Israel approves its first-ever plan to prevent flooding

Planners approve Israel’s first national outline plan to prevent flooding.

Designed with the help of the Agriculture Ministry, the new plan aims to define and maintain Israel’s hydrological infrastructure.

It deals with sites for rainwater runoff and establishes a mechanism to protect the parts of river basins that absorb water naturally when rivers overflow.

“In the reality of the climate crisis, extreme weather events, and in particular floods, are becoming part of our daily lives. Despite Israel’s image as a dry country, heavy damage is caused to property and even [loss of] life from flooding events every year,” says an Agriculture Ministry statement.

It adds that challenges related to drainage and flooding are holding up the construction of hundreds of thousands of residential units.

David Assaf, deputy director of Environmental Resources Management at the Agriculture Ministry, says the new plan will “introduce these essential considerations into the planning system. This is a very significant step in terms of the government’s perception and a paradigm shift in the worlds of planning and runoff management.”