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Major Victory for the Tel Aviv Region with the Approval of Ayalon ParkAyalon Park In The PressAyalon Park FAQ's
A major environmental victory was achieved two weeks ago with the unanimous approval of the Ayalon Park plan by the National Planning Council. Under SPNI’s leadership, a wide coalition of NGO’s, local residents and activists conducted a successful campaign for the creation of the park. The park will be built on the present site of central Israel’s largest landfill, Hiriya, and on adjacent agricultural lands, and will serve as the main green lung for the entire Tel Aviv region.
The plan for the creation of the park was attacked aggressively by the Hazera Company, which in previous decades leased the land for agricultural purposes, and proposed rezoning the land for massive residential construction. Hazera’s campaign attempted to portray the Ayalon Park plan, one of the most enlightened examples of Israel’s progress in the field of the environment, as an elitist initiative forced upon local communities against their will. However, Hazera’s well-funded media campaign backfired, resulting in a public outcry and increasing the overall support for the park.
The Ayalon Park will be contiguous with other, existing green areas. The park will present a vast expanse of natural scenery - woods, fields, rivers and lakes – in addition to the excavated archaeological site of the Talmudic Benei Brak town. A visitors’ center will be built, along with a recycling park, which will use the Dan region’s waste to produce energy, purified water, compost and even garden furniture. Development of the park has already begun, with over 10 kilometers of bike paths open to the public.
During the past six months, SPNI’s Tel Aviv center has worked to create grassroots support for the park by raising public awareness of the plan. This was accomplished by setting up information booths around the city (in which 17,000 residents signed postcards calling for the creation of the park), arranging community events and getting the media involved in the campaign.
The approval of the Ayalon Park project is a historic event in the history of environmental issues in the State of Israel. The creation of the park will solve the various environmental problems affecting residents of Tel Aviv’s southern neighborhoods, as well as strengthening the growing support for environmental issues in Israel.
For more information about Ayalon Park, or to support the campaign, send us an email at: tlv2@spni.org.il
