The Municipal Council and residents of Ashkelon, as well as ecologists, are up in arms against a decision of the National Council for Planning and Building to build Israel’s next and biggest coal-fired electricity generating station on the outskirts of their town.
They say the decision, opposed by many experts, will damage the town and have a serious effect on tourism in the area. They demand that the station, to be the biggest in the country even though only two of the projected 550,000-kilowatt units instead of the original four are to be installed within a decade, be located further to the south, on the border between the Gaza Strip and Israel proper.
Ministry of Energy sources say the projected generating station would be the last to be built on the coast, as no further sites are available.
Help ensure Jewish news remains accessible to all. Your donation to the Jewish Telegraphic Agency powers the trusted journalism that has connected Jewish communities worldwide for more than 100 years. With your help, JTA can continue to deliver vital news and insights. Donate today.
The Archive of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency includes articles published from 1923 to 2008. Archive stories reflect the journalistic standards and practices of the time they were published.