According to the latest 'Clean Beach' report, 98 percent of Israel's undeclared - that is, unguarded - beaches are now considered 'average' to 'very clean.'
By JERUSALEM POST STAFFcoastal clean88298a(photo credit: )
The latest "Clean Beach" nationwide survey has shown a significant improvement in the level of cleanliness at Israel's undeclared beaches in the past few weeks, reports local.co.il.
Only one beach, Zikim South, that borders on the Gaza Strip, is now considered dirty, while all others are classified "average" to "very clean."
According to the report, some local authorities whose beaches were found to be dirty in the last survey - in particular Herzliya at its northern beaches - seem to have made a concerted effort to clean up.
But a few beaches have shown a "worrying deterioration" in their state of cleanliness, in particular beaches north of Netanya.
The report said that 98 percent of Israel's undeclared - that is, unguarded - beache are now considered "average" to "very clean," with a pleasing eight percent rise in the number of those considered "very clean."
Just as significantly, there was a 13% drop in the number of beaches considered dirty, down to just one beach.
The surveys are being conducted every two weeks as part of the Environmental Protection Ministry's nationwide "Clean Beach" project. A ministry spokesman said cleanliness at the beaches had begun deteriorating in recent months, but a combination of publicity and enforcement of anti-littering laws seems to have reversed the trend.
Last month, inspectors began imposing heavy fines on people caught littering the beaches.
The spokesman called the new figures "encouraging," adding that the ministry's ultimate aim is to have every beach in Israel ranked "very clean."
He urged local authorities to clean their beaches frequently and act against litterbugs, and beach-goers to regard litter as a "personal responsibility."
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