Israel's criminal aggression against Lebanon has not only resulted in the great loss of innocent lives and destruction of infrastructure, hunger, thirst, diseases, and displacement, it has resulted in a severe ecological crises.   Here is a report from Rueters about the ecological crises in lebanon that was posted on July 28th.   Oil Spill Adds Ecological Crisis to Lebanon's Agony July... [read more]

A new and very important resource book his been published. The "Environmental statistics in the Mediterranean countries - Compendium 2005", is the second environmental statistics compendium produced by UNEP/MAP Blue Plan, the implementing agency for the MEDSTAT-Environment project (MED-Env), in collaboration with the EC EuropeAid Cooperation Office and Eurostat. It has been compiled on the basis of... [read more]

At last, the Zara-Maain project for water treatment and desalination, which would provide the country with 40 million cubic metres (mcm) annually, will start operating mid-August. This was one of the major projects developed by the Ministry of Water and irrigation, and one of the most interesting experiences in desalinating natural brackish water for drinking purposes.  project should have a huge... [read more]

Minister of Agriculture Mr Akef Zou'bi stated in a meeting meeting on Tuesday with Ajloun Governor Ahmad Shayyab that the Ministry will fully liberalize the agricultural sector in Jordan. The minister claimed the sector is now capable of competing on international markets due to the high quality of its products. He added that the government is currently revising laws and legislation to regulate... [read more]

. Jordan has modest reserves of natural gas, 230 billion cubic feet (bcf), and has developed one gas field, at Risha in the eastern desert near the border with Iraq.  The current output of around 35 million cubic feet per day (Mmcf/d) from the Risha field is used to fuel one nearby power plant, which generates less than 10% of Jordan's electricity.   In August 2003, Jordan began imports of natural... [read more]

                      Biomass energy includes all fuels derived from biological sources, such as charcoal, agricultural, animal and municipal wastes. It is reported that almost 50% of the world’s population, especially in developing countries, use these sources for cooking and/or heating, and account for about 14% of the total world energy consumption.                              Energy from biomass... [read more]

H                 Hydropower sources in Jordan are limited due to the fact that the surface water resources, such as rivers and falls, are almost negligible. However, currently there are two small hydropower schemes. The first one is King Talal dam spanning the river Zarqa, with a rated electricity-generating capacity of 5 MW. The other scheme is at the Aqaba thermal power station, where the hydro-turbine... [read more]

In terms of desertification status, the National Action Plan to Combat Desertification has divided the land into four major zones as following:   I – Zone 1: mainly restricted to the Saharo-Arabian and Sudanian Penetration areas. The area witnessed high rates of desertification and reached an advanced stage of desertification and can be considered as highly desertified area.  Aspects of desertification... [read more]

The following represent the key policy issues were included in the wastewater management policy: Provision of adequate wastewater collection and treatment facilities for all the major cities and towns in Jordan. Protection of the environment and public health in the areas affected by the proposed systems, especially, surface waters and ground waters. Consideration of treated effluents as a source... [read more]

The irrigation water policy introduced new principles for the pricing of irrigation water, which should be managed as an economic commodity that has an immense social value. Existing areas of irrigated agriculture shall be granted the chances for sustainability. Irrigation water sources shall be protected against pollution, which is hazardous to the soils environment, or can endanger animal health,... [read more]

The groundwater management policy addressed the management of groundwater resources including development, protection, and management and reducing abstraction for each renewable aquifer to sustainable rates. The irrigation water policy addressed irrigation water including agricultural use, resource management, technology transfer, water quality and efficiency. It stated that irrigation water should... [read more]

The importance of the Jordan-U.S. Trade Agreement (FTA) is clear.  This agreement will serve as an integral component of Jordan’s economic vision of the future.  The agreement, has a set of unique features pertaining to environment. It is worth mentioning, however that no financial resources have been yet allocated by the USA for the implementation of Environmental provisions of the FTA!   Following... [read more]

The National Poverty Reduction Strategy was launched in 2002, aiming at improving living standards of all poor segments of the society.     The strategy to alleviate poverty includes short, medium, and long-term initiatives in each policy area. Policy objectives include social safety, employment, education, and healthcare; within these areas, policy objectives include improving the social safety-net... [read more]

Leading plant taxonomist in Jordan Al-Eisawi (1985) has recognized thirteen vegetation types in Jordan. Recent work by Albert, et al. (2003) indicated up to 19 recognizable types. Some types are strictly confined to one of the bioclimatic regions. For example, forest climax occurs executively within the Mediterranean region, while Steppe vegetation is  confined  to  the  Irano-Turanian  region. ... [read more]

The Jordanian National Biodiversity Strategy (NBSAP) is a response to the obligations of CBD and has been developed as a guide to the implementation of the biodiversity convention in the country. It has been published by the Ministry of Environment in 2002 based on a national consultation process. The main strategic goals Of the NBSAP are:   1.      Conserve biodiversity and use biological resources... [read more]

The National Youth Strategy was supported technically and financially by the UNDP and prepared by the higher council of youth. It has included 9 specific themes including one theme on "youth and environment".   The youth and environment theme included 3 major strategic objectives broken down into 14 practical measures.   The major strategic objectives were:   4    Enhancing environmental knowledge... [read more]

The National Population Strategy was prepared and launched in 2002 and it has 7 strategic sections including one section on "Population, the environment and natural resources". The main objectives stated under this section are: ·        Reducing the imbalance between water supply and demand. ·        Reducing the imbalance between the local demand for and the local supply of food products. ·       ... [read more]

The main land use/cover types in Jordan can be summarized as following: a.   Rangeland By definition, rangeland includes non-cultivated areas in the high and low rainfall zones. However, most of this land is located in the arid zone which provides important grazing and browse. Livestock is the major source of income for local communities in this zone. Lands in this zone are usually overgrazed... [read more]

     Providing adequate and clean energy is considered to be one of the main challenges for sustainable development in Jordan. The country has very little energy resources within its boundaries and is forced to depend to a large extent on external energy supply in the form of fuel and oil. The high population growth and the increasing state of industrialization and urbanization results in a 4% annual... [read more]

  Desalination water could be considered as a future source of supply to overcome the scarcity problem. According to the National Water Master plan, an estimated amount of 12,000 MCM of saline fossil groundwater are stored in the deep aquifers of Jordan which can be considered as a potential source. Some of the saline springs and deep wells in the Jordan River valley (JRV) and its side tributaries... [read more]

    This is a description of the efforts by Jordan to conserve biodiversity in various natural habitats   Inland waters:   Azraq Oasis has been internationally recognized as a Ramsar Site; the Ramsar Site includes the Mudflat. It has been declared as a wetland reserve since 1977. Since 1994, it has been going under continuous rehabilitation in order to regain the natural habitats that... [read more]

    Generally speaking, land mismanagement is the main cause of desertification in Jordan, and to a lesser extent is the high rainfall fluctuation. The irrational plowing, the cultivation of land for barley, the mismanagement of plant residues and the overgrazing of natural vegetation are some of the main causes of desertification in central Jordan. Causes of desertification in the highlands... [read more]