While The Guardian has expanded its environmental reporting through corporate partnerships that might raise ethical issues, The New York Times has simply disbanded its environmental desk. By Zafrir Rinat | Mar.13, 2013 It can be said that global media coverage of environmental topics entered into a decline just at the time that they were really […]

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John Waterbury, 2013. download from http://www.arab-hdr.org/resources/paperseries.aspx Executive Summary The policy process in the Arab world is poorly understood. That observation is even more pertinent with respect to policies aimed at adapting to climate change. Nonetheless, we can draw lessons from the literature on policy-making with respect to economic reform in the Arab world that bear […]

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March 15, 2013 04:49 PM By Emma Farge GENEVA: U.N. agencies want to strengthen national drought policies after warnings that climate change would increase their frequency and severity. Droughts cause more deaths and displacement than floods or earthquakes, making them the world’s most destructive natural hazard, according to the Food and Agriculture Organisation, one of […]

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Louise Sarant Climate change, a fast growing population, ill-designed infrastructure, high levels of pollution and lack of law enforcement have made Egypt a country thirsty for water — both in terms of quantity and quality. The River Nile, which is considered poor by many experts and hydrologists, lies at lower altitude than the rest of […]

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The Israeli-Palestinian political process has been stalled for too long. It could soon be replaced by a third Intifada or a Palestinian version of the Arab Spring. If the renewed Obama Administration wants to try and avoid this possible turn of events, it has to change the paradigm that has guided all previous efforts to […]

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By SHARON UDASIN, LAHAV HARKOV 03/15/2013 Outgoing Environment minister refuses to accept Energy and Water Ministry without the addition of Environmental Protection. Environmental Protection Minister Gilad Erdan has turned down Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu’s offer to grant him the Energy and Water Ministry, a senior source in the Environmental Protection Ministry told The Jerusalem Post […]

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Birth defects and cancer rates are rising in Iraq after the 2003 invasion, immediate environmental clean-up is needed. Last Modified: 15 Mar 2013 War zones are heavily polluted with a variety of contaminants, and toxic metal mixtures are routinely found in these areas. Metal contaminants in war zones originate from bombs and bullets as well […]

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Energy and water resources minister reminds companies that their gas field must supply needs of Israeli market Amir Ben-David Published: 03.14.13 Energy and Water Resources Minister Uzi Landau has sent a “letter of reprimand” to the Tamar partners, demanding that they avoid signing agreements to sell gas from the Tamar field. “According to the report […]

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Improved offer will include pledges to maintain staffing levels, aimed at overcoming employee opposition to the deal, and to improve environmental protection. By Yoram Gabison Mar.15, 2013 Potash Corporation of Saskatchewan intends to sweeten its bid for control of Israel Chemicals, Bloomberg News reports. The improved offer will include pledges to maintain staffing levels, aimed […]

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Standards Institution of Israel approves innovative rubber-infused asphalt compound; test-road paved in Beit Shean Tom Ziv Published: 03.08.13 The principles of sustainability are hitting the road – literally: A new highway is being paved in the Beit Shean Valley from an innovative new compound of rubber-infused asphalt. The rubber used is a reincarnation of sorts […]

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12/03/2013 By George Hale WADI ABU HINDI, West Bank (Ma’an) — “They drank from the dark water, and then they died,” a Bedouin shepherd boy says of the putrid black liquid oozing from the ground. Half a mile to the east, insects are devouring the carcasses of two animals – one sheep and a goat […]

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By SHARON UDASIN 03/10/2013 Weizmann Institute of Science signs agreement to commercialize technology that impedes permeation of toxic pesticides. The commercial arm of the Weizmann Institute of Science has signed an agreement with an agrochemicals firm to commercialize a new technology that impedes the permeation of toxic pesticides into groundwater, the companies have announced. As […]

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New findings show that widely used organic phosphorus is even more dangerous than originally thought. By Dan Even | Mar.12, 2013 The Health Ministry is calling for further restrictions on farmers’ use of pesticides containing organic phosphorus, following new studies that revealed Israelis have significantly higher levels of exposure to the harmful substance than those […]

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Thu, 21/02/2013 Steven Viney A five-kilometer-long oil spill was discovered near Edfu, a town north of Aswan, in October. Aside from the usual environmental damage from oil spills — destroyed ecosystems and destruction of wildlife — the oil continued to drift north, reaching crucial water purification facilities and destroying farmland, robbing thousands of access to […]

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Infamously polluted river to be rehabilitated in project funded by companies that polluted it, Canada’s EnGlobe. Project to be concluded by 2015 Chen Pundak, Calcalist Published: 03.10.13 The Kishon River, which is infamously known as Israel’s most polluted body of water, will soon undergo a massive rehabilitation project. The project, estimated at NIS 220 million […]

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Health Ministry asks Tel Aviv to cancel the full marathon due to the heat; all race start times move half hour earlier. The Tel Aviv marathon may be at risk of being cancelled due to the extreme hot weather expected in Tel Aviv on Friday. Even if the full 42.2 km race is cancelled, the […]

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March 09, 2013 By Brooke Anderson MANSOURA, Lebanon: In Lebanon’s fertile Bekaa Valley, a hobby farmer is sowing the seeds of solar energy, an idea that might help an area starved of affordable electricity. “It’s important to reduce the cost,” says Fadi Jamaleddine, a Beirut-based corporate lawyer. He currently spends around $200,000 annually on the […]

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Students to present innovative design for completely self-sustained housing unit at prestigious Solar Decathlon expo in China Alphi Shauli Published: 03.09.13 [see YNET site for pictures] http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4352760,00.html Students at Israel’s Shenkar College of Engineering and Design will present an innovating design for an energy-saving home in the upcoming Solar Decathlon – an international sustainable architecture […]

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By SHARON UDASIN 03/11/2013 Ben-Gurion University of the Negev and the University of Michigan have signed a $2 million partnership to forge ahead on developing renewable energy technologies, the institutions announced on Monday. Executives from the two universities signed a memorandum of understanding in Michigan on Thursday, with each side pledging $1 million to finance […]

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March 11, 2013 01:00 AM By Mohammad Zaatari MARJAYOUN, Lebanon: A reforestation campaign was launched Sunday by the Army, the United Nations Interim Forces in Lebanon and a local civil society group, in order to promote environmental health in the southern district of Marjayoun.Jouzour Loubnan, a non-governmental organization that seeks to restore woodlands and promote […]

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