Environmental organizations are mounting a last-ditch effort to prevent national planners from approving some sections of a circular trail around the Sea of Galilee in northern Israel, warning that parts of the current proposal will severely undermine the public’s right to free passage.

Adam Teva V’Din and the Society for the Protection of Nature in Israel contend that the proposal, scheduled for discussion on Tuesday, will leave in place existing fences and walls that were originally erected illegally, blocking the path of people on the trail and effectively reversing years of successful enforcement efforts to open the scenic shoreline.

The National Planning Council is proposing to allow fences, locked gates to remain in place, and institute restricted-access hours and bypass paths for sections totaling approximately four kilometers (2.5 miles) of the 32 kilometers (20 miles) currently under review in the walking trail project’s second stage.

According to Yael Dori, head of planning at Adam Teva V’Din, some of the bypass routes that walkers will be forced to take are located more than 50 meters (164 feet) from the shoreline and run along busy intercity roads with no view of the water.

The stretches under review pass through four church properties and a pilgrim hostel, four kibbutz tourism complexes (at Ein Gev, Ma’agan, Ha’On and Ginosar), national parks and nature reserves managed by the Israel Nature and Parks Authority, and several public beaches.

“Instead of insisting [on public access, the planners] reached a solution that’s not a solution,” Yael Dori told The Times of Israel.

“Now they are calling it a ‘regulated’ (authorized) trail. It’s true that people have lived in some of these places for decades and don’t want strangers in their backyards. But some of the buildings near the water........

© The Times of Israel