Dubai is synonymous with man-made folly. Their Burj Khalifa, the world’s tallest building, stands over half a mile high. They have manufactured islands in the shape of palm trees and continents. You can play tennis atop a skyscraper or ski in a mall. Now they’ve extended their fantastical designs to everyday functionality, with new garbage bins that track speeding cars.
Dubai trash can catches nearly 40,000 speed racers!
Fiery May heatwave is setting Israel ablaze
Israel is smoking hot when it comes to tech start-ups, fashion, and vegetarian cuisine, but yesterday it showed signs of getting too hot for its own good. Air temperatures topped 46 degrees Celsius (nearly 115 degrees Fahrenheit) in Eilat, a record high for the Red Sea resort town according to the Israel Meteorological Service. The sharav – or heat wave – has caused hundreds of cases of dehydration and heatstroke, triggered brush fires, and placed extreme pressure on the national electrical grid. Nearby Jordan is experiencing similar weather.
Israeli agriculture companies tackle ecological problems
Tel Aviv’s Ben Gurion International Airport (TLV) is hosting a yearlong exhibition on Israeli innovation that underscores the country’s reputation as the world’s “Start-up Nation”. Travelers through Israel’s main gateway are treated to an overview of 60 scientific and technological inventions and discoveries, several hailing from the labs of Ben Gurion University, with emphasis on Israel’s Nobel Prize winners.
It’s an excellent way to pass time between flights, but if you’re not one of the 8 million annual passengers who use TLV, allow us to introduce you to three of the best entrants which address themes close to Green Prophet’s heart – water security and organic food production.
Welcome to “Israeli Discoveries and Developments that Influenced the World,” launched by Israel’s Science, Technology and Space Ministry.
“We are showing the vast contributions of Israeli science and technology to the world and all humanity,” Israel Science, Technology and Space Minister Ofir Akunis said at the launch. And the featured projects are indeed vast, and varied.
Our lead image, photographed by Roei Greenberg, is part of the exhibit representing the work of Professor Emeritus Yossi Mizrahi of Ben Gurion University’s Department of Life Sciences who was part of a scientific team that developed the cherry tomato.
Other featured inventions include the flash drive, Israeli-grown Intel microchips, and a wide range of robotics and pharmaceuticals that improve the lives of millions around the world. We encourage you to watch the video clips, and check out the companies’ websites for more information.
And if you happen to be at TLV, look for the full exhibition located just beyond passport control.
Netafim is the world’s leading manufacturer of drip irrigation systems, which save up to 70 percent of the water used in agriculture. Did you know that drip irrigation is an Israeli invention? The technique emerged in the 1960s on Kibbutz Hazerim, developed and refined by engineer Simcha Blass, who began manufacturing primitive drip systems on site. Netafim has taken it further, developing other water-saving tech including overhead sprays and oscillating sprinklers now used around the world.
TaKaDu tackles water delivery. offering smart solutions to leaking pipes. Amir Peleg founded the company in 2009 which collects data from already existing network meters and sensors to allow clients to monitor their water networks, detect leaks and inefficiencies, and track equipment performance in real-time. A boon to operations of industrial and utility-scale water systems everywhere.
BioBee, where Green Prophet’s Karin has worked, is the anti-Syngenta, developing sustainable methods of natural pest control for agricultural purposes. They fight fire with fire, using beneficial insects and mites to control unwanted pests in greenhouses and in open fields.
Israel’s Kibbutz Sde Eliyahu has been a pioneer in organic agriculture, establishing it’s corporate entity – Bio-Bee Biological Systems – in 1984. Its subsidiary Bio Fly also markets pollinating bumblebees. Bio-Bee products are currently exported to 30 countries.
flux, a technology you won’t see there yet (but hopefully soon), has developed a device to make it super easy for any one to grow the most sustainably produced food in the world using hydroponics. The product launches this summer and I can’t wait.
The airport exhibit aims to increase public awareness of science and promote Israel’s prowess on the global playing field of innovation and invention. According to the Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs, a recent survey showed that 43% of Israelis are unaware that Israel’s first President, Chaim Weizmann, was originally a chemist. Approximately 50% of Israelis were unable to name even one Israeli Nobel laureate scientist (there are eight!). Sections of the exhibit are devoted to Israel’s three Turing laureates and one Fields Medal winner. Renowned scientists Albert Einstein, Chaim Weizmann, and Aaron Aaronsohn also get a nod.
Israel leads the world in the highest number of startups per capita, giving rise to thousands of innovations in a range of fields, from agriculture to medicine to technology, which directly influence on the lives of millions of people around the world.
Lead photo: Israeli Ministry of Science; videos from the featured companies
Jordanian architect Hanna Salameh to eco-fix Jordan’s faulty towers
For five years a set of unfinished twin towers have stood watch over Amman, Jordan, construction halted – allegedly crippled by lawsuits. The filthy glass facades soar above a street-level footprint ringed by old hoarding, abandoned building material and trash. The empty skyscrapers stand in silent testimony to both the 2008 world financial crisis and a more localized crisis in smart urban planning.
Now a young architect throws out a nationwide challenge, posting on his website, “Amman, it’s time to talk!”
Hanna Salameh, founder of the design firm that bears his name, has collaborated with architects on his staff to propose a radical solution to these faulty towers. Renaming Jordan Towers as Jordan Gate Park, they envision a facility that returns a sense of place and scale to its neighborhood while serving as a fully visible beacon to renewable energy and the industry’s best practices in green design. If realized, it would transform them into the most sustainable development in the kingdom.
Green Prophet met up with Salameh to get the full story.
Green Prophet: Congratulations! You’ve been the man of the moment on social media and radio; clearly you’ve touched on a something many locals are passionate about.
Hanna Salameh: Thanks, the response is overwhelming. We are getting comments on our Facebook page, company website, and the phone hasn’t stopped ringing.
GP: What’s the story of the site?
HS: The towers were built on what used to be a public park that was created on lands donated to the city for that purpose. It’s not clear how the site was made available for private development. The park was surrounded by a dense residential neighborhood and was very popular. It had a large emotional legacy to those who grew up in that part of Amman.
The Jordan Gate project was riddled with problems. The site cannot support the added car traffic that the planned offices and commercial spaces would generate. Servicing its enormous water and sewage demands would be problematic too.
GP: What’s your story?
HS: I grew up in Jordan, and studied architecture at McGill University in Montreal. I returned home and in 2012 I started my company in Amman, Hanna Salameh Design. “Green” is in my blood. I grew up surrounded by examples of sensible, sustainable design.
When I was a kid, my grandfather would take me with him to visit the many ancient castles in Jordan. I was always amazed how the interiors were cool, in sharp contrast to the intense heat and sunshine outside. He taught me about natural air conditioning, and skillful use of shade. I became passionate about smart passive design, using materials to decrease dependence on mechanical heating and cooling. My company is known for green design, our buildings use 50-70 percent less energy than those built according to standard practices.
GP: Regulations related to planning, design and construction in Jordan seem a bit lax. Building codes don’t seem to adopt international best practices, with many buildings under-insulated, with far too much exterior glass for the climate. There’s little evidence of robust planning around the impacts of new construction on traffic, parking, emergency services. Do you think stronger, centralized codes would make sure developments were of better quality?
HS: Rigorous planning and clear codes of course would help. But my focus is on raising public awareness. There’s a lack of education about how our buildings could be better, without driving up costs or adding complication. A big part of the Jordan Gate Park project is about showing people how a large project can bring real benefits to its community. This can generate renewable energy, provide needed public areas for people to relax and interact, it can even supply a steady, organic food supply – all of this open to the public to explore and learn about, and maybe even merge into their own homes.
GP: What motivated you to take on this project?
HS: As a Amman-based architecture firm, we decided to suggest a radical solution that could turn this potential disaster into a positive project that contributes to the sustainability of our country. Jordan has big energy and water problems. We can use these towers to fix part of these problems.
GP: What’s your approach?
HS: We start by removing most of the glass that now wraps the buildings – about 25,000 panels that we’ll re-purpose for other uses on and off site. We’ll sheath the southern facades with photovoltaic (PV) panels – we estimate using 1,500 PV panels, the equivalent of placing eight panels on every house in the surrounding 800 m2 neighborhood.
The towers have 180 m tall shafts for elevators and services. We will open several of these shafts to act as wind towers, siphoning hot air from ground level up through the roof, creating strong air currents in the process, which can be harvested by wind turbines to generate even more electricity.
HS: But the most important thing we want to do is start urban farming, and turn these towers into vertical farms right in the middle of the city. Each floor is a potential farm with an area of 2,500 m2. Farmers can cultivate popular crops such as cucumbers and tomatoes that grow in natural sunlight, and introduce more exotic varieties in special-purpose controlled environments, enclosed in glass and illuminated by low-consumption LED lights.
The towers offer a total planting area of 200,000 m2, equivalent to transforming the entire street level community into a center-city farm!
HS: Another important aspect of our design is turning the site back into a public park, and help make these skyscrapers relate to human scale. We’ll open up the roof of the first-level basement to admit sunlight and connect it to the park above. We’ll re-purpose about 10,000 of the glass wall panels into stalls for a new farmers’ market. Tower farmers can sell their fresh produce directly to consumers, cutting out the middleman, shipping costs, and harmful CO2 emissions.
HS: As for the rest of those glass panels? We’ll build 1,900 bus stops across Amman and the kingdom. They can be signed in interesting ways to promote tips of energy and water saving to create further awareness.
HS: There is a lot more we can do with these towers. Like creating a viewing deck on the top floor to enjoy the beautiful views of Amman. And a tower-top restaurant that serves food cooked from the delicious organic products grown in the towers. We want to create a green gym with sports equipment that generates electricity.
There’s so much more potential – we could add extreme entertainment such as bungee jumping off the towers, zip-lining between them, installing hi-tech roller coasters – you can see more about this in the video we created (below). And of course we’ll have an educational part to explain how the project works and educated the public further about green design and energy and water saving.
[youtube]https://youtu.be/5FA-OMYiIHQ[/youtube]
HS: So as you can see, we are hitting about 15 birds with one stone. Most importantly, we are protecting our city from a big problem and transforming these two towers into a positive project that generates power, produces food and gives us back our park.
We believe that the cost of implementing these ideas is less than finishing the original planned project. And the new functions will generate significant income for the tower owners, returning first investment and creating new revenue streams from renewable energy generation and food production.
GP: Any parting words for us?
HS: Let’s turn these towers into a landmark that represents progress and sustainability. Their presence will raise awareness on issues of energy and water, and through them we can prove to the world that we can learn from our mistakes and turn them into big positives for our city and country. Help us make this vision a reality. Connect with us through our website or Facebook or Twitter using the #JordanGatePark.
Images from the project YouTube video
جفاف الشرق الأوسط هو الأسوء منذ 900 سنة: وكالة ناسا
خلُصت دراسة أجرتها وكالة ناسا الأمريكية مؤخرا إلى أن الجفاف الذي يجتاح بلاد حوض المتوسط الشرقي منذ العام 1998 هو الأسوء منذ العام 1100. و اعتمد العلماء في ناسا على دراسة عينات حية و غير حية من حلقات جذوع الأشجار، مأخوذة من عدة دول على حوض المتوسط و ذلك لتحديد أنماط السنوات الماطرة و الجافة على مدى 900 سنة خلت. و تعتبر جذوع الأشجار مؤشرا جيدا على نسبة هطول الأمطار في منطقة ما، حيث تشير الحلقات النحيلة إلى نسبة مياه قليلة في النظام البيئي المجاور، و العكس صحيح بالنسبة للحلقات الأكثر سُمكا. و خلُصت الدراسة إلى أن الفترة الزمنية ما بين العام 1998 و 2012 كانت الأكثر جفافا مقارنة بباقي الفترات، و على أن الجفاف كان نتاجا للأثر البشري على الطبيعة
و قال عالم تغيير المناخ في ناسا بن كوك أن المظاهر الجوية لمنطقة شرق حوض المتوسط شهدت مجالا واسعا من التغييرات على طول الألفية الماضية، و لكن السنوات العشرين الأخيرة تعتبر الأكثر تطرفا في تلك المظاهر، و التي كان التغيير فيها خارج نطاق المألوف طبيعيا. و كشفت الدراسة أيضا على أن الجفاف غير محكوم بمنطقة معينة على الحوض، أي إن وقع الجفاف في منطقة ما فعلى الأغلب انتقاله إلى مناطق مجاورة بحكم انتشار شروط الجفاف. و علق عالم المناخ في جامعة أريزونا كيفن أنشوكايتيس على هذه الظاهرة قائلا أنها قد تسبب اضطرابا كبيرا في أنظمة تحصيل الغذاء، بالإضافة إلى نزاعات على موارد المياه
أنظمة الغذاء و موارد المياه – اضطرابات و نزاعات
و في المشرق العربي، كان الجفاف الحاصل بين العام 1998 و 2012 أكثر جفافا بنسبة 50 بالمئة من أكثر الفترات جفافا في ال500 سنة الماضية، و بنسبة 10 إلى 20 بالمئة من أكثر الفترات جفافا في ال900 سنة الماضية. و في نفس السياق، كشف باحثون في جامعة كولومبيا و جامعة كاليفورنيا الأمريكيتين بأن الجفاف الحاصل في بلاد الشام كان السبب في انهيار المنظومة الزراعية في سوريا، مما أدى إلى هجرة 1.5 مليون مزارع من الأرياف إلى المدن و زيادة الضغط على موارد المياه هناك. و كان النقص في المياه أحد الأسباب التي أدت بدورها إلى إحالة الأمور أكثر سوءا، مما عجل بالحرب التي دمرت البلد و ما زالت منذ العام 2011
و كشف الباحثون أيضا عن أنماط مناخية تساعدهم في تحديد الأسباب الكامنة وراء الجفاف، و عن إذا للأفعال البشرية أي يد في جعلها أسوء أثرا مقارنة بغيرها. و قال كوك أن هذا البحث ساهم في تحسين النماذج الحاسوبية التي تحاكي أثر التغيير المناخي، و ساعدت في تأكيد دراسات أخرى للأثر البشري في افتعال حالات مناخية متطرفة
و تعتبر حركة الرياح و تفاعلها مع الحالات المائية في المحيطات أحد أهم المظاهر الكونية التي تؤثر بالجفاف و حدوثه. و في حالة حوض المتوسط، هنالك ظاهرتين رئسيستين تؤثرا في جفافه أو رطوبته، و هما تذبذب شمال الأطلسي و نمط شرق الأطلسي. تعمل هاتين الظاهرتين على مراحل دورية من شأنها إبعاد العواصف الماطرة عن البحر الأبيض المتوسط و جلب هواءا أكثر سخونة و جفافا إلى حوضه. و بطبيعة الحال، تقل نسبة هطول الأمطال و تزداد درجات الحرارة في تلك المناطق، مسببة بذلك بتبخر مياه التربة و حدوث الجفاف. و في هذا الصدد، قال عالم المناخ في مركز لامونت دوهرتي للمراصد الأرضية يوكانان كوشنر أنه من المُجمع عليه في الوسط العلمي أن حوض المتوسط سيشهد جفافا أكبر في المستقبل بسبب تغييرات المناخ المفتعلة بشريا، مشيرا بذلك إلى أن المشرق العربي بدأ يستشعر آثار الاحتباس الحراري العالمي من الآن
الهجرة الكبيرة من الشرق الأوسط و شمال أفريقيا – هروب من المناخ
خلُص باحثون في مركز ماكس بلانك في ألمانيا و مركز قبرص للأبحاث بأن الشرق الأوسط و شمال أفريقيا لن يعودا قابلين للعيش الآدمي، و أن أعداد المهاجرين هربا من بيئتهم المحلية في تلك المناطق سيزداد كثيرا. و أوضح الباحثون أن هذه النتيجة القاتمة لن تتغير حتى و إن نجح العالم في تحقيق هدفه المنشود بإرساء الارتفاع الحراري العالمي إلى أقل من درجتين مئويتين كما نص اتفاق باريس في قمة الأمم المتحدة للمناخ مؤخرا. ارتفاع درجات الحرارة الصيفية في الشرق الأوسط و شمال أفريقيا ستزداد بسرعة قدرها ضعفي مثيلاتها من المعدلات العالمية، مما يعني أن الحرارة ستبلغ 46 درجة مئوية خلال الأيام الحارة على الشواطئ الجنوبية للبحر الأبيض المتوسط، و أن تلك الأيام الحارة ستتكرر خمسة أضعاف عددها في بداية الألفية. تلك الزيادة في عدد الأيام الحارة، بالإضافة إلى تلوث الهواء من جراء غبار الصحراء، سيجعلا من بيئة الشرق الأوسط و شمال أفريقيا غير محتملة من قبل سكانهما، مما سيؤدي إلى هجرات بيئية هربا من تلك المناطق
قال مدير مركز ماكس بلانك للكيمياء جوس ليلفيلد أن مساحات كبيرة في الشرق الأوسط و شمال أفريقيا قد تشهد تغيرا في المناخ بالشكل الذي سيهدد وجود سكان تلك المناطق. علما أن مظاهر تغيير المناخ بدأت تظهر في تلك المناطق الحارة أصلا، و أن عدد الأيام الحارة جدا قد تضاعفت منذ العام 1970. و عمل ليلفيلد و رفاقه على دراسة تغير الحرارة المحتمل في الشرق الأوسط و شمال أفريقيا على القرن الواحد و العشرين، و جائت النتائج مثيرة للقلق: حتى و إن ارتفعت معدلات الحرارة العالمية بنسبة درجتين مئويتين فقط مقارنة بمعدلات ما قبل الصناعة، فإن ارتفاع درجات الحرارة الصيفية في تلك المناطق سيزداد بنسبة الضعف، و أنه بحلول منتصف القرن الحالي، ستصل الحرارة إلى 46 درجة مئوية في النهار، و لن تنزل عن 30 درجة ليلا. أما بحلول نهاية القرن، ستقفز الحرارة إلى 50 درجة في منتصف الأيام الحارة، و سيزداد عدد موجات الحرارة عشرة أضعاف معدلاته الحالية
من 16 إلى 80 يوما شديد الحرارة بحلول نصف القرن
أما عن مدة موجات الحرارة، فمن المتوقع أن تقفز إلى 80 يوما في السنة بعد أن كان عدد الأيام شديدة الحرارة يبلغ 16 في الفترة بين العام 1986 و 2005، في حين قد يصل العدد إلى 118 يوما في حلول نهاية القرن الحالي – حتى في حال انخفاض الانبعاثات الدفيئة بعد العام 2040. و علق خبير تغيير المناخ في مركز قبرص بانوس هاجينيكولاو قائلا بأن سكان المنطقة عليهم تحمل حوالي 200 يوم في السنة من الأيام شديدة الحرارة في حال واصلت البشرية إصدارها غاز ثاني أوكسيد الكربون بمعدلات انبعاثه الحالية. و من جهته قال الباحث في العلوم الجوية جوس ليلفيلد بأنه متأكد من ضرر تغيير المناخ على بيئة و صحة سكان تلك المناطق، و بأن موجات الحرارة المطولة و عواصف الصحراء الغبارية سيجعلا من بعض المناطق غير صالحة للمعيشة، مما سيدفع بالسكان للهجرة. و كشف الباحثان أيضا عن دلائل تفيد بزيادة تلوث الهواء في الشرق الأوسط بالجسيمات الدقيقة، و ذلك جراء زياده قدرها 70 بالمئة في الغبار الصحراوي فوق المملكة العربية السعودية و العراق و سوريا مقارنة بمعدلاتها في بداية القرن الحالي. و تأتي هذه الزيادة في العواصف الرملية بسبب الجفاف المطول الذي اجتاح المنطقة مؤخرا، و الذي من المتوقع أن يزداد سوءا بسبب الحالة البيئية في المنطقة
ارتفاعات حرارية أكثر في صيف حار أصلا
و توصل الباحثان إلى نتائج بحثهما من خلال مقارنة بيانات المناخ المسجلة من العام 1986 حتى 2005 مع 26 نموذجا مناخيا لنفس الفترة. و قد أظهرت البيانات المسجلة و النتائج المتوقعة من قبل النماذج تطابقا ممتازا، مما مكن الباحثان و رفاقهما من استخدام النماذج لاستنتاج حالة المناخ المتوقعة للفترات بين الأعوام 2046 و 2065 من جهة، و الأعوام 2081 و 2100 من جهة أخرى
و قد أسند الباحثان حساباتهما إلى سيناريوهين مستقبليين: الأول يفترض بدءا بانخفاض في الانباعاثات الدفيئة العالمية بحلول العام 2040، مصحوبا بحالة حرارية لكوكب الأرض تبلغ 4.5 واط للمتر المربع الواحد مع نهاية القرن الحالي. و يعادل هذا السيناريو ما ترنو إليه قمة الأمم المتحدة للمناخ لكبح الزيادة الحرارية العالمية لدرجتين مئويتين فقط. أما السيناريو الثاني فيفترض زيادة في الانبعاثات الدفيئة العالمية دون أي قيود، مما يُترجم إلى ارتفاع في معدل درجة الحرارة على سطح الأرض بأكثر من أربع درجات مئوية مقارنة بمعدلات ما قبل الصناعة. و في كلتا الحالتين، سيشهد الشرق الأوسط و شمال أفريقيا الارتفاع الأعلى في فصل الصيف الحار أصلا، عوضا عن فصل الشتاء الذي سيشهد ارتفاعا أكبر في درجات الحرارة في مناطق أخرى من العالم. و تأتي هذه الظاهرة بسبب التضخيم الحراري الذي تتسبب به المناطق الصحراوية، حيث أنه من الصعب تبريد السطح الصحراوي الحار و الجاف بفعل تبخر المياه الجوفية، و بما أن الإشعاعات الحرارية هي من يتحكم بتوازن الطاقة على تلك السطوح، فإن الأثر الحراري للغازات الدفيئة و بخار الماء سيتضاعف بنسب أكبر في الصحراء مقارنة بأماكن ذات جغرافيا مغايرة
و بغض النظر عن أي من السيناريوهين سيأخذ مجراه على أرض الواقع في المستقبل، يتفق الباحثان على أن تغير المناخ سيؤدي إلى تدهور رهيب في الظروف المعيشية في شمال أفريقيا و الشرق الأوسط، مما سيتسبب بهجرة كبيرة لسكانهما عاجلا أم آجلا
Image Credit: Molly John, Flickr, Creative Commons
Alberta Tar Sands wildfire and global warming
Alberta Canada’s massive wildfire, which has now consumed an area larger than Hong Kong and threatens to reach the border with neighboring Saskatchewan, is another startling example that may be attributed to the ravages of global warming.
While most of the Middle East does not have large tracts of forest land, areas where forests and grasslands are located are continuously in danger of catching fire as higher than normal temperatures and “crazy heat domes” may make many parts of the Middle East unlivable by 2100.
Alberta’s wildfires, which became literally out of control after starting over a week ago, have already displaced more than 80,000 people and destroyed thousands of homes and commercial buildings. Located in the province’s well publicized Alberta Tar Sands, the big question being raised now is whether this industry, deemed to be one of the most environmentally damaging projects in North America, may be attributing to making it spread so quickly.
According to informed sources in International Business Times, the Alberta oil or tar sands account for more than 80% of Canada’s entire petroleum production. In physical terms, this amounts to more than 4.4 million barrels per day, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration. Canadian governmental and private sources now say it will take weeks to fully bring these fires under control; and this only only happen if there are substantial rains. Dry conditions and unseasonably high temperatures of 23 degrees Celsious (80 degrees Fahrenheit) are causing the fires to spread even quicker.
Oil tar sand production, involving the use of chemicals and high pressure steam to bring up the gunky oil tar from underground, has long been considered to be an environmental disaster in the making by many environmentalists; even rivaling oil production in Saudi Arabia, and seen as having a severe impact on global warming.
The photo below shows what this oil sand tar goop looks like when brought to the surface.
With events like the Alberta wildfires occurring in pristine locations like Canada, it’s not difficult to understand what is already occuring in regions like the Middle East. Mid-East area countries that do contain sizable tracts of forest land, such as Israel, Lebanon and Turkey, will undoubtedly see more occurrences of forest and brush fires on the like that Israel experienced in December, 2010; when a large section on the country’s Carmel mountain forest went up in smoke, killing more than 45 people.
We will all be watching the outcome of the Alberta wildfires; that up to now seem virtually unstoppable. As for the Middle East, the worst may yet to come, regarding global warming.
Read more on global warming, wildfires and the Alberta Tar Sands:
Crazy heat dome will mean that no one can live in the Arab Gulf by 2100
Israel’s Carmel wildfire blame goes all the way to the top
Canada Worst than Saudi Arabia, Considering Tar Sands Impact on Global Warming
Photo: Fort McMurray Wildfires, by Todd Korol/Reuters
Photo: Alberta Tar Sands crude oil, by Jonathan Hayward/ AP
NASA calls Middle East drought “worst in 900 years”!
A recent study released by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) concludes that the current drought that began in 1998 in the eastern Mediterranean Levant – which includes Cyprus, Israel, Jordan, Lebanon, Palestine, Syria, and Turkey – is the region’s worst dry spell since 1100 C.E.
Plant a tiny landscape on your finger with a Secret Wood ring
We love to report on eco-jewelry, from charms made from beach sand or breast milk to necklaces made from recycled teeth and bones. Now a Canadian jeweler is creating miniature landscapes made from wood, jewelry resin, and beeswax – forming frozen vignettes of natural settings that you can wear on your fingers.
UAE to build a man-made mountain to increase rainfall
The United Arab Emirates (UAE) upped the wackiness factor of its portfolio of national mega-projects, announcing plans to build an artificial alp so the country can control its weather. Scientists will investigate if a man-made mountain will increase precipitation in cities like Dubai and Abu Dhabi in this nation where rain falls just five days per year. Is this really the best defense against looming drought?
The Ocean Cleanup wins Katerva – the Nobel Prize of Sustainability
A new breed of companies are showing how innovation can be scaled for both business opportunities and global good. Led by resolute and independent thinkers, these companies are making dents in conventional ways of thinking to defy and fight for global change.
The Katerva Award identifies 10 of these companies as finalists annually in its global competition –– the Nobel Prize for Sustainability –– with The Ocean Cleanup, as the winning company this year. (Impact investors: Katerva has done the due diligence for you.)
Some 3,500 ideas were submitted to the Katerva Award council last year and The Ocean Cleanup was selected as this year’s winner –– as a force to reverse plastic pollution at sea, using a massive current-powered sieve.
The Ocean Cleanup –– conceived in 2013 by Boyan Slat from the Netherlands (pictured above), then only 19-years-old –– is taking on the biggest ocean remediation challenge in history: to remove the “soup” of plastic bits floating in our oceans.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6IjaZ2g-21E
Not too soon, either. Plastic pollution is choking marine life —at least one million seabirds and 100,000 marine mammals die each year from plastic pollution. And it is affecting human health, too, as toxins from plastic enter our food chain –– and bodies.
Powered by waves in the middle of the sea, The Ocean Cleanup is in essence a massive sieve which passively collects sea plastics from up to 3 meters (or 10 feet) deep. Once retrieved, the plastic can be recycled into new products or fuel. Feasibility studies indicate that one 100 km (or 63 mile) array could remove 42 percent of the Great Pacific garbage patch in only 10 years.
“Being recognized by Katerva means that The Ocean Cleanup is trusted to succeed in its mission and its drive for innovation. We are deeply honored and hope that the Award and Katerva’s support will go a long way towards reaching our dream of clean oceans,” says Slat.
The Katerva Award runner-up this year is Salt Farm Texel, a proven agriculture technology that can grow food on land that was previously considered to be unsuitable for farming.
The Katerva Award winner will be accelerated with the help of the Katerva community: a global alliance that includes among its members the world’s most distinguished companies, people, policy makers and non-profits committed to improving the state of the world.
“I just love the systemic approach of Katerva: we not only identify amazing projects such as The Ocean Cleanup, we have also organizations and individuals in place who can help accelerate such projects, and bring them to their full potential, sooner,” says Dr Bettina von Stamm, Director of the Katerva Award. ” I just love the passion and commitment Katerva inspires.”
Katerva, founded in 2010 by business intelligence strategist Terry Waghorn, is a not-for-profit organization that finds, evaluates and accelerates disruptive, sustainable innovations that will show measurable impact on this planet in the next 10 years.
Katerva comes from the Latin word Caterva which means “crowd.” Katerva’s distributed networks of CEOs, heads of state, ministers and policymakers, experts and academics, international organizations, youth, and technology innovators are fundamental to finding and then accelerating technologies for dramatic, positive changes that can be seen in our lifetime.
Follow Katerva on Facebook or Twitter @katerva and find the nominee profiles at www.katerva.net.
Complete list of this year’s Katerva Award category winners:
Behavioral Change:
Winner: Fairphone is working to improve the life-cycle of cell phones by sourcing conflict-free minerals and upcycled plastics to including fair factory wages in phone manufacturing.
Finalists: World Community Grid, Sustainability Consortium, GoodGuide
Economics:
Winner: Social Progress Index is crucial to portraying a country’s potential for social progress, beyond meeting the population’s basic needs.
Finalists: Better World Books, Essmart, Institute for Economics and Peace, Oradian
Environment:
Winner: The Ocean Cleanup is developing a passive, plastic collection system to remove plastic pollution from our oceans.
Finalists: Ecosia, Greenwave, Tree-Nation, Harbo Technologies
Food:
Winner: Salt Farm Texel has created novel advances in saline-resistant crops to counter the loss of arable soil and freshwater resources.
Finalists: Wakati, ThinkFoodGroup, Oberon Nutrinsic, Muufri
Gender Equality:
Winner: Akili Dada helps young women and girls aged 13 to 35 earn the essential qualifications and skills needed to take their place in decision-making roles in society.
Finalists: I Am That Girl, Global Fund for Women, No Ceilings, Ruwon Nepal
Human Development:
Winner: Nanoly has developed a chemistry solution so that vaccines can survive without refrigeration.
Finalists: Mine Kafon, MOM Inflatable Incubator, Nano Membrane Toilet, Braigo
Materials & Resources / Water:
Winner: Nebia Shower uses rocket technology to create an immersive cloud of mist that cleans the body and saves water.
Finalists: Lifestraw, Step Forward Paper, SCiO, Benthic Labs
Power & Energy:
Winner: GravityLight uses a weight to run a small generator to power an LED. It costs nothing to run and does not require sunlight or batteries to recharge.
Finalists: StoreDot, LanzaTech, General Fusion, Pollinate Energy
Transportation:
Winner: Qualcomm Halo provides wireless, electric vehicle charging. No cables needed.
Finalists: Blablacar, Holland Container, Proterra, Ray C Anderson Memorial Highway
Smart Cities:
Winner: Living Breakwaters builds layered breakwaters around cities which are constructed of ecologically engineered concrete to attenuate wave action, create a habitat for fish, and provide calm waters for recreation on land.
Finalists: Visible Good, Kite Bricks, Centre for Active Design, Tube Barrier
Climate exodus facing the Middle East
The conflict in Syria happening now was predicted six years ago by water and climate scientists. New research from Germany says climate refugees from the Middle East will be fleeing for cover in the near future.
The number of climate refugees will likely increase dramatically in future. Researchers of The Cyprus Institute and the Max Planck Institute for Chemistry in Mainz have calculated that the Middle East and North Africa could become so hot that human habitability is compromised.
The goal of limiting global warming to less than two degrees Celsius, agreed at the recent UN climate summit in Paris, will not be sufficient to prevent this scenario. The temperature during summer in the already very hot Middle East and North Africa will increase more than two times faster compared to the average global warming.
This means that during hot days temperatures south of the Mediterranean will reach around 46 degrees Celsius (approximately 114 degrees Fahrenheit) by mid-century. Such extremely hot days will occur five times more often than was the case at the turn of the millennium. In combination with increasing air pollution by windblown desert dust, the environmental conditions could become intolerable and may force people to migrate.
More than 500 million people live in the Middle East and North Africa – a region which is very hot in summer and where climate change is already evident. The number of extremely hot days has doubled since 1970. “In future, the climate in large parts of the Middle East and North Africa could change in such a manner that the very existence of its inhabitants is in jeopardy,” says Jos Lelieveld, Director at the Max Planck Institute for Chemistry and Professor at the Cyprus Institute.
Lelieveld and his colleagues have investigated how temperatures will develop in the Middle East and North Africa over the course of the 21st century. The result is deeply alarming: Even if Earth’s temperature were to increase on average only by two degrees Celsius compared to pre-industrial times, the temperature in summer in these regions will increase more than twofold.
By mid-century, during the warmest periods, temperatures will not fall below 30 degrees at night, and during daytime they could rise to 46 degrees Celsius (approximately 114 degrees Fahrenheit). By the end of the century, midday temperatures on hot days could even climb to 50 degrees Celsius (approximately 122 degrees Fahrenheit). Another finding: Heat waves could occur ten times more often than they do now.
By mid-century, 80 instead of 16 extremely hot days
In addition, the duration of heat waves in North Africa and the Middle East will prolong dramatically. Between 1986 and 2005, it was very hot for an average period of about 16 days, by mid-century it will be unusually hot for 80 days per year.
At the end of the century, up to 118 days could be unusually hot, even if greenhouse gas emissions decline again after 2040. “If mankind continues to release carbon dioxide as it does now, people living in the Middle East and North Africa will have to expect about 200 unusually hot days, according to the model projections,” says Panos Hadjinicolaou, Associate Professor at the Cyprus Institute and climate change expert.
Atmospheric researcher Jos Lelieveld is convinced that climate change will have a major impact on the environment and the health of people in these regions. “Climate change will significantly worsen the living conditions in the Middle East and in North Africa. Prolonged heat waves and desert dust storms can render some regions uninhabitable, which will surely contribute to the pressure to migrate,” says Jos Lelieveld.
The research team recently also published findings on the increase of fine particulate air pollution in the Middle East. It was found that desert dust in the atmosphere over Saudi Arabia, Iraq and in Syria has increased by up to 70 percent since the beginning of this century. This is mainly attributable to an increase of sand storms as a result of prolonged droughts. It is expected that climate change will contribute to further increases, which will worsen environmental conditions in the area.
In the now published study, Lelieveld and his colleagues first compared climate data from 1986 to 2005 with predictions from 26 climate models over the same time period. It was shown that the measurement data and model predictions corresponded extremely well, which is why the scientists used these models to project climate conditions for the period from 2046 to 2065 and the period from 2081 to 2100.
Largest temperature increase in already hot summers
The researchers based their calculations on two future scenarios: The first scenario, called RCP4.5, assumes that the global emissions of greenhouse gases will start decreasing by 2040 and that the Earth will be subjected to warming by 4.5 Watt per square meter by the end of the century. The RCP4.5 scenario roughly corresponds to the target set at the most recent UN climate summit, which means that global warming should be limited to less than two degrees Celsius.
The second scenario (RCP8.5) is based on the assumption that greenhouse gases will continue to increase without further limitations. It is therefore called the “business-as-usual scenario”. According to this scenario, the mean surface temperature of the Earth will increase by more than four degrees Celsius compared to pre-industrial times.
In both scenarios, the strongest rise in temperature in the Middle East and North Africa is expected during summer, when it is already very hot, and not during winter, which is more common in other parts of the globe. This is primarily attributed to a desert warming amplification in regions such as the Sahara. Deserts do not buffer heat well, which means that the hot and dry surface cannot cool by the evaporation of ground water. Since the surface energy balance is controlled by heat radiation, the greenhouse effect by gases such as carbon dioxide and water vapor will increase disproportionately.
Regardless of which climate change scenario will become reality: both Lelieveld and Hadjinicolaou agree that climate change can result in a significant deterioration of living conditions for people living in North Africa and the Middle East, and consequently, sooner or later, many people may have to leave the region.
مشروع للطاقة الشمسية بقيمة 3.5 مليار دولار في مصر
أعلنت شركة تيرا سولار نيتها بناء مشروع للطاقة الشمسية في مصر لإنتاج 2 جيجاواط من الطاقة الكهربائية و بقيمة 3.5 مليار دولار. و كانت قد أعلنت تيرا سولار يوم الجمعة الفائت التعاون مع مجموعة شركات عالمية في الطاقة البديلة لبناء عدة معامل للطاقة الشمسية، بالإضافة إلى مصنع للألواح الشمسية و المحولات اللازمة لإنتاج 200 ميجاواط من تلك الطاقة
و تتخذ شركة تيرا سولار من البحرين مقر لها، و ستقوم بالتعاون مع كل من شركة تيرا نيكس السويسرية لإدارة الأموال و شركة هاريون لتوريد الألواح الشمسية و شركة ر و ي نيو إينيرجي لتشغيل المعامل. أما تمويل المشروع فسيكون أغلبيته من هيئات استثمارية ألمانية. و كانت تيرا سولار قد وقعت وثيقة تفاهم مع الشركة القابضة لكهرباء مصر الحكومية في السنة الماضية لتطوير هذا المشروع
و جاء الإعلان عن المشروع متزامنا مع زيارة رسمية لنائب المستشار الألماني لمصر، و أيضا في أثناء تفقد مجلس إدارة الشركات المتعاونة لعدة أماكن مختلفة في محافظتي الأقصر و أسوان لبناء ثلاثة من المعامل فيها. و كانت تيرا سولار قد افتتحت مكتب للمشروع في مصر لتسهيل التعامل مع الهيئات الحكومية المصرية و ليمثل مقرا للمشروع ككل
و قال أحد أعضاء المجلس بيتر جوبفريش أن السوق المصرية هي من أكثر الأسواق نموا و حركة في أفريقيا و الشرق الأوسط. و ترى شركة تيرا سولار أن المشروع يمثل خطوة مهمة للشركة لتوسيع عملياتها الدولية، بينما يخلق أكثر من 50,000 فرصة عمل مباشرة و غير مباشرة في سوق العمل المصري. و صرح بيتر جوبفيش أيضا أن بناء مصنع اللوائح فقط سيوفر 1,500 وظيفة، أما تشغيله فسيوفر 1,000 فرصة عمل أخرى و دائمة. و لم يصرح بالمدة الزمنية اللازمة لإتمام المشروع و بدأه بالعمل
Egypt to shine with a new $3.5 BIL solar plant!
A global consortium of engineering and renewables industry giants kicked off a project to build a suite of solar power generating plants in Egypt to produce 2 gigawatts (GW) of electricity and valued at USD $3.5 billion. Terra Solar announced their plan on Friday, adding that they will also build a 200 MW PV module and inverter manufacturing facility to create components for use in the consortium’s own solar plants and for exportation.
Landmark study: other people’s drugs enter our bodies through veggies and fruits
Reclaimed or grey water is touted as a great means to save and reuse water where water resources are thin.
A new study from the Hebrew University in Jerusalem makes us want to think twice about saving precious water: researchers studied the vegetables grown in reclaimed water and found traces of human pharmaceuticals used for treating epilepsy. We’ve written in the past about drugs (like codeine and cocaine) in your drinking water, now researchers have gone to look for them in your food.
The new study looked at vegetables and fruits grown in soils irrigated with reclaimed wastewater and shows that this method exposes consumers to minute quantities of carbamazepine, an anti-epileptic drug commonly detected in wastewater effluents.
Fresh water scarcity worldwide has led to increased use of reclaimed wastewater, as an alternative source for crop irrigation. But the ubiquity of pharmaceuticals in treated effluents has raised concerns over the potential exposure for consumers to drug contaminants via treated wastewater.
The study is the first to directly address exposure to such pharmaceutical contaminants in healthy humans. It was recently published in Environmental Science and Technology.
“Israel is a pioneer and world leader in reuse of reclaimed wastewater in the agriculture sector, providing an excellent platform to conduct such a unique study,” said research co-author Prof. Benny Chefetz from the Hebrew University.
It is also a country where its people might be most at risk from over-exposure of other peoples’ pharmaceuticals especially as the contaminants compound over time.
In the study, a a randomised controlled trial, the researchers demonstrated that healthy individuals consuming reclaimed wastewater-irrigated produce excreted carbamazepine and its metabolites in their urine, while subjects consuming fresh water-irrigated produce excreted undetectable or significantly lower levels of carbamazepine.
The study followed 34 men and women divided into two groups. The first group was given reclaimed wastewater-irrigated produce for the first week, and freshwater-irrigated vegetables in the following week. The second group consumed the produce in reverse order.
The volunteers consumed the produce, which included tomatoes, cucumbers, peppers and lettuce, according to their normal diet and drank bottled water throughout the study to neutralize water contamination.
The researchers measured carbamazepine levels in the fresh produce and in the participants’ urine. To begin with, the urinary levels of carbamazepine differed in their quantifiable concentration, with some participants having undetectable levels. Following seven days of consuming reclaimed water-irrigated produce, all members of the first group exhibited quantifiable levels of carbamazepine, while in the second group the distribution remained unchanged from baseline.
Levels of carbamazepine excretion were markedly higher in the first group versus the second.
“Treated wastewater-irrigated produce exhibited substantially higher carbamazepine levels than fresh water-irrigated produce,” said Prof. Paltiel.
“It is evident that those who consume produce grown in soil irrigated with treated wastewater increase their exposure to the drug. Though the levels detected were much lower than in patients who consume the drug, it is important to assess the exposure in commercially available produce,” Prof. Paltiel said.
“This study demonstrates ‘proof of concept’ that human exposure to pharmaceuticals occurs through ingestion of commercially available produce irrigated with treated wastewater, providing data which could guide policy and risk assessments,” said Prof. Chefetz.