By NIV ELIS 12/08/2014 In 2014, renewable energy use in Israel is expected to rise to 1.5-2%, still far from the 10% goal set for 2020. Energy Minister Silvan Shalom on Monday caused a stir at the Eilat-Eilot Renewable Energy conference by announcing, to audible hissing in the crowd, that the government will change its […]

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Can solar power replace oil in the Middle East? The Middle East can achieve first-move advantage in a market that appears to be the longer-term future of energy. Vicente Lopez-Ibor Mayor Vicente Lopez-Ibor Mayor is a former commissioner of the National Energy Commission of Spain. He is chair of one of Europe’s largest solar energy […]

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By YOSEF I. ABRAMOWITZ, DAVID LEHRER 12/07/2014 20 percent renewables by 2020. Election time in Israel means that little will get done by the government in the months leading up to the vote. But when it comes to renewable energy – something that this government has failed to deliver in any meaningful way – the […]

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BEIRUT: Israel is overtly stealing Lebanon’s underwater oil and gas reserves off the coast of south Lebanon as the government remains distracted over the issue of its kidnapped soldiers and policemen held by jihadi militants, Speaker Nabih Berri warned in comments published Monday. Daily Al-Akhbar quoted Berri as saying that he had received credible information […]

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by Mohammad Ghazal | Dec 08, 2014 AMMAN — A Canadian company will soon start studies on the development of the Hamzah Oil Field in Al Azraq, Energy Minister Mohammad Hamed said Monday. The company, Transeuro Energy Corporation, won a tender the government floated in early 2014 to develop the oil field, the minister said. […]

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AMMAN — The 100 Resilient Cities (100RC), pioneered by the Rockefeller Foundation, on Wednesday announced that 35 cities from around the world, including Amman, have been invited to join the 100 Resilient Cities Network. The announcement was made during the Rockefeller Foundation’s Urban Resilience Summit in Singapore, according to a statement sent to The Jordan […]

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JEUSALEM POST Thousands of cubic meters of oil spill near Kibbutz Ketura; representative of Ministry of the Environment says will take months if not years to rehabilitate the area. Millions of liters of crude oil have gushed out of a pipeline to flood 200 acres of a desert nature reserve in southern Israel, officials said […]

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An explosion in a gas well in the Israeli town of Eilat sent strong emissions of gas all over Aqaba late Wednesday, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported. The agency quoted an official source as saying that concerned parties were following up on the incident, pointing out that different amounts of hydrogen sulfide (H2S) had […]

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David Lehrer The disastrous oil spill which occurred Wednesday night in the Arava valley was caused by maintenance work on the Eilat Ashkelon Oil Pipeline in preparation for the building of the new international airport outside of Eilat. The pipeline brings oil from the port of Eilat to the refineries and power stations in the […]

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Food Security is the seventh in the series of annual reports on the state of Arab environment, produced by the Arab Forum for Environment and Development (AFED). The report highlights the need for more efficient management of the agriculture and water sectors, in view of enhancing the prospects of food security. This report comes after […]

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Times and policies have changed, and this week’s decision to turn part of Palmahim beach into a national park instead of a vacation resort marks a major change. Yet threats from tourism to Israel’s open beaches and coastline remain By Zafrir Rinat | Dec. 3, 2014 The peaceful hill at the northern end of the […]

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Planning commission debates consequences of proposed Sde Barir project near Arad. By Zafrir Rinat | Dec. 3, 2014 Currently in Israel, the Clean Air Law is being exploited to sanction air pollution and appropriate testing is not being conducted to gauge the impact of this pollution – so said the Health Ministry Tuesday at a […]

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The recent breakup of the solar power consortium Desertec has been a huge disappointment to the renewable energy community. The idea was to create a pan-European North African, even Middle East energy grid with solar energy collected in the MENA region which could then be shipped via cables to Europe. Despite the Desertec collapse, Europeans […]

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The 35th Annual Birding Lecture Day is dedicated to the changes to Israel’s bird populations in the last 130 years, including the somewhat controversial Palestinian sunbird. By Zafrir Rinat | Dec. 4, 2014 Nature in Israel has seen many upheavals since Jewish immigration began in earnest in 1882. The Society for the Protection of Nature […]

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editor’s note: The full report is available at http://www.afedonline.org/en/inner.aspx?contentID=1076 Amman, 27 November 2014 The Arab Forum for Environment and Development (AFED) concluded its seventh annual conference on Arab food security. Held in Amman under the patronage of his majesty King Abdullah II ibn Al Hussein, the conference brought together 750 delegates from 54 countries, representing […]

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Lobbying by manufacturers and importers of the plastic bags is impeding the proposed legislation’s passage. By Avi Bar-Eli | Nov. 27, 2014 The highly publicized Knesset bill that would ban free distribution by supermarkets of plastic bags seems to have little prospect of passing in its current form. The proposed legislation was touted as an […]

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28 Nov 2014 The United Nations has declared a state of emergency in the Gaza Strip after two days of heavy rains and flooding in the war-battered enclave. The UN Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) declared the state of emergency in Gaza City on Thursday, after torrential rain overwhelmed some areas and caused flooding. “Hundreds […]

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REVERSE OSMOSIS WATER PLANT INAUGURATED IN BURJ BARAJNEH CAMP 28 November 2014 Beirut UNRWA has inaugurated a new reverse osmosis water plant in Burj Barajneh camp, Beirut. The plant will improve the quantity, quality and affordability of water in the camp, as well as access to potable water. This development forms part of UNRWA efforts […]

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AMMAN — Jordan will witness a steady increase in temperatures, more dry spells and a drop in precipitation during the coming decades as the impact of climate change becomes more apparent, according to the Third National Communication on Climate Change. Temperatures are expected to rise by 1.5°C-2.5°C by the year 2050, while precipitation in the […]

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The Environment Agency – Abu Dhabi (EAD), earlier this month, successfully completed the transfer of a Nubian Ibex herd to Wadi Rum nature reserve, where the herd will remain in a controlled environment that will allow them to adapt to the new habitat before their final release into the wild. The transfer came following a […]

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