Factory Spills

On August 2011, the rules of the water and sewage corporations (factory spill drained into sewage systems) 2011 came into effect (hereinafter: the spill rules"), defining various provision concerning the regulation of factory spills in a manner that does not damage the sewage system, the sewage processing system or the use of purified sewage water, and also to prevent public and environmental hazards and damages.  

In 2014 the rules of the water and sewage corporations were updated (factory spills drained into the sewage system).

Sewage deriving from a factory (industrial spills) which are drained from the factory to the sewage system, save for sanitary spills.

Industrial spills contain various organic and inorganic materials, heavy metals, chemicals, pesticides, fertilizers and so on. It is therefore extremely important to handle the source of the spill in order to prevent contamination and destruction of the sewage removal infrastructure.

Industrial spills have an environmental destruction potential which far exceeds their relative part of industrial spills. Industrial spills can contain various contaminants whose range of influences is very broad. Such an impact is expressed in, among other things, harm to transportation and urban spills processing systems and harm to the quality of municipal purified sewage, contaminating both land and groundwater.

Provisions of the law:

A factory will not directly or indirectly cause the flow of spills considered to be "spills forbidden to flow" into the sewage system of the corporation.

A factory will not drain into the sewage system "excluded spills" save subject to reporting or receiving appropriate authorization from the corporation and the Environmental Protection Authority, all according to clause 10a of the spills rules.

The sampling process in the corporation:

In accordance to the rules, the corporation performs an annual monitoring and control program for industrial spills in whose production processes there is concern of the drainage of spills into the sewage system, contrary to the rules. Another trigger for inspections is the result of previous samplings performed in the factories. The yearly monitoring system includes the list of the sampled businesses throughout the cities of Beer Sheva and Ofakim, including the parameters sampled in every business and the frequency of the sampling.

In accordance with the rules, factories are obligated to bear the cost of sampling and inspections, all according to the rates set in the water and sewage corporations rules (fees for water and sewage services and establishing water or sewage services) of 2009 (hereinafter: "fee rules"). The cost of sampling will be calculated by the corporation in accordance with the detailing for the parameters sampled in the business.

Insofar as the samples performed by the corporation shall be found to show that a factory is draining unusual spills and / or spills forbidden from drainage, the factory will be charged according to the fees set for these spills in the fees rules. The calculation of the cost of the toll levied due to spills, excluded and forbidden materials is performed according to the instructions provided by the Water Authority.

To the published findings of the spills sampling in the corporation site – press here 

Factories included in the monitoring plan which oppose the publication of this information may notify the corporation of this, with attached arguments for their opposition.