Israeli court blocks government’s natural gas plan in blow to energy firms – Reuters By Ari Rabinovitch Israel’s Supreme Court blocked a controversial plan to develop the country’s natural gas fields on Sunday, dealing a blow to energy companies operating in the eastern Mediterranean and drawing fire from the government. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu reached […]

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By YOSEF I. ABRAMOWITZ 03/28/2016 The Start-Up Nation looks today a bit more like a banana republic, and we’re all to blame. Israel’s energy needs, ruled the High Court, cannot be fueled by unchecked political power. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu made the passage of the gas deal a signature economic initiative of this government – […]

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By MICHELLE MALKA GROSSMAN,REUTERS 03/29/2016 Energy, Infrastructure and Water Resources Minister and Noble Energy Inc.’s Israel country manager discussed possible ways to satisfy the High Court’s demands. National Infrastructure, Energy and Water Minister Yuval Steinitz said on Tuesday he believes recent turmoil in the country’s natural gas sector will be resolved within a couple of […]

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By MICHELLE MALKA GROSSMAN 03/29/2016 The High Court’s ruling on Sunday supported most of the gas framework, with the exception of a stability clause, putting the government in charge of providing stability insurance. The head of Noble Energy said Sunday’s High Court decision striking down Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s natural gas outline was “disappointing and […]

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By Mohammad Ghazal – Mar 28,2016 AMMAN — Jordan is interested in importing liquefied natural gas (LNG) from Russia’s Gazprom as part of its efforts to increase sources of LNG, Energy Minister Ibrahim Saif said Monday. “We have discussed this issue with the Russians, and we hope that we will get LNG at preferential prices. […]

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In a series of activities held around World Water Day, the Palestine Institute of Biodiversity and Sustainability (PIBS) and the Faculty of Science at Bethlehem University in cooperation with Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) invite those working in areas of water to a workshop: “Water and sustainable development in Palestine”. Place: Palestine Museum of […]

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GAZA CITY (Ma’an) — The Gaza Strip was left almost entirely without power Tuesday due to maintenance work on power lines from both Israel and Egypt and ongoing tax disputes on fuel for the enclave’s near-defunct power station. Muhammad Thabit, a spokesman for Gaza’s electricity company, said that starting at 6 a.m., all lines supplying […]

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After fleeing from ISIL, dozens of young Iraqis spend their days searching through rubbish heaps for valuable scraps. photoessay at http://www.aljazeera.com/indepth/inpictures/2016/03/iraqi-children-scavenge-living-160321112736752.html Sebastian Castelier, Wilson Fache | 29 Mar 2016 Standing next to a pile of rubbish as high as a hill, Ali, a 12-year-old child from Mosul, looks excitedly at his latest discovery. “They say […]

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A number of residents and activists held a sit-in Friday on the Costa Brava shore at Beirut’s southern entrance to protest a government decision to set up a garbage landfill at the site. “A group of students, youths and environmental activists staged a protest this afternoon at Costa Brava following an invitation from the National […]

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Gaza’s water treatment facility not yet online due to electricity shortages, causing wastewater to flow north into Israel; major desalinization plant in Ashkelon shut down as result. Amir Ben-David, Elior Levy Published: 03.21.16 Israel has been ignoring Palestinian requests to help them build a new water treatment plant in the Gaza Strip. As a result, […]

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Zafrir Rinat Mar 18, 2016 read more: http://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/.premium-1.709528 Israel’s largest desalination plant was shut down yesterday by order of the Health Ministry due to marine pollution. The source of the pollution was an excess of treated effluent that was released into the sea instead of being stored for irrigation due to a lack of space. […]

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Al-Masry Al-Youm photos at http://www.egyptindependent.com//news/clean-campaign-coast-taba-nuweiba Abu Galum Protectorate launched on Monday an environmental diving campaign in Taba. The campaign — a seabed clean-up at diving spots along the coast at Taba — marked the 27th anniversary of Taba’s return to Egypt after its Israeli occupation. During the campaign, divers cleared litter and fishing rope from […]

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Dozens of lorries begin carrying rubbish swamping Beirut to landfills as temporary solution to eight-month crisis. The Lebanese government has launched a bid to dispose of the mountains of rubbish swamping the suburbs of the capital Beirut, in what residents hope will lead to the end of the country’s eight-month garbage crisis. On Saturday, dozens […]

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Nir Hasson (Haaretz)March 5, 2016 Sometimes you need a new vantage point to understand an older picture. Two months ago a small camera-equipped, motorized glider took off close to a signpost that said “steps down to the Dead Sea 1984.” The location was the Einot Tzukim (Ein Feshkha) nature reserve in the northern Dead Sea […]

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While a plan is moving ahead to avoid flooding at hotels along its shores, authorities are still faced with challenges in the Dead Sea. Zafrir Rinat Jan 17, 2016 The Dead Sea, one of the world’s natural wonders, has turned into a big engineering headache; it’s probably the only lake in the world where the […]

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20-year-old Amit Gal-Or from Ra’anana, who now lives in Shanghai, established Phresh, which has developed a powder composed of essential oils which can preserve produce for 3 times longer than usual. Alexander J. Apfel/TPS Latest Update: 03.22.16 A product designed and developed by an Israeli student that can prolong the life of fruit and vegetables […]

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By Hana Namrouqa – Mar 17,2016 AMMAN — Jordan will start growing moringa trees in desert and sub-desert areas this year to benefit from their medical and food uses, according to an official at the Agriculture Ministry. Under a memorandum of understanding between the ministry and the Saudi cooperative society for moringa and desert plants, […]

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With 75 percent of its country comprised of desert, it’s not easy for Tunisia to grow food. But the Sahara Forest Project aims to change that with a $30 million facility funded by the Norwegian Foreign Ministry. Building on their first projects in Qatar and Jordan, the group will use solar energy and desalination technology […]

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By MICHELLE MALKA GROSSMAN 03/09/2016 Involved in the project as well are EcoPeace/Friends of the Earth Middle East and the Hashemite kingdom’s Jordan Valley Authority. Swarms of pesky flies may hold the key to improving Jordanian- Israeli relations. Seeking to end the insect infestation that has plagued farmers in the lower Jordan Valley and Dead […]

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With the problem of power outages seemingly unsolvable, Palestinians have begun adopting solar technology, with more and more public institutions and private residents are getting cheaper, abundant energy. Reuters 03.12.16 Faced with power blackouts lasting anything from eight to 12 hours a day, residents and businesses in Gaza are increasingly turning to the sun to […]

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