The city of Ashdod had to fix a pipe in their sewage system. It was going to take a few days to get the work done and they needed to close the pipe while they did the work. The solution seemed simple enough - divert the sewage into the Lachish River - then the pipes will be freed up for repair and it won’t cost the city any extra effort for the time being.

So from Wednesday to Saturday last week, all the sewage of the city of Ashdod went directly into the Lachish River.

As you can see from the photographs, the result has been catastrophic. This river, which has barely been able to survive under its current conditions, was inundated with so much sewage that thousands of fish were killed. The smell was horrific. And now that sewage is flowing into the Mediterranean Sea, causing beach closures and more destruction of sea life.

Zalul has been running a campaign for the Lachish River for over a year now.  The Mayor of Ashdod seemingly had gotten the message.  But now we are not so sure.

When will the municipality wake up and see that the result of these decisions is disastrous? That the short-term is easier, but the long-term implications hurt us all?

Out today in the Jerusalem Post: Recent tests by Zalul show that the Ashkelon Municipality is still dumping raw sewage directly into the river, despite them saying the contrary. Whereas pollution standards dictate that the highest recommend level of fecal coliform found in water should be 200 milligrams per liter, testing showed that the water of the Lachish had up to 7.8 million milligrams per liter.To put it simply: If you live in Ashdod, the things you flush down your toilet are the things you see/smell/taste in your river. Lovely.

During a routine tour yesterday (July 24, 2007) by Zalul Environmental Association in the area of the Lachish River, staff members came upon the Barkai tributary to the Lachish River that was turning the water red. After further investigation it was discovered by Zalul that the factory “Zera Genetics” was discharging their wastewater straight from the factory into the river. The wastewater is mainly from the rinsing of watermelon seeds by the factory. Zalul has announced that it is pursuing legal action against the factory.

Says Moran Diment, Project Coordinator for Zalul’s Lachish River campaign, “A profitable factory cannot pollute the environment with the excuse that it is for economic reasons. This is exactly the event where it is clear that the authorities must take responsibility and take on the investors of the factory with great severity. The factory is obliged to take responsibility, and we expect the Ministry of the Environment and other authorities of enforcement to operate to the fullest of their authority in order to stop the pollution.”

Background: The Lachish River was once a perennial stream flowing year-round. The clear waters served many of the inhabitants of the area for a variety of different uses, for example fishing and agriculture. The development of the city of Ashdod in tandem with the development of settlements and additional factories lengthwise along the route of the river deteriorated the quality of its waters. Nowadays, the majority of the river is merely an intermittent stream and the clear water has been exchange for wastewater and urban and industrial sewage. A year and a half ago, Zalul began its campaign to save the Lachish River.