Safety regulations and restoration work are underway at the old structure within the Ein Jones spring complex, located in the Yarmuk Valley under the jurisdiction of the Emek Hayarden Regional Council. Over the years, the building suffered severe physical deterioration - including partial wall collapses - leading authorities to classify it as a dangerous structure posing an immediate risk to the public.
The NIS 2 million safety and preservation project is funded by the Israel Land Authority (ILA) through its Fund for the Protection of Open Areas, with execution managed by the Kinneret Drainage and Streams Authority.
Four-month closure for engineering and pool restoration
As part of the initiative, crews are performing structural reinforcements on the building’s walls and windows, alongside targeted engineering operations to stabilize sections at risk of collapse. The primary aim is to ensure long-term structural integrity and guarantee visitor safety.
Concurrently, crews are conducting preparatory work inside the spring's pools. Gravel previously covering the pool floors is being removed and replaced with large, clean river stones. Project officials stated that this measure allows restoration to move forward without interrupting the continuous flow of the natural spring water.
The project is scheduled to last approximately four months, during which the site will remain entirely closed to visitors as an active construction zone. Upon completion, the site is slated to reopen to the public free of charge, maintaining its long-standing tradition of open access.
‘The water is polluted and black’
Despite official assurances, the ongoing project has ignited sharp resistance from environmental activists. Ella Nave, an epidemiologist and activist with the struggle committee to save Ein Jones - who has a history of challenging municipal and state authorities over the site - is currently monitoring developments on-site.
Nave told Walla: "The work is being carried out at a declared antiquities site without supervision by the Israel Antiquities Authority, which is why I called the police. The water is now polluted and black, and ancient stones are rolling in the tractor's bucket. At the bottom are black, contaminated stones, which we claim are due to unsuitable materials used by the authorities in the past."
She further asserted: "The authorities seek to turn a natural spring into a wading pool, while concealing the fact that the Hamat Gader springs are already suffering from over-pumping and that they intend to use the public spring for commercial purposes. Legal proceedings regarding this matter are currently underway in the Water Court, but it seems that the Water Authority has forgotten its role - as has the Antiquities Authority."
Nave added that "the Israel Land Authority, which is funding the work - which also includes burying pipes to divert the spring water - is acting with a lack of transparency. According to meeting minutes in our possession, it is also the entity that will market the hotels to wealthy investors who will benefit from this water."
Emphasizing the site's unique status, Nave claimed that "this is the last free medical spring remaining in Israel," and cautioned that planned construction could inflict lasting harm on the water source, "even though no environmental assessments were conducted for them at all, and they contradict a final court ruling."
The claims raised by Nave and the struggle committee represent their positions and do not constitute official findings established by state authorities or the court.