‘The burned landscape will remain with us for a long time’: A month ago, flames scorched some of Israel’s most iconic landscapes and popular picnic spots. Some will need decades to recover – amid the challenge of global warming
Moshe Gilad. May 29, 202
The air around the monastery on the Latrun hilltop near Jerusalem was thick with the scent of charred earth. The ground lay completely scorched as carob, olive, oak and pine trees stood blackened and brittle. The Emmaus Monastery near the Tel-Aviv-Jerusalem highway was encircled by a ring of black soot as white stones starkly emerged from the ash.
If you drive along Route 3, which intersects with the highway, you see vast expanses of blackened fields. The hilltop cooperative village of Neveh Shalom boasts a sweeping view of the Ayalon Valley to the northeast, where the scale of the devastation becomes clear.
The inconsistency of the massive fires around a month ago is also evident in the lush green swaths that abut large, charred scars. There seems to have been no method to the flames’ madness.
At Neveh Shalom, the road leading to the forest is studded with sizable pinkish-red patches. At first glance, these vibrant stains resemble environmental art, but actually they’re remnants of fire retardant dropped by planes just days earlier. The flames came dangerously close to Neveh Shalom’s homes.
Canada Park, large sections of which were completely burned, remains closed, with two Jewish National Fundvehicles blocking the entrance. Until 1967, three Arab villages stood where the park is now. Deir Ayyub was destroyed during the 1948 war, left as a no-man’s-land. Imwas and Yalo were demolished after the Six-Day War.
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The blazes in the Jerusalem Hills wiped out most of the trees planted in the park over the past 50 years. Ancient terraces, remnants of village houses and fragments of stone walls stand stark against the blackened landscape. The forests, planted in many areas to obscure history, have burned away, revealing the past and exposing the grim reality of the present. Israel’s attempt to conceal and forget the past has withered in the flames.
I returned to the highway, Route 1, and headed toward Jerusalem. The first stretch after Latrun looked like something out of a horror movie; the road’s edges were black on both sides. The once-green slopes were now charred. Trees that once cast gentle shadows stood like crooked skeletons, twisted and surreal.
Part of the horror lies in the fires’ devastation of familiar places like Canada Park and the Eshtaol Forest. The flames scorched some of Israel’s most iconic landscapes and popular picnic spots.
Further along toward Jerusalem, it’s finally green woods. The towns of Abu Ghosh and Kiryat Ye’arim suffered no visible damage.
Even the road to Nataf – a village that has endured major fires in the past and was evacuated a month ago – reveals little evidence of the disaster. Only a few firehoses in the streets remind us of the fragility of it all.
The forests, planted in many areas to obscure history, have burned away, revealing the past and exposing the grim reality of the present.
In the first fire a month ago, around 6,000 dunams (1,480 acres) were scorched, including 4,000 dunams of JNF-managed forests. The second fire consumed around 20,000 dunams in the Ayalon Valley-Canada Park area, half of which were JNF-managed forests. These areas will need decades to recover.
Gilad Ostrovsky, the JNF’s chief forester, says the fires’ timing at the end of April is unusual and aligns with predictions about global warming. “We’re seeing a situation exactly as described in the textbooks: high heat, low humidity and conditions that make it hard to control fires,” he says.
I spoke with Ostrovsky remotely while he was attending the UN Forum on Forests in New York. He said key topics included the battle against desertification and the management of forests in semiarid regions like Israel’s northern Negev in the south.
“In Israel, there are no natural fires caused by lightning like in the United States,” Ostrovsky says. “Everything that happens here results from human action, whether it’s negligence, military training or arson.”
What are the conclusions from the recent blazes?
“Traffic on major roads must remain open even during a fire. Another immediate conclusion is the need to develop more accurate forecasting of strong winds and other harsh conditions.”
What can we expect to happen next?
“The burned landscape will remain with us for a long time, 15 to 25 years. It’s especially dramatic in such prominent locations.
“Climate change raises serious concerns. We can confidently expect more severe fires. … The conditions are becoming increasingly harsh: drought, dryness and warming. We mustn’t ignore this.
“In terms of prevention, education and awareness are important, but they’re not enough. A large fire like the recent one is an opportunity to rethink forest design to reduce the risk of fires spreading. This means creating buffer zones around communities – a well thinned-out perimeter that prevents flames from crossing.”
What does forest restoration involve?
“Forest restoration is a long-term process. Initially, the focus is strictly on safety – making sure that burned trees aren’t hazardous, especially in popular areas. In the next phase, we’ll clear out the charred trees to prevent the accumulation of a dry mass, followed by monitoring.
“We prefer natural forest regeneration, and experience shows that broad-leaved species tend to recover on their own. After that, we’ll begin the tree-thinning process. It’s important to remember that in popular visitor areas, shade is essential, so thinning out must be done carefully.”
One thing is certain – we don’t want coniferous forests. In some areas, it’s questionable if we want forests at all.Alon Rothschild of the SPNI
Which areas concern you the most?
“We need to focus on the large forested areas. Birya and Baram are especially sensitive and even dangerous in terms of fire risk. The forests on Mount Meron are also highly vulnerable. Other critical areas include the Gilboa, Givat Hamoreh, Ramot Menashe and Ben Shemen, as well as the Eshtaol Forest and the Forest of the Martyrs. While we can’t transform the entire landscape, it’s crucial to remain aware of the risks.”
The roster above lists sites in the north, save for Ben Shemen, the Eshtaol Forest and the Forest of the Martyrs in the center.
Is a forest needed in those places?
Alon Rothschild, director of biodiversity policy at the Society for the Protection of Nature in Israel, has long criticized the JNF’s forestry policies. Some issues are now more urgent than ever.
“Israel was never suited for the widespread planting of coniferous forests. It’s not part of the natural landscape, it’s not our natural ecosystem and it’s certainly not appropriate in terms of fire risk, which is only worsening due to climate change,” Rothschild says.
“Thinning and buffer zones are important, but the most crucial thing is deciding what we want to achieve. These forests have burned, but should there even be a forest there at all?
“In Israel, the planting of new forests requires proper approval, but the rehabilitation of existing forests doesn’t. The JNF isn’t obligated to have the process reviewed, and there’s no oversight mechanism. That concerns me.”
Will anyone take a fresh look and create a mechanism to oversee the process?
“Today there’s no such mechanism. I deeply regret the fires, but maybe they provide an opportunity for new thinking about what we want. One thing is certain – we don’t want coniferous forests. In some areas, it’s questionable if we want forests at all.”
Is there a chance this opinion will be shared?
“While it’s possible to engage in a dialogue with the professionals at the JNF, they don’t always have the final say. Even the forestry officer doesn’t control how the JNF plants forests.”
It’s more than just the loss of trees or wildlife; the fires affect the very soil. High temperatures alter its chemical structure, destroy the seeds and harm animals that take refuge underground.Prof. Dror Hawlena
Which areas concern you the most?
“What concerns me the most is that the JNF wants to plant new forests in the Golan and in the Negev. Besides that, it’s time to distance the fire from the community. This requires careful planning.”
In a paper that Rothschild sent Haaretz, he writes that a study on restoring the Sha’ar Hagai forest near Jerusalem after the 1995 conflagration revealed that “the treatment for regenerating vegetation and the planting of new trees didn’t yield the restored landscape that the planners had hoped for.
“The study also found that areas that were planted didn’t develop any faster than those left untouched, and that 80 percent of the trees in the area today have emerged through natural regeneration.”
Lost decade
On April 23, a massive fire broke out in the Einot Gibton Nature Reserve in central Israel, destroying 215 dunams. The reserve, which had been reopened two years earlier after a decade of intensive restoration, was completely scorched and is now closed once again. It will take time to restore, and it’s not clear when it can reopen.
Einot Gibton’s uniqueness lies in its rare combination of wetlands and rich biodiversity. This small reserve was distinguished by its expansive thicket of reeds, a vital nesting ground for birds and other wildlife.
During the restoration of Einot Gibton, a metal walkway was built about half a meter above the ground; it led to an observation tower that provided a brilliant panoramic view.
Exactly two weeks after the fire, I stood in Einot Gibton and took in the silence – and devastation. The ground was flat, black and barren. The thick vegetation that had once surrounded the small spring pool was gone, as were the animals. A few cormorants hovered above us, looking as stunned as I felt. The metal walkway survived the fire, floating above the charred earth.
Ziv Cohen, a park ranger at the Israel Nature and Parks Authority, accompanied me and Haaretz photographer Tomer Appelbaum there. Cohen pointed to an area near a long row of cypresses and explained how the fire quickly spread. The reeds burned with astonishing speed, and the firefighters focused on protecting the nearby eucalyptus grove.
The walkway allowed us to cross the scorched area, where melted signs and charred tree trunks remain. The flames stopped at the path leading to the ancient site of Tel Malot.
Down to the ground
Prof. Dror Hawlena, chief scientist at the Israel Nature and Parks Authority, says that if these fires keep recurring, “the entire ecosystem will be damaged.”
“It’s more than just the loss of trees or wildlife; the fires affect the very soil. High temperatures alter its chemical structure, destroy the seeds and harm animals that take refuge underground.
“Extreme conditions are becoming more frequent. Their recurrence, combined with inadequate forest management, puts us at risk. In the past, measures like tree cutting and increased grazing reduced organic matter and limited the spread of fires. Experience shows that once fires reach a certain magnitude, no force can effectively contain them.”
What can we do?
“There’s no real way to extinguish fires of this size. Flames can leap hundreds of meters, igniting new areas. Our priority should be to open up the forest, enhance species diversity and do controlled burns.”
“We plan to launch a pilot project for controlled burns next winter to minimize harm to wildlife, as they’re less active during the colder months. … Reducing this load of fuel will slow the spread of fires, lessen their intensity and limit damage. Only the top half-centimeter of soil will be affected, preserving the seeds.”
Which nature reserves or national parks do you think are at risk?
“We’re concerned about Mount Meron and the Judaean Hills [near Jerusalem]. The fear is that fires will repeatedly return to these areas. When disturbances are frequent and intense, only species that can survive such conditions will remain. There have to be disturbances of varying intensity, but they shouldn’t happen too often, to prevent the ecosystem from deteriorating.
“The approach must consider the topography. On a steep slope, fires will spread rapidly uphill. Planning needs to factor in all these elements. At national parks like Ein Hemed [near Jerusalem], the situation is different because they’ve been managed carefully. As long as there isn’t a large-scale disaster, we should be able to manage.”
My conversation with Hawlena didn’t focus on Einot Gibton, which is a small, enclosed reserve. There, a recovery is already underway; in several areas along the fringes, green reeds are sprouting. A green thicket will probably be fully in place by winter.
But the olive trees that burned like beacons near Latrun won’t recover so quickly. They will need decades.