Around 30 electrocuted white storks were found near the Tovlan waste site in the Jordan Valley by a birdwatcher from the Society for the Protection of Nature in Israel (SPNI) on Sunday.
Yotam Bashan, a senior birdwatcher with SPNI, noticed the dead storks lying beneath the power poles while driving along Route 90.
“While driving, I noticed white storks lying dead beneath the utility poles,” Bashan said. “I left the road and drove along the dirt road running parallel to it, and within a relatively short stretch, I counted about 30 dead storks, or remains of storks.”
Bashan noted that the situation is not a one-time phenomenon, explaining that “every year, dozens of stork carcasses are found in the area after being electrocuted to death.”
The Tovlan waste site attracts migrating storks during their yearly flight, providing a place to rest temporarily before continuing their journey or hunker down for the winter.
Exposed utility poles are danger to storks
“The nearby utility poles serve as places for them to perch and rest,” Bashan said. “The danger is primarily created by poles with exposed electrical components.”
“Because of their size and broad wingspan, when the storks land on a pole or spread their wings on it, they may simultaneously touch two points with different electrical voltages, or a conductive component and a grounded part of the pole. This closes an electrical circuit and electrocutes the bird, which usually ends in death.”
SNPI’s Birding Center Director Dr. Yoav Perlman called the Tovlan waste site and adjacent compost site “death trap[s] for white storks and black kites.”
“Over the past 10 years, every year, this line has killed many white storks during the migration seasons and many black kites during the winter,” according to Perlman, who added that several of the power lines in the area belong to the Israel Electric Corporation.
Authorities must act immediately before sites become further ‘death traps’
At the Israel Nature and Parks Authority’s (INPA) request, several of the utility poles in the area have been protected against electrocution while others have been buried underground.
“However,” noted Perlman, “many poles remain unprotected, and the evidence shows these are the ones electrocuting the birds. The problem is particularly serious with transformer poles, where protective solutions are more expensive.”
He called on the IEC and the Jordan Valley Regional Council to “act immediately” and either protect or bury all the power lines around the Tovlan waste site to ensure that they do not stay as “death traps” to migrating storks.
“About half a million white storks pass through Israel during every migration season, about half of the global population,” Perlman added. “Along their migration routes, white storks are exposed to many dangers, including hunting in the countries surrounding us and harm from energy infrastructure.”
“The State of Israel is a signatory to several international conventions for the protection of migratory birds. It would be good if the state fulfilled its commitment to the issue and solved this recurring problem once and for all.”
