You can get thrown in jail in Saudi Arabia for making out on the beach, but with its new leader’s mission to modernize the ultra-conservative Islamic society, Saudi Arabia may become one of the top 10 beach destinations in the world. Maybe even topless? Well, let’s not go that far. But it is located on […]
The world is warming. Glaciers are melting. Added carbon dioxide gas is causing our seas to become acidic. This in turn melts corals, and causes a host of environmental problems scientists are just beginning to quantify. But measuring the effect of acidification on oceans and seas is tricky because water moves and it can be […]
The creation of the man-made Suez Canal that links the Red Sea to the Mediterranean has made it easier to ship goods from Asia and Africa to Europe, but it has caused a number of environmental problems. One is invasive species like jellyfish multiplying with no end in sight in the Mediterranean Sea.
Saudi Bin Ladin Group (SBG) recently commissioned a Lebanese consulting firm to test the materials necessary to build the world’s next tallest building in Jeddah. Among other things, Advanced Construction Technology Services (ACTS) has to figure out how to pump 500,000 cubic meters of concrete 1km into the sky.
Aquaculture, or fish farming at sea and in land based ponds, has been practiced successfully by Israelis for many years. While most fish farming produces freshwater fish like carp, tilapia and trout in fresh water ponds, salt water aquaculture has also been “successfully” practiced in the Mediterranean Sea.
Some good news out of the Middle East region for a change: It was announced at the Israel Business Forum that Israel has signed an historic water-sharing agreement with Jordan and the Palestinian Authority. But not all parties are happy with political manoeuvrings around the announcement.
With news that Red Sea coral reefs on the coast of Israel may be resistant against the changes of climate change, some more positive “reef” news swings our way out of Israel
When the $10 billion Red-Dead Canal plan got the axe earlier in August, we discussed plan B for restoring some sense of water security to northern Jordan: a smaller desalination plant in Wadi Araba to trade water with Israel and Palestine.
Jordan’s Minister of Water and Irrigation and Agriculture, Hazim Al Naser, disclosed that the controversial Red-Dead Water Conveyor project may now be shelved in favor of a series of smaller schemes to provide the kingdom with drinking water. His statements mark the first time that a ranking official questioned the project’s viability. Al Naser spoke […]
The National Bank of Egypt has announced that it will give low interest loans to hotels throughout southern Sinai and Red Sea provinces that are commited to switching to renewable energy, according to local press. The move comes in advance of crippling energy shortages during the hottest time of the year.
You might not be able to strut around in a thong or sun tan topless in the Middle East (unless you are at the Naked Dead Sea), but there are many beautiful beaches in the region that just don’t get enough fanfare. That’s why we have rounded up ten of the most sublime sandy destinations.
Ever wonder what an Arabian lighthouse looks like? Mariners approaching the Red Sea harbor at Thuwal, about one hour north of sprawling Mecca, Saudi Arabia are now guided to shore by a soaring new honeycomb lighthouse designed by the Australian firm Urban Art Projects. Commissioned by the King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST), […]
Among nature’s most devoted heroes throughout the Middle East and North Africa, the Hurghada Environmental Protection and Conservation Association (HEPCA) has released renders of a new bio boat that will be used to educate children about the Red Sea’s numerous (albeit largely threatened) bio marvels. Funded in part by the U.S. Forest Service, which has […]
At least 1833 people died when Hurricane Katrina hit the Gulf Coast in 2005, but – as far as we know – nobody went to prison for building houses on land that had sunk 17 feet below sea level in New Orleans. But Saudi Arabia recently sentenced nearly two dozen people to prison in connection […]
Like in biblical times locust swarms threaten Egyptian crops. Scattered pockets of locusts in southern Egypt and northern Sudan are a threat to agricultural land, warns the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO). Countries along the Red Sea should remain on “high alert and make every effort to find and treat all infestations”, it says. […]
Egypt has certified the country’s first female dive master – a devout Muslim who refers to herself as a feminist. With coveted dive spots scattered all along the Red Sea, the ecologically-threatened Sinai Peninsula attracts scores of Egyptian and foreign visitors every year. But until now, not one Arab or Egyptian woman has taken their […]
Deep sea mining for minerals is the next frontier for the extractive industry, and the Red Sea risks becoming a victim Sudan and Saudi Arabia are targeting to start deep-water mining of a Red Sea basin, rich in zinc, copper, silver and gold, by 2014. This decision revives from a mutual agreement signed in 1974 […]
It was about a decade in the making: without much fanfare the World Bank has released a report stating that the Dead Sea – Red Sea Canal project (also called the Red Dead Conduit) will work. The basic idea is to take salty water from the Red Sea, pump it up to a channel, desalinate it […]
Sketch of the map of the Red Dead Canal commissioned by Jordan. While we don’t celebrate the energy crisis and financial woes in Jordan, it is poor finances that’s reportedly putting the highly controversial Red-Dead Canal on hold, Israel’s Maariv newspaper reported on Wednesday. The original plan which called for a canal between the Red […]
Divers found a dead dugong in the Red Sea off the coast of Egypt early this week, according to the environmental advocacy group HEPCA. Immediately after Colona Dive Center alerted HEPCA about the dead marine mammal discovered between Magwaish Island and Gotaa Magawish, the latter sent a patrol boat out to investigate, according to a […]
A bridge over troubled waters still being planned for Saudi Arabia and Sinai. About 20 dive sites will be lost, activists tell Green Prophet. A grassroots environmental group of activists are continuing to put pressure on the Egyptian government to end its plans to develop and erect a bridge linking the Sinai Peninsula with Saudi Arabia. […]
A flailing Egypt still aims for 20 percent renewables by 2020. Egypt’s Supreme Council of Energy last week pushed forward a new round of concessions aimed at boosting investment in renewable and clean energy in the country. According to the Council, it said it would exempt parts and components used in the production of electricity […]
The political news from Egypt doesn’t look promising: Cairo and the Sinai Peninsula appear to be more unsettled than ever, with questions about how the military and police maintain the law of rule. That said, brave travellers are still heading to Sinai, the only place in the world where you can do nothing and feel […]
The rich and famous are now buying private submarines. Good or bad for the environment? Brian explores. My search for bamboo yarn took me to an industrial part of Beijing. The air here smelled of hot steel and coal. I walked past some of the warehouses and workshops behind the Made in China label and […]
There is a losing battle in saving coral reefs worldwide, but a drug made for humans might be able to help corals fight the White Plague. Corals reefs are an invaluable part of the marine ecosystem, fostering biodiversity and protecting coastlines. But coral reefs are increasingly endangered. Pathogenic bacteria, along with pollution, global warming and […]
