Green Prophet

How Terra Venture Partners Accelerate Clean Technology

Marcus Sopher — Thu, 09 Jul 2009 11:22:23 PDT

There are numerous start-up companies in Israel today, but finding investors to fund the new technology is often a challenge. In the field of Greentech, Terra Venture Partners (TVC) has made it their objective to fund and invest in promising seed and early-stage start-ups led by top entrepreneurs in energy, water and other environmental sectors.

Catching up with TVP’s General Partner Astorre Modena, Modena explained some of the unique aspects of the firm and what they have accomplished since their founding in 2007.

TVP currently invests in four companies: Phoebus Energy, IQWind, Biological Alarm Systems, and LithiumForce.

Modena reported that these companies are not only companies that they have supplied capital to, but rather three of the four are companies that they provided the initial investment and have actively advised them on improving their business and attracting other investors.

Because TVP invests in companies at the early stages, they place high value on a company’s technological innovation and leadership, so that the product is solid and the company will have the ability to prosper under TVP’s management.

Founders Astorre Modena and Harold Wiener both come from business and clean technology backgrounds, and they know the field of alternative energy very well. Right now, Modena said that they are close to making deals with three other cleantech companies, and the firm’s goal is to eventually expand to around 12 companies under their management. Also exciting news is that both Phoebus Energy and IQWind recently received additional investments from international firms.

With 25 million dollars under their management, TVP gets its capital mostly from Europe and the US, and they invest anywhere from 100,000 to 2 million dollars into start-up Israeli clean tech companies. Modena reported that the main challenge in Israel is the lack of capital. For a company to become established, there is often insufficient money available and in many cases the entrepreneurs are less experienced than in hightech which makes the active role of early-stage VCs much more critical.

As Terra Venture Partners expands, they hope to continue improving clean technology companies that have high levels of leadership and innovation. With clean technology, innovation is key, but without a solid business model, strong execution or proper funding, a genius idea may never come to fruition and be able to help the world.

Solar Energy is Israel’s Best Energy Bet

Maurice Picow — Thu, 09 Jul 2009 11:11:10 PDT

Israel is one of the leading countries involved in a number of alternative and renewable energy projects, which even include making bio fuels from algae and splitting hydrogen and oxygen molecules in water to produce hydrogen fuel, one of most abundant fuel sources in the universe.

But despite these and other methods o f producing energy from non-carbon based sources, the most promising way of producing energy, i.e. electricity, is by harnessing the power of the sun.

And why not, since the sun shines in this part of world a minimum of 330 days a year, and there is plenty of space available in the country’s arid Negev region, particularly the mostly flat Arava section that run along the border between Israel and Jordan.

A number of companies working on solar energy power plants and collector plates are now operating, and some of them, including one called Solel Solar Energy Ltd. has attracted the attention of giant international energy and electronics companies, such as the German company Siemens, which is considering to purchase Solel, due to Solel’s unique type of photovoltaic energy collectors.

Solel began construction in February, 2009 on a new 50 MW solar field plant in Lebrija, Spain. The new plant features Solel’s patented UVAC 2008 Solar Receivers, parabolic mirrors, collector assemblies, and control systems to obtain the sun’s maximum energy potential.

Another Israeli solar energy company, Aora, has patented special solar reflecting mirrors that reflect the sun’s rays towards a central generating gas micro-turbine that its inventors say will make even better use of sunlight, and in a more concentrated area than the massive field of collection plates required by companies like Solel.

Aora, who just completed their first initial test of their pilot solar energy plant on June 24 at Kibbutz Samar, and all indications were it was very successful. The test was attended by a number of interested solar energy plant investors in both Israel and abroad.

In addition to abundant sunshine, Israel also has very favorable weather conditions, with few of the violent storms that can damage such facilities, such as those common in counties like the USA, like tornados and hurricanes.

What all these project amount to is an eventual ability to use sunlight to provide at least 25% of Israel’s total energy needs – and without any of the pollution that even natural gas would cause.

One type of power source, which may not be developed in Israel (at least for the foreseeable future) is nuclear power. Even though Israel presently has two functioning nuclear facilities, both of them capable of generation several megawatts of electricity, using them for producing electricity for industrial and domestic use is currently too controversial, as this would require periodic inspections by international nuclear agencies, such as the IAEC.

Up to now, Israel has been reluctant to do this (for obvious reasons) even though former energy minister Benjamin Ben-Eliezer had talked about the possibility of a nuclear power plant back in 2007. Nuclear power is also dangerous for a small country the size of Israel, due to leakage of radioactive gases or even a possible reactor “melt down” as occurred in the Ukraine back in the late 1980’s.

No “melt down” is likely to occur from the sun, and for all the reasons noted already in this and other articles, “letting the sun shine in” is one of Israel’s best energy options – if not the best.

White Trash, An Ecological Group Exhibition, Opens in Tel Aviv Next Week

Karen Chernick — Wed, 08 Jul 2009 21:00:47 PDT

Participating artwork by Inbal Limor

Inbal Limor, an Israeli artist whose artistic plastic bag creations and puppets we’ve already covered on Green Prophet, is devoted to using her art to promote environmental awareness. And this time she’s going bigger, joining forces with other artists who have a similar mission.

Together with Amanda Mehl and Shameless, Inbal has initiated and curated a group exhibition that will open on July 16th in Tel Aviv called White Trash: An ecological group exhibition calling for creative awareness. True to the unconventional nature of the art that will be exhibited, the show will take place in an industrial space in south Tel Aviv.

Participating artists include Inbal Limor, Maya Gelfman, Amanda Mehl, Rafi Perez, Sivan Gross, Shameless, Rani Birnbaum, Natalie Mandel, Nima Ktlav, Yael Yaari, Mashka, Maria Makarov, and Emil Tuval.

The artists’ joint statement about the upcoming exhibition is as follows:

“Garbage is our creation. We create it at every moment. A substance that was a usable material now becomes garbage, and it piles up, it’s present, and it becomes a testimony of our lives and actions, a silent symbol.

The exhibition White Trash comes to raise a question about this symbol, to change the way we look at it. The focal point of White Trash is to take a dirty, filthy thing and turn it into something clean, whether it’s through re-using it, recycling it, or in our case, turning it into art.

Here is where we begin the search for original alternative solutions regarding the usage of the substance in our immediate environment that is there in our peripheral vision and we are constantly ignoring. By bringing the junk into the artistic realm, the substance will become “whitened”, legitimate, possible, and it’s original role will change from being something of no use into art.

The concept for the exhibition was initiated and curated by three artists, Amanda Mehl, Shameless, and Inbal Limor. The ecological emphasis is present in the work themselves and in the DIY thought behind it. Hand made, recycled flyers and interactive installations which include human generated energy. All the artists participating will be re-using objects found in their surroundings.”

White Trash will open on Thursday, July 16th at 8pm at Shvil Hameretz Street 3, Building 8 in Tel Aviv. The exhibition closes on Wednesday, July 22nd.

Read more about artists who combine trash with aesthetics::

Ten Sustainable Israeli Designers Who Reduce, Reuse & Recycle

Neta in Wonderland (via Tel Aviv)

Waste Not, Want Not: Doron Sar-Shalom Recycles With Style

Dangerous Gases Other Than C02

Jack Reichert — Wed, 08 Jul 2009 05:44:12 PDT

There are many gases, aside from C02, that cause harm to our atmosphere. The problem is that not all of them are included in the Kyoto Protocol meaning that they do not need to be reported. Take care to learn your gasses, if you are connected with the industry, so that you do not inadvertently cause damage to the environment while trying to avoid other dangerous gasses.

Sunday Energy and Carmey Avdat Winery Helping Produce Israel’s First Solar Powered Wine

Karen Chernick — Wed, 08 Jul 2009 04:34:17 PDT

Green Prophet has already reported on Kibbutz Tzuba switching to wine production because of the decreased water needs of grapes. Now Israeli wine is going even greener, with solar power. This past Monday, Sunday Energy Ltd. (Isra’el’s leading solar energy service provider) announced that it had completed installing a 50 kW Peak solar system on the roof of the Carmey Avdat winery located in the Israeli Negev desert.

Since the winery is located in an area that consistently gets a lot of sun, the installation on the 200 square meter roof of the winery is expected to meet approximately 65 percent of Carmey Avdat’s annual energy needs.

Thus making them Israel’s first solar powered wine producer.

Eyal Izrael, co-founder of the Carmey Avdat winery, said that the company intended to put the solar power to immediate use and that “thanks to Sunday’s excellent work installing our solar roof, our winery, starting with the 2009 vintage, will produce wine with the help of solar energy. As a socially-responsible company, producing “green” wine was always a goal, and is an important step for us in reducing our carbon footprint and contributing to the reduction of greenhouse gasses emitted into the atmosphere each year.”

Hannah and Eyal Izrael have always respected the natural environment of their vineyard, however, and as they describe on the Carmey Avdat website, “we learned to listen to the voices of the desert and to respect it – but not to attempt to tame it.” They also describe how their winery is located on the site of an ancient vineyard from the Nabbatean period – over 2000 years ago.

Sunday Energy CEO Kobi Dinar wrote about the project that “the Carmey Avdat installation required a unique skill set that only our multi-disciplinary team of engineers and architects was able to provide, makind Sunday the obvious choice for this project.”

The Carmey Avdat solar roof project follows other tenders previously secured by Sunday Energy, such as the Tel Aviv municipality bid to install solar energy systems on school rooftops, the Kiryat Ono tender for installations on the municipality’s public buildings, the largest solar roof installation in the Middle East on the Ormat factory in Yavne, and a planned installation on the Dalton Winery. Sunday Energy is also planning to construct solar farms across Israel over the next 2-3 years.

Read more about Israeli wines::

Cycling Through Israeli Wine and Biblical History

Connecting Man To The Land Through Wine, From Israel

Winemaking in Israel – A Sweet Ecuatorial Spot For the Ancient Tradition

Reuse Your Wine Bottles

Taco Bell Goes Green with All Unnatural Ingredients

Daniella Cheslow — Tue, 07 Jul 2009 22:00:13 PDT

Loyal GP readers know that there are many ways to cut a burger out of your life, from being a part-time vegetarian to vegging out on Meatless Mondays at Israel’s gourmet restaurants.

The Onion reports one more: the American fast food chain Taco Bell is going green by replacing all its ingredients with those grown in laboratories.

A “spokesperson” for the company told the fake news program that “At Taco Bell we have a long tradition of taking as little as possible from the natural world. Our ground beef for example has always been environmentally friendly. It’s 85% gluten filler, 8% petroleum based grease flavoring, but it’s always had 4% meat, real livestock… But with Taco Bells new green initiative, we’ve actually been able to replace that 4% meat with a simple chemical adhesive.”

Follow the link below to check the video out.

Taco Bell’s New Green Menu Takes No Ingredients From Nature

Anthropogenic — What Does THAT Mean?

Jack Reichert — Tue, 07 Jul 2009 01:23:56 PDT

When conversing with the “greenies” you may have come across the word “Anthropogenic” and wonder what it means…

anthropogenic |ˌanθrəpōˈjenik| is an adjective that describes something as a pollutant, chiefly environmental, that originates in human activity. So the CO2 from your car can be described as “Anthropogenic”, whereas the CO2 from your neighborhood Volcano is not.

Green Prophet Sees Aora’s Solar Flower Power Fire Up in the Desert

Marcus Sopher — Mon, 06 Jul 2009 22:47:46 PDT

“In Jewish tradition, if someone has a coin, half will be used to buy bread and the other half for a flower. The gesture of giving a flower is nice, and soon we hope to provide many flowers in a variety of colors,” announced Haim Dotan, the architect of AORA’s new “Power Flower” at Kibbutz Samar.

On June 24, AORA Solar had its Kibbutz Samar Launch Event, to show off “flowery” new technology that generates 100kW of electrical power and 170kW of thermal power.

With an audience of around 250 journalists, investors, scientists, and curious individuals from around the world, the AORA team showed off their site and later signed agreements with Spanish and Australian firms to start introducing their technology outside of Israel.

AORA boasts that they have developed the world’s first commercial hybrid solarized gas-turbine power station, capable of producing green power 24/7. The hybrid nature of the system allows power to be generated around the clock, by operating on “Solar-only mode” during hours of sunlight, and “hybrid mode” using fuel to generate energy during hours of limited sunlight.

To make the system even cleaner, the objective is to use biofuels to power the hybrid mode.

Using a system of highly reflective mirrors called heliostats that move according to the position of the sun, heat is concentrated at 1000 degrees Celsius inside the flower part of the structure.

Elevated 30 meters above the ground, the tulip shaped flower has petals and contains a solarized micro gas turbine within. AORA’s flower structure and 30 heliostat mirrors are only able to supply 100 kW of power to the national grid (enough to sustain approximately 70 homes), but the system does have a number of advantages because of this.

Since the structure operates on a smaller scale, new plants can be erected in just a few months, allowing energy to be generated at a site quickly and with reduced contracting costs. The required land is only half an acre, so the system will be able to power smaller villages, and for larger projects more flowers and heliostats can be added quickly and independently of the original structure.

Part of the Aora’s goal is to generate solar power for smaller communities that can use the power in their daily lives and will be able to have an attractive symbol of sustainability in their community as a source of pride.

Visually, the flower is quite a site as it stands 30 meters tall in vibrant orange, and resembles a large tulip. Architect Haim Dotan said that one of the challenges, but also one of the beautiful things will be adapting the flower design to different places around the world. According to the climates, resources, and cultures of the various places where AORA hopes to build structures, each flower will likely require different materials, colors, and design adjustments.

AORA’s launch event was well attended and should generate more buzz about their product. While the heliostat technology has been a popular concept, AORA seems to be developing a niche for smaller scale projects, and for bringing creativity and art to the field of clean energy.

The AORA team, led by CEO Haim Fried, wants to be part of the movement to make the Negev the “Sun Valley” of the world, where new innovation is always emerging, and environmental ethics are ever present in the schools and in the community.

As David Ben Gurion’s dream was to make the Negev Desert bloom and populated with Israeli towns and cities, AORA’s Power Flower will help this happen in green and artistic fashion.

Cell Phone Towers Can Help Predict the Next Big Flood

Green Prophet — Mon, 06 Jul 2009 22:34:23 PDT

Hurricane Katrina: Phone home –– If you have a cell phone tower planted somewhere near your home or your kid’s daycare, you’ll probably think they are evil, but new research finds that cell phone towers can give precious information to help us understand climate change patterns, and floods.

Though New Orleans residents were told to evacuate days before the arrival of Hurricane Katrina, no one could have predicted the real extent of the devastation.

Researchers from Tel Aviv University say they have found a novel and reliable way to help predict the intensity of the next big flood, using common cell phone towers. Their model, which analyzes cell phone signals, adds a critical component to weather forecasting never before available.

“By monitoring the specific and fluctuating atmospheric moisture around cell phone towers throughout America, we can cheaply, effectively and reliably provide a more accurate ‘critical moisture distribution’ level for fine-tuning model predictions of big floods,” says Prof. Pinhas Alpert, a geophysicist and head of Tel Aviv University’s Porter School for Environmental Education.

Prof. Alpert and his co-researchers Prof. Hagit Messer Yaron and doctoral fellow Noam David reported on their research in the April 2009 Atmospheric Chemistry and Physics.

Information the weather girl can use

Cell phone towers emit radio waves that are diminished by moisture in the air, a factor that can be used to improve model warnings on flood levels. In addition, the researchers measured the rainfall distributions and were able to accurately estimate the size of impending floods before they struck. This was demonstrated in post-analysis of two case-studies of floods in the Judean Desert in Israel, where cell phone towers – and flash floods – are abundant.

Using real data measurements collected from the towers, the researchers demonstrated how microwave links in a cellular network correlated with surface station humidity measurements. The data provided by cell phone towers is the missing link weather forecasters need to improve the accuracy of flood forecasting. The microwave data used in this study was supplied by two cellular providers Cellcom and Pelephone in Israel.

Can texting save lives?

“Our method provides reliable measurement of moisture fields near the flood zone for the first time,” notes Prof. Alpert, who also works with NASA on developing models to study global warming weather patterns. This new tool, he says, can add to the bigger picture of understanding climate change patterns in general.

“Accurate predictions of flooding were difficult before because there haven’t been enough reliable measurements of moisture fields in remote locations,” Prof. Alpert adds. Using the signals collected from cell phone towers as they communicate with base stations and our handsets, weather forecasters will now have a crucial missing piece of information for flood prediction that they never had before. It will permit forecasters and residents alike to more accurately gauge the danger they face from an impending flood.

Because hundreds of thousands of cell phone towers are already in place, the Tel Aviv University invention can be adopted quickly. And cell phone companies are already collecting the data anyway, as Americans continue to ramp up their minutes of call time every month.

[image via benimoto]

Beer Sheva Getting 100,000 Sq. Meters of Greenwash

Daniella Cheslow — Mon, 06 Jul 2009 22:00:55 PDT

Beer Sheva, the long-suffering capital of Israel’s Negev desert, just broke ground on the biggest shopping mall in Israel. Like the other seven malls of Beer Sheva, this $180.5 million complex will continue to suck business out of the dilapidated but walkable Old City. Unlike the others, this one claims to be green. Architect rendering, on the left, from Ynet.

According to Ynet News,

The mall’s main entrance will have three waterfalls. “The water expresses prosperity and life,” explained [architect Shem Tov] Tzruya. In addition, the mall will include a pool for collecting rain water and air-conditioner water and reusing it for irrigation, as well as use of natural illumination and solar energy.

Developer Eli Lahav said he will also put up an 8,000 meter green park with bike lanes beside the mall, in addition to solar panels on the roof. He plans on having classes, a meeting center for youth and soldiers, and a club for elderly citizens.

In May, we reported on newly elected mayor Rubik Danilovitch’s efforts to rebrand the city. The new mall comes on the heels of a Palestinian mall trend reported in this post.

While Lahav is to be commended for getting green construction and mixed uses into his project, they are afterthoughts tacked onto an environmentally destitute concept. The green mall will be 2 kilometers from the Old City, 3 km from the Central Bus Station and about 5 km from the heart of the major strip mall concentration on the eastern perimeter of the city. Even in places that aren’t stiflingly hot, people don’t generally walk more than a quarter of a kilometer before getting into a car if they’ve got one. Since the plan doesn’t include any housing but rather is another aiport-like flat-roofed sprawler, you can bet that its customers will likely drive there.

You can see what I’m talking about in the map below, created with Google. Point A is the new mall. B is the Negev Mall, within an easy walk of the Central Bus Station. The BIG shopping center and its neighboring strip malls are around point C, and D is the Old City.

The article in Ynet did not investigate any of these environmental issues but rather took a jovial tone of bringing money and investment to the Negev. However, in 2007 Haaretz covered the looming mall by talking to dismayed store owners in the Old City, like shoe seller Amos Peretz.

“Each new mall hurts us,” Peretz said as he arranged shoes on his store’s shelves. “The city does not need more malls. We can invest resources to improve the situation in the Old City and increase the number of parking lots, repave sidewalks, build a roof over the pedestrian zone, place more lights and connect the facades of all the businesses. We talked about it a million times already but it is not being done.”

Similar to other aspirational projects like Masdar City, this is another greenwash attempt that covers its inheritent flaws with expensive technology. At the least, I would have hoped Lahav would have been more tactful than to suggest three man-made waterfalls as an environmentally sound program for a desert city in a country with a water crisis.

< ::Ynetnews

:: Haaretz

Desalination and 7 Israel-related Cleantech Headlines, Week of June 28, 2009

Lisa Damast — Mon, 06 Jul 2009 13:48:00 PDT

During the week of June 28, 2009, news was reported that cleantech investments during the second quarter improved. Israel’s Cleantech 2009 took place and focused on water projects and renewable energy while Israeli researchers are desainating sewage for agricultural use. For these stories and the rest of this week’s 7 cleantech headlines, see below.

Investing

Cleantech investment rebounds in Q2

Why Israeli Stocks and Currency Should Outperform Now

Israel Cleantech 2009

Israel’s Cleantech 2009 Emphasizes Water Projects and Renewable Energy

Environment

Eco-friendly Sewage Treatment Comes to the West Bank

Toyota considering Israeli high-tech investments

Israeli researchers desalinating sewage for agricultural use

Miscellaneous

No more crying over spilt milk

Lebanon Running Out of Fish

Daniella Cheslow — Mon, 06 Jul 2009 12:38:30 PDT

(Lebanese fishermen in southern Tyre clean their catch. Photo from AFP.)

Southern Lebanese fishermen say their catch has slumped from 88 pounds a day in the 60s and 70s to a measly three or four-pound daily take because of aggressive dynamite fishing, overfishing and pollution.

According to a report published by AFP, the Lebanese marine life is all but wiped out. Successive governments have been so concerned with civil war, wars with Israel and political turmoil that they didn’t regulate the ocean. The people who might do it – the Ministry of Agriculture – don’t even have patrol boats.

“We have been sounding the alarm for more than 10 years about our disastrous situation but no one is listening and I don’t think anyone ever will,” a farmer named Taha told AFP.

Overfishing and pollution are common maladies among Middle Eastern countries that have depended on the sea for centuries. We’ve covered Dubai’s sewage problem here and Gaza’s water pollution here. Iraq’s marshes also face a serious threat, read about it here.

The red mullet, grouper and small barracudas face extinction in Lebanese waters as a result.

Interestingly, the 2006 war with Israel was a time for the fish to recouperate, because Israel didn’t let the fishermen get to sea. However, afterwards “the fishermen went out day and night, leaving no room for the fish to breath.”

::AFP

(GWP) Global Warming Potential — What is it?

Jack Reichert — Mon, 06 Jul 2009 02:18:41 PDT

Probably one of the most important green living tips I could suggest would be to educate yourself. Know what everyone is talking about. So, when greenhouse gases are being discussed you may have seen GWP mentioned…

Carbon dioxide isn’t the only greenhouse gas, although it is but the one of primary concern presently. There are quite a few other gases that can contribute to global warming. Gases also have differing lifespans to. So how do you measure their damage against one another?

GWP is the ratio of heat trapped by one unit of a greenhouse gas compared to one unit of CO2 over a specified time period. By comparing them all against CO2 it is like measuring distances using Kilometers or Miles instead less accurate terms like “long” or “far”.

Shop for Social and Environmental Meaning in the Old City of Acco

Karen Chernick — Sun, 05 Jul 2009 04:39:05 PDT

This coming Tuesday, July 7th a new store will be opening up in the Old City of Acco in northern Israel. A store that invites its customers to “Shop For Meaning.”

Stocked with products carrying both social and environmental messages, the Shop for Meaning will also function as a center for professional apprenticeship for young adults with sensory and/or motor special needs. The participants in the apprenticeship will learn about sales and trade through their hands-on experience. At the end of their apprenticeship, participants will get help finding employment in the job market.

The store is a joint project of Kivunim (an organization that supports Israeli youth with special needs) and the Institute for National Insurance.

The store divides its products into several categories:

Products for a better world: Fair trade products that meet environmentally friendly standards.

Products for a more humane world: Unique products made by people with special needs, thus bearing a social message and the need to integrate such populations into work and social spheres.

Products for a more caring world: Restored products that highlight the importance of recycling and reuse. Some of these products have been restored by people with special needs.

Products for a fairer world: Products that are donated or sold to the shop at discount prices, thus enabling the store to use the profits from resale towards assisting people with special needs.

The Shop for Meaning is located in the center of the old city of Acco, in a historical building near the market, Khan Ashwarda, and the Accotel.

For more information about the Shop For Meaning, contact Caroline Mercer (Shop Manager) at shop@kvn.org.il.

Read more about other projects with a joint social and environmental conscience::

Shtaim: A Second-Hand Store with a Twofold Conscience

Kishorit Becomes Organic Utopia For the Mentally Disabled

Guy Lougashi’s Dumpster Diving Designs Inspired by Buttons, Baskets and Brakes

In Jordan and Israel There is a Desert Plant That Waters Itself

Karin Kloosterman — Sun, 05 Jul 2009 00:37:47 PDT

A team of researchers from the University of Haifa have stumbled upon a rare desert plant living in Israel’s mountainous Negev desert, which can irrigate itself.

The plant, the desert rhubarb, Rheum palaestinum, was first classified by a local Israeli botanist about 70 years ago. It has adapted to harsh desert climates by developing specially designed leaves — broad and with grooves and channels — to funnel even the slightest bit of rainwater directly to its roots.

It is the only known plant of its kind in the world, and could teach science — and people — new ways for maximizing water distribution in agriculture, especially in extremely arid regions. Locals say it is found only in Israel and nearby Jordan.

ISRAEL21c asked one of the Israeli researchers, Prof. Simcha Lev-Yadun, a botanist, who recently measured the water intake capabilities of the desert rhubarb, if it could lead to new water-collecting devices (like the ones we’ve written about here — see the story on Tal-Ya Water) based on bio-mimicry.

“You are 2,000 years too late,” he says. “This same type of typography that we see on the plant’s 1/3 square meter surface was done on the scale of hundreds of meters, if not kilometres, by ancient people who lived in the Negev Desert until the first millennium CE. I am sure that people found this simple physical rule and exploited it,” he adds.

No leaves unturned

Aside from being a botanist, Lev-Yadun is also an archeologist, with a first and second degree in the field. He explains that Nabatean people living in the Negev Desert after the second Temple Period and the late Byzantine period, would pile stones in mounds that the local Arabs call “mounds for grapes”.

These stones were set up to funnel water down a hill for irrigation purposes, before the water “infiltrated the hill,” says Lev-Yadun, and resembled the surface of the rhubarb.

With his research partners Gadi Katzir and Gidi Ne’eman, also from the University of Haifa, Lev-Yadun ascertained that the reason the rare rhubarb flourishes in hostile areas in the desert, is because it can collect up to 16 times more water than other plants growing in the same region.

They findings were published recently in the journal Naturwissenschaften.

Characterized by large rosette leaves with deep grooves, Lev-Yadun — also an avid hobby photographer — says that the leaves when photographed up close starkly resemble the mountainous regions in which they grow.

Like rainwater through a valley

And the water on the leaves of the rhubarb travel off its surface, in much the same way that rainwater flows through the valleys and slopes of the mountains in the Negev Desert, but on a very different scale.

According to the recent study, the desert rhubarb can harvest 4.2 liters of water each year, with the largest of its kind collecting an astounding 43.8 liters. Compared to an average rainfall of 75 mm a year, the rhubarb has found a way to make the most of its limited environment.

Additional research into the mechanics of the plant finds that the plant not only funnels the water to its roots, but the water is able to penetrate 10 cm into the soil, 10 times deeper than if the rain landed by itself on the desert sand.

A tough waxy surface on the leaves, lends additional support in funneling the water to the roots where it is needed.

Can scientists take home a message from this plant and create the ultimate irrigation machine? Lev-Yadun has no designs on such an invention, but doesn’t rule out the possibility.

“It’s a rare plant. We can’t plant them by the billions and irrigate with them.” But, he adds: “theoretically one could do the same with plastic and collect the water. This is already done on a small scale here and there,” adds Lev-Yadun.

(This story was first published on ISRAEL21c – www.israel21c.org) [image via tiuli]

Israeli Politicians Wrangle over Drought Tax

Daniella Cheslow — Sat, 04 Jul 2009 23:00:18 PDT

Israel’s aquifers may be overdrawn and the Dead Sea is dying, but that isn’t stopping legislators from trying to take the teeth out of a pending drought tax on water overconsumption.

According to the Jewish Telegraphic Agency, a scaled water levy was supposed to go into effect on July 1. Israeli water bills fall into three tiers, with different rates for the amount of water used. The drought tax would jack up the cost of the highest use, 15 cubic meters a month. Bigger families would get higher allowances. But for now, the legislation has been postponed until August 1.Ynet reports that Knesset members want to delay the tax to as far as September, and that the Israeli Water Authority has pushed for implementation during the hot summer months. The paper reports that most parliamentarians oppose the tax and call it draconian; the Authority claims that only a third of Israeli households use more than 15 cubic meters a month.

We have laughed on this site about Israel’s less heavy-handed ways of managing water use, like commercials starring supermodel Bar Rafaeli. Hitting the public in their pockets may be the most effective strategy.

Blogger “A Mother in Israel” gave an interesting analysis of the water tax and how it will affect her family:

“Some haredi politicians objected saying that the tax will adversely effect large families, whose water bills might increase by hundreds of shekalim. But there’s no reason for large families to get a break beyond the 6 cubic meters a person. The larger your household, the more efficiently you should be using water. It doesn’t take that much more to wash a large pot than a small one.

According to our most recent bill for March and April, which included Pesach, we used 26 cubic meters. We are seven people, or eight when my son is home from yeshiva. That’s pretty good for a household with three to four teens. But taxes aside, I know I could cut my usage even more. Even without skipping the laundry and the cleaning.”

Image Credit: Esquire

Israel Establishes Consulate in China’s Powerhouse Province to Grow Clean Technology

Karin Kloosterman — Sat, 04 Jul 2009 12:24:31 PDT

It’s always been natural for Israel to look to the West or Europe to capitalize on its clean technologies, through sales or investments. Recognizing the growing potential to the East, Israel recently launched a consulate general in the Guangzhou province of South China, the economic powerhouse of China.

Avraham Nir from Israel who will open the new center told China Daily that he hopes Israel’s presence there will strengthen ties between his country and South China. Besides high-tech, he sees Israel working with China on clean energy, water recycling and agriculture. Despite its dependence on coal for fuel, just this weekend China announced its desire to invest in clean technology, so the timing couldn’t be better.

Israel already has 2 other consulates in China — in Shanghai and Hong Kong. The Guangzhou consulate will cover the provinces of Guangdong, Hainan and Fujian, and the Guangxi Zhuang autonomous region.

Nir pointed out Israel’s good track record in the water industry (even with China)– citing Israel as the world’s most efficient recycled water user touted in a recent United Nations report.

Israel is also advanced in dairy farming and solar technology, he said. And despite the economic downturn, trade between Israel and Guangdong increased this year, he added.

In 2007, trade between Israel and Guangdong was at about $1.3 billion.

::China Daily

More green news on Israel and China:
Israel and China Build Israel’s Largest Solar Power Plant
Israeli Architects Build Agro-Housing in China
Israel and China Make a Water Pact

Algae Biofuel To Send Astronauts to Space? Israel’s Seambiotic Partners With NASA

Karin Kloosterman — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 05:13:55 PDT

Algae could be a viable source of biofuel if it can be produced efficiently. Read our recent story on Algaenesis. Now Seambiotic, an Israeli company that develops marine microalgae for the nutraceutical and biofuel industries, has just announced that it will work with the NASA Glenn Research Center to develop an on-going collaborative R&D program for optimization of open-pond microalgae growth processes.

Under the Agreement, NASA Glenn and Seambiotic USA will work together to improve production processes and to study and qualify algae oil from alternative species and production processes as candidate aviation fuel at NASA’s test facilities.

“Under a Space Act Agreement, NASA is partnering with Seambiotic USA to model growth processes for microalgae for use as aviation biofuel feedstock,” said Prof. Ami Ben-Amotz, Chief Scientific adviser to Seambiotic.

“The goal of the agreement is to make use of NASA’s expertise in large-scale computational modeling and combine it with Seambiotic’s biological process modeling to make advances in biomass process cost reduction.”

The NASA research center is one of NASA’s 10 field centers, with the resources for developing cutting-edge technologies and advancing scientific research that address NASA’s mission to pioneer the future in space exploration, scientific discovery and aeronautics research.

Working in partnership with government, industry and academia, the center serves to maintain the U.S. economy’s global leadership while benefiting the lives of people around the world.

Seambiotic was founded in 2003 to grow and process marine microalgae for the nutraceutical and biofuel industries. Its research efforts include a pilot study at an Israeli Electric Corporation power station near the city Ashkelon, Israel, where various species of marine microalgae have been successfully cultivated using the power station’s CO2 emissions released directly from their smokestacks; the microalgae are in turn used as feedstock for biofuel.

Seambiotic technology reduces the cost of microalgae production significantly while lowering global warming by reducing industrial CO2 emissions. The company is currently in transition from the pilot plant stage to large scale industrial algae cultivation and production.

More on algae for biofuel:

[image via pahudson]

New Israel Fund Starts Tackling Environmental Issues

Karen Chernick — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 01:46:47 PDT

The New Israel Fund (NIF) has been the leading organization committed to democratic change, social justice, and equality in Israel since 1979. Having been active in these fields for 30 years, it is now expanding its reach to environmental matters and becoming a partner in the Green Environment Fund.

The NIF explains on its reasons for joining the green cause on its website:

“Israelis have long had to balance growth with preservation of the country’s ancient archaeological treasures, as well as developing both industry and agriculture in an arid landscape where water is precious and scarce. Today, environmental concerns in Israel, as in the rest of the world, are multiplying and becoming more urgent with the passage of time.”

The Green Environment Fund – an organization at the forefront of Israel’s environmental movement and the largest funder of Israeli environmental NGOs – has many partners. Its main objective is to strengthen and professionalize Israel’s environmental movement, educate the public, and promote sustainable growth while emphasizing environmental justice.

NIF fellows and grant recipients have already been active in promoting environmental sustainability. Next week, for example, senior Ministry of Transportation officials will meet with the mayors of 11 Arab Israeli towns in order to present public transportation plans for the towns. The plan was initiated by an NIF grantee, Kayan (Being): The Feminist Organization for Women in Arab Society.

Read more about other Israeli environmental organizations::

The Jewish Funders Network Earmark $1.5 Million Green Ones for Israel’s Environment – Apply Now!

JGooders.com Raise Money and Spirits for Green Jewish Groups

Green Action Events: The SAHA Project Takes Off

Water Shortage Boosts Israeli Wine Production

Daniella Cheslow — Thu, 02 Jul 2009 23:00:56 PDT

Nestled into the Jerusalem Hills, Kibbutz Tzuba has decided to scrap its apple orchards and grow more grapes to save on water during the current crisis.

According to the Jerusalem Post, Tzuba once grew kiwis that guzzled an outrageous 1,000 cubic meters of water per dunam (dunam=1/4 acre). Then the farm switched to apples, which take 750, and has finally settled on grapes, which sip a modest 200 cubic meters. The new vineyards will spread over 145 dunams and will expand Tzuba’s already strong wine lineup with eight new varieties.

For some background, read Green Prophet stories on the dire regional water shortage and efforts to cope in Israel, Syria, and the Palestinian Authority.

Tzuba’s story is a gradual reality check that speaks for the larger picture of Israeli farms. The kiwi growing era is an emblem for when the country’s water managers built massive projects to irrigate fields in the Negev, growing fruit that was more suited to Ecuador than to the arid Middle East. Over time, Israel has realized there are limits to human intervention. Tzuba’s newest crop has been grown in the Middle East for thousands of years and unsurprisingly makes the fewest demands. If necessary, grapes can also be grown without water. Tzuba’s wine is a deeper level of locally grown.

Image credit: Jerusalem Post