By EHUD ZION WALDOKS 01/04/2011 05:04 Despite reduced pumping, Israel’s “national lake” has dropped back down to last year’s level due to drier winters. The years 2001 to 2010 treated Lake Kinneret particularly poorly, the Water Authority said Monday. Moreover, according to its summary of 2010, Lake Kinneret has dropped back down to last year’s […]

Read the rest of this entry »

With increased interest worldwide, Jewish state marketing its waste water reuse technologies and has developed billion-dollar industry by sharing systems and expertise Reuters Published: 01.13.11, 08:34 Thirty years ago, Israeli farmers faced a daunting choice – find a new water source or go under. Their solution was waste water recycling. Now climate change is presenting […]

Read the rest of this entry »

By Hana Namrouqa AMMAN – Water supply in the southern Tafileh Governorate, where water loss amounts to 56 per cent, will be improved under an $18 million project that entails construction of reservoirs and rehabilitation of deteriorated networks, according to officials. To this end, the Japanese government on Wednesday granted Jordan $560,000 for drawing up […]

Read the rest of this entry »

By Hana Namrouqa AMMAN – Overpumping of water from the Azraq Basin for drinking and irrigation purposes is raising salinity levels at the aquifer, a recently released study indicated. The basin, which supplies Amman with 17 million cubic metres (mcm) of potable water annually and 43mcm for irrigation, is showing signs of salinisation and depletion, […]

Read the rest of this entry »

By Patrick Galey Tuesday, January 11, 2011 BEIRUT: The U.N. may be able to assist Lebanon in protecting oil and gas reserves in the eastern Mediterranean from Israeli exploitation, the organization’s special coordinator said Monday. Michael Williams’ remarks followed a request from Prime Minister Saad Hariri during a weekend meeting with Secretary General Ban Ki-moon […]

Read the rest of this entry »

By Laila Bassam and Dominic Evans Reuters BEIRUT – Lebanon accused Israel on Monday of breaking international law by allowing energy firms to explore for offshore gas in the absence of an agreement between the two countries on their maritime border. Foreign Minister Ali Al Shami said no company should be allowed to operate in […]

Read the rest of this entry »

By ASSOCIATED PRESS AND JPOST.COM STAFF 01/10/2011 18:41 Move follows huge gas reserve discovery along the unclear naval border, subsequent Lebanese requests for help from UN. Talkbacks (13) BEIRUT — A United Nations official said the international body is willing to assist Lebanon demarcate its naval border with Israel to protect the country’s gas reserves. […]

Read the rest of this entry »

Beirut requested UN to protect the country’s gas reserves along the maritime border with Israel, after a huge gas field was discovered underneath the Mediterranean Sea. By Reuters and The Associated Press A United Nations official said Monday the international body was willing to assist Lebanon demarcate its naval border with Israel to protect the […]

Read the rest of this entry »

AMMAN (JT) – Jordan and Iraq have agreed in principle to extend a pipeline to convey crude Iraqi oil to Jordan, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported. During a meeting between Prime Minister Samir Rifai and his Iraqi counterpart Nouri Maliki on Monday, the two officials also discussed the possibility of future expansion of the […]

Read the rest of this entry »

It seems that nobody has bothered studying the state of the international gas market. Nor have they put any thought into how processes in that market affect the economic feasibility of Leviathan. By Doron Tsur I hate to be a joy-killer. But when elation runs riot, somebody has to ask the tough questions. It’s a […]

Read the rest of this entry »

By Hana Namrouqa AMMAN – Three new nature reserves will be launched this year, raising the number of protected areas in the Kingdom to 11, Ministry of Environment officials said on Wednesday. The three new proposed nature reserves are Qatar, Fifa and Jabal Masouda, Ministry of Environment Secretary General Fares Juneidi said yesterday, noting that […]

Read the rest of this entry »

Olivebar trawls olive presses for pellets and skins left after production of olive oil, and compresses the waste into logs for the fireplace. By Zafrir Rinat A factory set up recently near the West Bank settlement of Nokdim is offering an innovative method of “green” heating: compressed olive-waste logs for the fireplace. The company, Olivebar, […]

Read the rest of this entry »

By Mohammed Zaatari Tuesday, January 11, 2011 Sidon residents extracting copper to survive SIDON: Thick black smoke that covers the skies of the southern coastal city of Sidon is not always due to the burning of garbage or unused tires, but the result of a new street profession which consists of burning electricity cables to […]

Read the rest of this entry »

Vesela Todorova Last Updated: Dec 23, 2010 Six contestants from a field of 40 made the final cut yesterday for the US$1.5 million (Dh5.5m) Zayed Future Energy Prize. A scientist, a policy maker, three private companies and a college that runs on solar power are finalists for next month’s competition. Dedicated to Sheikh Zayed, the […]

Read the rest of this entry »

According to Sheshinski Committee, which submitted its recommendations on government royalty and tax policy for natural resource exploitation, offshore Tamar gas exploration site could generate average annual government revenues of NIS 2 to 3 billion for next 30 years. By Avi Bar-Eli The state’s future revenue from the sale of oil and natural gas will […]

Read the rest of this entry »

By SHARON WROBEL 01/06/2011 23:30 Houston-based firm has 6 offshore exploration licenses in Israeli territorial waters. Pelagic Exploration Company, a Houston-based energy firm, has high expectations for the development of its six gas exploration licenses located in Israeli waters, despite the likelihood of having to pay higher royalties to the government. “Change is inevitable,” Pelagic […]

Read the rest of this entry »

By EHUD ZION WALDOKS 01/04/2011 01:36 Excluding Tamar and Mary B might have given the Sheshinski Committee more leeway to get its other recommendations pushed through. Let’s pose a theoretical question: What would have happened if the Sheshinski Committee had recommended exempting the Tamar and Mary B gas fields from its restructuring of the tax […]

Read the rest of this entry »

By EHUD ZION WALDOKS 01/06/2011 06:57 The Sheshinski C’tee’s recommendations on profit distribution are unfair, and run counter to Israel’s interests, gas exploration companies say. Israel’s gas market has soared to the top of the national agenda in recent weeks on the backs of the Sheshinski Committee recommendations and the dramatic findings related to the […]

Read the rest of this entry »

The discovery of natural gas off Israel’s coast is likely to escalate anti-democratic tendencies in the country. By Sefi Rachlevsky It is very possible that Israel is on its way to becoming Saudi Arabia or Iran. The discovery of a store of natural gas in the Mediterranean Sea is likely to have significant implications for […]

Read the rest of this entry »

Israel’s reserves of natural gas and oil shale have the potential to end the country’s dependence on foreign energy sources and, in the case of substituting natural gas for other energy sources, of reducing a number of types of greenhouse gas emissions. By Zafrir Rinat A battle has been raging for several months over the […]

Read the rest of this entry »