Foreword
The principal aim of the OECD Environmental Performance Review (EPR) programme is to help member and selected partner countries improve their individual and collective performance in environmental management by:
helping countries assess progress in achieving their environmental goals
stimulating greater accountability from governments towards each other and public opinion.
This is the second EPR of Israel. It examines the country’s environmental performance since the first review of 2011. Progress in achieving domestic objectives and international commitments provides the basis for assessing Israel’s environmental performance. Such objectives and commitments may be broad aims, qualitative goals or quantitative targets. A distinction is made between intentions, actions and results. Assessment of environmental performance is also placed within the context of Israel’s historical environmental record, present state of the environment, physical endowment in natural resources, economic conditions and demographic trends.
The OECD is grateful to Israel’s Ministry of Environmental Protection for providing information and comments, organising the review mission (3-8 April 2022) and virtual policy mission (14 September 2022), as well as for facilitating contacts inside and outside government institutions. Thanks are also due to all government ministries and agencies, as well as non-governmental organisations, that participated in the missions and provided information or comments.
The participation in the review of the representatives of the two examining countries, Thalia Statha (Greece) and Helge Wendenburg (Germany), is also gratefully acknowledged.
The authors of this report are Eugene Mazur and Sho Yamasaki of the OECD Environment Directorate and Oriana Romano and Juliette Lassman of the OECD Centre for Entrepreneurship, SMEs, Regions and Cities. Nathalie Girouard provided oversight. Carla Bertuzzi provided statistical support, while Lydia Servant provided administrative support. Mark Foss copy-edited the report. Natasha Cline-Thomas supported communications activities. Preparation of this report also benefited from inputs and comments from Kathleen Dominique, Guillaume Gruère, Soo-Jin Kim, Sarah Miet, Oliver Roehn, Kurt Van Dender and Julia Wanjiru of the OECD Secretariat.
The OECD Working Party on Environmental Performance discussed the draft Environmental Performance Review of Israel at its meeting on 5 December 2022 and approved the Assessment and Recommendations.