Israel’s tourism industry has made some serious changes recently.  The Ministry of Tourism announced a few months ago that it was going ‘green’ for 2009, stating that it had a plan that included “environment-sensitive planning and development; preservation of the cultural and social heritage; developing tourism and new jobs in agricultural areas and the periphery while improving the quality of life for the residents and educating and raising awareness among residents and tourists about the importance of developing sustainable tourism.”

While it’s great that environmentally friendly tourism is getting the green light from the government, lots of private businesses are taking eco initiatives in the tourism field as well.  So far we’ve witnessed environmentally friendly guesthouses, and in transportation news – cycling wine tour routes, sightjogging tours, and now… carbon neutral car rentals courtesy of Avis.

When you book your car rental with Avis, one of the leading car rental companies in Israel and worldwide, you now have the option of paying a little bit extra to neutralize the effects of your driving on the environment by planting trees.  To date, Avis, its staff, and its customers have planted over 200,000 trees together.  Avis also claims that its fleet of cars is highly efficient, which hopefully makes the fuel consumption more efficient as well.  (Of course, its no fleet of hybrid cars such as the Prius… but baby steps.)

And if you don’t trust Avis’s carbon neutral tree planting but would like to offset your car rental emissions yourself, consider planting some trees through Keren Kayemeth L’Israel (KKL) – it’s very easy and you can even do it online.

Read more about other eco tourism issues in Israel:: Controversial Red-Dead Sea Canal on Hold – But why? and Neighbors’ Paths: Eco-Tourism AND Eco-Peace!

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• Go Hybrid and Pay Less Car Tax in Israel
• UN Fulfills Green Mission To Tree Plant in Middle East
• Elephant Dung Makes Perfect Compost at City Safari in Tel Aviv
• Tel Aviv Cafes Offer Great Cappucinos and Free Bike Rentals