“On a sunny spring day in the middle of March, a small group of three of volunteers from the Excellence Center went out to a nature reserve that is only a few miles outside the city of Hebron, called Wadi al-Quff. Palestinian biologists and ecologists are making a valiant effort to protect the islands of Palestinian biodiversity that remain after thousands of years of human habitation and conflict in the region, and Wadi al-Quff is the closest of these areas to the Excellence Center.

The reserve is nearly a thousand acres in size and is well worth the visit for anyone who enjoys the natural world. We were pleasantly surprised to find the most natural-looking environment that we have seen since our arrival in Tel Aviv. The area consists of rolling limestone hills moderately forested with pine, juniper and oak, with healthy understory vegetation between the trees. The peak of the flower season is from mid-March to mid-April, and we were delighted to see a variety of native wildflowers. There were birdsongs in the air as well, although we never could locate the songsters in the trees.

In our limited time to explore, we found that there exists a variety of pathways to hike on, from occasional dirt roads that climb the hills to footpaths to what appeared to be animal trails. The wadi itself—a wadi is a water-carved valley or canyon that only has a running stream in it intermittently—was attractive, with limestone cliffs above, but did not have the wild feel of the hills as it is being utilized for orchards.

In Hebron, we were told to go to the “bus station” near the old city but ended up taking a taxi to al-Quff for 25 shekels, which amounts to about $7 American for three people. The ride back in a van (a Service) was even less. The reserve is about 6 miles west of the city; I was never completely clear where we were in relation to the city, but you can view a map at http://www.mahmiyat.ps/en/park/about?park_id=3. A paved road passes through the reserve, so it was a simple matter to hail a service when we were ready to return.

As you might guess, preserving natural areas in Palestine is fraught with challenges. One is that there is not much of an environmental ethic among the Palestinian people. Preservation of natural habitat is most often a secondary attribute of well-to-do societies that are not experiencing conflict. The people in the villages around Wadi al-Quff, for example, need the resources in the reserve for their own well-being, such as the ground cover for grazing and wood for burning. Areas near the pave road are used as a dumping ground for refuse.

Another challenge is the fact that about 80% of the land designated as part of Palestine’s nature reserves is in so-called Area C, which is under the exclusive control of Israel. None of the nature reserves in Area C are available to Palestinians, not ever for management and conservation purposes. In addition, about 36% of designated nature reserves overlap with Israel’s colonizing settlements, and nearly 40% overlap with military areas and bases.

The difficulties involved with visiting many of Palestine’s nature reserves (much less managing them) gives added reason for internationals staying in Hebron to take time to visit Wadi al-Quff while residing in the city.” This article was Written by Dana Visalli from the USA