Officials have cautioned that the processing platform off the Carmel Coast will emit carcinogenic benzene, but insist the situation is being monitored to minimize risks.
Noa Shpigel, Zafrir Rinat | Dec. 31, 2019
Texas-based Noble Energy began natural gas production at its Leviathan processing platform off Israel’s Mediterranean coast on Tuesday.

As processing of the gas begins, dozens of tons of pollutants were expected to be released into the air, including 76 kilograms (167 pounds) of benzene, a carcinogen. The processing platform is 9.5 kilometers (about 6 miles) off Israel’s Carmel coast.

Three hundred people protested outside government offices in Tel Aviv against the project’s potential health risks. Some held signs saying “the people demand clean air to breathe.”

Some residents in towns south of Haifa made plans to leave their homes for at least the duration of the startup phase of production, fearing air pollution levels would rise.

Local authorities sought to allay these concerns saying no dangerous level of pollution had been monitored on Tuesday morning, and they would be on the lookout to see whether the situation changed later in the day.

The extraction of undersea natural gas to the platform began on Tuesday morning, involving two wells at a drilling platform 120 kilometers (75 miles) off the Israeli coast. The gas was to flow through a pipeline to the processing platform 9.5 kilometers from the coast off Dor Beach.

The emissions of pollutants were expected to last through the afternoon.

The Sharon-Carmel Association of Cities and the Environmental Protection Ministry will be monitoring the process with hourly reports on the composition of the gas and a sampling of the pollutants at several different locations. Thermal cameras will monitor possible leaks.

Both agencies said that according to forecast models, air pollution on shore should not exceed maximum allowable benzene concentrations.

But some residents said they wouldn’t take any chances. In Zichron Ya’akov, Pardes Hannah, Hadera, Atlit and communities in the Carmel Coast region many people said they had plans to temporarily evacuate their homes.

Gal Kopf of Zichron Yaakov was planning to leave with her husband and two children on Monday night to stay with her family in Kiryat Haim, a northern neighborhood of Haifa in an area of the city that is home to heavy industry. “On ordinary days, it’s full of pollution, but it’s apparently better there. We’re not prepared to be guinea pigs,” she said.

“If the Environment Ministry would bring their families for a picnic on Dor Beach [on Tuesday], maybe they would restore some of my confidence. But as long as they aren’t doing that, of course they will say there is no risk. It’s not as if they will see results immediately. Tomorrow is just the opening shot.”

Maya Cypress of Moshav Avihayil, northeast of Netanya, and one of the organizers of the evacuation, said she and her husband weren’t sure when they would return home with their two children. Spending time with her parents in Jerusalem was one option.

“The emissions will continue for eight hours but what will happen after that? The gas production is starting and there isn’t any filter for the pollution,” Cypress said.

An organization called Shomrei Habayit, which has been battling the gas platform, posted a list on its Facebook page of area doctors who had committed to leave the area. The organization also announced plans for a protest strike at several area elementary schools and high schools.

https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/.premium-we-re-not-guinea-pigs-israelis-leave-homes-as-leviathan-gas-production-starts-1.8341816
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Steinitz: Leviathan supplying gas to Jordan, locals’ pollution fears ‘hysterical’ – YNET

Energy minister says newly opened field will also be delivering gas to Egypt within days, Israel will soon see closure of two coal power stations and begin to enjoy millions of dollars in revenue from exports
Ilana Curiel |
Published: 01.01.2

Energy Minister Yuval Steinitz said Wednesday that Israel’s newly online Leviathan field is now supplying gas to Jordan, as he rapped residents of the north for “baseless, hysterical” fears that the fully operational rig would cause harmful pollution.

“And thus Israel has become an energy exporter for the first time in its history,” Steinitz told Ynet, although Israel’s Tamar gas field has been exporting gas to Jordan for the past two years after signing an agreement in 2014.

“It is happening right now at this moment and I am announcing here for the first time that at this moment Israel is becoming a gas exporter to Jordan. Another week, 10 days – to Egypt,” Steinitz said.

After a series of delays, natural gas began to flow Tuesday afternoon from Israel’s Leviathan rig off the coast of Haifa.
“When I formulated the gas deal about five years ago, I said that during my tenure there would be no situation in which Leviathan [gas rig] would remain stuck out at sea while we continued to die from the air pollution from coal and I was told I was mistaken,” Steinitz said Wednesday.

“When I stated at a High Court hearing that there might be gas exports to Egypt and Jordan, they said I was misleading the judges. So Leviathan was developed and air pollution is already starting to decline and will be drastically reduced thanks to Leviathan’s development.

“The next two years will see the closure of the coal power station in Hadera and then the one in Ashkelon. Tens of billions of dollars in revenue will also reach us in the coming years,” he said.

Steinitz also took a swipe at the residents along the coast close to the rig, who vacated their homes during the emission of gases before Leviathan came online.

“There was completely baseless, unnecessary hysteria that I had never seen before. It is not even worth discussing. There are thousands of such facilities in Europe and the U.S. – communities were never evacuated because of them,” he said.
The mammoth gas treatment facility has given rise to concerns of worried citizens, fearing polluting emissions from the gas rig will pose a possible threat to their health and the environment.

Leviathan’s first two gas wells were opened at 2am and began pushing pollutants out of the pipeline as part of a flushing process.
The Ministry of Environmental Protection said Tuesday afternoon that the major part of the process was carried out between 3.20pm and 4.30pm, during which time large quantities of carbon, including benzene, were emitted.
According to ministry data, the actual volume of emissions from the rig was significantly lower than the quantities predicted in an assessment before the process began.

“The ministry is monitoring the rate of hydrocarbon emissions on the rig and the concentrations measured at the onshore monitoring stations,” it said.

The gas will also supply to the Electric Corp, and from Wednesday Israeli consumers were expected to see a 4.13% reduction in tariffs as a result.

https://www.ynetnews.com/article/ASBGPYK1M#autoplay
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Protests as Leviathan gas rigs expels pollutants before going online – YNETAlthough environmental protection and health ministries say procedure to flush benzene doesn’t endanger residents of Haifa coastline, many are still concerned emissions from site off Haifa coast will cause increased cancer morbidity rates
Ilana Curiel |
Published: 12.31.19

Emissions began flowing from the Leviathan offshore natural gas field Tuesday morning despite concerned locals vociferously protesting pollutants emitted by the rig as it prepared to go online.

According to Noble Energy, the facility was expected to continuously release gases for 8 hours, emitting 76 kilograms of benzene – a colorless, highly flammable toxic substance – during the process’s last three hours.
Leviathan’s first two gas wells were opened at 2am and gas began to flow, pushing nitrogen out of the pipeline as part of a flushing process.
The nitrogen reportedly began leaving the pipeline at around 7:30am and would take around five hours to fully exit the gas rig. The pollutants reported by Noble Energy will be emitted between 1pm to 3pm.
The mammoth gas treatment facility, located just 10 kilometers off the shore of Haifa, has given rise to concerns of worried citizens, fearing polluting emissions from the gas rig will pose a possible threat to their health and the environment.

A concerned citizen from Ein Ayala, a moshav located south of Haifa, compared Leviathan to BAZAN – an oil refinery in the Haifa port, whose polluting emissions are believed to cause Haifa metropolis’s increased rates of cancer.
“They’ve just put another BAZAN in front of our house,” said the citizen. “Haifa has massive rates of cancer and we are afraid the same will happen to us here.”
The head of the City Union for Environmental Quality for the region, Nir Sahar, has been monitoring air quality around the gas rig.
He said Tuesday morning that, “benzene rates in the air appear to be normal for the time being.”
“Benzene concentrations appear to be very low, quite normal to what we have seen in the past year,” said Sahar. “The public can log on to the union’s website or app, follow the level of pollutants online and see that the residents’ quality of life is preserved.”

Research published in October suggests that Noble Energy is “grossly underestimating” its polluting emissions and the possible threat it could pose to the country’s environment.
However, the Ministry of Energy gave its final approval to start the production at Leviathan last week after a court lifted a temporary injunction granted over environmental concerns.
The ministry stated that there are no special guidelines for the public and that the impact on air quality in the coastal area is expected to remain low.

Jerusalem’s District Court’s Judge Eli Abarbanel, who reversed the previous decision, is said to have been convinced by the Ministry of Environmental Protection that Leviathan’s work program, and gas output permit, were formulated based on the opinions of certified specialists.

https://www.ynetnews.com/article/rkn5av001L
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Leviathan gas platform’s final test ends successfully – Jerusalem Post

“As we expected, there was no change in routine benzene concentrations,” the ministry said in a statement.
By ALON EINHORN DECEMBER 31, 2019

The final stage of testing at the Leviathan natural-gas platform on Tuesday morning ended successfully. Despite public concerns about pollutants that were expected to be emitted, the Environmental Protection Ministry made it clear that at the end of operations no deviations in air-pollution data were recorded.

“As we expected, there was no change in routine benzene concentrations,” the ministry said in a statement, adding that Noble Energy, the operator of the Leviathan gas platform, Delek Drilling and Ratio had met all required conditions.

Environmental Protection Minister Ze’ev Elkin said most of the gas used in Israel is from the Leviathan gas field, “a huge achievement for the State of Israel” and also “an environmental milestone” in the country’s transition from coal to natural gas.

“This is an historic day for Noble [Energy] and for the State of Israel,” said Bini Zomer, Noble’s vice president for regional affairs. “With the flow of gas from Leviathan, Israel has achieved a level of energy security that, only a few short years ago, would have been unimaginable.”

“The natural gas from Leviathan will improve Israel’s air quality by displacing coal for electricity production, will provide cost saving and much needed government revenues and, with exports to neighboring countries, will lead to unprecedented commercial ties with countries in the region,” he said.

“We are proud of our commitment to the people of Israel and look forward to bringing the benefits of our development to the people of the region,” Zomer said.

The Leviathan wells are located 130 kilometers west of Haifa.

Residents who live close to the beach had begun evacuating their homes, believing it would significantly increase air pollution along the nearby coastline. The project partners emphasized on Friday “activities carried out on the platform do not impact routine life.”

“We recommend that the public download the application ‘SvivaAIR’ and to update in real time on the results of monitoring stations that show the status of air quality in the area,” the ministry recommended.

The final test, during which pipes filled with natural gas leading from the gas reservoir to the platform, began at approximately 7 a.m. and lasted eight hours.

During the procedure, gas flowed for the first time from the wells through two 120-km.-long nitrogen-filled pipes to the platform, 10 km. off the shore. The test finished when nitrogen levels in the pipes decreased to a predetermined level. According to the Leviathan project partners, additional emissions from the platform during the test were “minimal” and did not exceed 0.135 micrograms per cubic meter air.

Leviathan natural-gas exports to neighboring countries are expected to begin in the coming weeks.

The Leviathan reservoir, one of the largest natural-gas fields discovered worldwide in the last decade, is thought to contain up to 605 billion cu. m. (bcm) of natural gas, equivalent to 65 years of domestic gas consumption. Following the conclusion of commissioning tests, the platform is due to pump gas to Israel’s domestic market, as well as to Egypt and Jordan.

In February 2018, Delek and Noble Energy signed a $15 billion decade-long deal to supply 64 bcm of natural gas to Egypt from Leviathan and the Tamar gas field, already in operation since 2013.

The deal follows a September 2016 agreement worth $10b. between Jordan’s National Electric Power Company Ltd. and the Leviathan project partners to supply a gross quantity of 45 bcm of natural gas to Israel’s eastern neighbor over a 15-year period.

https://www.jpost.com/Israel-News/Leviathan-gas-field-begins-operation-amidst-protests-61263

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Leviathan gas field receives final approval hours before operation begins – Jerusalem Post

The ministry stated that Noble Energy, the operator of the Leviathan gas platform, has held up to all required conditions.
By JERUSALEM POST STAFF DECEMBER 31, 2019

The Leviathan natural gas field received final approval from the Ministry of Environmental Protection on Monday night just four hours before operations, even though the ministry promised to provide sufficient warning beforehand to give local residents time to prepare, according to Israeli business daily Calcalist.

The ministry stated that Noble Energy, the operator of the Leviathan gas platform, has held up to all required conditions.

According to the ministry, the announcement is just a continuation of a prior announcement on Friday that was made “conditionally,” and that’s why the start of operations is happening tomorrow as planned.

There are no special directives for civilians, the ministry stressed, and any effect on the air quality in the area should be negligible, according to Calcalist. The ministry added that there are no directives at all to evacuate residents and that all experts agree that there will be no danger to the public.

Environmental Protection Minister Ze’ev Elkin, the director of the ministry and ministry officials will be present along the shore in the area, monitoring stations and at the Noble Energy control center.

“We recommend that the public download the application ‘SvivaAIR’ and to update in real time on the results of monitoring stations that show the status of air quality in the area,” said the ministry.

According to Calcalist, the ministry’s earlier announcement that was made conditionally about the start of operations was not a valid notification to the public.

Requests by the business daily for clarification about the ministry’s failure to notify residents ahead of time, remained unanswered as of Monday night.

Operations at the Leviathan gas field will start at 2:00 a.m. Israel time. Five hours later, different pollutants will come out of the gas pipes after it arrives to the gas platform. During the up to eight hour process, the carcinogenic gas benzene will be released in amounts that are usually only permitted over a period of one year and three months. Other polluting gases will be released at levels permissible over a period of two and a half years.

At least seven schools in the area will be closed on Tuesday in protest and a number of doctors from the area have said that they will avoid being in the area on Tuesday to avoid risks.

The partners behind the offshore energy project announced on Friday that the final stage of testing at the Leviathan natural gas platform had been rescheduled for Tuesday morning.

The Leviathan platform has had the final stage of testing delayed multiple times.

Last week, shortly before the platform was the ministry said it had not been satisfied by measures to sample and monitor pollution at the rig and along the coast during the final testing procedure.

Despite environmental groups and local residents opposing the test, arguing that it will significantly increase air pollution along the nearby coastline, the project partners emphasized on Friday that “activities carried out on the platform do not impact routine life.”
The Homeland Guards environmental group, which has spearheaded opposition to the establishment of the platform, criticized the timing of the rescheduled test and called on local residents to leave their homes and join a protest in central Tel Aviv on Tuesday.

The Leviathan reservoir, one of the largest natural gas fields discovered worldwide in the last decade, is thought to contain up to 605 billion cu.m. (bcm) of natural gas, equivalent to 65 years of domestic gas consumption. Following the conclusion of commissioning tests, the platform is due to pump gas to Israel’s domestic market, as well as to Egypt and Jordan.

Eytan Halon contributed to this report.

https://www.jpost.com/Israel-News/Leviathan-gas-field-receives-final-approval-hours-before-operation-begins-612601
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