Silman's Ministry hides a 4 billion shekel hole in the Cleanliness Fund
The Cleanliness Fund under the Ministry of Environmental Protection is facing a 4 billion shekel deficit. The ministry has stopped publishing financial reports, and commitments have exceeded the fund's revenues for the past 8 years.
What is happening in the Cleanliness Fund of the Ministry of Environmental Protection? After Calcalist revealed that all of the fund's money was earmarked for projects years in advance and its budget was completely exhausted, serious questions are being raised regarding its financial management. The Ministry of Environmental Protection is hiding the fund's financial data and, in violation of the law, has not published reports since 2024. It now appears that the fund made decisions in excess of its budget, reaching an unauthorized funding gap of about 4 billion shekels, equivalent to 8 years of revenue.
Since 2007, a landfill levy has been imposed on local authorities. However, about 80% of waste in Israel is still buried in the ground, and the accumulated money has not been optimally used to build advanced waste treatment infrastructure. In 2024, the fund held about 8 billion shekels, which were often used for loans to the Ministry of Finance or to cover the ministry's own budgetary needs.
According to the law, the ministry can use about 25% of the fund's revenues for purposes unrelated to waste treatment facilities. But in 2024, the fund began earmarking large budgets years in advance for construction and government decisions, including public relations and the purchase of zero-emission buses.
According to 2025 committee minutes, Ministry of Finance representative Ido Mor announced that there are no available balances in the account. He noted that the fund made decisions beyond its actual balance, relying on disputed future budgetary agreements. The last financial report was published in June 2024.
The Ministry of Finance confirms the gap: "The total revenue of the Cleanliness Fund since 2007 stands at about 8 billion shekels, while total decisions made by management reach about 12 billion shekels. This 4 billion shekel gap cannot be bridged in the short term."
Environmental education funding stopped
The Ministry of Environmental Protection rejects the criticism, claiming all allocations are approved according to procedures and in agreement with the Treasury. However, this management failure has a price: the ministry is stopping funding for a flagship educational program that has operated since 2009 in about 50 localities. Educational teams have been notified that the program will not operate in the coming year due to a lack of funds.
The Society for the Protection of Nature hopes for a budget, but the Ministry of Education has refused to fund it. The Ministry of Environmental Protection states it is working to receive a dedicated budget from the Treasury, though this possibility remains uncertain.
