While thinking of which Arab sites can be nominated for the new 7 natural wonders campaign which has started right after the end of the New Seven Wonders competition which saw Petra as a winner, I was trtying to see how many Arab sites are actually inscribed in the official UNESCO World Natural Heritage List. I know they are not too much and I know that one site in Oman was deleted recently for failing... [read more]

Sustainable buildings are wittnessing high growth and momentum in many countries around the world. The concept is pioneering and such buildings will include hundreds of eco-friendly innovations. The cost of installation and maintenance will always be high until it becomes economically feasible but the technology is there and that matters. The Ecogeek blog, the world's leading blog for ecological... [read more]

By: Batir Wardam   With a water per capita share of 160 cubic meters per year, Jordan is among the world's top 10 water scarce countries. The struggle to provide adequate and clean water resources is one of the biggest developmental challenges in Jordan. At the center of the debate about water management is the issue of water pricing and valuation.   Although the infrastructure of water supply... [read more]

In Arab countries with scarce water resources and shortage of money and technologies for desalination, the option of greywater reuse and treatment is gaining a lot of potential. Despite problems that appeared in small-scale applications of greywater resuse in households the technologies are getting better and cheaper. The main element will be for the local community itself to adopt the technologies... [read more]

For the first time in its history, UNESCO World Heritage Programme had to take the bad decision of removing one site from its glamorous list of global natural wonders, and the site in question is an Arabian Oryx sanctuary in Oman.   No bad feelings in politics, however. The Omani government was the one asking for removal of the site from the list and both UNESCO and IUCN had to comply, according... [read more]

The majestic city of Petra has won its righteous place in the World New Seven Wonders. Regardless of UNESCO's reservations, the voting process represented a "global collective approach" of cultural diversity that was made by people and public participation. Petra's uniquness was decribed by the New 7 wonders committee as a symbol of "engineering and protection". One of the most amazing achievements... [read more]

Source: Middle East Online   The booming emirate of Dubai is the most congested city in the Middle East, according to a survey released Saturday, on the eve of Dubai's launch of a controversial road toll. An average employee in Dubai spends around one hour and 45 minutes a day in commuting, according to the survey, conducted by GulfTalent.com, a regional online recruitment portal. For... [read more]

By: Batir Wardam   You will have to search several locations in the World to find a situation similar to Aqaba’s: Jordan’s only outlet to the sea. This is a unique case of a confined, fragile and exquisite ecosystem subject to the cumulative effect of the “triangle of environmental threats”: Industry, tourism and transport. The Jordanian segment of the Gulf of Aqaba is only 27 Km. Being the... [read more]

Source: Jordan Times Sunday 1 July 2007   By Mohammad Ghazal and Hana Namrouqa    AMMAN — The Environment Ministry will establish a pilot plant by the end of this year to treat the liquid residue of the olive-pressing process, as it pollutes the soil and water resources. The JD500,000 EU-funded plant, to be built either at the Ikeider holding area or the Jordan University of Science... [read more]