EPA ADMINISTRATOR VISITS ISRAEL

UNCLAS TEL AVIV 002586



SIPDIS



DEPT FOR NEA/IAI, NEA/REA and OES/ENV

EPA FOR INTERNATIONAL - Fulton, Metcalfe

AMMAN for ESTH

PARIS for USOECD



E.O. 12958: N/A

TAGS: SENV, EINV, TBIO, IS

SUBJ: EPA Administrator Visits Israel



1. (U) Summary: US Environmental Protection Agency Administrator

Stephen L. Johnson visited Israel October 22-27, consulting with GOI

ministries of Environmental Protection and National Infrastructure,

and visiting pollution hotspots and sites of reclamation. In

discussions with GOI officials Johnson and his delegation advanced

USG objectives of sharing technology that combats pollution,

enhances water security, and facilitates Israeli compliance with

criteria for OECD membership. Israeli officials expressed interest

in greater technology exchange, more information about EPA's

Environmental Technology Verification (ETV) program, and training to

increase environmental enforcement capacity. Despite imminent

elections and changes in both American and Israeli governments,

contact and collaboration between career staff of both countries

will continue to pursue a number of shared interests. EPA officers

cleared on this report. End Summary.



2. (U) US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator

Stephen L. Johnson visited Israel October 22-27, on the invitation

from Israel Minister for Environmental Protection Gideon Ezra. The

Administrator was accompanied by Chief of Staff Charles Ingebretson,

Acting Assistant Administrator for International Affairs Scott

Fulton, New York Regional Administrator Alan J. Steinberg, and Tom

Dunne, EPA Associate Administrator for Homeland Security. Conny

Arvis, Deputy Director NEA/RA and post ESTH officer also joined the

EPA trip. Johnson's first meeting was with the Ambassador to

discuss EPA's interests in Israel and receive a briefing on the

broader bilateral relationship. Since 9/11, the EPA has been

responsible for US water security policy, protecting the national

water supplies from intentional or accidental contamination by

chemical, biological, radiological or other agents. Understanding

how Israel manages these risks and structures its response to such

incidents was the primary objective of Johnson's trip. EPA was also

interested in enhancing the exchange of environmental technology,

building on a 1992 bilateral MOU between EPA and Israel's Ministry

of Environment. Finally, Johnson wanted to explore the regional

dimension of pollution in the Middle East, specifically asking to

meet with Palestinian environmental authorities. Ambassador

outlined the state of Annapolis negotiations and USG engagement with

Israel on key regional issues.



Ministry Meetings

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3. (U) On October 23, Johnson and delegation, accompanied by the

Ambassador, met Minister Ezra and Ministry of Environmental

Protection (MEP) officials in Tel Aviv. Ezra opened discussions by

pointing out the great potential for cooperation between the two

countries, and how much Israel could learn from the far broader US

experience with environmental regulation. Stating that Israel's

force of 45 enforcement officials was far below the number required,

he noted the need for better training and increasing his ministry's

capacity. Effective enforcement enables better understanding of the

source of environmental problems, he said. MEP Deputy Director

General Valerie Brachya briefly outlined the state of Israel's

environment. The country faces shortages of water, natural

resources and living space, while it must cope with rising air

pollution, population, demand for energy, and risk to biodiversity.

MEP objectives, she synopsized, are to decrease emissions, reduce

Israel's vulnerability to environmental risk, and improve the

sustainability of the economy. To achieve these objectives, Brachya

stressed the need for better environmental technologies, and hoped

that US technology could be tapped to help.



4. (U) One motivation for upgrading Israel's environmental

technology, Brachya stated, is Israel's pending membership

application to the OECD. Environmental criteria make up 60 of the

200 instruments required by the OECD for accession, she observed,

and meeting the costs of accommodation was becoming a challenge

given Israel's budget constraints. Israel's approach to the

environment is primarily a command-and-control approach, but they

are working to develop the needed economic instruments. To this end,

Israel was looking to the US for assistance on how to implement

these instruments. Israel will give its first presentation at the

upcoming OECD Environmental Policy Committee meeting in February,

2009. Administrator Johnson said he understood Israel's situation,

and hoped the bilateral agreement signed in 1992 could be useful for

future collaboration. He underscored that the coming change of US

administrations made him unable to commit any future EPA resources,

but he expected that the career staff of EPA, including Acting

Assistant Administrator for International Affairs Scott Fulton,

would continue to work to facilitate technology exchange.



5. (U) MEP Vice Director General Yossi Inbar outlined GOI incentive

structures devised to encourage the development and adoption of

environmental technology by business. These mechanisms include

Pollutant Release and Transfer Register (PRTR) and special funds to

assist companies changing over to better technologies. Inbar

stressed that information about EPA's Environmental Technologoy

Verification (ETV) program would greatly assist Israeli

environmental technology developers, and he hoped a way could be

found to provide this information to Israeli researchers.



6. (U) Yossi Inbar and Michal BarTov briefly presented how Israel

manages hazardous substances. This included handling of incidents,

risk management, integrated emergency reaction methods, and

decontamination responses. MEP coordinates all government bodies

dealing with hazardous materials. A distinction between the

immediate reaction and the longer-term response and recovery period

was made. Israel records an average of 250 hazmat incidents per

year, mostly in-plant accidents, spills or transportation events.

Due to its compact size, Israeli reaction capacity can be pulled

from locales across the country quickly and is very diverse,

encompassing fire, police, environment ministry, Home Front Command,

and Red Cross (Red Magen David) components. Biological

contamination is not MEP's responsibility. MEP is the first

responder for "dirty bombs", but is not responsible for long-term

recovery.



7. (U) EPA discussed emergency response with MEP, where the issue is

both radiological decontamination and area-wide biological

contamination. Both sides agreed to arrange a follow-up discussion

between the experts to share common concerns and responses to

long-term decontamination.



8. (U) Valerie Brachya discussed the Israeli situation with respect

to air pollution. Air pollution "hot spots" include the Haifa Bay

industrial area, the Hadera Power Plant, Tel Aviv, which is

Israel's most densely populated urban area, the Ashkelon industrial

area, and the Ramat Hovav industrial area. Israel has one of the

most dense air monitoring networks in the world, with about 100 air

monitoring stations throughout the country, run by MEP and local

officials. These stations measure PM 2.5, PM 10, NOX, SOX and lead.

Gasoline has been unleaded since 2004, and they are working to

reduce sulfur in fuel, thus reducing particulates from

transportation. MEP is very interested in cooperation with EPA

regarding air quality, including risk assessment guidelines, quality

assurance/quality control of air monitoring stations, air dispersion

modeling for complex terrain, and remote sensing technology for

monitoring emissions.



9. (U) The EPA Administrator, again accompanied by Ambassador, met

with the Ministry of National Infrastructure (MNI),led by Director

General Hezi Kugler. Also attending were representatives from MEP,

the Ministry of Health, and the Ministry of Agriculture. The agenda

covered three topics: water security, emergency response capacity,

and alternative energy as a means of reducing environmental risks.

Each side shared lessons from experience; Tom Dunne, previously head

of the Federal Disaster Assistance Administration, the predecessor

to FEMA, presented the EPA's Water Security Initiative. The

differences in scale between the US and Israel were striking: Israel

has a single parastatal (Mekorot) that distributes water through the

national carrier system, and is responsible for sourcing and

securing three-fourths of Israel's water; Dunne noted that the US

has over 15,000 water treatment systems and 54,000 distribution

systems. Nonetheless, the same imperatives of physical security,

public health protection, and consumer awareness operate in both

countries. The critical features of monitoring, precautionary

actions, command and control in reaction situations, and

decontamination during a remediation phase were common to both

systems. Uri Shani, Director of the Israel Water Authority,

discussed the country's critical water shortage, and the importance

of desalination. By 2014, if present tenders issued by the Israeli

government for additional desalination facilities are built, Israel

will produce 750 million cubic meters of water, almost the entirety

of consumer fresh water demand in Israel. Agriculture by then will

be shifted to 100 percent treated wastewater use, from about 43

percent now. In Israel, the Ministry of Health is in charge of

drinking water quality. Israel does not allow wastewater to be used

for drinking water, even treated wastewater.



10. (U) Kugler outlined the GOI's alternative energy policy

objectives. Transportation is the major cause of pollution in

Israel, followed by electricity generation. While the Environment

Ministry has mandated low-sulfur diesel and no-lead gasoline, MNI

policy addresses the energy sector. Twenty years ago Israel

switched from fuel oil to coal for its power generation, and now is

turning to natural gas as a cleaner alternative. Coal presently

generates 70 percent of Israel's electricity, and is expected to

still power 50 percent of it in 2050. Israel thus needs clean coal

technology, both to reduce CO2 emissions and to diminish the

country's vulnerability to petroleum suppliers and prices. One



concern, however, is that there is not enough area available for

carbon sequestration in Israel. Alternative energy sources are also

being pursued, including construction of a 250 mw solar power plant

in the Negev desert, and wind and wave energy projects. The

Ministry's goal is to produce 10-15 percent of electricity from

alternative sources by 2020; this is paired with the ambitious goal

of reducing Israel's energy consumption by 20 percent by 2020 (off

of a 2006 baseline). Regarding transportation, the goal is 5

percent of all fuel needs from biofuels by 2012. Johnson echoed

Kugler's hope to see clean coal technology advance, as the US still

derives half its power from coal, and has a 200 year supply.

Bilateral cooperation on energy is strong, Johnson acknowledged,

with the US DOE playing the coordinating role on joint research.



11. (U) Johnson met US Consul General Walles in Jerusalem on October

24, and separately with the Vice chairman of the Palestinian Water

Authority and consultants to discuss environmental and water

problems in the regional perspective. These meetings will be covered

septel.



Hot Spots and Water Sites

--------------

12. (U) Administrator Johnson and his delegation traveled to Haifa

Bay and its surrounding port to observe Israel's environmental

challenge. Environment Ministry officials briefed Johnson while

surveying the site from land and from the water. The City of Haifa

has 400,000 residents, 13 percent of Israel's population, with a

density of 2600 persons per square mile crowded into a mountainous

coastal landscape. Haifa is Israel's chief deep water port, and the

coastal plain bordering it on the East is one of Israel's most

highly industrialized zones. Besides the freight port, there are

oil refineries, petrochemical plants, natural gas storage, heavy

industry and a power generation plant. The Kishon River bisects the

area as it empties into Haifa Bay, and is one of the most polluted

sites in Israel.



13. (U) The close proximity of hazardous and toxic industrial sites

to dense a population center raises serious environmental and public

health risks. (During the 1991 Gulf War a missile attack on Haifa

targeted the tank farm storing ammonia, and could have had

disastrous consequences.) The Ministry policy is to promote reuse,

recycling, neutralization and safe disposal of hazardous materials.

Johnson and EPA officers compared the Haifa Bay situation to Long

Beach, California, and Newark, New Jersey, and discussed US efforts

to address comparable problems.



14. (U) A visit to the Eshkol filtration facility of Mekorot,

Israel's national water distributor, focused on water quality and

security. The Eshkol facility, opened in 2007 after a US$200

million investment, is Israel's central filtration plant and the

fourth largest in the world. Its capacity is 450 million cubic

meters of water annually, with most of the water drawn from Lake

Tiberias and distributed through the national carrier. It uses less

chemical treatment than other facilities, and is more

environmentally friendly. As part of its quality monitoring system,

Mekorot uses a fish species from Africa that is highly sensitive to

toxins as an indicator of deterioration in water quality.



15. (U) The Administrator also received briefings at the source of

Israel's national water carrier system, the Sapir Intake at Lake

Tiberias. At Sapir, massive pumps push the water from 213 meters

below sea level(Lake Tiberias) to 44 meters above sea level where it

flows to the Eshkol filtration plant. Given the Sapir location -

the northern edge of the lake, within sight of formerly

Syrian-controlled Golan Heights - the plant was placed inside a

mountain, underground for better defense of the critical resource

facility. Mekorot management briefed EPA on the mechanics of the

facility, as well as water security features of Israel's

distribution system further downstream. Water from the Sapir

facility is transported ultimately down to the Negev Desert, after

consumer use and treatment in central Israel. Hydrologists pointed

out that due to poor rains the Lake's level has fallen five meters

over the decade, and now stands only 20cm above the black line

level, below which it will be physically difficult to withdraw

water. The red-line level, below wish it is hydrologically unwise

and ecologically damaging to withdraw water, was crossed last

August.



16. (U) Desalination is Israel's hope for a future sustainable water

supply. The EPA team toured the Ashkelon desalinization plant, the

largest in the world, on October 26. The facility is a BOT (spell

out) operation drawing on investment from Veolia and an Israeli

partner IDE, and produced 105 million cm of pure water in 2007. It

uses a reverse osmosis membrane technology, pumping sea water at 70

bars of pressure through filters. Two other facilities of this

scale are slated to be opened in 2009 (Hadera) and 2013 (Palmachim),

Israel's goal is 750 mcm of desalinated water in 2013, the entirety

of consumer water demand. The security that desalination provides

to Israel's water system comes at the price of energy; the Ashkelon

plant has its own 55 MW gas-fired power plant, and nation-wide 6

percent of all electricity produced goes to supplying water around

Israel, a figure that will increase with more desalination

facilities. Ashkelon, however, is one of the most efficient

desalination plants in the world, re-using much of its energy.



17. (U) Towards addressing both energy needs and environmental

remediation, Israel's Dan Regional Association of Towns is turning

an enormous former landfill on the edge of Tel Aviv into a natural

gas source and nature/recreation park. The EPA team toured

Hiriya/Park Ariel Sharon, observing 70 wells producing 30,000 cubic

meters of natural gas captured each day from the 120 acre former

landfill. Most of the 2000 hectare site will be graded, planted and

groomed into a recreation center. One corner of Hiriya remains a

processing and transfer point for urban waste, where it is sorted

and organic materials are fed to an anaerobic digester facility for

biogas production, while glass and plastics are sent to recycling.

The goal is to reduce the waste sent to landfill by 50 percent in

weight, because Tel Aviv's waste is now sent 60 - 80 miles south, at

a cost of USD 30 per ton.



Public Roundtable

--------------

18. (U) On October 23 Administrator Johnson delivered the keynote

speech at a Tel Aviv University forum on "The Business Case for

Environmental Protection." He addressed the tension between

advancing environmental initiatives in the business world and

maintaining an economic competitive advantage. His theme was that

the two challenges are not mutually exclusive. Today, American

businesses recognize the benefits in having a strategic

environmental corporate program, and the cost effectiveness in

avoiding pollution. The pressure to find new,

ecologically-sensitive technologies can be a pro-active challenge

and enhance competitiveness. This approach is also validated by the

high cost of litigation and general public disapproval for poor

environmental performance; corporate environmental records

increasingly influence the public's purchasing and investment

decisions. In sum, a culture of compliance needs to be fostered by

public authorities. The lively roundtable discussion following

Johnson's talk included representatives from the Israeli Ministry of

Environment, the Israel Union of Environmental Defense, and the

Alfred Akirov Institute for Business and the Environment at Tel Aviv

University.



Next Steps

--------------

19. (U) Although the impending changes of government in both Israel

and the United States made policy commitments with budget

implications inappropriate, EPA Administrator and team departed with

a list of specific interests for EPA career staff to pursue. GOI

Environment Ministry would like to see the EPA share its approach to

Environmental Technology Verification, along with other

environmental programs. Closer exchange of information on

environmental approaches and technologies that could lighten the

burden of Israel complying with OECD membership criteria are a

priority as well. GOI officials acknowledged that Israel's

enforcement mechanisms are weak and need more training and better

funding, especially in light of new regulatory obligations.





20. (U) From the American side, discussions continue about specific

follow-up, but could include 3 issues:



-- Water Security: EPA will continue to follow up on the 2005

Statement of Intent on Water Security, and commit to working

together with the Israelis to enhance each country's knowledge on

water security. EPA will exchange information regarding water

security, including prevention, detection, and monitoring; and

facilitate visits to each nation's water infrastructure sites to

observe physical security arrangements and equipment. EPA will

notify and coordinate with the US Department of Homeland Security

and provide an opportunity for them to participate, if appropriate.



-- Emergency response: EPA will continue to follow-up on its

technical exchange with DOE and Israel on radiological

contamination, with another meeting in Washington on November 12th.

EPA will use this meeting to learn more about Israeli expertise on

this issue. The Israelis are interested in following up on

cooperation on area-wide contamination and recovery, and this too is

an area of concern for EPA.

-- Exchange of Technical Information: EPA will work with its

technical staff to provide information on key technical issues that

the Israelis have requested, including:

- Verification of Innovative Environmental Technologies

- Health Impact Assessment

- Risk Management

- LADAR (Leak Detection & Repair)

- PRTR (Pollutant Release and Transfer Registers)

- Review of Methodology of Israeli Ambient Air Pollution

Standards

- Environmental aspects of Israel's candidacy for OECD

membership.



Cunningham