| Israel | |||||||||||||||||||
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| Location | Middle East, bordering the Mediterranean Sea, between Egypt and Lebanon | ||||||||||||||||||
| National websites |
Office of the Prime Minister |
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| Embassy / Chancery in U.S. |
3514 International Drive NW Washington D.C. 20008 +1 202 364-5500 |
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| Agencies responsible for biological inventory and conservation | Ministry of the Environment | ||||||||||||||||||
| Non-governmental organizations concerned with conservation | WWF - The World WildLife Fund | ||||||||||||||||||
| Major Natural Resources | The main natural resources are minerals and metals. These resources
are used to make machinery and other types of metal equipment. The country also contains small amounts of natural gas
and crude oil which is processed and sold in the form of various petroleum products. |
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| Major Environmental and Conservation Issues | Israel contains a huge desert and it is increasing in size
due to deforestation and desertification. There is limited fresh water resources which adds to these problems.
Air pollution is causing many problems, most of the pollution comes from industry and automobiles. The groundwater is
polluted from industrial and domestic waste, chemical fertilizers, and pesticides. |
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| Statistics | Information Sources | ||||||||||||||||||
| Land area | 20,330 Sq. km | ||||||||||||||||||
| Area of forest | very little | ||||||||||||||||||
| Area of wetlands | very little | ||||||||||||||||||
| Area of territorial waters | 440 sq km | ||||||||||||||||||
| Population: | 5,750,000 | Density: | 281 / Sq. km | ||||||||||||||||
| Area protected (ha) (only areas >1000ha) at all IUCN levels: | 307,835 ha | Fraction of land area protected (%): | 14.82 % | ||||||||||||||||
| Major Protected Areas | List of Major Protected Areas | Information Center for the Environment | |||||||||||||||||
| Endemic Species |
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| Endangered, Threatened and Vulnerable Species |
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World Conservation Monitoring Centre - Animal | |||||||||||||||||
| Extinct Species |
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World Conservation Monitoring Centre - Animal | |||||||||||||||||
| Species listed on CITES Appendices | CITES-listed Species Database | ||||||||||||||||||
| Legislation | |||||||||||||||||||
| Laws protecting endangered or threatened species | |||||||||||||||||||
| Laws protecting endangered ecosystems | The National Parks and Nature Reserves Law | ||||||||||||||||||
| Signatory to CITES | December 18, 1979 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Signatory to Ramsar Wetlands Convention | March 12, 1997 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Signatory to Convention on Biological Diversity | August 7, 1995 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Signatory to Migratory Bird Treaty | |||||||||||||||||||
| Member of International Whaling Commission | Never Signed | ||||||||||||||||||
| Signatory to other international treaties designed to protect or manage biological resources |
August 4, 1953 - Convention for the Establishment of the European and Mediterranean Plant Protection Organisation December 6, 1951 - International Plant Protection Convention February 11, 1966 - International Convention for the Prevention of Pollution of the Sea by Oil ,1954, as amended in 1962 and 1969 May 12, 1984 - International Convention for the Protection of New Varieties of Plants as amended on 23.10.1978 November 1, 1983 - Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species of Wild Animal June 10, 1995 - Protocol Concerning Specially Protected Areas and Biological Diversity in the Mediterranean December 4, 1995 - Agreement for the Implementation of the Provisions of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea relating to the Conservation and Management of Straddling Fish Stocks and Highly Migratory Fish Stocks |
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| Natural Resource Use | Information Sources | ||||||||||||||||||
| Fisheries | 90-100 million tons per year - Over fishing and pollution is a big problem around Israel. A great amount of stress is being placed on the fish reserves of the country. |
Marine AquaCulture | |||||||||||||||||
| Forestry / deforestation | Deforestation and Desertafication are major problems in Israel. The lack of water makes it hard for forests to survive. | ||||||||||||||||||
| Ecotourism | Little | ||||||||||||||||||
| Trade in wildlife products | Little | ||||||||||||||||||
| Hunting | Little | ||||||||||||||||||
| Other uses of natural resources | Minerals and Metals | ||||||||||||||||||
| Human Impacts on Natural Resources | Information Sources | ||||||||||||||||||
| Air pollution | Major Problems with industry and vehicle emissions. | ||||||||||||||||||
| Water pollution | Nitrates. Due to the drying of swamps, agricultural cultivation and heavy use of
chemical fertilizers, thousands of tons of nitrates are washed down into the coastal aquifer.
This is the main source of water pollution. |
Marine AquaCulture | |||||||||||||||||
| Development activities | The Population of Israel is increasing quite rapidly. All of the coastal areas
have been urbanized. The Negev desert, comprising over half of the country's
land area, is inhabited by only 7% of the country's population. |
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| Introduced species | Little | ||||||||||||||||||
| Legislation addressing these issues | The National Parks and Nature Reserves Law |
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| Restoration and Reintroduction | Information Sources | ||||||||||||||||||
| Programs for restoration of damaged habitat | The Center for Desert Research and Restoration Ecology The National Masterplan for National Parks, Nature Reserves, and Landscape Reverves The National Masterplan for Forests and Afforestation |
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| Programs for ex situ conservation (captive breeding and reintroduction) of endangered species | Marine AquaCulture | ||||||||||||||||||
Return to Endangered Species Protection around the World
Page compiled by Will Kitto aspart of a class project in h90 "The Science of Biodiversity and Conservation " (Peter J. Bryant, Instructor), University of California, Irvine, Irvine, CA 92697, USA