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Environment and development AL-BIA WAL-TANMIA Leading Arabic Environment Magazine

September 2018
Editorial
Forum
NAJIB SAAB
Is it too late to save Lebanon’s environment?
NAJIB SAAB
In 2000, the late Prime Minister Rafik Hariri invited me to introduce environmental dimensions into his parliamentary elections platform
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PADDY PADMANATHAN
Ten Years of ACWA Power and Corporate Responsibility
PADDY PADMANATHAN
Since 2007 the Arab region has undergone a number of changes because of economic cycles
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Yihui Wang
AFED Synthesizes Decade of Arab State of the Environment Reports
Yihui Wang
The Arab Forum for Environment and Development (AFED) has published a report titled, ‘Arab Environment in 10 Years’, which
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Meet the
 Editor-in-Chief Najib Saab 		 
 
Selected articles News
Environmental Conservation in the UAE: An Authentic Cultural Heritage and Experience 8/1/2018
The United Arab Emirates (UAE) has prioritized the conservation of the environment and natural resources, both being integral to its national heritage, almost since the establishment of the federation in 1971. The founding father of the UAE, late Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan, considered the environment and sustainable development to be cornerstones of the nation’s progress. ...more
 
PREVENTING DISEASE THROUGH HEALTHY ENVIRONMENT: ASSESSMENT OF THE BURDEN OF DISEASE FROM ENVIRONMENTAL RISKS IN ARAB COUNTRIES 1/6/2017
The realization of how many diseases and illnesses can be prevented by focusing on the management of environmental risks adds impetus to efforts to encourage preventive health measures through all available policies, strategies, interventions, technologies and knowledge. This is generally true to sustain development in most countries of the world, but is more significant in Arab countries where environmental risks are higher and rates of development slower. ...more
 
FactCheck: The facts on Trump's EPA nominee 15/12/2016
Scott Pruitt, President-elect Donald Trump’s nominee to head the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, has made some questionable claims related to global warming, fracking and the Clean Power Plan. ...more
 
AFED Secretariat Annual Work Report 2016 10/11/2016
Arab Forum for Environment and Development (AFED) is closing its most challenging year, in a region overwhelmed by security and economic turmoil. Although we continue to believe that, after all sorts of conflicts and wars, people will still need to preserve and develop their natural capital that they need for survival, AFED is being stripped of minimum resources to execute its mission ...more
 
Waste trade: exporting countries responsible to return refused waste. Interview with Rolph Payet. 2/3/2016
As part of its cover story about Waste trade, in the March-April 2016 issue, Al-Bia Wal-Tanmia magazine conducted this interview with Rolph Payet, executive secretary of the Basel Convention on the control of transboundary movements of hazardous wastes and their disposal. ...more
 
Strong climate deal good for Arab countries 4/12/2015
Climate change, once considered an issue for the future, has now moved firmly into the present. Few days before a new climate change deal is due to be agreed in Paris, the question is no longer whether there will be an agreement but what shape and how strong it will be. ...more
 
Sustainable consumption: AFED’s 2015 report and public opinion survey 19/11/2015
In 2009, an Arab Regional Strategy for Sustainable Consumption and Production (SCP) was adopted by the League of Arab States. This was one of the first such regional strategies to be developed before the RIO+20 summit, which had adopted the 10 Year Framework of Programs (10YFP) on SCP. Consequently, the Arab Region moved forward and became the first region to develop and adopt a Roadmap for Implementation of the 10YFP on SCP at the regional level in June 2013. However, as is the case in most Arab regional strategies, both the roadmap and the SCP regional strategy are far from being implemented at the national levels. Development and implementation of SCP strategies in most Arab countries are still lagging. ...more
 
ACWA Power Develops 200 MW Solar PV Plant in Dubai: 5.84 Cents per kWh Sets New Global Pricing Benchmark 19/11/2015
In March 2015, the Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (DEWA) signed a 25-year power purchase agreement with a consortium of ACWA Power and TSK for a 200 MW net solar photo-voltaic (PV), under Phase II of the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Solar Park, the Middle East’s largest renewable energy park. The bid tariff set a new global pricing benchmark for renewable energy generated from utility scale PV panels at USD 5.84 cents/kWh without subsidies. The second phase is based on the Independent Power Producer (IPP) model and is intended to be operational by April 2017. The project, which occupies 4.5 Km2, will help to achieve a reduction of 400,000 tonnes of carbon emissions. ...more
 
Impact of phasing out water subsidies in Tunisia and Morocco on consumption: a general equilibrium approach 19/11/2015
Morocco and Tunisia are considered among the countries where the scarcity of water resources may cause a serious constraint to the development of their economies. The agricultural sector is the most important consumer of water with more than 80% of the total. Moreover, both countries have shown an increase in the share of GDP accounted for by the nonfarm sectors, which imply an increase in residential water demand as well as manufacturing and service sectors. Consequently, if production growth in the non-farm sectors requires a proportional increase of water demand factor , then water can be a major constraint to economic growth in both countries. ...more
 
GENETICALLY ENGINEERED CLIMATE-RESILIENT SEEDS AS A POSSIBLE RESPONSE TO CLIMATE CHANGE-INDUCED FOOD SHORTAGES 4/9/2015
Climate change is predicted to have dramatic impacts on agricultural production globally. Although food production in some regions of the world may benefit from increasing average temperatures, most of the world will face severe challenges in adapting agricultural systems to the predicted climatic changes. ...more
 
Food Security and Climate Change: the UAE Experience 15/5/2015
The Arab world faces critical challenges in ensuring its food security. Our region is already the world’s largest net importer of essentials such as cereals and sugar, low water supplies in the region mean that expanding agricultural production is difficult, and population growth means that more people must be fed each year. In many ways, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) presents an exemplary case of this challenge. ...more
 
The UNDP-CEDRO Program’s Solar Power Initiatives 5/3/2015
The CEDRO project, a UNDP executed program, has been established since 2007, originally through a generous grant from the Government of Spain, through the Lebanon Recovery Fund, of approximately $10 million. At that time, renewable energy at large, and solar power in specific (with the exception of residential solar hot water systems), have not yet begun to be well propagated and/established. ...more
 
Conflict, refugees and food insecurity in the Arab region 5/3/2015
Conflict has a direct and indirect effect on food security, undermining it through various channels. Its direct effects are numerous – the destruction of infrastructure and machinery; death of livestock; razing of farm land,; and blocked access to markets for producers, distributors, and consumers. Indirectly, conflict discourages productive investment in agriculture, thereby reducing the availability of food. It strips government of tax revenues that prevent the establishment of social safety nets which promote food security. ...more
 
Virtual Water Trade as a Policy Instrument Contributing to the Achievement of Food Security in the GCC Countries 5/3/2015
The concept of ‘virtual water’ has been introduced by Tony Allan in the early nineties (Allan, 1993; 1994). However, it took nearly a decade to get global recognition for the importance of the concept of achieving regional and global water security. The "virtual water" content of a product, as often defined, is the volume of water used to produce the product, measured at the place where the product was actually produced (i.e., a production site specific definition). ...more
 
Review of the likely impact of climate change on agriculture in selected Arab countries 5/3/2015
Climate change is expected to impact agriculture in the region in one way or another. Below is a short review of the anticipated impact of climate change on agricultural in selected Arab countries. ...more
 
How should we tackle natural conservation of Lebanon?: Japanese Ambassador `s observation 5/3/2015
The East Mediterranean, a cradle of the civilizations, is blessed with a diverse and plentiful nature. But this nature is endangered. Nowadays we can observe that the growth range of the Lebanese Cedars has diminished quite drastically. ...more
 
Developing Fish Resources in the Arab World 7/1/2015
The Arab World is rich with large fish resources providing health and cheap proteins to Arabs, compared to animal proteins from other resources. Since the Arab World suffers a shortage in grazing and animal feed resources, which limits the capability to expand meat production, it is very important to sustain the contribution of fish resources in providing animal proteins to the Arab food basket; actually, this sector must be developed to sustainably increase its contribution to the Arab food security system. ...more
 
'Extinct' oryx on the rise thanks to Abu Dhabi-led initiative 21/9/2018
A species of oryx that was once poached out of existence in the African country of Chad is on the comeback trail thanks to an Abu Dhabi-led conservation campaign. ...more
 
In U-turn, Exxon, Chevron to join industry climate initiative 21/9/2018
Exxon Mobil, Chevron and Occidental Petroleum are joining a group of major international oil and gas companies in an initiative aimed at curbing carbon emissions in the sector, they said in a statement on Thursday. ...more
 
Documenting climate change - with a drone 21/9/2018
When Reuters photographer Lucas Jackson headed to Greenland in June, he traveled with a heavy, oversized rolling bag containing a crucial piece of equipment to document climate change. ...more
 
Mars aims to tackle "broken" cocoa model with new sustainability scheme 21/9/2018
Mars Wrigley Confectionery launched a new sustainability strategy on Wednesday with the aim of combating deforestation, child labor and poverty in what it called the “broken” cocoa supply chain. ...more
 
Hyundai signs deal to sell 1,000 hydrogen-powered trucks in Switzerland 21/9/2018
Hyundai Motor said on Wednesday it will sell 1,000 hydrogen-powered trucks in Switzerland over the next five years through a new tie-up, betting the vehicles could beat battery-powered models sold by the likes of Tesla Inc. ...more
 
Tadweer opens new facility in Ghayathi 19/9/2018
As part of its efforts to support Abu Dhabi’s mandate of diverting 75 percent of waste from landfills, the Abu Dhabi Waste Management Centre, Tadweer, has opened a new facility to recycle construction and demolition waste in Ghayathi in Al Dhafra region of Abu Dhabi. ...more
 
Cities around the world lay the groundwork for a zero-waste future 19/9/2018
Cities around the world are pledging to reduce waste over the next 12 years in an effort to curb global warming and eventually become zero-waste cities. ...more
 
EU probes VW, BMW, Daimler over alleged emissions collusion 19/9/2018
EU antitrust regulators are investigating whether BMW, Daimler and Volkswagen colluded to restrict the rollout of clean emission technology, a move that could lead to hefty fines for the German carmakers. ...more
 
Global carbon prices too low to combat climate change: OECD 19/9/2018
Carbon prices in major advanced economies are too low to cut greenhouse gas emissions and stave off the worst effects of climate change, the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) said on Tuesday. ...more
 
EU countries agree to explore hydrogen as energy source 19/9/2018
European Union energy ministers agreed on Tuesday to pool efforts to increase the use of hydrogen in transport and power as part of the bloc’s attempt to cut carbon emissions by 40 percent by 2030. ...more
 
Germany launches world's first hydrogen-powered train 18/9/2018
Germany has rolled out the world’s first hydrogen-powered train, signalling the start of a push to challenge the might of polluting diesel trains with costlier but more eco-friendly technology. ...more
 
California plans to launch its own satellite to monitor air pollution 18/9/2018
California has promised to launch its own satellite to track air quality in the fight against air pollution. ...more
 
Passenger service Gett launches carbon-free travel in the UK 18/9/2018
The global, on-demand transportation service Gett is embarking on a new endeavor — implementing carbon-free and carbon-positive rides for all of its passengers. ...more
 
New £40 million eco-yacht collects five TONNES of plastic from the ocean every day and recycles it to produce renewable fuel as it sails (VIDEO) 18/9/2018
Designs for a £40 million ($52 million) new eco-yacht that will collect plastic from the ocean and recycle it as it sails have been unveiled in Southampton. ...more
 
China to speed up efforts to cut solar, wind subsidies: draft guidelines 18/9/2018
China will speed up efforts to ensure its wind and solar power sectors can compete without subsidies and achieve “grid price parity” with traditional energy sources like coal, according to new draft guidelines issued by the energy regulator. ...more
 
Shell targets lower methane emissions from oil and gas operations 17/9/2018
Royal Dutch Shell announced on Monday plans to limit emissions of methane, a potent greenhouse gas, across its oil and gas operations. ...more
 
China vows greater efforts to curb ozone-depleting chemicals 17/9/2018
China will send out inspection teams to ensure that its provinces are complying with tough international restrictions on the production of ozone-depleting substances (ODS), government officials said on Monday. ...more
 
Carmakers must offer customers incentives to replace diesel models: German minister 17/9/2018
Germany’s transport minister is in talks with carmakers about how much money they should offer customers to exchange old diesel models for new cars, Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung reported. ...more
 
Islanders in Kenya build recycled plastic boat to highlight pollution 17/9/2018
Kenyan islanders have built a boat made entirely of recycled plastic collected during clean-ups of the ocean to highlight the growing menace of plastic waste that ends up in the sea. ...more
 
France wants to triple bike use with better cycle lanes 17/9/2018
France plans to more than triple the share of cycling in transport with a multi-year plan to build better bike lanes, financial incentives for bicycle commuters and measures against bike theft, the government said. ...more
 
 
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Recent Publications
Arab Environment in 10 Years
‎مجلة البيئة والتنمية Environment & Development‎
 
 
 
ان جميع مقالات ونصوص "البيئة والتنمية" تخضع لرخصة الحقوق الفكرية الخاصة بـ "المنشورات التقنية". يتوجب نسب المقال الى "البيئة والتنمية" . يحظر استخدام النصوص لأية غايات تجارية . يُحظر القيام بأي تعديل أو تحوير أو تغيير في النص الأصلي. لمزيد من المعلومات عن حقوق النشر يرجى الاتصال بادارة المجلة
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