The Upper Galilee Regional Council charges for the first time a fee for parking in the streams • The head of the council: "Maintenance costs - for the residents" • In Kish attackers: "The river belongs to everyone"
The struggle declared by the mayor of Kiryat Shmona against the decision of the neighboring regional council, Upper Galilee, to charge for the first time a fee for parking on the banks of the Jordan, has spread in recent days to public protest.
Initial protest signs have already been prepared for a demonstration scheduled to take place on Friday, should talks with the neighboring council fail.
Protest against restrictions on access to streams in the north of the country // Reporter: Adi Hashmonai, Photo: Ofer Freiman
Adv. Elad Suissa, who provides legal advice on a voluntary basis to the "headquarters of the struggle for the liberation of the Assyrian", volunteered to represent this struggle as well, and will soon begin a mass financing project to budget the crisis. " Her council, for whom parking is free. We, the residents of Kiryat Shmona, come to the streams every day. The stream and nature belong to the entire public in Israel, and not just to the residents of the Upper Galilee. This story for us is the straw that broke the camel's back. In recent years, more and more gates and fences have been added that block and severely restrict access to streams, "said Aharon Meir Damari, who is leading the struggle of the residents of Kiryat Shmona.
"There are 240 km of streams in our area on both banks and in 40 km there are localities, military camps, kayak and tourism businesses, which are not allowed to close the access to the streams," responds Giora Salz, head of the Upper Galilee Regional Council. "We spend 8-5 million shekels a year to maintain, monitor, clean and nurture the streams, which means that each family pays about 3,000 shekels a year for this purpose. We started charging for one-kilometer parking, to cover some of the expenses and make it easier for residents. our".
The headquarters of the struggle focuses on the Jordan River and its sources in the section between Kibbutz Dan and Kfar Blum, about ten kilometers in total. This is the section near Kiryat Shmona, and also the most beautiful natural area of the Upper Galilee streams. A tour we did in the field does bring up a bleak picture in this section. Localities, kayak businesses, camping sites and B & Bs and agricultural areas make it very difficult to access the streams, and in some cases fences have even been erected to prevent pedestrians from passing along the stream, as required by law. Each of them has a permit from the authorities due to unique needs that combine the well-being and livelihood of the area's residents, their safety, nature conservation and the public's right to enjoy nature. In practice, most of the areas of the banks in this section can be reached by bicycle or after a long walk of hundreds of meters or more to the river, and more than one entrance to the banks is blocked.
"Two or three years ago we would enter with the vehicles to the edge of the streams and suddenly we see a sign here that forbids entry due to private space. It is not possible. We grew up here in these streams and suddenly we have nowhere to go, we have nowhere to sit, rest, bathe in water," said Noam. (32), resident of Kiryat Shmona.
"We are in favor of preserving the environment and always cleaning up after ourselves. Those who do not maintain cleanliness should be taken care of, and not punished. We think that the ones who pollute the most are the customers of the kayaks, who come up with food and drinking bottles for kayaks and throw the dirt into the water."
Pay and enjoy
Thus, for example, already at the foot of the restaurants in the "Northern Garden" complex there is a section of about 30 meters open to the public. Immediately after it there are two campsites whose fences reach up to the water and prevent the passage of pedestrians. In the West Bank is the "Fish on the Dan" campsite. Ein Avishai, who operates it, explained that the fence has a gate that allows free passage for pedestrians, and that the fence blocks the passage without his knowledge due to a malfunction caused by lowering kayaks on the spot and concern for the safety of bathers. Following "Israel Today"'s request, he took care to remove the section of the fence that blocked the crossing.
Further down the stream, roadblocks were set up for vehicular traffic at the northern entrance and at the southern entrance of Moshav Beit Hillel to the kurkar road leading to the stream. Benny Ben Mubhar, head of the Mevoot Hermon regional council, said that the road is closed because it is the settlement's security system road, but the crossing for pedestrians and cyclists is open. In the East Bank, there is a "green on the river" campsite whose owner has not yet responded, but the council's engineer, Ohad Livnat, explained that this is a private area in the taboo from the Ottoman period that reaches the water, and has even been eaten by them over the years. It is followed by an electric gate that blocks access to the continuation of the East Bank. On the other side - another private area and agricultural crops near Kibbutz HaGoshrim. Near the stream are two fences, one of which is new with concertinas and stretches for several kilometers.
"As part of the plan that the Streams Administration built a decade ago, it was decided that the east bank from Kibbutz HaGoshrim and south would be better preserved, because we do not have many Hasbani and Banias. That the road is unsafe and closed to the general public, "explains Assaf Langelban, director of the municipal division of the Upper Galilee Regional Council.
Langelben is also the director of the Streams Administration, which was established about a decade ago, and includes the regional council and local ones in the Upper Galilee, the Ministry of Environmental Protection, the Nature and Parks Authority and more.
"A decade ago, the administration made an amazing plan and we are trying to implement it. As part of it, we closed campsites that were on the waterfront, and we are mainly involved in returning the area to the public."
Near-far solution
About a month ago, Avichai Stern, the mayor of Kiryat Shmona, announced a struggle against the decision of the Upper Galilee Regional Council to apply a fee for parking on the banks of the river.
Stern threatened to take legal action, and as a protest measure decided to expand the paid parking areas in his area so that this time only foreign residents would be required to pay for it.
Against the background of the struggle, the heads of the authorities agree on what might resolve the disputes.
"A bylaw for parking is intended to regulate traffic, not to regulate natural areas. The state said the streams belong to the public. It must start making order, establish a statutory authority and decide where the border line passes. It was in the Sea of Galilee, in Nir David with Hasi, today in the Upper Galilee and tomorrow maybe in Yokneam." Doing star.
"It should also be remembered that there has been no government for two years," Salz added, "so in the meantime we are acting in accordance with the practice of the Streams Administration."