DAMASCUS, 11 April 2010 (IRIN) – While severe drought in eastern and northeastern Syria is seriously affecting lives and livelihoods, farmers may draw some hope and comfort from an irrigation success story in the central district of Salamieh. An experimental drip irrigation project run by the Aga Khan Rural Support Programme (RSP) in the village […]

Read the rest of this entry »

DAMASCUS, 25 March 2010 (IRIN) – Poor planning and management, wasteful irrigation systems, intensive wheat and cotton farming and a rapidly growing population are straining water resources in Syria in a year which has seen unprecedented internal displacement as a result of drought in eastern and northeastern parts of the country. “Population [estimated at 24 […]

Read the rest of this entry »

AMMAN (Petra) – The government has no plans to raise water tariffs this year as authorities move forward with a strategy addressing households that consume large quantities of water, a senior official said on Sunday. Although water tariffs will not be increased in 2010, the ministry has a 10-year plan in place regarding charges for […]

Read the rest of this entry »

By Hana Namrouqa AMMAN – The Ministry of Environment is currently studying energy and water consumption in public buildings in a bid to cut down the use of the two limited resources, a government official said on Sunday. The project, implemented in cooperation with the private sector, seeks to reduce energy and water bills by […]

Read the rest of this entry »

BARCELONA (AFP) – Talks aimed at adopting a water management strategy for the Mediterranean failed Tuesday due to a row between Israel and Arab countries over a reference to the Palestinian territories, participants said. The stalemate was seen as a strong blow against the nascent 43-nation Mediterranean Union, which was set up two years ago […]

Read the rest of this entry »

By Eli Ashkenazi Despite the littering and damage caused by visitors to Lake Kinneret over the Passover holiday, the Union of Kinneret Cities has decided to leave beaches open to the public on Independence Day next week. The union will deploy more inspectors and law enforcement agents along the beaches under its control, and has […]

Read the rest of this entry »

By Zafrir Rinat and Fadi Eyadat Visitors to Tel Aviv’s Tzuk Beach likely noticed signs warning that bathing was prohibited due to water pollution. But a report released yesterday by the environmental advocacy group Zalul ahead of the summer beach season states that water quality at Israel’s beaches actually has improved significantly over the past […]

Read the rest of this entry »

By JUDY SIEGEL-ITZKOVICH 03/04/2010 23:19 Hungry Nile Perch threatens to deprive local fishermen of their main source of protein. Also: TAU group develops sensitive electro-mechanical sensors. Nile Perch used to be so prolific in Africa’s Lake Victoria that it was called “Princess of the Nile” in Israel to encourage consumers to buy it. But the […]

Read the rest of this entry »

By EHUD ZION WALDOKS 07/04/2010 05:21 Landau says he is “infuriated” over pollution of “shared environment.” “It is infuriating that we give the Palestinians fresh water and yet they do not adequately treat their sewage and instead pollute our shared environment,” National Infrastructures Minister Uzi Landau declared at the end of a tour of the […]

Read the rest of this entry »

By EHUD ZION WALDOKS 07/04/2010 05:30 Architect Peter Latz aims to turn garbage heap into sustainable environmental park. Talkbacks (2) The view from the top is spectacular, a panoramic vista of the Tel Aviv skyline that is unique in its beauty. The air is brisk and fresh, and you can see the sea on a […]

Read the rest of this entry »

By ISRAEL21C 02/04/2010 16:42 A new University of Haifa study finds that commercial fishing endangers Mediterranean dolphins. Talkbacks (1) Extensive commercial fishing trawlers endanger the common bottlenose dolphins in the Mediterranean, by both poaching their food supply and catching them in their nets, according to a new study carried out at an Israeli university. The […]

Read the rest of this entry »

Village residents say Civil Administration seized device used for disposing sewage, claiming it causes environmental damage to adjacent settlements. ‘They expect us to collect our waste in bottles,’ says Palestinian Ali Waked Published: 04.07.10, 23:29 / Israel News Who will empty out the sewage from Palestinian villages between Nablus and Ramallah? Thousands of Palestinians will […]

Read the rest of this entry »

Four days after an Israeli minister threatened to restrict the West Bank’s water supply, Israeli authorities closed off the main water source used for agriculture in a Jordan Valley village on Sunday, committee members and lawyers said. The Bardalah village’s farmers could stand to lose not only profit, but the land’s viability, and have protested […]

Read the rest of this entry »

08/04/2010 15:32 Bethlehem – Ma’an – Israeli Infrastructure Minister Uzi Landau threatened to restrict the West Bank water supply if no sewage treatment plants were installed in the area, a UN alert warned on Wednesday. The official reportedly told Israel’s Army Radio that “They get clean water from us, and in return they give us […]

Read the rest of this entry »

by Neeraj Gangal As desertification dries up farmland across the Arab world, the region’s governments cannot remedy concerns about food security solely by looking to Africa for agricultural production, a regional expert said. Desertification threatens 20 percent of the already dry Middle East and North Africa, pushing many states to invest in African farmland to […]

Read the rest of this entry »

Dear colleagues, the use of renewable energy for desalination is attracting more and more attention since its potential for the Mediterranean region is huge. The ProDes project (www.prodes-project.org) has done a lot of work promoting the technology and training a large number of people. Now an e-learning course is offered for the first time, allowing […]

Read the rest of this entry »

Water Security for Policy Makers and Practitioners: short course 2010 International Development UEA and Water Security Research Centre, University of East Anglia 24 – 28 May 2010 (5 days) for details see http://www.uea.ac.uk/dev/co/prodev/wspmp2010

Read the rest of this entry »

By Mohammad Ben Hussein AMMAN – Water experts from across the Kingdom and the Arab world are scheduled to meet in Amman this week to discuss regional water security, according to organisers. The event, which is being hosted by the Jordan Engineers Association (JEA) at the Professional Associations Complex in Shmeisani, will highlight Arab-Israeli water […]

Read the rest of this entry »

By Taylor Luck AMMAN – The EU and Jordan on Monday embarked on a two-year nuclear safety project, according to officials. EU and Jordan Nuclear Regulatory Commission (JNRC) officials met in Amman yesterday to identify areas of cooperation to develop the Kingdom’s nuclear regulatory framework, according to the JNRC. During the next four days, they […]

Read the rest of this entry »

By Hana Namrouqa AMMAN – Students across the country will soon be acquainted with the dangers facing biological diversity in Jordan, home to scores of regionally and globally endangered species. Under the “Environment and Agriculture” competition, launched this week by the Royal Society for the Conservation of Nature (RSCN), thousands of students will be encouraged […]

Read the rest of this entry »