AMMAN — Jordan on Wednesday signed a set of loan and grant agreements worth 45 million euros with the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD). Half of the agreements are in the form of grants, and the other half will be extended as loans. All will finance the implementation of the Ain Ghazal Wastewater […]

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By SHARON UDASIN 12/25/2016 Owners of the refinery will not be hoping for a repeat of the Hanukkah miracle. An orange blaze raged at a Haifa Bay factory nearly all day Sunday, as pillars of black smoke engulfed the area. By late afternoon, firefighters quashed the flames. The fire overtook a benzene storage container at […]

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Large dumpsters are to be replaced by bins for segregated waste to ensure that the target of reducing landfill by 85 per cent is met. Tadweer, the waste management company for Abu Dhabi, said it would introduce black bins for general waste and green bins for recyclables for all residential buildings in city. It will […]

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AMMAN — The Greater Amman Municipality (GAM) will next year finish lighting the city’s streets with LED units, making it “the first capital in the world to switch to this technology”, Mohammad Rahahleh, the director of GAM’s traffic operations department, said on Monday. More than 150,000 LED units will be installed under the scheme, as […]

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AMMAN — Public transport fares are to be hiked by 10 per cent as of January 5, under a decision taken by Land Transport Regulatory Commission (LTRC) Director General Salah Lozi, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported on Wednesday. The decision covers medium and heavy transport buses and all taxis, Petra reported, quoting Lozi as […]

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AMMAN — The Cabinet on Wednesday extended the deadline for scrapping old fuel-run cars and exchanging them for hybrid vehicles until the end of 2017, according to the Jordan News Agency, Petra. The decision also entails maintaining the reduction of the special tax rate on vehicles that partially operate on electricity with an engine size […]

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Mosul Battle Leaving Legacy of Environmental Damage by Naharnet Newsdesk The battle to retake Mosul from the Islamic State group is leaving a legacy of environmental damage and health risks that will pose dangers to people for years to come. Iraqis have already paid the initial price from burning oil wells and a sulphur factory […]

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Warnings by scientists and environmentalists about an imminent collapse are dismissed by Iraqi officials as far-fetched. By Barbara Bibbo As Iraqi forces continue their military operation to take Mosul from the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL, also known as ISIS), another equally important battle to save the Mosul Dam, located 60km north […]

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Ministers of the three countries met in Jerusalem today and agreed to push for a pipeline to Europe, which wants to reduce dependence on Russian gas. At a meeting today in Jerusalem, government ministers from Israel, Greece, and Cyprus today agreed to continue their promotion of a natural gas pipeline from Israel to Europe. Senior […]

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By SHARON UDASIN 12/18/2016 After an initial appraisal stage, the $77 million well will be used to produce gas – which is slated to serve both the Israeli local market and potential export outlets. As Israel’s long frozen natural gas sector begins to move forward slowly but surely, the Leviathan reservoir partners announced on Sunday […]

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by Hana Namrouqa – Dec 19,2016 SAHAB — Unlicensed plastic scrap grinding workshops and brick factories in Sahab Municipality are causing air pollution and generating waste that blocks the city’s drainage, according to an official. More than 40 plastic scrap grinding workshops are scattered across the town as well as scores of unlicensed brick factories, […]

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If sprawling sand dunes near Ashdod disappear, dozens of animal species may, too. Zafrir Rinat Dec 17, 2016 read more: http://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/.premium-1.759429

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AMMAN — A new US-government funded wastewater network was handed over to the Jordan Water Authority and Miyahuna Company in Zarqa on Monday as part of the $275-million Millennium Challenge Compact (MCC) to Jordan, according to a statement released Monday by the Millennium Challenge Account–Jordan (MCA–Jordan). Ninety-two kilometres of new sewage lines have been completed, […]

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by Suzanna Goussous – Dec 17,2016 AMMAN — After resuming the municipality’s work on the Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) in 2013, the Greater Amman Municipality (GAM) officials on Saturday said the project has now received JD40 million as the second tranche of financing. Ahmad Malkawi, deputy city manager for public works at the GAM, said […]

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Ministry says 15 illegal wells sealed, four drilling rigs confiscated in November By Hana Namrouqa – Dec 17,2016 AMMAN — Authorities have removed 27,135 illegal fixtures on water mains and resources since the launch of a national campaign to end violations on the water network in 2013, officials said on Saturday. Under the campaign, authorities […]

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‘Seven factories produce biodegradable plastic bags; four produce paper shopping bags’ By Hana Namrouqa – Dec 17,2016 SAHAB — A draft by-law on the use, production and import of plastic bags is being amended at the Legislation and Opinion Bureau and will enter into force as of next year, according to the Ministry of Environment. […]

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The fee will begin on January 1, 2017 in supermarket chains; reusable grocery bags will be handed out at grocery stores from the beginning of the last week of December until the end of the second week in January. Amir Ben-David|Published: 10.12.16 After years of trying to minimize the use of plastic shopping bags that […]

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After a year of interviews with companies and officials in the cleantech industry in Israel, a group of students from IDC Herzliya has made a comprehensive list of causes for cleantech failures in Israel and recommendations for avoiding ‘death valley.’ Shahar Chai|Published: 05.12.16 A group of students from the IDC Herzliya has initiated a comprehensive […]

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Bank says project ‘establishes Jordan as regional leader in successful deployment of renewable energy’ By JT – Dec 15,2016 – AMMAN — The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) and Société de Promotion et de Participation pour la Coopération Economique (PROPARCO) are continuing their support for the power sector in Jordan by providing parallel […]

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By SHARON UDASIN 12/18/2016 An investment of NIS 30 million, financed by Keren Kayemeth LeIsrael-Jewish National Fund, will enable the subsidized purchase of 1,500 hybrid taxis. In hopes of curbing emissions in urban centers, a state-backed initiative is encouraging taxi drivers to switch to environmentally friendly vehicles. An investment of NIS 30 million, financed by […]

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