Mass Fish Die-Off Near Netanya Sparks Environmental Crisis Fears

Sami Ali, from the Jisr al-Zarqa Fishermen's Committee, has warned of potential environmental repercussions following the discovery of large quantities of dead mullet fish at the mouth of the Falik stream south of Netanya. He urged relevant authorities to conduct urgent and transparent tests to determine the cause of the phenomenon.

Ali stated that recent days have seen several unusual events along the country's coastlines, most recently the discovery of dead fish by fishermen in the area where the stream meets the sea. While acknowledging that mullet can live in both fresh and saltwater, he emphasized that the current scale of the die-off raises serious questions about its true cause.

Several possibilities are being considered, including elevated water temperatures leading to reduced oxygen levels, or the influx of pollutants and pesticides from agricultural areas and factories. The Professional Fishermen's Organization has approached various authorities requesting water and fish analyses but has yet to receive clear results or an official explanation.

Ali linked this incident to a recent event off the coast of Ashkelon, where fishing was banned over a wide area after chemical substances were sprayed to combat an unusual algae bloom affecting desalination plants. The Water Authority had reportedly halted irrigation to large agricultural areas due to reduced output from some desalination plants before the spraying occurred along approximately 9 kilometers of coastline and a kilometer offshore.

Ali accused official bodies of withholding information and not providing the public with a complete picture of the situation at sea, deeming the information released so far to be partial and insufficient. He stressed that the public has a right to know the causes of the fish deaths and the implications of using chemical substances, not only for fishermen but for anyone potentially affected by damage to the marine environment and food security. He warned that continued ambiguity and the failure to publish test results could exacerbate public concerns, especially given the recurrence of unusual environmental incidents along the coast recently.