The Yavneh cell began as an organization of residents who moved to Yavneh neighborhoods, close to the northern industrial area of Ashdod. Only after arriving to their new homes, did they detect the bad odor that made them shut themselves inside their homes and close the windows each time. The residents suspected that the smells were not just bothersome, but were polluting the air with dangerous substances from the factories in Ashdod. Some of the residents got asthma after moving to the area, and some of them started having headaches, breathing difficulties and burning eyes. All these increased the suspicions, as they were only some of the symptoms that the air pollution caused, together with an increase in vascular diseases and cancer.
Cell activists decided to examine the issue and found an interesting piece of data in a report at the Ministry of Environmental Protection. In 2021, there was a decrease in air pollution all over the country, except for the northern industrial area of Ashdod. In the area, shockingly, there was a rise of 107% in pollution and emission of substances known or suspected to be carcinogenic.
In the face of the increase of pollution, the activists found an alarming gap in the air quality measurement in the region: They discovered that the monitoring stations scattered in Ashdod suffered from repeated malfunctions in monitoring benzene – a carcinogenic without odor or taste, which is emitted from refineries. In addition, the activists were stunned to find out that the neighborhoods surrounding the polluting industries, have a significant blind spot regarding anything to do with air quality: In Quarter B in Ashdod – adjacent to the industrial area, and the northern Yavneh neighborhoods nearby, there were no monitoring stations at all.
However, our struggle is not over! In order to ensure their health, the activists demand:
- Recognition of the northern industrial area of Ashdod as a pollution-stricken area.
- Commitment of the Israeli government to an orderly plan to deal with the polluting industry.
- Significant enforcement against polluting industries.
