An Israeli expert warned today that the Mediterranean Sea and especially its eastern shores was more pollution-prone than any other major body of water in the world and urged Israel to take drastic action to save its fishing grounds and beaches.
Rear Admiral (Res.) Yochai Bin Nun, former commander of the Israeli Navy and presently general manager of the Israeli Oceanography and Linological Research Co., charged that there were too many groups in Israel dealing with pollution problems without any coordination between them. “We feel impotent because of that in dealing with the problem.” he said.
According to Bin Nun, the Mediterranean is becoming polluted by industrial waste from France and Italy. He said pollutants from the North Atlantic are entering the inland sea through the Straits of Gibraltar. Westerly winds push the pollutants toward the eastern shores where they accumulate because there is no outlet, he said.
Meanwhile, measures are being taken to reduce the pollution of Haifa Bay. The Protarum Co., which produces plastics and chemical products; has been denied permission to expand its Haifa Bay plant because of the waste it produces. The ban was ordered after Haifa Technion experts discovered concentrations of toxic mercury in Haifa Bay waters to be four times as great as the world average. Samples taken of the sea waters north of Haifa Bay showed only one-eighth the amount of mercury.
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