By SHARON UDASIN 06/20/2011 02:43 Knesset panel rejects two other green bills; National Registry Act will require establishment of databases to detail which substances being discharged. The Ministerial Committee for Legislation on Sunday approved an environmental law that will require factories to publicize their hazardous chemical emissions. But it also rejected two other green bills, […]

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RAFAH, June 20, 2011 (WAFA) – The French Consul-General in Jerusalem, Frederic Desagneaux, Monday inaugurated a project for the extension of the sewage network in Rafah, a city south of the Gaza Strip, according to a press release from the Consulate. The release said that the project, launched by the Palestinian Water Authority (PWA) and […]

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By Hana Namrouqa AMMAN – Jordan’s first solid waste recycling centre was launched on Tuesday with the aim of encouraging the public to segregate and reuse trash. Recycling addresses environment pollution and global warming, prevents the destruction of forests and saves water and energy, Minister of Environment Taher Shakhshir said at the launch yesterday. “The […]

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Here is a link to the presentations at the Van Leer conference “Harvesting the Sun Twice – Cross-Border Initiatives for Environmental Peacebuilding” held on March 29th, 2011, in which you had shown an interest (a TED-inspired event): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XJ2EzUXV3sE&feature=BFa&list=PL1F4C1E07889261B6&index=1

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“The Blue Peace: Rethinking Middle East Water” is a recent report launched in February of this year by Strategic Foresight Group, a think tank group based in India with support from Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency, the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation, and the Department of Foreign Affairs in Switzerland. The scope of the […]

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By GERSHON BASKIN 20/06/2011 The Palestinian path to independence should include as much energy independence as possible. Palestine may soon become the newest nation on the planet. Within half a decade, it could easily become a leader in renewable energy. Imagine using “Google Earth” to view Palestine and zooming in on the Tubas region in […]

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June 15, 2011 02:01 AM By Tamara Qiblawi The Daily Star BEIRUT: Lebanon will soon arrive at an “awakening” when it comes to greening business, said Nemat Frem, president of the Association of Lebanese Industrialists at the launch of Lebanon Opportunities’ Green Business Initiative Tuesday. “As long as we are conscious of the importance of […]

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In desperate efforts to battle chronic water shortages, experts say one of world’s 10 driest countries mulling ‘unconventional’, ‘environmentally unfriendly’ plans AFP Published: 06.19.11, 07:39 / Israel Activism Share on TwitterShare on Facebook share In its desperate efforts to battle chronic water shortages, Jordan, one of the world’s 10 driest countries, is mulling “unconventional” and […]

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By Mohammad Ghazal AMMAN – An initiative that seeks to increase the Kingdom’s green cover by utilising an “intelligent water incubator” that produces and captures water from the air through condensation and rain, will be launched soon in Jordan. The initiative will be implemented by several local NGOs in partnership with Desert Tulip, a Dutch-Jordanian […]

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By SHARON UDASIN 06/18/2011 21:06 Fire commission praises different groups’ cooperation in dousing the flames; cause of the fire still remains unknown. A fire that blighted approximately 2,000 dunams (200 hectares) of open space and nature reserves – but caused no injuries – on the Golan Heights on Saturday morning was under control by about […]

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NABLUS (Ma’an) — With both the Palestinian Authority and Israel’s Civil Administration abdicating responsibility, local officials say parts of a Nablus-area village have been without water for months. While drought is common in the mid-summer, many of the residents of Salem village have been purchasing high-priced water from local companies, or carrying buckets from municipal […]

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Some 1,600 species of wild plants are found in over 5,800 square kilometers in the PA, a relatively large number for the size of the area. By Zafrir Rinat Israel and the Palestinian Authority are home to 19 areas of international significance for plant conservation that are subject to various threats and must be given […]

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By Hana Namrouqa MUJIB NATURE RESERVE – Inspectors at the Mujib Nature Reserve have recorded seven hunting violations against the Nubian ibex since the beginning of the year. The inspectors also foil an average of one attempt every 10 days to hunt the globally endangered animal in the Mujib reserve, which was established in 1985 […]

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By Hana Namrouqa BERGESH FOREST/AJLOUN – Fatmeh Zaytoun sat under an oak tree in Bergesh Forest on Friday, recalling her childhood spent between the nooks and crannies of the wooded area. And as the sexagenarian baked taboon bread on a saj (convex metal griddle), she vowed that she would not abandon her land and family […]

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By SHARON UDASIN 06/09/2011 23:37 Graduate students from Israel, Lebanon and the PA unite for marine research project off the coast of Italy. Talkbacks (1) Twelve marine and environmental studies graduate students from the Middle East and Europe are taking part in a two-week Mediterranean research project off the shores of La Spezia, Italy, to […]

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By SHARON UDASIN 06/15/2011 05:22 “Israel must emulate European model in monitoring air quality,” is message at Netherlands’ embassy in Tel Aviv. Talkbacks (3) Dutch air quality experts spoke about their air pollution technologies and encouraged Israel to implement its new Clean Air Act at a conference organized by the Dutch embassy in Tel Aviv […]

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June 14, 2011 02:07 AM By Don Melvin Associated Press ABOARD THE STEVE IRWIN: Tuna fishermen battled environmentalists on the Mediterranean, hurling heavy links of chain at them as the environmentalists attempted to disrupt illegal tuna fishing under the no-fly zone north of Libya. The fishermen also attempted to lay a rope in front of […]

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By SHARON UDASIN 06/16/2011 03:24 Israel Oil Co. instructed to begin developing one-billion cubic meter Or natural gas reservoir this week. The National Infrastructures Ministry instructed the Israel Oil Co. and its partners to begin developing the one-billion cubic meter Or natural gas reservoir, just after instructing Noble Energy to do the same in the […]

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By MELANIE LIDMAN 06/17/2011 20:18 J’lem municipality, PMO, Finance Ministry, and Environmental Ministry reach solution to fund new southern landfill for city’s waste. The trash conundrum in Jerusalem was solved on Friday afternoon, after the Jerusalem Municipality, the Prime Minister’s Office, the Finance Ministry, and the Environmental Protection Ministry came to an agreement over the […]

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But questions remain over whether venture can help government meet targets. By David Sheen A group of Anglos are largely responsible for Israel’s first major solar power field, which was inaugurated earlier this week to much fanfare. But while the desert installation is harnessing the power of the sun to the peak tune of 4.95 […]

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