An increase and aggravation of climate events, along with the continued change in climate patterns, may cause considerable damage and damage to Israel's economy and entail a risk to Israel's national security in a variety of areas. As a result, the need to implement preparedness actions at the national and strategic level was raised in Israel in order to promote effective preparation for climate change within the framework of the government's decisions from 2009 and 2018.
An increase and aggravation of climate events, along with the continued change in climate patterns, may cause considerable damage and damage to Israel's economy and entail a risk to Israel's national security in a variety of areas. As a result, the need to implement preparedness actions at the national and strategic level was raised in Israel in order to promote effective preparation for climate change within the framework of the government's decisions from 2009 and 2018.
The audit revealed that:
In aspects of national preparedness for climate change
Preparedness for the effects of climate change: Three years have passed since the government's decision 4079, Israel does not have an executable budgeted national action plan to act upon, so the overarching goal of this government's decision, according to which "Israel will have a high level of preparedness for the effects of a changing climate," has not been achieved.
Preliminary preparation: Despite the need for advance preparation and the promotion of long-term prevention actions for risks in areas that may be affected by climate change, including the areas of health, agriculture and food, the water and energy sector, infrastructure, planning and local authorities, emergency preparedness, national security, biodiversity - which were included in Government Decision 4079, according to the questionnaire According to the State Comptroller, 82% of 63 public entities in Israel did not examine the issue as part of an organizational risk management process, and 77% did not map risks and the effects of climate change on their activities.
In the aspects of building a government infrastructure for preparation
Establishing a management body with powers, resources and abilities to acquire knowledge
- Granting executive powers to the Climate Change Preparedness Administration, which operates in the Ministry of Environmental Protection and which was established by virtue of Government Resolution 4079 in 2018: the administration has a central role in the formulation, coordination, assimilation and implementation of the national climate change preparedness policy, but it was not given powers to perform its duties. This damaged the ability to plan, execute and operate the preparation of the State of Israel for the issue.
- The budgeting of the work of the administration and the actions led by it: the administration operates without being allocated the necessary resources to promote the actions assigned to it and its sub-committees, without designated standards and without an organizational framework approved by the Civil Service Commission. In the absence of a budget, research activities have not yet been promoted for the purpose of effective preparation, development of a methodology for risk analysis or tests in the economic context, such as examining the damage to the economy, the costs of prevention and the direct and indirect benefits arising from the necessary actions for the purpose of national preparation. The report on the State of Israel's preparedness for climate change, which was submitted for the government's approval in April 2021 by the administration, includes recommendations for the budgeting of approximately 50 projects immediately, without giving it the authority to carry out its duties and a long-term dedicated budget that would enable their implementation.
- A national knowledge center: the administration lacks most of the bodies recommended by the scientific work and recommendations for a national strategy (adopted by the government) as is also accepted in the world - an office-wide advisory scientific committee, a knowledge and science center, and a risk assessment expert that could help the administration serve as a national knowledge factor that will work for the creation of knowledge necessary to promote national preparedness actions on climate change.
Budgeting and implementation of preparation plans in Israel
- Budgeting of the government plan: contrary to what was stated in Government Resolution 4079, according to which every body is required to act and promote a climate risk preparedness plan, 84% of the public bodies to which a questionnaire distributed by the State Comptroller's Office was sent do not have a climate risk preparedness plan, and they have not yet budgeted the actions necessary for this; 89% of the entities did not act with the Ministry of Finance to promote programs on the subject.
- Project budgeting: Of the 378 tasks included in Government Decision 4079 regarding all the public bodies listed in this decision, 60 of them (16%) were reported by the public bodies to have been budgeted and included in the office work plans, and timetables and deadlines for execution were set for them.
Creating research knowledge for dealing with uncertainty in climate change
- The scientific-meteorological aspect: the administration did not take the necessary actions according to the scientific work and recommendations for a national strategy to complete the research knowledge gaps, and the existing knowledge base in the scientific work has hardly been developed nor updated and validated since the government's decision 4079.
- The economic aspect: Although in 2009 the government decided that preparation actions should be promoted based on an examination of economic and budgetary aspects arising from the implementation of the preparation measures, this has not yet been carried out.
- Macroeconomic assessment regarding the cost of preparation: The lack of tools, budgets and professionals in the administration for the purpose of carrying out full economic assessments may result in the reality that the State of Israel does not have a national knowledge base that includes a macroeconomic assessment to promote preparation for climate change.
- Knowledge gaps: The administration does not have a regular plan for completing knowledge gaps on the topic of preparing for climate change, and it does not have a complete picture of the state of research carried out by public sector bodies or planned research in this regard.
The construction of climatic scenarios and their use within the framework of the activities of entities
- Although updated meteorological information regarding past events and future trends is available in the hands of the Meteorological Service (HSMT), the use made by the public bodies is only partial; About three quarters of the bodies that answered the questionnaire distributed by the State Comptroller's Office reported that they do not use future meteorological trends.
- Despite the need to strengthen climate knowledge and build the Israeli climate research capacity and build the scientific knowledge base for decision-making according to Government Resolution 4079, in the absence of a budget, a national calculation center for climate simulations was not established at the Israel Defense Forces, and no other sections concerning the need to strengthen climate knowledge were carried out. Without improving the technological capabilities of the Shemat, the public bodies in Israel will have difficulty assessing the future climate trends that concern them, and because of this, a gap may arise between the government's action and the climate trend that will actually occur and affect a certain sector or a certain population.
In the aspects of formulating a national preparedness plan and its execution
The assimilation of considerations of preparation for climate change in actions and decision-making processes throughout the government (Mainstreaming)
- From the questionnaire distributed by the state comptroller's office, it emerged that about 60% of the public bodies reported that they have no contact with key bodies such as the Prime Minister's Office, the Ministry of Finance and the Planning Administration regarding preparation for the risks associated with climate change; And a quarter of the bodies define the issue of climate change as an issue that will be included in one of their goals in the coming years.
- The topic of preparing for climate change is dealt with in the administration as part of an "additional role", without specialization and specialization in the subject, and 69% of the public bodies that responded to the questionnaire distributed by the State Comptroller's Office do not have a professional function for the subject.
Identification and analysis of risks originating from climate change
- No dedicated sub-committee was established for risk assessment according to government decision 4079; The other sub-committees in the administration that dealt in the field of risks did not deal with the issues that the scientific work which includes recommendations for a national strategy from 2017 recommended that they should be included in the activity of this committee. The administration has not completed the formulation of a decision-making methodology based on risk management.
- 77% of the public bodies that responded to the questionnaire distributed by the State Comptroller's office reported that they have not yet carried out risk mapping related to climate change, and 75% of them do not carry out joint risk mapping with other public bodies; 82% of the entities did not examine the issue as part of organizational risk management; And 92% of the bodies reported that no action was taken in accordance with the prioritization of action and the climate trend analysis of the Climate Change Preparedness Administration.
- Risks to national infrastructures: There is a real fear of damage to Israel's national infrastructures due to climate change such as desalination facilities and mass transportation systems.
Recognizing the climate crisis as a national strategic threat: As of July 2021, the National Emergency Authority (NEA) has not yet included the issue of climate change in the national threat map, and therefore the issue of climate change is not included in the aggregate national reference scenario.
Preparing the security system for risks arising from climate change: In July 2021, the topic of preparing for climate change is under preliminary examination and study in the Ministry of Defense and the IDF, and work teams have not yet been established to formulate concrete work plans that will respond to the risks concerning the security system in the coming years within the framework of the IDF's multi-year plan approved until 2024 (Tnufa XNUMX). and in the medium-long term.
Promoting the preparation in coordination with the higher education system: The administration did not promote academic studies with the Council for Higher Education (MLA) or the Planning and Budgeting Committee (VTA), as stipulated in Government Resolution 4079.
In terms of health risks, diseases and outbreaks of epidemics due to climate change
The State of Israel is located in a "Hot spot" area subject to the effects and risks of climate change which cause global ecological changes. These lead to the spread of vectors (disease spreaders) to new areas, and together with a change in seasonality and the disruption of balances in nature, destruction of habitats and loss of species, the State of Israel may be exposed to a large extent to far-reaching risks concerning Israel's national security in several circles: the public health system and its well-being, Including fear of the increasing frequency of disease events and epidemics (such as the corona virus), social, mental and gender effects; food and water security; and geo-strategic aspects.
The National Plan for Health and Environment, which was decided by Government Resolution 1287 of March 2016, was not submitted for the approval of the Ministers of Health and the General Assembly and was not forwarded to the Government for approval. Also, although the Ministry of Health examined certain actions in accordance with the government's decision 4079 of July 2018, in practice this examination did not motivate any real and significant action to realize the guiding principle underlying the government's decision - to promote action plans and policy measures that will reduce the health risk. In doing so, these government decisions and the rationale behind them were not fulfilled - promoting measures to improve the quality of life of the residents of the State of Israel and future generations and to preserve their health.
State Comptroller Engelman He pointed out that despite global developments and the growing recognition of the importance of advance preparation by the State of Israel based on budgeted national plans, the findings of this audit chapter indicate that 84% of public bodies do not have a climate risk preparedness plan as part of their activities. This reality exposes Israel to risks that will increase as climate change worsens. Therefore, the State of Israel must take action on the matter and complete the formulation of national and sectoral action plans based on the allocation of the resources required for this, and join the global trend of preparing for climate change.
For all parts of the review on the science website:
- Introduction: Israel's progress in dealing with the climate crisis is negative to zero
- Chapter 1: Mitigation - the action to reduce greenhouse gas emissions that are not carried out in Israel
- Chapter 2: Adaptation - the national preparation for adapting to climate change is lacking
- Chapter 3: Economic and financial aspects of the climate crisis; Market failure
- Chapter 4: Lack of organizational, functional and professional preparation for handling the climate crisis
