The village of Wadi Fuqin is tucked away in a small valley west of Bethlehem, and not a single signpost points to its whereabouts. Nevertheless, Wadi Fuqin is known far and wide for its traditional farming practices, considered by many to be the finest, most impressive agricultural system in any Palestinian village. However, extensive expansion plans are now threatening the preservation of this farming tradition by endangering, among other things, the village's water supply.
If the plans materialize, the village will be surrounded on nearly all sides by new Betar Illit neighborhoods and the separation fence. A planned road will also cut through village fields.
Wadi Fuqin residents are attempting to fight the construction plans together with the neighboring suburban community of Tzur Hadassah, located within the Green Line, and the environmental organization, Friends of Earth - the Middle East. The group wants to change both the route of the fence and some of the building plans for the area.
Along the western edge of the village, construction has already begun on one of Betar Illit's new neighborhoods. Building debris is piling up near the village fields, and residents fear that rocks and dirt will drop onto the grounds after it rains. Rocks have already starting rolling onto one plot of land.
Another neighborhood is planned for what is known as Hill C, an area stretching across the eastern slopes of the village. Residents of Wadi Fuqin claim that part of this area was originally village territory, fields that were appropriated to expand Betar Illit.
The separation fence is supposed to come from the direction of Jerusalem, cut across Road no. 375 (the Bethlehem-Ha'elah Valley road) and run near the northwestern edge of the village, right next to the houses. Residents will be left with a narrow passage to the fields and one access road to the east.
The group of Tzur Hadassah residents, who have mobilized to help Wadi Fuqin, claims in a petition they circulated that the development plans and the fence are ‘a death sentence for the beautiful valley, the springs, the pools and the ancient agriculture that have been preserved there.’
Wadi Fuqin has 1,200 residents and close to 100 pools that collect spring water in a system of irrigation channels. The pools are used to irrigate the fields and the residents divide the water among themselves based on a fixed time allocation.
‘We will live here as if in a prison, but a small prison,’ says Abu Mazen, a Wadi Fuqin resident. ‘Even now we don't have anywhere to expand according to the master building plan, and I don't know how this village will continue to exist.’
Two Tzur Hadassah residents, hydrologist Lior Assaf and geomorphologist Itai Haviv, recently wrote an opinion piece on the impact that regional construction plans will have on the network of springs sustaining agriculture in Wadi Fuqin. In their opinion, the wells depend on groundwater that seeps in from an area of approximately six square kilometers. The construction plans - including the separation fence and the expansion of both Betar Illit and Tzur Hadassah - will build up half of that area, thereby preventing rainwater from seeping into the ground. The natural supply of water to the wells will shrink substantially, causing some of the wells to dry up completely.
‘It's true that, in principle, residents of the village can find an alternative water supply with pipes from the Mekorot Water Company,’ says Assaf. ‘But it won't be the same water supply and distribution system around which an entire cultural and social system has been built and to which the village residents are attached.’
Assaf and Haviv claim the plans need to be changed in a way that comprehensively addresses all the problems in the region, including the environmental and hydrological issues. A new plan should also give voice to the residents of Wadi Fuqin.
The recommendations presented in the opinion piece call for canceling the planned expansion of Hill C in Betar Illit and Tzur Hadassah. The authors also propose not extending the fence across Road no. 375, because a separation fence will inevitably be built surrounding Gush Etzion, as well as the Wadi Fuqin area. They also recommended establishing environmental guidelines for the neighborhood already being built in Betar Illit to prevent such problems as unsupervised, neglected landfills.
The Betar Illit municipality responded to the opinion piece, saying that dirt was not being dumped in the Wadi Fuqin area; that village residents were responsible for environmental damage, because of their unregulated waste incineration practices; and that they were constantly assessing the environmental impact of construction plans underway in its jurisdiction.
The Defense Ministry stated that Wadi Fuqin might serve as a route for ‘terrorists’ on their way to carry out attacks; the route of the fence in this area was planned to be laid entirely, apart from a small agricultural plot, on rocky terrain; the unique fabric of the village and the access roads to and from the fence will not be affected; and the lands intended for the village's expansion (in the national master plan) will not be touched. The Defense Ministry's response indicates that the fence in Gush Etzion is intended to prevent illegal passage into Israel, and less so to block ‘terrorists'’ entry into the country.
According to the Defense Ministry, the proposals of the Tzur Hadassah residents were considered, and it was decided that on the other side of Road no. 375, the fence would change, corresponding to the area.
The Civil Administration related that directives were issued to prevent the dumping of landfill in the vicinity of construction sites in Betar Illit. Illegal dumping has been taking place there, and the Civil Administration recently confiscated two construction trucks, issued injunctions against further building and summoned contractors to explain their goings on. The Civil Administration is involved in the area's planning and provides recommendations to prevent damage to water drainage there.
In practice, the results of these efforts are yet to be seen, as huge mounds of earth continue to pile up next to Wadi Fuqin farmland.
The Civil Administration opposes plans to build a road in the area, because of the environmentally sensitive nature of the region. Discussions are to take place soon to review several possible alternatives to the road. The Civil Administration contends, moreover, that it cannot change the village master plan to facilitate its development, because most of the village is located in Area B - under Palestinian civilian control - and the Civil Administration does not have the authority to make any changes to its overall construction.