Wolves are largely a protected species in Israel and are not creatures that one would expect to find in this part of the world. However, a sub-species of the northern grey wolf, originating in India is actually thriving on the Golan Heights, causing local farmers and cattle herders to literally be at war with these furry cousins of domestic dogs.

In fact, the wolves have so much lost their fear of humans that they are often seen coming into Golan Heights towns and settlements to raid garbage bins in search of food. They are also something to be feared due to the risk of spreading rabies and other diseases as well as the danger of their snatching domestic animals and even small children from campsites as part of their food search.

Golan Heights wolves are larger than a smaller cousin Canis Lupis Arab, that lives in Israel’s southern desert region and stand around 26 inches (65 cm) high and weighing around 45 pounds (20.5 kg) fully grown. Golan wolves weigh around 70 pounds (32 kg) when fully grown. Despite being larger, Golan wolves are often found living happily in minefields that are still considered as unsafe for humans to enter into.

Although the wolves are a protected species, the Israeli government has been paying a bounty of NS 2,000 or $500 for each one that strays out of its protected “conflict” area. Farmers complain that they lose at least 200 cattle and sheep annually to these predators, whose light weight prevents them from exploding still lethal mines. Wolves are the largest predators in their Golan habitat; and normally prey on animals such as gazelles, wild pigs and small mammals like rabbits and hyrax (a small rodent-like animal that is actually related to elephants). But hoofed livestock are often on their dinner menus as well; especially when wild game is scarce.

Besides occasionally shooting them, other measures such as illegal poisoning are used to control the wolf population. Nature authority staff members are trying to find ways to keep the wolves under control without having to resort to killing them. Being highly intelligent and having lost much of their fear of man, their only real enemy, the conflict between man and wolf appears to be an ongoing problem, with a viable solution still to be found.

Read more on endangered wolves and other animal species:

CNN: The sixth mass global extinction has arrived

Only Two Countries in the Middle East Protect Wolves

Kuwaiti Kills Wolf then Shows off

Photo of Arab wolf on the prowl: Times on Israel/Wikipedia commons

The post Golan wolves make local farmers howl with rage appeared first on Green Prophet.

Israel’s Sea of Galilee (Lake Kinneret) was still at critical water levels as recently as January, when a previous article depicted the then dire condition of the biblical lake. So critical in fact was the crisis that the lake’s water level had decreased so low that it nearly reached the dreaded “black line” of 214.7 meters below sea level  when the water becomes saline, due to underground salt springs.

The overall situation of the Kinneret has now improved significantly due to recent heavy rains which have also fallen on the Golan Heights, one of the Kinneret’s sources of fresh water. This situation prompted me to go on a day trip to the “Heights” and check out the situation there; especially the beautiful waterfalls of the Saar Stream, also known as Nahal Saar.

Starting out from central Israel on a rainy April 1, a virtual April fools joke in itself in drought plagued Israel, our group’s first nature stop was none other than Nahal Saar itself, to view the now swollen stream and truly spectacular water falls. As we approached the stream on foot, a near-deafening noise of rushing and falling water was emanating from it, as shown in a close-up view  of the top of the falls (photo).

The sheer power of the rushing water in this stream gives an indication of how much rainfall and snowfall has occurred on the Golan Heights and Mt. Hermon, a mountain range located on the northern section of the Golan . The cascading water in Nahal Saar flows eventually into the Jordan River and then into the Kinneret. The falls are located below the ruins of the Nimrod Fortress, built originally in 1229 by Al-Aziz Uthman, the younger son of the Muslim
Mamkuke conqueror Saladin.

Before reaching the Jordan, Nahal Saar flows through the historic site known as the Banias Nature Reserve, itself a natural wonder with smaller waterfalls and ruins of ancient settlements; including a site said to have been a place of worship to the Greek god Pan.

Mt. Hermon, the Golan Height’s highest mountain range, is a major source of water for the streams that eventually feed into area rivers, including the Jordan and Yarmuk rivers. This season’s precipitation have added considerably to the snow accumulation atop Mt. Hermon, from which the melting snowfalls feed into these streams.

Our tour included a visit to a small lake called Birkat Al-Ram, called Bherkat Ram in Hebrew. The picturesque lake is actually the flooded cone of an extinct volcano. The lake has been in danger of drying up due to excessive pumping for agricultural use.

The tour ended with a visit to a site called Mizpah HaShalom or Peace Vista, which gives visitors a spectacular view of the entire Lake Kinneret below. Viewing the lake after this season’s above average rainfall indicated that while some parts of the shoreline are still exposed, the rising of the lake’s water level by nearly three meters has
greatly improved the Kinneret’s situation over what it was previously.

Currently, the lake is only supplying water to neighboring Jordan, as part of the 1994 peace agreement with Israel. “Israel’s fresh water now comes from mountain and coastal aquifers and desalination” our guide said. The current lake level of -211.8 meters below sea level is still about 3 meters short of being completely full and reaching the “upper red level” of -208.8 meters below sea level, when excessive water is sent into the lower Jordan River.

The lower Jordan, now not much more than a thin trickle of “unholy water” from sewage and saline runoff, can use a bit of  Kinneret lake water as well.

More about the Sea of Galilee and Jordan River:

Sea of Galilee still critical water levels despite winter rains

Water crises at Sea of Galilee. What would Jesus say?

Unholy waters: the Jordan River is Nearly Dead

The post Increased Rain Gives the Golan Heights Sea of Galilee new life appeared first on Green Prophet.

Chronic and even acute supplies of fresh water in Israel and other parts of the Middle East has resulted in over-dependence on desalination. Even more ominous are predictions for the future of inadequate fresh water supplies following a NASA Image Technology survey of the accelerated disappearance of a large underground fresh water sea under Syria, Turkey, Iraq and Iran.

While Israel’s increasing reliance on obtaining adequate fresh water supplies through desalination is becoming obvious, its over use of its natural water resources, was exemplified in a recent news report that the country’s leading bottled water company, Mayanot Eden (Eden Springs) is being sold  to an American investment company, Rhone Capital, for an amount of 70 Million Euros.

The news, as reported in Haaretz, is said to be causing a stir among local investors and environmentalists due to fear that the water used to make the company’s main product will now be controlled by entities outside of Israel. The Eden Springs bottling plant is located on the disputed Golan Heights; a region being claimed by both Israel and Syria (one of the countries under which the large but disappearing subterranean fresh water sea is located.

According to the Haaretz article, the CEO of the company’s subsidiary in the Netherlands, Raanan Zilbermsn, will continue running the company’s European operations which plans to market more mineral water to European markets, especially those in Eastern Europe. Mayanot Eden had accumulated large debts due to loses it accumulated against posted revenues (829,000-euro losses against revenues of 60.5 million euros in 2012).

The environmental issues regarding mineral water plants using “public water sources” to supply water for profit was explained by Abraham Diskin, head of the School for Interdisciplinary Studies in Administration, Government and Law at Sha’arei Mishpat College: Assets that were owned by the state and weren’t utilized efficiently were passed into private hands without protecting the public’s interest.”

In the case of water from the Salukia Spring on the Golan Heights, the primary water source for Mayanot Eden, it was based on the principle of “first come, first served.” Whoever found a spring was simply given a permit by the Israel Water Authority to pump water from it, at an exceptionally low price”. Mineral water companies pay the industrial rate of NIS 6 per cubic meter, much lower than the regular rate charged to households; and resell it to the public at a much higher price.

With Mayanot Eden being sold to new owners outside of Israel, more and more of this water will be exported to other countries; resulting in even less fresh water supplies available to local residents.

More on fresh water issues:
NASA Watches Underground Fresh Water Sea Vanish from the Middle East
Why It’s Hard to Celebrate World Water Day in the Middle East
Israel’s Mekorot Builds Global Connections Through Water
Israel Sends Wrong Message About Desalination

Photo: Banias in Spring by Shutterstock:

The post The Absurdity of Selling Israel’s Private Water to the Highest Bidder appeared first on Green Prophet.

Led by ruler-backed organizations such as King Abdullah City for Atomic and Renewable Energy (K.A.CARE) and confident with its 18 percent share of the world’s proven crude oil reserves, Saudi Arabia has taken decisive steps towards incorporating clean, renewable energy into its mix. Israel, meanwhile, obsessed with its former fossil inferiority and under the spell of such power mongers as Rupert Murdoch, is dead set on ecological self-destruction.  

Rupert Murdoch is corralling support for maniacal ecological moves disguised as “energy security.”

Along with former US Vice President Dick Cheney and Lord Jacob Rothschild, Murdoch has a huge stake in Israel since he sits on the board of Genie Energy Ltd., a local subsidiary of which recently received a license to explore for fossil fuels in the disputed Golan Heights territory.

Basically the Cheney-Murdoch-Rothschild triad is kicking the Syrians while they are caught up in a bloody civil war – with the Israeli government’s blessing. Or it’s just plain opportunism. I’m not sure which is worse, but this is the subject of a former post.

For now we’re focusing on shale oil –  IEI/Genie’s other insanity.

Responding to a fishy Op Ed in the New York Post, which recently issued a soaring review of the benefits of oil shale in Israel right around the time that another Murdoch-owned rag, Fox News, did the same, David Krantz, President and Chairperson of the Green Zionist Alliance, excoriated the NY Post journalist’s obfuscation of shale oil’s dark side.  

Each right-leaning paper proclaimed that Israel has as much oil as Saudi Arabia, and that fracking in the tiny country would bring independence – that long sought-after dream for Jews everywhere, a golden carrot dangling in stardust.

But there was little mention of how fracking has been associated with increased earthquake frequency in areas, nor did the Murdoch-owned papers mention how much energy (in Israel’s case coal) will be required to exploit shale oil – something that currently comes in low supply and at a staggering environmental cost.

“Fracking for oil is an energy net loss, and one that may make Israel more dependent on foreign fuel than it is today,” writes Krantz, who also reminds us that in the Middle East, water is more important than oil.

“It is widely thought that the next war in the region will not be over oil, but over water,” says Krantz.

“And fracking for oil threatens to poison the region’s limited fresh-water supply, further escalating tensions and making new peace agreements between Israel and its neighbors harder to achieve, since such agreements will include division of water rights.”

I’m not sure who Murdoch is trying to impress with his campaign to sing oil shale’s praises regardless of its environmental cost to the Israelis, Palestinians and other residents, but in a country where water conservation is as much a part of the local ethos as resting on the sabbath, and where the sun shines absurdly bright, he will have a hard time convincing environmentally and socially aware Israelis that fracking is better than solar.

“[Arthur] Herman was right in pointing out that the oil shale is in Israel’s Elah Valley, where David fought Goliath, but he got the roles wrong,” writes Krantz.

“The fossil-fuel companies are Goliath. The Green Zionist Alliance and its allies in Israel — such as the Society for the Protection of Nature in Israel and the Citizens’ Committee to Save Adullam — are working against Goliath to protect and safeguard Israel.”

“If you love Israel — if you want clean air, land and water for its citizens, if you want to support energy independence in Israel, if you want to support peace in Israel — then join the fight against fracking. Goliath fell once before in the Elah Valley, and together we can fell him again,” he concludes.

Everywhere the fight between ordinary citizens and energy giants feels just like this historic battle – be it in Canada, Egypt or Israel, yet grass roots organizations across the globe continue their fight to ensure that powerful lobbies don’t deprive the rest of humanity their inalienable right to enjoy clean water, breath fresh air, and live in peace.

Image of dirty coal plant, Shutterstock

The post Saudi Turns to Solar, Israel Stuck on Shale appeared first on Green Prophet.

The Golan Heights, that disputed piece of real estate that Israel captured from Syria in 1967 is returning to world attention due to the possibility that there are oil and natural gas reserves in its southern sector. Until now, energy ideas dealing with the Golan have mainly evolved around renewable energy projects like a 155 megawatt wind farm which Israel PM Benjamin Netanyahu once referred to as a “national project.”  The “Heights” have also been considered a good location for solar energy projects. Proposed solar energy projects there even raised the question of whether wind turbines might be “taking a back seat to solar power” on the Golan.  A Golan Heights natural beauty spot: Saar stream waterfall

Anyone who has had the opportunity and pleasure to drive through the Golan Heights has surely been attracted to the various natural beauty sites found there which are especially lovely in the spring.  These sites, such as natural streams and water falls, the majestic splendor of Mt. Hermon, and the unique hot springs and alligator farm at Hamat Gader  may be jeopardized if proposed oil and natural gas exploration is undertaken.

New geological findings suggest that commercial quantities of oil might be present in the southern sector, and the Israeli government subsequently awarded the first license to drill. The license “covers half the area of the Golan from the latitude of Katzrin in the north to Tzemach in the south,” according to a recent article in Globes.

Oil and gas production could replace wind energy projects on the Golan; photo by Karin Kloosterman

According to the Globes article, Israel’s Ministry of Energy and Water Resources petroleum council awarded the license to Genie Energy Ltd. , a company headed by former minister and National Religious Party leader Effie Eitam.

Shareholders in Genie Energy include such notables as Lord Jacob Rothschild and  newspaper mogul Rupert Murdoc. And Former US Vice President Dick Cheney is an advisor to the company. Mr. Eitam lives in Moshav Nov in the southern Golan Heights, which is located not far from the hot springs at Hamat Gader.

While the main objections to Israeli oil and gas explorations in the Golan are mostly political, the potential environmental impact of oil and gas production in this area cannot be ignored.

This especially pertains to natural sites such as Hamat Gader, which is part of the Yarmouk River ecosystem and an important water supply source for Syria, Israel and neighboring Jordan.

It might be more plausible for large scale energy projects conducted by Israel to be confined to those now being conducted in the eastern Mediterranean; though they have their own environmental issues.

Image Crocodiles from Hamat Gader by Shutterstock

Read more on the Golan Heights and energy projects there:
How to Road Trip in the Galilee and the Golan Heights in the Spring
Israeli PM Declares a 155 MW Wind Farm on the Golan Heights a “National Project
Are Golan Heights Wind Turbines Taking a Back Seat to Solar Power?

The post Golan Heights Slated for Oil and Gas Drilling…and Environmental Damage? appeared first on Green Prophet.

Like other Middle Eastern countries, Israel continuously suffers from a chronic water shortage, which is most often seen in the water level in it’s historic water supplier, the Kinneret or Sea of Galilee. But due to above average rainfall this past winter (the Sea rose 2 meters!), Israel’s green areas, including the Galilee region and Golan Heights, are decked out in Mother Nature’s annual spring greenery and floral displays.

This lush beauty was revealed to us during a day long spring foliage tour to these areas this week.

Ancient Katzrin Ruins: synagogue is in the rear

We began our tour by traveling through Wadi Ara, passing communities like Umm al Fahm, continuing into the Lower Galilee through some of Israel’s lushest agricultural regions, and past  588 meter high Mt.Tabor , which is often used as a “launch pad” by paragliding enthusiasts.

Upon reaching the Sea of Galilee, we were happy to see how high the lake had risen; former green areas and “islands” had again disappeared under the rising waters. We began our ascent onto the Golan Heights at the northeast end of the lake and continued on highway 87 toward what was to be our first stop on the Heights, the ancient archeological site of Katzrin which is now a regional park. The archeological excavations reveal an ancient settlement of Jewish scholars who lived there from the 4th to 7th centuries CE and whose inhabitants’ lifestyles have been recreated for park visitors.

Katzrin synagogue, from within

These include a house with furnishings, kitchen utensils and food storage, wine and olive presses, and a partial restoration of the community’s synagogue which also served as the community’s educational and social center.

Ancient Katzrin was inhabited by this community for 300 years and  the inhabitants are said to have contributed to the compilation of the Talmud, the commentaries on Jewish Law that instructs Jews not only on how to observe their faith but which occupations to be involved in as well.

Golan cherry trees in full bloom

We continued our journey through some of the Golan Heights’ pastoral regions where numerous herds of cattle could be seen as well as vineyards and orchards of fruit trees, whose pink and white flowers added a lovely touch to an already picturesque landscape.

Off in the distance, Israel’s highest mountain, 2,814 meter high Mt. Hermoncould be clearly seen, complete with remaining snow. Mt. Hermon, which is “shared” by both Israel and Syria, is actually a series of peaks of which the highest in Israel’s section reaches a height of 2,236 meters. As we neared Mt. Hermon, we passed numerous orchards owned by local Druze inhabitants, and stopped for lunch in the Druze town of Mas’ade.

Mt. Hermon view from Druze village of Mas’ade.  Some snow is still visible

The Druze (read about Gamila and her soap)rely mainly on agriculture for their livelihood; but due to the growing number of restaurants and other business that have signs posted in at least three languages, Golan Druze appear to be interested in  making money from outsiders. These include foreign tourists, Israeli day trippers and UN personnel.

The largest Golan Druze community, Majdal Shams, while continuing to attest their loyalty to the government of Syria, are interested making a Shekel off Israelis and other visitors. The town has a number of hotels and pensions, including the three star boutique hotel The Narkis that offers free Wi-Fi hookups,  LCD cable TVs and even Jacuzzis.

The town also has a number of medical and dental clinics which appear interested in serving visitors as well. The road leading into Majdal Shams is now literally abloom with fruit tree blossoms, especially cherry and apple trees. And one cannot visit Majdal Shams without seeing the famous monument to its folk hero, Sultan al-Atrash, who led the Syrian rebellion against the French in 1925.

Majdal Shams monument to Druze folk hero Sultan El al-Atrash

Our last stop was the impressive Sa’ar Stream waterfall, located just east of the Banias nature park. The waterfall attracts visitors year round and Local Druze farmers take advantage of this beauty spot by offering local produce and Druze culinary specialties in a number of stands outside the entrance to the waterfall observation site.

Those more adventurous can descend a steep pathway to the bottom of the falls located in a narrow gorge some 200 meters below. The Sa’ar Stream is one of the tributaries of  the Jordan River and most of its water comes from springs and melting snow on Mt. Hermon.

Druze local produce for sale at Sa’ar Stream waterfall

After leaving the Golan we passed through the entrance to the Hulah Valley, through which run other Jordan River tributaries, including the Dan and Snir streams. The Hulah Valley runs parallel to the entire length of the Galilee “panhandle” and  is Israel’s major migratory bird flyway, through which thousands of migratory birds including ducks, pelicans and storks pass annually.

While these areas are still green a visit to them is well recommended before they change color to gold and brown during the hot and dry summer months.

Read more about natural wonders in the Galilee and Golan Heights:

Sea of Galilee Rises Two Meters, But Still Runs Short of Water
Multimatrix Invests Millions in Israel’s Small wind Market
Enjoy Ecological Activities in Israel During Passover
The Hula Valley Gets Stocked as Birds Prepare for “Pelican Restaurant”

The post How to Road Trip in the Galilee and Golan Heights in the Spring appeared first on Green Prophet.

During the Sukkot holiday, visitors will be able to learn how to make olive oil, sweet wine, bread and cheeses the old fashioned way.

Sukkot, the Jewish harvest festival, is a time when Jews attempt to get closer to nature.  They live in make-shift huts covered with thatched roofs, sleep outdoors, and celebrate fruits of different species.  Which is why Sukkot (which is coming up in a few weeks) is a great time to visit a farm.  There are lots of great farms in Israel – including organic goat cheese farms and educational farms intended to teach kids that farming can be fun – but when you’re trying to get your nature on it is probably best to visit one that lets you be a farmer for a day.  Such as Bel Ofri in the Golan, which is hosting special food and wine-making workshops during the holiday of Sukkot.

Workshops will include sweet wine-making (from harvesting the grapes to crushing them by foot), olive harvesting and making olive oil, baking peasant bread in a special oven using special local herbs, and making cheese from fresh goat milk.

Less ambitions visitors can enjoy an eco-friendly meal at the farm’s restaurant, which is built around three ancient trees that continue to grow.

The farm itself is built in the style of an ancient village, Ein Nashot, that was located on the site during Talmudic times.  Bel Ofri has it’s own vineyards, orchards, and olive groves, as well as facilities to crush grapes, grind olives for olive oil, and mill flour.

Visitor’s to the farm’s vineyard will receive explanations about the differences in wine-making processes during ancient times and today, and be invited to taste the farm’s own wine.

The workshops will be held from October 12th until October 22nd between 10am and 6pm.

: Bel Ofri (site in Hebrew)

Read more about farms in Israel::
Adam and Eve: An Eco Farm Paradise in Modiin
Rom Farm Brings Organic Goat Cheese to a Table Near You, With Some Help from the Handicapped
Israel’s Organic “Goats with the Wind” Farm is Delicious Eco-Tourism

Image via: David Shankbone

The post Spend Sukkot Learning How to Eat the Ancient Way at Bel Ofri in the Golan appeared first on Green Prophet.

Earlier this year, we reported here about a partnership between the Israeli company Multimatrix and the U.S. energy company AES to build a wind farm on the Golan Heights. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu gave the state’s blessing to this enterprise this week, signing a decree that declares the wind farm a national project, the Globes business newspaper reported.

The timing of this announcement might raise some eyebrows as it comes while the U.S. is conducting intensive efforts to jump start long-dormant Israeli-Syrian peace talks. It is widely assumed that any future peace accord between the two states would entail an Israeli withdrawal from most or all of the Golan Heights, including the site where Multimatrix and AES plan to invest some $400 million in building 70 giant turbines capable of generating a total of 155 megawatts.

Uri Omid, the CEO and controlling shareholder of Multimatrix (a public company, traded on the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange) told Reuters earlier this year that he is not worried about the political future of the Golan: “If the land is returned to Syria in a peace deal, we will be compensated. Regardless, this project can work for us or work for them. Someone will always need the electricity.” Meanwhile, the company has leased land from local Druze residents and is planning to begin construction within six months. The wind farm is expected to be in full operation by late 2012.

‘Largest renewable energy project in the Mideast’

“This is the first very large and practical renewable energy project of its kind in Israel, and in the entire Middle East,” Omid told Globes. “Both the finance minister and the minister of the environment supported the move, and for good reason: they were impressed that one of the solutions to the expected energy shortage in Israel in the coming years is within reach, and not in the depths of the Mediterranean, without the need for special installations to transport gas, without capital market speculation, and without pollution of any kind.”

Lobbying for a higher feed-in tariff

The Globes report did not explain what funding or other benefits come with the “national project” designation assigned by Netanyahu this week. But the report noted that Multimatrix is lobbying the government to receive a higher tariff for electricity sold to the Israel Electric Corp.  Today, Multimatrix argues, the feed-in tariff for solar-generated electricity is more than four times higher than the price paid for wind-generated power.

:: Globes
:: Reuters

Read more on wind energy in the Middle East:

Can Israel’s Wind Power Sector Compete with Solar?
Turkey Blowing and Going on Wind Energy
Coriolis Scales Up for the Wind

The post Israel PM Declares 155 MW Wind Farm on Golan Heights a ‘National Project’ appeared first on Green Prophet.

Harnessing wind energy has never been a priority endeavor in Israel, compared to projects dealing with solar energy. In fact, the only large size wind energy project there has been the Mei Golan wind farm, composed of ten large wind turbines on a hill near the cease-fire border with Syria on the Golan Heights.

The Golan, a windy plateau that was captured from Syria by Israel in the June 1967 Six Day War, is one of the few places in Israel that has enough constant wind velocity to warrant the use of wind power over other forms of renewable energy. past Green Prophet article in which new Golan Heights solar energy projects appeared to be upstaging the Mei Golan wind farm which uses already outdated technology to run a the wind turbines on Tel Asiniya, which generate about 6 megawatts of electricity.

But now, according to an article published in Reuters, the idea of using wind energy is about to get a big boost in a deal involving an Israeli company Multimatrix, which is in the process of buying half of Mei Golan (a subsidiary of the Mei Eden water company), the company operating the wind turbines.

The deal, which is said to be costing between 20 and 25 million US Dollars, will involve the initial construction of seven new wind turbines to be built in 2011 at a cost of around $27 million. Mulitmatrix, together with the U.S.-based AES Corp,  hopes to build a total of 160 wind turbines that will generate about 450 megawatts of electricity – considerably than that presently generated by the outdated Mei Golan turbines.

Since the total cost of this project is estimated to coast in the neighborhood of $800 million, it gives an indication of the importance being given by Israeli Energy Minister Uzi Landau on using wind energy as a source of power for generating electricity.

This and other renewable energy projects go along with governmental plans to have at least 10 percent of the country’s total energy needs furnished by renewable energy by the year 2020. Solar energy is still an expensive way to produce electricity, according to Energy Ministry officials. This explains why the use of wind energy is now being given more emphasis; and future wind energy farms are being planned in the southern Negev region, as well as along Israel’s border with Jordan.

The future of the Golan Heights, which is being disputed between Israel and Syria, will be an important factor in constructing such a large wind energy project there. Energy Minister Landau notes that these projects will have to be considered as part of a final negotiated settlement with Syria.

Wind energy technology has progressed considerably since the first Mei Golan turbines were erected back in 1992.

Another Israeli company, Coriolis Wind, is developing a series of vertical turbines which they say can generate more power while taking up much less space than the conventional propeller shaped wind turbines that can be as large as a jumbo commercial airliner.

Whatever method is used, the future of wind energy in Israel has definitely been given a needed shot in the arm by such government endorsed projects as the Multrimatrix/AES one; making wind energy a very viable energy option in Israel and elsewhere as well.

::Reuters

More articles on wind power as a  renewable energy:

Coriolis Scales up for the Wind

Israel Plans Wind Powered Lighting for Coastal Highway

Israel’s First Wind Energy Developer Mei Eden Gets Windier on the Golan

Image by Green Prophet

The post Multimatrix Invests Millions In Israel's Small Wind Market appeared first on Green Prophet.