By Tamara Qiblawi The Daily Star BEIRUT: Special laws and bureaucratic bodies must be formed in order to expedite gas and oil excavation off Lebanon’s coast, lawmakers and legal experts said at a gas and oil workshop held at Parliament Monday. Lebanon faces a variety of legal and political hurdles that stand in the way […]

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Factories along the bay will be able to use natural gas for their power needs instead of dirtier fossil fuels. By Avi Bar-Eli Natural gas may now start being delivered to the Haifa Bay, the National Infrastructure Ministry ruled two days ago after a two-month delay. This means factories along the bay will be able […]

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By SHARON UDASIN 04/11/2011 10:51 Experts applaud switch from oil to gas, but say it came too late. Israel Natural Gas Lines will begin pumping natural gas into the Haifa Bay area on Monday, which will soon enable Oil Refineries Ltd., and industrial factories in the region, to be powered primarily by natural gas, creating […]

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By SHARON UDASIN 04/08/2011 04:55 Energy company and environmental groups spar over the right to derive energy from subterranean layers. After receiving the “black award” at a green award ceremony held by Israel’s top environmental organizations two weeks ago, Israel Energy Initiatives says that criticisms of its oil shale drilling project were inaccurate, and that […]

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By Hana Namrouqa AMMAN – The Ministry of Water and Irrigation on Wednesday announced names of qualifying consortia to serve as master developer of the Jordan Red Sea Project (JRSP). Minister of Water and Irrigation Mohammad Najjar, head of the JRSP steering committee, said six consortia, which include local and international companies, qualified to serve […]

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As Jordan considers the establishment of a nuclear reactor in the Kingdom, environmental studies must be conducted and the reactor’s impact assessed. This leads to questions along the lines of: does Jordan need a nuclear reactor? Is its presence in the country safe? Does it provide a safe alternative to energy imports? See the full […]

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By Kamal J. Araj The nuclear industry is facing its second-most-significant crisis ever. While the full extent of the crisis at Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power station may not be known for months, the global impact will be significant. The trigger was the 9.0-magnitude earthquake. The ensuing tsunami, recently reestimated at 14 metres, caused the real […]

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By SHARON UDASIN 04/07/2011 04:54 Israeli and German experts as well as academics and green leaders discuss the country’s nuclear future. Talkbacks (3) Civilian nuclear power is neither the ultimate answer to the country’s energy needs nor a disaster, Dr. Ephraim Asculai, a veteran expert on nuclear energy, said on Wednesday at a conference held […]

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By DAVID E. MILLER 04/06/2011 Moving central city cemeteries to the outskirts of Egypt’s crowded capital city irks religious scholars. A request by the Cairo Municipality to relocate ancient cemeteries to the outskirts of the crowded megalopolis and create room for parks and other open spaces has been rejected by religious authorities, who argue that […]

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Assistant Secretary General of the Ministry for Water and Irrigation Adnan al-Zoubi said that the ministry has developed a plan to address the shortage in Jordan’s water reserves, via use of the groundwater reserves located in various parts of the Kingdom. Zoubi told AmmanNet that the ministry’s plan will include the diversion of water wells […]

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By Hana Namrouqa AMMAN – A group of young Jordanians are collecting pledges from people across the Kingdom to carry garbage bags in their cars in order to end the “phenomenon of littering”. The students, from different universities in the country, started the “For a cleaner Jordan” campaign with the aim of getting a million […]

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By SHARON UDASIN 04/01/2011 01:01 BGU’s first Jordanian PhD student discusses his work in desalinization and a road to regional peace via science. It was a rather difficult decision for Amer Sweity to come from his hometown of Amman, Jordan, to complete a master’s degree and then PhD at Ben-Gurion University of the Negev. But […]

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FoEME held a symposium in Jericho on March 2nd, highlighting the importance of a healthy, clean and rehabilitated Lower Jordan River for the development of the Palestinian economy. This important event built upon the on-going work of FoEME to foster political will, public support and concrete action towards the rehabilitation of the Lower Jordan River, […]

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April 2011 By: Mostafa K.Tolba A pivotal point in climate negotiations has always been the principle of ‘common but differentiated responsibilities’. This point continues to be a source of huge differences between developed and developing countries. Developing countries insist that developed ones have historical responsibility and should cut emissions and provide developing countries with finances […]

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April 2011 By: Mohamed El-Ashry In 1992, the international community gathered in Rio to offer a vision for a more sustainable future. At that meeting, two new international environmental agreements were opened for signature: the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change and the UN Convention on Biological Diversity. At the UN Millennium Summit in 2000 […]

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5 Beware of an Arab Fukushima (editorial by Najib Saab) 8 Tips for your home office 11 Roadmap to climate change talks ( by Mostafa Kamal Tolba) 13 Energy for sustainable development (by Mohamed El-Ashry) 20 Ecological footpint of Arab countries (cover story) 28 Laureates of Zayed international prize for the environment 40 Salt-tolerant vegetables […]

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WASHINGTON, April 1, 2011 (WAFA) — The World Bank Board of Directors Thursday approved a $3 million grant to the Palestinian Water Authority (PWA) that will fund the know-how needed to design and implement a sustainable water resources management strategy, said a World Bank press release. The amount will also be used to train Palestinians […]

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By Hana Namrouqa DEAD SEA – Water experts from 32 countries on Thursday called for subsidising water efficiency programmes and improving public involvement strategies to achieve water reduction targets. At the conclusion of the sixth International Water Association (IWA) Specialist Conference on Efficient Use and Management of Water (Efficient 2011) on Thursday, the experts underscored […]

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It has become clear that the IDF manages its land in a scandalous way. This is possible because the army enjoys full autonomy regarding this land – as it does in most of its activities – and civilian bodies don’t supervise it. By Reuven Pedatzur It is common knowledge that the Israel Defense Forces is […]

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By SHARON UDASIN 04/05/2011 01:55 The first phase of the plan will involve evacuating the asbestos from public lands; the next phase will include private areas as well. After a law for asbestos removal and prohibition passed its second and third Knesset readings this week, the Environmental Protection Ministry announced on Monday that it had […]

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