If you don’t know these people already, now is the time to start. Top heroes are from Israel, Turkey and Iraq. The year 2011 has been a year like no other in the Middle East. We’ve seen protests against corruption, people have taken to the streets to save salt lakes, promote green transport and ask that renewable energy is taken more seriously. In an effort to celebrate the work of eco heroes from the region, we asked our readers to nominate the people who they felt went the extra mile for the environment in 2011. After whittling down the nominations – we present our editorial pics: the top 11 Green Prophet Heroes for 2011! Drum roll, please:

Ilana Meallem – Israel
An inspirational green campaigner, Ilana is the embodiment of green living. A star student at the Arava Institute in Israel, she has worked on a bio-gas project with Bedouins and participated in various environmental projects in the region. For years she lived in a small van, where she ran and  founded ECO-ME, an environmental community just north of the Dead Sea where Israelis, Palestinians and Jordanians meet to learn. Ilana also runs youth leadership sessions in Wadi Rum.

 


 

Professor Onur Hamzaoğlu – Turkey
Professor Hamzaoğlu published a landmark study in 2011 on the impact of pollution on babies and mothers in Turkey.While not a particularly popular move (he was threatened with legal action and jail), it has helped open up the debate on the issue and the impact of heavy polluting industries on locals.

 


 

Azzam Alwash – Iraq
Azzam Alwash is an inspirational campaigner who has been working tirelessly to restore the marshlands of Iraq following years of war and devastation. He set up the NGO Nature Iraq to spearhead the campaign to preserve the priceless wetlands and worked to encourage its long-term rehabilitation. He is also helping to establish a research initiative – Twin Rivers – at the American University in Sulaymaniyah where he works.

 


 

Farank Farid – Iran
A journalist and activist, Ms. Farank Farid has shown immense courage by campaigning to protect salt lake Urmayah in Iran. She was arrested for 42 days for taking part in the protests and faced torture. As the nominee states, “Farid’s courage – especially in an country that is known for cracking down on dissidents of any kind – is exemplary, and I would love for her to know that we are support [sic] her!”

 


 

Inji El Abd – Egypt
A model woman for the new Arab world, Inji is the co-founder of the Green Arm (a platform for environmental initiatives in Egypt) and the Cycling for Change movement whose mission is to make Cairo a bicycle friendly city. She is an economist working in the field of sustainable development. Disclaimer: Inji El Abd writes for Green Prophet.

 


 


 

Raed al Mickawi – Israel
Raed is the director of Bustan, an Israeli NGO working to promote self-determination and sustainability in the Bedouin communities of Israel’s Negev desert. He is a tireless and relentless campaigner and the success of Bustan is a testament to what can be achieved in challenging physical and political environments.

 


 


 

Gundi Shachal – Israel
As the coordinator of the Ein Gedi EcoPark for Friends of the Earth Middle East, Gundi has managed to transform a former petting zoo into a flourishing eco centre.
The project has evolved to include experiments in mud building, solar cooking as well as recycling greywater and irrigating desert trees.The eco center also houses the Tamar Regional Council’s research and development centre on solar energy.

 


 

Yosef Abramowitz – Israel
Also known as ‘Captain Sunshine’, Abramowitz is the president and co-founder of the Israel-based Arava Power company. A human rights activist and educator, he has been part of the driving force leading Israel towards solar power and energy independence. He has also worked hard to secure the first-ever solar field approved for the Bedouin community in the country – an initiative he hopes will promote social justice and economic benefit for the community.

 


 

Munqeth Mehyar – Jordan
The Jordanian director of Friends of the Earth Middle East (and a vegetarian), Munqeth works to promote environmental issues in Jordan and encourage co-operative efforts between Jordan, Palestine and Israel.

 


 


 

Mohammed Rabah Salem – Palestine
Salem works with solar panels and wind turbines in the West Bank and is happy to share his knowledge with anyone interested in renewable energy. He opened the first factory for wind turbines in Palestine (the Brother Engineering Group in Bethlehem) and has partnered with groups in Israel to spread the word on renewable energy and also encourage peaceful co-operation.

 


 

Sarah Rifaat – Egypt
The Arab region coordinator for the 350 environmental campaigning group, Sarah has been at the helm of the climate movement in the Mideast. She helped organise an impressive 800+ rally in Egypt on the 23^rd of September as part of the global Moving Planet day to encourage governments to move beyond fossil fuels and embrace green-forms of transport.

 


 

The top 3 winners will receive a small cash prize. Thanks for all your nominations.

Israel has introduced several environmental protections in the last few years, but many problems remain.  Although massive social protests swept Israel over the summer, environmental issues were not at the fore.  So who is paying attention?  Dr. Alon Tal, a lawyer, is a professor in the School of Desert Studies at Ben Gurion University.  He has been active in Israel’s environmental movement for more than two decades.  Dr. Tal founded the Arava Institute for Environmental Studies and the Israeli Union for Environmental Defense.  He is co-chairman of the Green Movement, Israel’s Green Party, which is projected to win 3 seats in the next Knesset election.  Currently on sabbatical at Stanford University, Dr. Tal is writing a book about Israeli forestry policy. We caught up with him to discuss what the Israeli government has – and hasn’t – done to prioritize environmental protections.

Joshua: What are the greatest threats to the environment in Israel right now?

Dr. Tal: To begin with, I believe that it’s important that we think systematically about Israel’s environmental problems and distinguish between symptoms and causes.  With regards to symptoms – there are three key threats that I would highlight.

First, the steady loss of open spaces continues to lead to the decimation of Israeli wildlife.  Although the country was blessed with remarkable biodiversity due to its rain gradient and location straddling three continents, nature is paying a huge price to the style and pace of land development.

Over half of the mammal populations are declining, many bird species have stopped reproducing and it is quite likely that within a decade there simply won’t be any amphibians in the wild.

Second, the public health insult from air pollution, especially in the Haifa bay, remains astonishing.  A recent study showed that there are about fifty to sixty cases of lymphatic cancer every year there when statistically there should be no more than twelve.

Breast cancer has reached an epidemic status there, as women have significantly higher rates (roughly 50%) than the national and international norm.

And if we start to consider the chronic health effects, especially among children with respiratory disease, asthma, etc., around the country, we can see that although there are some improvements in the ambient air conditions, we have far to go before the new Clean Air Law begins to deliver some real results.

Third, I think we have to realize that the Israeli environment is part of the international environment – and global trends affect it.  As the world continues to muddle in efforts to combat climate change, weather conditions in Israel are changing. Temperatures are higher; rain events are more ferocious; fires in our forests are more common and more vicious.  Israel’s present government considered climate policy and basically decided not to take responsibility and to let our short-term concerns about economics trump any long-term consideration for the planet and future generations.

In other words, Israel looked at its rising annual emissions of greenhouse gases and decided that renewable energy and energy conservation were simply not a real priority.  The policies adopted are extremely unambitious and will not lead to meaningful changes.

I expected the Jewish state to take a more principled and ethical position regarding the world’s paramount ecological challenge.  Why can’t Israel be the first carbon neutral nation and lead the world in solar energy?  [Israel’s First Prime Minister] David Ben Gurion had that kind of vision and leadership, and I miss it.

Joshua: What, if anything, did the social protest movement hope to achieve in terms of environmental protections? Did it have any success?

Dr. Tal: There was an important moment during the tumultuous summer events where we felt that an environmental message was getting through to the social protesters.  Unanimously, they opposed the legislation that circumvents the planning and building law and removes much of the procedural protection for open spaces.

They realized that flooding the housing market was not the way – as most of those homes wouldn’t be affordable anyway and that quality of life also meant quality of the environment.  The law ultimately passed, but the social movement did not buy into Netanyahu’s simplistic solutions that will ultimately benefit the construction moguls and those who can afford expensive homes.

The jury is still out but at present I’m a bit disappointed in the actual outcomes of the summer protests.  There are a few isolated achievements – say like better pay for starting policemen, but on the whole I don’t see the indicators changing and the tax system remains part of the problem.  For real change, you need a whole new perspective, which I believe that the Green Movement has put out there with its “New Green Deal” proposals.  For instance, we need to start taxing “bad things” like pollution and reducing taxes on “good things” like work.

But I think that the biggest success of the summer is in the general awareness about the importance of the “Commons”. The Green Movement has been talking about the “Commons” – the many public goods that belong to nobody and belong to everybody – for some time and warned that they have been steadily eroding in Israel.

Now we know that the public is unhappy about this trend.  This could be clean air, or it could be good public school education or beaches – but it all amounts to the same thing.  There is a role for government in ensuring that these critical public assets are not privatized and sold off to an increasingly small elite of Israeli society.

We’re not calling for Socialism.  No one wants to go back there. But there is a more equitable and responsible way to govern.  After this summer, I am confident that the public gets this message and I expect to see electoral ramifications down the road.  From the present political players I expect very little as the perspectives informing both Likud and Kadima, the two major political parties, are part of the problem and their leaders remain clueless.

Joshua: How have recent efforts such as the Samar Dunes campaign shaped attempts to preserve natural areas in Israel?

Dr. Tal: Well, it’s been a mixed record recently.  We did well in [the campaigns to save] Palmachim and Betzet beaches but appear to be losing in critical campaigns like the Jerusalem Forest and the Samar Sand Dunes.

It breaks my heart that [sand from Samar] is going to be sold off so that we can lower [development] costs by a fraction in the south of Israel for a couple of years.  It’s the last serious ecosystem of its kind left in Israel and some of those species don’t exist anywhere else on the planet.  It is just lunacy not to drive down sand from an hour or two away and leave this resource for nature and recreation.

So I think that the efforts show that although the environmental movement can change the opinion of Minister of Environment Gilad Erdan, who usually takes the right positions.  But his influence is extremely limited.  His party and its appointments consistently oppose him and more often than not we see that he simply lacks the authority or leadership needed to save these resources for the future and Israel’s environment loses as a result.  This dynamic has convinced me and many other environmentalists that only a Green Party that uses its power to ensure social and environmental justice can really lead to systemic change.

Joshua: In your book “Pollution in a Promised Land“, you chronicle Israel’s history of air and water pollution. What has Israel done recently to combat these problems?

Dr. Tal: Air pollution might get a little bit better with the implementation of the Clean Air Law which recently came into force.  The law is quite advanced and promises better local involvement, tougher standards and broader tools for regulation.  But since the 1960s there was a reasonable air pollution law which could have attained much more. So without enforcement it’s not clear that the promise of the new legislation will be achieved.  And the law will not make much difference at all for greenhouse gas emissions and climate change measures.  With regards to water pollution, we have seen improvements in sewage treatment, but still lack a real strategy for restoring our contaminated aquifers and surface waters.

Joshua: What recent developments give you hope for the movement going forward?

Dr. Tal: Well, I look forward to very successful campaigns in local elections across the country.  I believe that at the level of City Councils, the environment and social conditions are issues which engage a large segment of the public and we should see green lists succeeding even more than today where about 40 representatives in city councils are actively identified with green parties.

In the last national election, the Green Movement had only been in existence formally for four months.  We had enough votes for one seat, but unfortunately, the law says you need two.  The War in Gaza and the dynamics between Bibi and Tzipi Livni hurt us.  But today, many people come to me and tell me how much they regret not voting for us and having at least a few people in the Knesset who share their values.  I think it’s important that Israel’s green party sport a new, challenging, Zionist agenda that young people can get excited about and reinvigorate their enthusiasm for the great national project that we undertake.

Coming after the summer protest where the public is looking for a change, I believe we will join the nations of Europe and become an integral part of the political mosaic.  At that time, we can finally make environmental interests and sustainability not only the “hobby” of a conscientious Member of Knesset, but a serious part of the negotiations that take place as the society decides its priorities.  We can represent that voice which at present remains neglected.

::Alon Tal website

Beirut is almost completely bereft of public green spaces. Satellite images show expanses of grey apartment and office blocks and a depressing lack of trees or any other kind of greenery. But architect and urban designer Wassim Melki has a plan to radically change all of this. Whilst finding space to create public parks, or even planting trees alongside roads is practically impossible, he suggests that the solution lies on rooftops.

“The idea of having a rooftop garden is not something new,” he told Green Prophet, “[but] the approach we took is a little bit different.”

Conjuring images of the legendary Hanging Gardens of Babylon, Melki’s company StudioInvisible propose to apply their project on an enormous scale. They plan to make everyone, “by force, if necessary”, plant a couple of trees on their rooftops, in a way that is “accessible, cheap and easily maintained.”

How green roofs could work in Beirut

Whilst most conventional rooftop gardens encounter many difficulties, such as issues of drainage and insulation, and the danger of rooftop trees being toppled in high winds, planting them in pots seems to be the most effective solution.

This method, combined with the use of steel wires for stability, would be especially appropriate for Beirut as there are numerous trees that could grow in pots in its climate such as the olive tree, the Schinum Molle, Morus Alba, etc. The list goes on.

Aside from the aesthetic benefits, and the improvements to the quality of living the residents of Beirut would enjoy were this initiative to be implemented, oxygen levels would be better, and a small but valuable crop could even be harvested depending on the types of trees planted.

StudioInvisible plans to implement this project by way of a “municipal decree”, mandating all residents to grow a few trees on their roofs, or through some other form of authority. This is necessary, Melki explains, lest the project be doomed to failure, something he laments is “very common” in Lebanon.

The studio suggests offering “tax reductions” or other benefits to those buildings that have well-maintained rooftop gardens. It urges politicians to have the foresight to see the possible political advantages they could glean from implementing this initiative, being able to say that they literally “turned Beirut green”.

The initiative has been circulated on the internet at a rate that StudioInvisible “never expected”, Wassim Melki said, already clocking up over 8000 views between their own website and archileb.com.

But despite this enormously encouraging support, the project faces a number of significant challenges as it now seeks to gain the interest of individuals and groups from different fields, financial support and, at least, “moral support” from the municipality of Beirut and the Ministry of Environment.

The simplicity, feasibility and potential of the initiative make its attractiveness undeniable. As StudioInvisible boldly suggest, if this plan were to work, “Beirut could become a rooftop wonder forest, the whole city as a landmark.”

::Images property of Wassim Melki from StudioInvisible via archileb.com

The eco-curious public thronged Masdar’s open organic market and street fair last week.  As at last April’s first event, people experienced renewable energy in the flesh, riding in neat little driverless pod cars that shuttled between the parking lot and the fair grounds. Once at the market, organic shwarma and snacks tempted appetites. Displays of colorful produce and shelves of organic cosmetics appealed to the health and beauty-conscious.

The Little Fair Trade Shop opened again, selling beautiful craft items made from recycled materials. Kids were treated to  “Mad Scientist”  and recycling workshops, magic shows and more. Education in sustainability lightly disguised as fun.

“The overriding message of The Market@Masdar City is sustainability,” said Ahmed Baghoum, the director of the Masdar City free zone. We aim to make Abu Dhabi the pre-eminent source of renewable energy knowledge, development and implementation, and the world’s benchmark for sustainable development.”

Judging from the estimated 10,000 people who turned out to see what it’s all about, the Masdar Organic Street Market is a success. Plans are to open it every 6 weeks on Fridays, between 10:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m.

Masdar City, the big Middle Eastern experiment in sustainable life. Read more about it on Green Prophet:

• Masdar City Pod-Car Makers
• Re-Assessing Masdar City
  Eco-Geek’s First Week in Masdar

Photo of Masdar market by Caline Malek via The National

The question has been asked – how would you build a sustainable city in the desert?

Siemens, the German energy corporation, has been active in the Middle East over the past couple of years since it bought a couple of solar companies in Israel.  Now it is playing a role again as it has just launched a regional Siemens Student Award open to bachelor and master students across the Middle East, asking participants to answer one central question: how to build sustainable cities in the desert.  If past behavior is any indicator then solar energy is part of Siemens’ sustainable plan for the region, but it appears that they want to know what the locals think.

Participants were asked to relate their responses towards four main trends: demographic change, climate change, urbanization, and globalization.  In 500 words.  Students were also encouraged to submit creative visual aids to demonstrate their ideas.

Joachim Kundt, the CEO of Siemens in the United Arab Emirates, said that “the buzz words and tags that rank most highly on the site at the moment are ‘energy’, ‘water’, ‘natural resources’, ‘renewable energy’ and ‘solar’, highlighting the students’ interest in thinking about practical solutions that deal with the most pressing challenges the world faces today.”

“Seeing these topics discussed at a feverish pace gives us hope that future generations in the region are committed to finding solutions, addressing water shortage, better access to health care and clean energy,” Kundt added.

The contest launched in May 2011 and received a large number of submissions before it closed this week.  A large number of participants came from Egypt, the United Arab Emirates, and Pakistan, with students from over 219 universities registered and involved in the competition online.  Ten finalists and the winner of the competition will be announced in Qatar in early November.

: AME info

Read more about Siemens in the Middle East::
Siemens Buys Israel’s Solel for $418 Million
Siemens on a Solar Streak with Investment News Around Arava Power
Siemens to Promote “Green” Solutions at World Future Energy Summit

Image via: Guilherme Jofili

It’s really quite common to see the entire tops of trees lobbed off, and sitting by the side of the road in Tel Aviv, and other cities in Israel. It makes one sad, especially since it’s often done in the summer time, when the foliage is perfect for providing much needed shade. I always thought it was a throwback from the settlement days, when people lived in the Kibbutz and were eager to get back to nature by pruning it. Perhaps over enthusiastically. Turns out there is a very good reason for the tree-trimming madness in Israel, and it’s about money: Bribes, scandals, the Jewish National Fund, and the tree-trimming mobsters are in it together.

According to a news report today in the Haaretz/International Herald Tribune (no link), that Israeli tree-trimmers are part of a cartel, a mob that excessively trims trees to collect steep fines.

Backed by bribes to the Jewish National Fund staff, the Israel Electric Company and the Israel Defense Forces, the tree-trimming mafia have taken in dozens of millions of dollars for their pruning services, most of which was unnecessary. Working together, several companies competing for the services bid on what they offer as inflated tenders – artificially high so the bar for services would be very expensive.

These services include pruning under electric wires. Splitting all the work and income between the companies, these companies are suspected of bribing officials on the inside so they could better prepare their bids and earn excessively high amounts of fees for their services.

In a story in Haaretz just two weeks ago, city residents in Tel Aviv complained about the over-use of tree-pruning sheers:

“They destroyed 80 percent of each tree – it’s unbelievable,” one local said. “We sat with the municipality in endless meetings and talked about how it’s necessary to monitor the people who do the pruning. That didn’t happen with the last pruning.”

A hotline for the trees

Is this a reason to privatize services supposed to be handed by the government?

The government has now provided a hotline if you suspect someone is over-trimming public trees, or who are cutting them down or neglecting them. Call in Israel 03 948 5816 or email trees@moag.gov.il.

Image via state-library-australia

Khaled Al-Sabawi, founder and president of Palestinian green energy pioneers MENA Geothermal, was one of the speakers at this spring’s much-publicised TEDx Ramallah conference. In an engaging and humorous speech, Al-Sabawi detailed the many benefits that geothermal energy has to offer his native land, from lower energy bills and carbon emissions to the prospect of a more independent and self-sufficient energy sector. The speech was reported widely, including by Al-Jazeera English.

As of this week, Al-Sabawi’s talk is now also available online, uploaded to the YouTube channel for TEDx Ramallah, for all to see. In just a few days, the video has attracted almost 10,000 viewers and can be viewed online. See below.

Click here to view the embedded video.

As Green Prophet has reported in the past, MENA Geothermal has completed green energy systems for houses, apartment blocks and office buildings in the West Bank, and was awarded the contract to fit a 1.6MW system at the University of Madaba in Jordan, the Middle East’s largest geothermal installation. One of the driving forces behind MENA Geothermal’s success, says Khaled Al-Sabawi, is a patented improvement to standard geothermal systems which uses limestone dust, a waste product of Palestine’s quarrying and stone-cutting industry, to increase the efficiency and lower the cost of the company’s installations.

As well as MENA Geothermal’s success in winning large scale energy-saving contracts, Khaled Al-Sabawi’s dynamism and commitment have attracted major accolades from the business and green energy sectors. In 2010, Al-Sabawi was named one of the world’s top energy entrepreneurs by the Global Post. And in 2008, his company won the Energy Globe Award, one of the world’s most prestigious environmental prizes, for the geothermal heat and cooling system it fitted at the UCI Headquarters Building, located in Ramallah, Palestine. The UCI building was, until MENA fitted the University of Madaba system, the largest geothermal installation in the region.

Read more about green energy in Palestine on Green Prophet:
INTERVIEW: The Man Behind Palestine’s Green City Rawabi – Bashar Masri
Comet-ME Continues to Bring Power to Villagers in the South Hebron Hills
Jericho’s Agra-Industrial Park Goes Live With Solar Power

It’s hard not to compare Dubai and Cairo – two cities that occupy many of our worried green thoughts. Although different on so many levels, one thing stands out: despite being relatively young and stroppy, Dubai is definitely the cleaner city. Sure, there is litter along the beaches and in other more isolated areas, but when compared to Egypt, the Emirate comes out squeaky clean. Even so, French Architect Dominique Gauzin-Müller told Almasry Alyoum that she can envision a sustainable urban future for Egypt, particularly if the country embraces wisdom advocated by their very own father of sustainable architecture – Hassan Fathy.

Despite Cairo’s incredible challenges, including a burgeoning population, solid waste management issues, inadequate public transportation infrastructure, pollution, and poor drinking water, Dominique Gauzin-Müller has brought an exhibit to just this city with the belief that these negatives can be improved.

Called “Live ecological: what types of architecture for a sustainable city,” the exhibit is being shown at the Palace Amir Taz in Khalifa, Cairo. And it is supported by the French Institute and Paris-based Cité de L’architecture et du Patrimoine.

Since buildings consume the majority of our natural resources, the architect believes that it is especially important to ensure that they are built well and that they are built with a view toward cultural, ecological, economical, and social consciousness.

Gauzin-Müller sites Hassan Fathy’s architectural ethos as an appropriate model for Egypt to carry forward. Considered the inventor of ‘passive cooling,’ Fathy emulated indigenous building methods, such as courtyards and dense walls that absorb solar gain, in order to keep desert structures cool. Adobe, wallow, and blocks are among the materials the French architect proposes as ideal for Egypt, as long as no precious silt is used.

She also compares Cairo’s ‘informal’ areas to Europe’s Eco-Quartiers, according to the paper, and suggests that Egypt is in a good permission to learn from the mistakes in the west. Skyscrapers are not an intelligent use of scarce space since their foundations are necessarily large.

Al-Azhar parks receives high marks for its service to keep dust down, and Gauzin-Müller recommended that more green spaces should be considered. She especially advocates developing the Nile’s banks to create clean and green walking space for the city’s inhabitants.

Hassan Fathy’s legacy will never die.

:: Almasry Alyoum

More on Sustainable Architecture in the Middle East:

Hassan Fathy is the Middle East’s Father of Sustainable Architecture

Sustainable Architecture in Israel Blooms in a Strawbale House

Foster & Partners Finish Gorgeous Green Building in Morocco

image via Giampaolo Macorig

Wild and crazy Dubai is hardly known for sensible conservation of scarce resources, but CEO Ahmad Bin Shafir could change all that with a radical new approach to keeping cities cool. His rapidly growing company Empower already cools Dubai’s most efficient new buildings with district cooling.

Far more efficient than air conditioning, district cooling uses water that has been cooled once in a central plant and then distributed through a network of piping systems to individual customer buildings. It achieves economies of scale because it uses centralized plants instead of duplicating the energy used with individual cooling units in each building.

Along with district heating, district cooling has been widely used in the greenest nations globally, such as Sweden, to minimize energy use and achieve carbon neutral buildings.

In Dubai, Empower has grown by leaps and bounds: in 2010 the company had a 37 percent increase in its signature district cooling plants, and as a result – it added 34 employees. Many CEOs, faced with that kind of success, would just keep doing things the same way, regardless of the fact that Dubai, like all the MENA nations, has extreme water scarcity, which will get worse over the next decades with climate change.

But Empower CEO, Ahmad Bin Shafir appears to be an unusual CEO. He plans an innovative solution to Dubai’s water scarcity. Instead of wasting freshwater, circling endlessly inside the cooling pipes of his district cooling projects, Empower has just begun to substitute recycled waste water to do the same work.

“The purpose of district cooling is to save energy” he says. “As we lead by example, we have adopted this new technology. Most real estate projects in Dubai are equipped with district cooling services which require a huge amount of water. Using sewage or recycled water represents a huge step in water conservation.”

Using waste water in place of fresh water is even more crucial in Dubai. The arid nation uses energy to desalinate water to make drinkable freshwater. It makes little sense to then waste that energy that has already been expended, by simply pushing that desalinated water around in contained pipes to cool buildings, negating the energy savings of district cooling.

::Empower

Related stories:
Israel Well Positioned to Meet Growing Gulf Need for New Water
Dubai’s New Net Zero Building Codes Should Boost Cleantech Worldwide
Abu Dhabi’s Costly Desalination Plants Prompt Wastewater Treatment Plans

If there is one thing that makes a city unlivable it is no water.

Sabrina Faber, who has lived in Yemen for many years, and experienced water shortages herself, has won 75,000 Euros for her idea: a rainwater harvesting system incorporated into rooftops, based on the traditional designs she saw in the countryside.

Rooftop water cisterns are still in use in the countryside in Yemen, and throughout the country, flat roofs – with parapets – are common, making them seemingly ideal for this purpose. Hers would add water filtration to make the water safe to drink a crucial aspect of rainwater harvesting being innovated now by Israel.

But the fact that the idea has long been in use in the countryside, as it is in traditional buildings in other Mediterranean countries, but not in the city of Sana’a – despite near desperate straits suggests that houses in the city are not suitable for this system. Traditions that work don’t die out.

Maybe the city of Sana’a was settled earlier and its buildings are too ancient to support more weight on top? Certainly, the ones in her illustration in no way look able to support any extra weight by modern building code standards.

Yemen’s average annual precipitation varies greatly, with both droughts and floods common.  Rainfall is unpredictable, from 500 mm (20 inches) 910 mm (36 inches) of rain a year, but many years there is none. When it comes, rain normally falls in the form of thunder-showers, heavy and short. But even that is not reliable. This combination of drought and infrequent heavy water loads is the worst-case scenario for antique building stock.

Related stories:

Waterless by 2017? Yemen Capital Fails To Harvest Its Summer Rain …
Cluster Of Turkish Buildings Cool Off With Roof Pools
Aqua Soft’s Drone Plane Collects Water From Air, Drops It As Rain