeared first on Green Prophet.

My favorite place to stay in Israel is Villa Tehilah, Rosh Pina in the Galilee region of Israel. A beautifully restored, 120-year old property originally belonging to the Rothschild family, it has a magical atmosphere of private beauty and peace. I’ve been there with family, with friends, and alone. Others here on Green Prophet have written about eco-tourism in Kfar Kalil, also in the Galilee. Next time I stay at Villa Tehilah, it would be fun to visit the wind farm reported here too. In the green springtime, friends and I sometimes  hike through the nearby wadi all the way to Safed. I’ve also stayed in the Villa in the autumn, when there are few guests and I might have the hot tub, set in one of the gardens, all to myself at night.

There’s also an outdoor pool. You can float and look at distant Mt. Hermon.

The garden path wanders past cafe-style tables standing here and there and down past resting places where hammocks swing invitingly.

Another attraction to keep visitors inside the magic circle is a pub, open on Shabbat. I’ve only visited on weekdays, but it looks like good times are had there and there’s no lack of beer.

The rooms are comfortable and lovely, each with unique decorations and individual features. Some are grouped around the patio, and some are perched upstairs and have little balconies. All have kitchenettes.

In the off-season, the management kindly allows friends to visit in the evening. We gather at a big wooden table under the pergola. There we’ve sat till the moon goes down, talking and drinking wine.

There is no kashrut (kosher) supervision for those who keep Jewish dietary laws, but all breakfast ingredients are kosher and the cook keeps the kitchen kosher. The meal is a typical Israeli hotel-style spread, with eggs, hot breads, jams concocted out of fresh local fruit, cheese, olives, and lots of little salads.

When with my family, we tend to order pizza in (we still have one teenager). With friends, I’ll usually stroll into town and dine in one of the kosher restaurants. If on a meditative retreat alone, I like to pick up the fixings of a light meal at the nearby mini-market and snack whenever I feel like it, in my room or outdoors, gazing at the Villa’s rambling garden and antique oddities tucked into unexpected nooks and corners.

Maybe there are fancier places to stay in the Galilee, but for healing, privacy, and beauty, I haven’t seen one to beat Villa Tehilah.

:: Villa Tehilah

More on the beautiful Galilee from Green Prophet here:

• Mitzpeh Yamim, Luxurious Spa and Organic Farm
• “Hope Tree” of Bottles for the Sea of Galilee

All photos by Miriam Kresh.

The post Stay at Villa Tehilah, Galilee Country Inn in Israel appeared first on Green Prophet.

The ancient sea port and other archeological sites in  the Israel coastal community of  Caesarea is being threatened by encroaching sea water due to a lack of natural sand, according to Zeev Margalit, Architect and Director of Conservation and Development for  Israel’s Nature and Parks Authority. Margalit has been involved in restoring and preserving a number of archeological sites around Israel, including the well known excavations at Masada near the Dead Sea. In March, 2007 sent a warning that much of the excavations at this popular historic site were in danger of being destroyed as the result of an unusually heavy rainfall, unless repair work estimated at $18 million be spent to repair them. Another project Margalit has been involved in is the Old City of Acre (Akko) where its weakened sandstone walls are being threatened by the forces of the wind and sea.

Zeev MargalitNow Maraglit is turning his attention to the ancient seaport and archeological excavations of Caesarea, situated on the Mediterranean Sea coast, about midway between the cities of Tel Aviv and Haifa. Originally built between 22 and 15 BCE by Herod the Great, and dedicated to the Roman Caesar Augustus, this seaport became known as the one of the largest man made seaports in the Eastern Mediterranean; and was lauded by the historian Josephus Flavius as “being as large as the one at Piraeus, the major harbor of Athens”.

The modern excavations of Caesarea have become a very popular visitation site for both foreign tourists and locals who also enjoy dining in several restaurants that have been opened at the site, which includes the remains of a Crusader fortress and a restored amphitheater where concerts and theatrical events are held during the year.

According to Margalit, the main problem facing the ancient port and nearby excavations is not from global warming, as mentioned in a previous Green Prophet article dealing with the Nile Delta, but by sea sand not reaching the shoreline due to it being stopped by modern man-made structures such as marinas, sea ports, and numerous real estate developments.

When interviewed recently, Margalit said the following regarding the ancient sea port’s condition: “The main problem affecting the deterioration of coastal archeological sites like Caesarea, is a lack of sand in the eastern Mediterranean. This was also the case in King Herod’s time and can be seen by the way the sea cuts the aqueducts which were built by Herod to carry water from springs in the Carmel mountain range to Caesarea on the coast. The Aqueduct has been literally cut through in the middle by the sea.”

The Mediterranean has been the center of a number of environmental issues, including those dealing with pollution from plastic material and other debris, natural gas exploration and production off Israel’s coastline, as well as the invasion of unwanted species of marine life, such as jellyfish, which marine biologists say is partially attributed to increased sea temperatures

The problem of not enough natural sea sand is something that is relatively new to bring to peoples’ attention, even though sand disappearing from public beaches has been a known fact for some time.

When asked what is needed to be done to keep the incoming sea from literally collapsing what remains of  Caesarea’s ancient sea port and the structures sitting above it, Margalit is very emphatic. He says that an investment of at least NS 60 million ($16.67 million USD) is needed to do the necessary work. This work deals with area beaches and the port area in Caesarea, which  need to be repaired by bringing in “imported” sand from elsewhere, building a new and larger breakwater outside of the port, and creating bunkers to cause incoming sand to flow in to serve as a barrier against the incoming tides.

“If it takes one winter or 10 winters the ancient city and port will be damaged beyond repair. We need to do something immediately and in a very short time of no more than 5 years. Changes are occurring right in front of our eyes. When we try to get action toward these projects, the government does not want to cooperate.”

Judging from other examples of dealing with environmental damage, Margalit’s words sound all too familiar.

National Parks Authority:

More on Mediterranean environmental issues:
Sea Sickness: What Can be Done to Save the Mediterranean?
Natural Gas Wins in the Mediterranean, But the Environment Loses
Is The Mediterranean Harboring a Giant Plastic Garbage Patch?

The post Ancient Caesarea Needs Every Grain of Sand appeared first on Green Prophet.

Boris Moldavski and his wife Rivka are immigrants from Russia, who arrived here many years ago and first lived in Nazareth Illit. Being an engineer, Boris moved around the country a lot, until he and other Russians were offered land down in Sinai. On barren desert soil they created the community of Yamit – until it was evacuated in 1979 after the peace treaty between Israel and Egypt.

Six-hundred families, including Boris and Rivka moved, and many of them came to the Eshkol region, founding 6 new agricultural communities, including Moshav’s Dekel and Avshalom, within an area collectively known as Hevel Shalom.

Boris discovered a new passion: his agricultural expertise took him further – to Kazakhstan, where he stayed for 8 years, advising agricultural projects and eventually becoming Israel’s cultural attache to the Kazakh’s. He fell in love with the Kazakh culture, and decided to import traditional Kazakh yurts to his home on Moshav Dekel.

His original plan was to set up a camel farm: “I had sheep, and I loved that job, as every sheep had human qualities,” but after 3 years of trying to work with the local bureaucracy, that plan was shelved. “Camel milk has proven health benefits – against diabetes (Boris was diagnosed with diabetes in Kazakhstan, but daily swigs of camel milk defeated the disease), and even autism,” Boris told us, wistfully.

His eco-tourism venture, ’36 Figs,” comprises of 6 original Kazakh yurts, dotted around a stunning and tranquil organic plant garden and fruit grove, all planted and tended by Boris and his family.

Our first meeting with him was when he popped out from behind a tree as we settled in to our yurt bearing freshly picked fruit – he doesn’t know its name, but its a kind of exotic cherry, tasting of caramel and coffee. Other fruits he showed us, and that we sampled, over 24 hours, include guava, passion fruit, mango (both made into jams and liquers on the premises) lemons, mandarin oranges, pomegranates, lychees, green carobs, and what I think is a cacoa pod, or a chocolate fruit!

The yurts are huge, warm, and very restful spaces. He chose Kazakh bridal yurts, which are bigger than normal, and come decorated with original Kazakh embroideries, full of spiritual, religious and sensual significance.

It is very restful to gaze up at the steam-bent wooden yurt poles, fitting into the circular roof crown. Boris proudly said that they were constructed “without a single nail.”

My passion for gers and yurts comes from the knowldege that they are made from entirely natural materials (ok, canvas isn’t, but hey), and are so beautifully portable, yet strong. There is something soothing about being in a circular space, with a wooden floor, and the infinite possibilities of desert space and sky stretching out from the doorway.

Oh, and for all creature comfort loving Israelis, all Boris’s yurts have jacuzzis and toilets. Two of them are especially outfitted for disabled guests, and the garden is partly designed to be a sensory environment, to enable all guests to enjoy it in many ways, both tactile and through smell.

Boris is a green-fingered man, and is very willing to share this knowledge with everyone. Discussing this, he told me that “all his 4 children worked [with him] on the land, giving them a strong work ethic, and good character.” He firmly believes that a lot of socities ills come from our general disconnect with the land and soil.

36 Figs is a wonderful rural idyll: a place to rest, relax, eat exotic fruit and recharge the batteries. Boris and Rivka are generous and warm hosts. It is also a perfect place for group retreats, yoga workshops, and perhaps the first Green Prophet retreat? Go and experience the green life of a night in a desert yurt!

’36 Figs’ website is here ::36 Figs

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