By SHARON UDASIN 01/03/2012 05:04 Private initiative releases its final assessment on environmental impact to pave way for pilot drilling and production. Talkbacks (22) After completing operations at its six oil shale experimental drilling sites, Israel Energy Initiatives has submitted a final assessment of its project’s environmental impacts to the Environmental Protection Ministry. IEI hopes […]

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by Taylor Luck | Jan 04,2012 | 23:51 AMMAN — Jordan and Qatar formed a joint technical committee on Tuesday as the Kingdom moved one step closer towards easing its reliance on Egyptian gas. A “positive” meeting was held between Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources Qutaiba Abu Qura and his Qatari counterpart Mohammed Ben […]

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Company will pay for most of the salt-harvesting project that aims to protect hotels at the southern end of the Dead Sea from flooding, a project whose cost is estimated at NIS 3.8 billion. By Zafrir Rinat The cabinet is set to approve an agreement today in which the Dead Sea Works will pay for […]

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Tel Aviv’s many boulevards are among the city’s most prized spaces, providing oases of green among the asphalt, dotted with 24-hour kiosks and room for no less than the very incubation of democracy itself. By Noam Dvir       Published: 03.01.12 Just under two weeks ago, the metal fences were removed from around the last unrenovated site […]

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Tel Aviv may be gaga for its bike rental program, but one man is out to document the system’s many failings, from computers on the fritz to missing pedals. By Ilan Lior Tel Aviv Mayor Ron Huldai cycled last week to the Jaffa promenade on one of the bikes available through the city’s bike rental […]

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One of the mysteries of this millennium has been why bee populations, which are crucial not only to the honey industry but to modern agriculture, are being decimated worldwide. By Amiram Cohen Cellular technology has been suspected of causing cancer – the jury’s out on that, but now European scientists suspect it’s causing the great […]

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Finance Minister Yuval Steinitz threatened to convene a public committee to discuss company’s responsibilities if ICL didn’t accept proposal for cost-sharing, royalties. By Ora Coren Spooked by a last-ditch ultimatum that followed long negotiations, Israel Chemicals yesterday accepted the state’s position on sharing the cost of rescuing the Dead Sea hotels from inundation, and on […]

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By NADAV SHEMER AND SHARON UDASIN 12/29/2011 05:15 Finance Ministry and Israel Chemicals end standoff over salt harvesting project. Talkbacks () The Finance Ministry and Israel Chemicals ended a standoff over the financing of a Dead Sea salt harvesting project Wednesday, but environmental activists reacted angrily to the deal and demanded a committee examine the […]

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Phosphate discovered in north-east’ Petra | Dec 29,2011 | 23:14 AMMAN — Jordanian Geologists Association (JGA) President Bahjat Odwan on Wednesday said phosphate has been found in the north-eastern parts of the Kingdom with initial figures on reserves estimated at around 200 million tonnes, worth around $30 billion. The findings are from a study conducted […]

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Eye on Earth, Abu Dhabi – 14 December 2011 AFED Secretary General Najib Saab moderated a main session during the Eye on Earth Summit in Abu Dhabi. Participating in the session, titled “Water Security: Knowing What We Need To Know”, was Dr. Asma Al Kasmi, Director of the Arab Water Academy and AFED board of […]

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By SHARON UDASIN 12/23/2011 17:34 ‘Start-up nation’ mingles with ‘non-denominational solution-seeker.’ Talkbacks (3) China may be the ideal hub for transforming Israeli ideas in the renewable energy and water sectors into globally marketable, environmentally sustainable technologies. As Israeli entrepreneurs and researchers in these fields continue to develop new types of green products, China is becoming […]

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By SHARON UDASIN 12/28/2011 03:53 The trails were designed by architect Otto Friedman, who specializes in planning bike paths. Talkbacks () The Jewish National Fund opened a NIS 1 million, 32- kilometer, dual-path bike trail on Monday that winds through the western portion of the Ben Shemen Forest and continues on through the Modi’in area, […]

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After cornering the market for chemical export-import in Israel, Yosef Maiman’s group is preparing for the advent of competition – by itself. By Avi Bar-Eli About a month ago, Ashdod Port proudly announced a new era: Competition in port services for the import and export of chemicals in liquid form had arrived. Make no mistake, […]

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By Olivia Alabaster The Daily Star Sand and rock quarries have contributed significantly in shrinking the country’s green stretch. Sand and rock quarries have contributed significantly in shrinking the country’s green stretch. BEIRUT: A new report into the state of the environment in Lebanon, produced by the Environment Ministry, the U.N. Development Program and the […]

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Court adopts state position: no new Israeli-owned quarries should be established in the West Bank, but existing ones should be allowed to continue operating. By Zafrir Rinat ‘ The High Court of Justice has authorized Israel to exploit the West Bank’s natural resources for its own economic needs by rejecting a petition against the operation […]

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By SHARON UDASIN 12/28/2011 03:57 Green groups won’t compromise. Talkbacks () Despite a last-ditch telephone attempt from Environmental Protection Minister Gilad Erdan to convince Israel Lands Authority head Benzi Lieberman to nix the Samar sands mining project on Tuesday, the work is set to begin in the next few days. The contentious Samar sands, located […]

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A tender issued by the Israel Lands Administration to mine the sand was recently won by a contractor. By Zafrir Rinat * * Published 00:28 27.12.11 * Latest update 00:28 27.12.11 SPNI draws line in bid to save Arava sand dune A tender issued by the Israel Lands Administration to mine the sand was recently […]

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AMMAN — A project to preserve the shrinking Dead Sea by replenishing it with Red Sea water cannot stop the salt lake from diminishing further without altering its unique qualities, a recent study indicated. The Dead Sea modelling study, which examined the potential impact of the Red Sea-Dead Sea Water Conveyance Project on the lake’s […]

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Israel Union for Environmental Defense and the Movement for Quality Government calls for steps to bar Dead Sea Works from promoting projects that would likely worsen the impact of industrial activity on the sea. By Zafrir Rinat As the negotiations between the Finance Ministry and Dead Sea Works over royalties the latter will pay to […]

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Society for the Protection of Nature in Israel says these fish threaten springs’ native crab, fish and amphibian populations, competing for food, eating eggs. By Zafrir Rinat Ariel Filber and Assaf Galdor made their way on Monday from the Society for the Protection of Nature in Israel’s field school in Ofra to a small spring […]

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