By Hana Namrouqa JORDAN VALLEY – Vital ecosystems and rare biodiversity have been restored to the Sheikh Hussein area in the Jordan Valley after land suffering from environmental degradation was turned into a green eco-park. Friends of the Earth Middle East (FoEME) started working on the Sharhabil Ben Hassnah Eco-Park in 2005 with the aim […]

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By Raed Omari AMMAN – An oil producing plant which can generate bio-fuel will be cultivated in the Kingdom on an experimental basis as part of a Jordanian-Brazilian partnership, an agriculture official said on Tuesday. Ministry of Agriculture Spokesperson Rula Mubeidin told The Jordan Times that the move was initiated by Brazilian Ambassador in Amman […]

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By utilizing domestically discovered natural gas, we will both reduce our dependency on imported oil and also demonstrate to the world to do the same. By Amit Mor What’s a politically and economically progressive, ecologically conscientious person to think about the recent spike in gas prices? On the one hand, commentators like Thomas L. Friedman […]

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By AMIRAM BARKAT / GLOBES 03/08/2011 23:59 The idea is for the gas to power the power station in Gaza, which currently uses diesel to supply electricity to Gaza’s residents. Natural gas from the Gaza Marine field is intended for the residents of the Gaza Strip, and Israel will not buy it, people familiar with […]

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Energy Minister Jibran Bassil slams Israel’s ‘aggression’ over gas issue, warns of instability ahead. Lebanon has enough power to react, he says Doron Peskin Published: 03.06.11, 13:03 / Israel Business Share on TwitterShare on Facebook share The Lebanese energy minister in the transit government, Jibran Bassil, discussed the discovery of gas in the Middle East […]

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By Hana Namrouqa JORDAN VALLEY – Conservationists have called for rehabilitating the Jordan River to restore vital ecosystems, save the shrinking Dead Sea and create tourism opportunities in the area. During a tour of the Jordan Valley on Saturday, Friends of the Earth Middle East (FoEME) Chairman Munqeth Mehyar urged the authorities to connect Jordan […]

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March 2nd, 2011 – Jericho InterContinental Hotel First Palestinian Symposium on Water Rights and Access to the Jordan River and Development Needs in the Jordan Valley WEDO / FoEME will hold a symposium that will highlight the importance of a healthy, clean and rehabilitated Lower Jordan River for the development of the Palestinian economy. This […]

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By AMIRAM BARKAT AND LILACH WEISSMAN 03/06/2011 23:06 Israel proposes that negotiations include development of the Gaza Marine offshore natural- gas field and the Noa gas field offshore from Ashkelon, part of which is located in Palestinian waters. Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu has officially asked Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas to resume negotiations for Israel […]

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Nairobi, 25 February 2011 AFED Presents Arab Green Economy Initiative at the Global Environment Forum in Nairobi Nairobi, 25 February 2011 Arab Forum for Environment and Development (AFED) presented its program on Arab green economy, at a special session held during the Global Ministerial Environment Forum (GMEF), which convened in Nairobi between 21-24 February. The […]

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March 2, 2011 Najib Saab is Zayed International Prize Laureate For Environmental Action Leading to Positive Change Dubai, 2/3/2011 Najib Saab, Editor-in-Chief of Al-Bia Wal-Tanmia magazine and Secretary General of Arab Forum for Environment and Development (AFED), won Zayed International Prize for Environmental Action Leading to Positive Change in Society. He was among other laureates […]

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By Hana Namrouqa AMMAN – Jordan is preparing its third report on climate change that identifies sectors emitting greenhouse gases and the effect of the phenomenon on gender and socio-economic conditions, officials said on Saturday. The Third National Communication to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) constitutes an inventory of sectors that […]

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As the countries owning most of the planet’s oil reserves confront growing political turmoil, the economic stability of the whole world will remain at risk – until an alternative to petroleum is developed. By Aluf Benn The repeated warnings that the world economy is relying on a dwindling resource lying deep down in the earth, […]

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CONTENTS 5 From Cancun to Durban (editorial by Najib Saab) 9 Diversifying power resources and national economy (by Suleiman Al-Herbish, director general of OFID) 18 Dioxin in eggs (cover story) 22 Four pioneers awarded Zayed international prize for environment 26 Towards a green economy and better environmental Governance (UNEP governing council and global ministerial environment […]

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By EHUD ZION WALDOKS AND ASSOCIATED PRESS 02/27/2011 02:24 Most chemicals cited in UN report not in use in Israel but Environment Ministry plans to implement Stockholm Treaty in order to eliminate hazardous materials. Climate change is a major obstacle to a 2004 global treaty aimed at cutting exposure to 21 highly dangerous chemicals, according […]

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By Hana Namrouqa AMMAN – Authorities on Sunday closed down a landfill north of the capital after its owners failed to address residents’ complaints of noise and environmental pollution. The landfill, which stretches over 50 dunums of land in Safout in Ain Al Basha, a few kilometres north of Amman, was the site of a […]

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AMMAN (JT) – The Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) will refer the feasibility study of the Disi Water Conveyance Project to the court soon for suspected corruption, the commission’s president, Samih Bino, said on Wednesday. In an interview with the Jordan News Agency, Petra, he said the commission will also examine irregularities related to a JD40 million […]

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By Hana Namrouqa AMMAN – The number of illegal logging cases dropped in January, despite the fact that more trees are usually cut down in winter, according to the Ministry of Environment. “We only registered two cases of illegal logging last month, because authorities stepped up monitoring of forest areas,” environment ministry spokesperson Isa Shboul […]

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RAMALLAH, March 1, 2011 (WAFA) – The Palestinian Authority and Japan Monday signed a cooperation agreement in which Japan would grant the PA $32 million for a water treatment project in Jericho. Prime Minister Salam Fayyad signed the agreement at his Ramallah office with the representative of Japan to the PA, Naofumi Hashimoto. The grant […]

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By Hana Namrouqa MADABA – Warning that their district is on the verge of an “environmental crisis”, Madaba residents on Monday complained about an insufficient water supply and called for the entire governorate to be connected to the sewage network. During a meeting with Minister of Water and Irrigation Mohmmad Najjar and Water Authority of […]

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Although posters proclaimed that ‘within days’ somebody would show up at our homes and install the devices for free, nobody saw anybody wearing a Water Authority shirt who might be suspected of installing water savers. By Amiram Cohen About six months ago somebody plastered pretty posters all over our neighborhood, and in our building stairwell, […]

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