Israelis planning picnics this summer at beaches in the Hof HaCarmel Regional Council district will be forced to shlep along non-disposable plates and utensils this year.
The government coalition has upheld an order by municipalities in the district — and others around the country — banning the use of disposables at the beach and fining violators.
The order had been blocked earlier this week by the Knesset Constitution, Law and Justice Committee, which called the order a “dangerous precedent.”
United Torah Judaism MK Uri Maklev said during the committee discussion on the issue that in practice, “the supervisors in the local authorities are not usually forgiving towards their citizens. This is something we must pay attention to.”
Maklev warned that such an order sets “a dangerous precedent” in its legal approach.
“When there is no prohibition against using disposables, and a person does not litter or pollute the environment – how can we fine him? In practice you are asking to turn an honest person into a criminal on the basis of a crime which he may in the future commit and we’re not certain about. Legislation such as this must first be legislated by the Knesset plenum, and not by way of a municipal bylaw.”
The MK called the order a “draconian law” which he said was “especially harmful since it makes no accommodations for the facts on the ground.”
