Deliberate sewage dump closes 6 Tel Aviv beaches

A deliberate sewage dump into the Mediterranean Sea saw six beaches in Tel Aviv and Herzliya closed to the public on Sunday until further notice.

Some 180,000 cubic meters of sewage runoff — caused by municipal infrastructure maintenance and upgrades of beachfront areas — will be pumped into the sea from the Reading Power Station.

The Health Ministry warned the public to stay away from Herzliya’s Hasharon Beach as well as Tel Aviv’s Allenby, Givat Aliya, Sheraton, Hatzuk and Tel Baruch beaches unless otherwise instructed.

The municipal construction project, which was approved by the Health Ministry and the Environmental Protection Ministry, began on Sunday and was expected to last until Wednesday.

According to a report on the Hebrew-language Walla news site, aerial photos of the affected beaches will be taken to ensure the pollution has dissipated into the seawater before the beaches reopen.

Although the project was approved by the government, environmentalists and activists expressed concerns over the dumping of sewage so close to public beaches.

“Pouring sewage into the sea cannot be the only solution for this maintenance work,” said Tzafrir Gordon, the chairman of the environmental NGO Tzalul.

“It’s high time that the commission that grants permits for sewage removal acquire more advanced solutions, such as bypass pipelines that will prevent the damage to the marine environment and the health of the public,” he added.

Forecasters have predicted stormy weather for the remainder of the week, which is likely to delay the process.