Dump Recycled And Reused

A former dump in Israel will be converted into a theme park focusing on recycling -- the centerpiece to what will be a 2,000 acre public park.

1 minute read

October 25, 2007, 10:00 AM PDT

By Nate Berg


"The Hiriya dump, closed nine years ago, will serve as the centerpiece for what is to become a vast 2,000-acre urban wilderness. The monumental dirt mountain, which sits at the intersection of some of Israel's busiest highways, will be transformed into a beauty spot designed by a German landscape architect, Prof. Peter Latz."

"When the dignitaries gather, a seething mass of more than 565 million cubic feet of garbage will be slowly decomposing underfoot, releasing a noxious cocktail of greenhouse gases - mostly methane and carbon dioxide, with a few sulfur compounds thrown in. It will take many more years for all the waste matter to break down."

"'At first I thought it should go,' said Martin Weyl, a former director of the Israel Museum, who first came up with the idea of turning the dump into an attraction. 'But then I thought garbage is a big part of our lives. We shouldn't hide it.'"

"Instead, Hiriya is set to become an environmental beacon and a theme park on recycling for children, tapping into a global concern."

Wednesday, October 24, 2007 in The New York Times

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