By SHARON UDASIN 10/11/2011 03:01 Officially launched last June, the 4.95-megawatt, NIS 80 million Ketura Sun field stands on an 80- dunam piece of land. Talkbacks (12) The Public Utility Authority granted Arava Power Company’s Ketura Sun facility the country’s first permanent production license for a medium-sized solar field on Monday, the authority announced late […]

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SALFIT, October 13, 2011 (WAFA) – The Israeli authorities Thursday handed a number of Palestinian farmers demolition orders of several water wells and green houses and stopped construction work of rehabilitating an agricultural road in an area in Kufr Al-Deek, a town in Salfit, according to mayor of Kufr Al-Deek, Jamal Al-Deek. One of the […]

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RAMALLAH (Ma’an) — Israel’s Civil Administration ordered a West Bank town’s municipality to close its central landfill site, officials said on Sunday. An order from the administration — Israel’s military body ruling the West Bank — told al-Bireh municipality it will close the waste disposal site on Dec. 15 for environmental reasons. Dr. Iyad Daraghmeh, […]

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GAZA CITY (Ma’an) — Gaza City municipal teams worked for 24 hours to stem the flow of sewage flooding homes in the city’s eastern sector, a press statement said. Faulty sewage lines burst and poured into homes on Friday, sparking the rescue mission, it said. Workers face difficulties upgrading the sewage network because materials and […]

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By SHARON UDASIN 10/16/2011 04:20 Commercial venues would would cause noise, light and air pollution, says Society for the Protection of Nature. Talkbacks (1) Over 1,000 people attended a protest on Saturday at the Betzet Beach in the Western Galilee south of Rosh Hanikra, demanding the cancellation of plans to build three vacation villages and […]

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Biological diversity will disappear because in the same way that the destruction of one dune too many led to the disappearance of the sand dune cat, more quarrying of the little that remains will lead to the annihilation of the special species of the Sands of Samar. By Uri Shanas n the early 1980s, American […]

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BEIRUT: Environment Minister Nazem Khoury discussed means to organize the “many” illegal stone and sand quarries throughout Lebanon during a meeting for the National Council of Quarries which he chaired Thursday. Khoury told The Daily Star that the Environment Ministry had specified new standards which owners of sand and stone quarries should adhere to in […]

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By SHARON UDASIN 10/11/2011 07:22 New program will shorten procedures necessary for acquiring waste treatment facility building permits in industrial zones. Talkbacks (3) The Ministerial Committee for Interior and Service Affairs approved on Sunday a new version of the Environmental Protection Ministry’s National Master Plan, that will grant priority to waste treatment and recycling over […]

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Activists, alternative planners in southern neighborhoods of Neveh Tzedek and Florentin are working to introduce changes in the municipality’s plan. By Zafrir Rinat Is the Tel Aviv Municipality neglecting its southern neighborhoods in favor of luxury high-rises; and is it abandoning public transportation in favor of construction of a major road through the area? Or […]

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By Antoine Amrieh The Daily Star BATROUN, Lebanon: Environment Minister Nazim Khoury urged the government and municipalities to join efforts to find the best measures for waste management in the country, which currently has more than 680 waste dumps. Khoury’s made his comments during a tour of the northern district of Batroun Friday, during which […]

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The Daily Star Sabounjian, right, says Lebanon is not burdened with heavy polluting industries. Sabounjian, right, says Lebanon is not burdened with heavy polluting industries. BEIRUT: Industry Minister Vrej Sabounjian declared at an ESCWA conference in Beirut Wednesday that sustainable development and green industry was integral to combating pollution, poverty and industrial waste. Sabounjian spoke […]

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By Mohamad El Amin The Daily Star BEIRUT: A power conservation draft law, part of a package to bring renewable energy production to 12 percent, is up for discussion by Cabinet, Energy and Water Minister Jibran Bassil announced Thursday. The government is also set to launch a 14-item national energy efficiency plan at the next […]

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By Alex Taylor The Daily Star BEIRUT: Can you imagine a building that can reduce your energy and maintenance costs while helping the future of Lebanon’s environment? Well, such buildings are not just a product of an active imagination. Greenstone Real Estate Developers, the real estate arm of Johnny R. Saadé Holdings, is pioneering the […]

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Dr. Harold Vinegar believes there is just as much oil in Israel’s oil-shale deposits as in Saudi Arabia – and that he can get it out. ‘Within a few years, Israel will become one the largest producers of oil and gas in the world,” according to Dr. Harold Vinegar, who until three years ago was […]

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After an obstinate battle against the quarrying of the Samar dune, spearheaded by local action group ‘Sababa,’ the moment of truth is near. By Zafrir Rinat In the middle of the night, when the people of the southern Arava are fast asleep, Yael Olek goes out to the Samar dune. Armed with a flashlight and […]

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By Laila Azzeh AMMAN – Jordan has enormous potential to be part of the Mediterranean Solar Plan, which seeks to connect solar power plants across the Mediterranean countries, projected to generate 20 gigawatts of electricity by 2020, according to experts. “The Kingdom can benefit from solar energy generated from the southern region exactly like some […]

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Head of the Yarkon River Authority says impact of pollutants more pronounced because the season’s first rainfall had been particularly heavy. By Zafrir Rinat Walkers yesterday in the Seven Mills area of the Yarkon River, on the border between Tel Aviv and Ramat Gan, came across a large number of floating dead fish and white […]

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By Hana Namrouqa AMMAN – Water and health experts on Sunday called for adopting a safety plan to monitor water quality and ensure the sustainability of resources. They urged policy makers in the water and health sectors to change the management of drinking water quality from the current “reactive” to the “preventive” approach. The experts […]

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By Hana Namrouqa AMMAN – Authorities are questioning the owners of a warehouse in east Amman, where a large amount of molten lead was stored, a government official said on Saturday. Late last week, the Ministry of Environment and the Rangers seized 400 tonnes of molten lead in a warehouse in Musherfeh, according to the […]

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Jewish National Park reports that over 100,000 people hiked through different forests across Israel during holiday weekend. By Zafrir Rinat Approximately 350,000 people hiked in nature sites and preserves across Israel during the Rosh Hashanah holiday weekend, according to estimates by the Israel Nature and Parks Authority and the Jewish National Fund. On Saturday, over […]

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