Health minister opposes phosphates test mine

Yael German rejects Israel Chemicals request to mine at Sde Barir

Minister of Health Yael German opposes even a test phosphates mine at Sde Barir, dealing another blow to Israel Chemicals Ltd. (TASE: ICL).

In a letter to the director of the Planning Administration at the Ministry of the Interior, German said that after reading the report by Prof. Jonathan Samet and comments by the public health services, and reviewing previous reports on the matter, she concludes that even a pilot project would be wrong, because there is no assurance that full-scale mining would not have negative health consequences.

Israel Chemicals wants to carry out pilot phosphate mining at Sde Barir, near Arad, to test the effect on air pollution and to prepare to the effects to health from full-scale mining.

"On one hand are the fears of Arad's residents to their health and the fate of their town, while on the other hand are the fears of Amfert Negev's employees for their livelihoods," says German. "In view of the analysis of the expected level of risk of full-scale mining at Sde Barir to the residents of the entire region, I am persuaded that mining at Sde Barir will result in a health risk that does not meet the accepted health risk standards in the US and Europe, and we cannot agree to this."

Israel Chemicals warns that its phosphates reserves at Mishor Rotem will be depleted within 8-10 years, requiring a new source, and that Sde Barir is the most suitable.

Published by Globes [online], Israel business news - www.globes-online.com - on April 3, 2014

© Copyright of Globes Publisher Itonut (1983) Ltd. 2014

Twitter Facebook Linkedin RSS Newsletters גלובס Israel Business Conference 2018