River authority wins victory over fence

The Kishon River Authority appealed against the fence, saying that it is too close to the water.

By MIRIAM BULWAR DAVID-HAY (TRANSLATED)
Environmentalists are claiming a partial victory for the long-suffering Kishon River after the District Planning and Construction Appeals Committee ordered the Israel Ports Company to remove a fence it had constructed along the riverbanks and move it 50 meters further away from the water, reports Yediot Haifa. But the victory was tempered by the committee's rejection of the Kishon River Authority's request to prevent all further development work in the area. According to the report, the Israel Ports Company built the fence and has begun building a new shipping container storage area next to the river after receiving permission from the local Planning and Construction Committee to do so. The Kishon River Authority appealed against the fence, saying that it is too close to the water and invades the protected space of the river. The Appeals Committee agreed, and ordered that the fence be moved 50 meters further away from the riverbanks. But the committee rejected the authority's request to prevent all further development work along the river. A Kishon River Authority spokesman welcomed the committee's decision on the fence, saying it would contribute to the continuing rehabilitation of the river. An Israel Ports Company spokesman said the company was still "studying the significance" of the decision on the fence, but it was noteworthy that the courts and now the committee had rejected the river authority's attempts to stop all development work. The spokesman said the development work was "vital" for the local economy and for the Haifa port, which was suffering from a serious shortage of storage space.