Jerusalem: The Jerusalem Governorate warned on Thursday against the Israeli authorities' decision to officially begin planning procedures for a massive colonial waste treatment project on the lands of Qalandiya village, northwest of occupied Jerusalem. The move represents a dangerous escalation in the policies of annexation and land confiscation in the Palestinian territories, threatening the Palestinian population and agricultural presence in the area.
According to Palestine News and Information Agency, the Governorate stated that the published plans include the construction of a large-scale waste treatment project on Qalandiya village lands, accompanied by a change in the route of the existing separation wall, shifting it deeper into the village's territory. The plan outlines the confiscation of approximately 278 dunams of Palestinian land, far exceeding the areas discussed in previous plans, revealing the broader scope and objectives of this colonial project.
The targeted area includes approximately 40 inhabited homes, along with dozens of dunams of fertile agricultural land planted with olive trees, grains, and vegetables. This project poses a direct threat to the residents' livelihoods, social stability, and their right to remain on their land. A waste treatment and energy conversion facility will be constructed, with the waste being fed into the Israeli electricity grid. The facility is expected to receive large quantities of various types of waste, including plastic and paper waste, as part of a broader Israeli plan to expand waste treatment infrastructure on occupied Palestinian land.
The project's origins date back to June 2024, when the occupation government tasked the Eden Company, affiliated with the Jerusalem municipality, with identifying a site for the facility. The company proposed a 130-dunam plot of land in Qalandiya, containing at least seven residential buildings and agricultural land, as a prelude to establishing the waste treatment and energy recovery facility. In April 2025, the Israeli Finance Minister, Bezalel Smotrich, signed a notice under Article 19 of the "Land Order" to activate two old confiscations dating back to 1970 and 1982, preparing the land for the new project.
The first confiscation, issued on August 30, 1970, encompassed approximately 1,200 dunams allocated for the industrial zone in Atarot, 390 of which belonged to residents of Qalandiya. The second confiscation, issued on June 1, 1982, covered 137 dunams designated for a so-called "security facility." The Jerusalem Governorate emphasized that the project cannot be considered an environmental project, as claimed by the occupation authorities, but rather part of a comprehensive colonial system aimed at reshaping the Palestinian geography and demography in occupied Jerusalem and its surrounding areas.
The Governorate warned that the establishment of a waste treatment facility in this area would lead to increased emissions of pollutants, odors, and particulate matter, negatively impacting air quality, soil, groundwater, and public health. It emphasized that global experiences with similar facilities located near residential areas indicate increased risks to public health, including higher rates of respiratory and cardiovascular diseases and certain types of cancer.
The project has been deemed a clear example of "environmental racism," burdening Palestinian communities with environmental risks and consequences of projects serving Israeli settlements and infrastructure, violating the principles of environmental justice. The Governorate called upon the international community, the United Nations, and international human rights and environmental organizations to take immediate action to halt the project and hold the occupying authorities accountable for their policies targeting Palestinian land, people, and the environment in occupied Jerusalem.