Sustainable Development and Environmental Projects
In cooperation with several regional councils throughout the Negev, especially the Ramat HaNegev Regional Council, the Negev Foundation is committed to the development of environmental projects and sustainability in the Negev.
The Ramat Hanegev Regional Council has requested that the Negev Foundation secure funding for the following :
The Ramat Negev region is the least populated region in Israel but due to its arid climate and the presence of farms and agricultural facilities it faces its own set of environmental stressors. The Ramat Negev Region relies significantly on agriculture as a basis for its economy and therefore it accumulates a large amount of agricultural waste which includes leaves, branches, and the like. Typically, these items are burned or deposited in landfills, which are not ideal solutions because they create pollution and take up much needed space. Another environmental stressor the region faces is a safety hazard due to its camel population, mostly owned by local Bedouin families. The camels frequently enter roadways presenting danger to cars and trucks through traffic accidents.
In order to address these environmental stressors the Ramat Negev Regional Council hopes to build an enclosed space for local camels near Nitzana on the Israeli-Egyptian border, and to use the agricultural waste as feed. The goal is for this pilot initiative to be successful in reducing both the animals’ need to wander in search of food, and the amount of agricultural waste in the region. This project would be carried out by the Ramat Negev Desert Agro-Research Center. Other goals of the project include: maintaining a low level of camel-vehicle incidents in the region, reducing the amount of agricultural waste removed by burning and landfills, and engaging growers in discussions about other means of disposal of agricultural waste.
“Waste to Feed” demonstrates how ‘green’ wastes can be put to productive use, addresses a major safety hazard, enables cooperation between Israeli residents and their Bedouin neighbors, and models a cost-effective local solution to a local problem. The project also aims to address a central tension within the Israeli environmental context on how to balance the need for a robust agricultural sector while reducing the impact that this sector has on the environment. The success of this project will demonstrate that such a balance can, in fact, be obtained. Initial funding required: $100,000.
Israel’s population is expanding rapidly therefore creating an increased pressure on an already stressed environment. The Ramat Negev region of Israel, however, contains approximately 22% of the land of Israel but is only inhabited by about 5,000 people and therefore has a significant amount of non-inhabited areas. In recent years, the area as seen as increase in development including the building and expansion of military facilities, a drug rehabilitation center and the development of additional land for agriculture. These projects have led to tensions between the developers and those seeking to preserve the areas natural characteristics.
In response to these tensions, the Ramat Negev Regional Council aims to undertake a first-time survey of the open spaces within its jurisdiction. Managed through the Ramat Negev Desert Agro-Research Center the survey will be conducted by experts and will collect information needed in order to better understand the ecological, historical, and cultural significance of the region. The information obtained will serve as a basis upon which decisions will be made regarding future regional development.
The goals of this project include: creating a of a database of knowledge regarding the open spaces of the Ramat Negev region, stimulating a conversation within the region about how this knowledge should affect decision-making regarding development, and implementing recommendations emanating from the survey into local, regional, and national policies addressing the relationship between development and the environment.
This project will be evaluated and analyzed by the Ramat Negev Agro-Research Center and will establish a baseline for the region’s development for the next twenty years. It is an essential first step in shaping the future of the region. At present, no other regional body in Israel is engaged in systematic mapping of the land under its jurisdiction. Ramat Negev’s leaders believe that this approach can serve as a model for other areas within the country. Initial funding required: $100,000.
“The Ramat Hanegev Regional Council has adopted two predominant principles of sustainable development: strict protection of nature and its existing ecological systems and smart use of available sustainable natural resources or resources that can be renewed relatively quickly instead of traditional energy source.
Preserving ecological systems has turned the subject of sustainable development into one of the major issues heading the global agenda in the 21st century. This type of development is environmentally friendly, and is interlaced with the environment in a natural way.
The following information is designed to introduce you to some of the most fascinating projects taking place in different locations throughout Ramat Negev on the "hot topic" of sustainable development. They reveal new breakthroughs in environmental protection, energy conservation and advanced technologies in other infrastructures as well. The council, spanning the largest area in Israel, has a 1.1 million hectare jurisdiction (approximately 22% of the entire area of the State of Israel) from the Negev Junction in the north to the Ramon Crater in the south. This enormous area contains natural treasures and landscapes which are rare in our country and constitute an inseparable part of the high-quality mosaic of life in Ramat Hanegev.
Along with the need to protect these authentic natural assets and high quality of life, the desert region is characterized by a hot, dry climate and very little rainfall and natural water reservoirs. In order to balance the environmental issues with regional development in tourism, agriculture, industry and various private enterprises, the council has adopted two predominant principles of sustainable development: strict protection of nature and its existing ecological systems and smart use of available sustainable natural resources or resources that can be renewed relatively quickly instead of traditional energy sources. In other words: development with the environment—not at its expense. It turns out that in sustainable development, as presented below, the sky’s the limit—and without polluting it.”
For more detailed information please click on the following link:
http://ramat-negev.org.il/en/main.php?m=1180&s1=1588&s2=1902
