Seminar on Israel water technology to be held in Taipei

Want China Times, 2014-11-12

A K. B. Recycling Industrials booth at a new energy and technology expo
in Air port city, Israel, Feb. 19. (File photo/Xinhua)

A seminar on Israel's water technology will be held in Taiwan later this month to promote exchanges in the area, the Israel Economic and Cultural Office in Taipei said in a recent statement.

The seminar, slated to take place Nov. 28 in Taipei, will bring together representatives of eight Israeli companies who will share their technologies and products with Taiwanese firms in an effort to seek potential cooperation, said the office, which is co-organizing the event with Taiwan's Water Resources Agency.

The agenda will include discussions on desalination, waste water management, quality management of drinking water and recycled water, the office said.

As the government is planning to begin collecting water pollution control fees starting December, how to effectively handle waste water has become an important issue.

Israel has developed advanced technologies to deal with its waste water, 97% of which is reused for irrigation. It has also been exporting its water technologies, including desalination, waste water recycling and drip irrigation, to other countries, the office said.

Business meetings will also be arranged for Israeli and Taiwanese companies to explore cooperation opportunities, it added.

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"Recalibration of Free Choice"–  Mar 3, 2012 (Kryon Channelling by Lee Caroll) - (Subjects: (Old) Souls, Midpoint on 21-12-2012, Shift of Human Consciousness, Black & White vs. Color, 1 - Spirituality (Religions) shifting, Loose a Pope “soon”, 2 - Humans will change react to drama, 3 - Civilizations/Population on Earth,  4 - Alternate energy sources (Geothermal, Tidal (Paddle wheels), Wind), 5 – Financials Institutes/concepts will change (Integrity – Ethical) , 6 - News/Media/TV to change, 7 – Big Pharmaceutical company will collapse “soon”, (Keep people sick), (Integrity – Ethical)  8 – Wars will be over on Earth, Global Unity, … etc.) - (Text version)

…  4 - Energy (again)

The natural resources of the planet are finite and will not support the continuation of what you've been doing. We've been saying this for a decade. Watch for increased science and increased funding for alternate ways of creating electricity (finally). Watch for the very companies who have the most to lose being the ones who fund it. It is the beginning of a full realization that a change of thinking is at hand. You can take things from Gaia that are energy, instead of physical resources. We speak yet again about geothermal, about tidal, about wind. Again, we plead with you not to over-engineer this. For one of the things that Human Beings do in a technological age is to over-engineer simple things. Look at nuclear - the most over-engineered and expensive steam engine in existence!

Your current ideas of capturing energy from tidal and wave motion don't have to be technical marvels. Think paddle wheel on a pier with waves, which will create energy in both directions [waves coming and going] tied to a generator that can power dozens of neighborhoods, not full cities. Think simple and decentralize the idea of utilities. The same goes for wind and geothermal. Think of utilities for groups of homes in a cluster. You won't have a grid failure if there is no grid. This is the way of the future, and you'll be more inclined to have it sooner than later if you do this, and it won't cost as much.

Water

We've told you that one of the greatest natural resources of the planet, which is going to shift and change and be mysterious to you, is fresh water. It's going to be the next gold, dear ones. So, we have also given you some hints and examples and again we plead: Even before the potentials of running out of it, learn how to desalinate water in real time without heat. It's there, it's doable, and some already have it in the lab. This will create inexpensive fresh water for the planet. 

There is a change of attitude that is starting to occur. Slowly you're starting to see it and the only thing getting in the way of it are those companies with the big money who currently have the old system. That's starting to change as well. For the big money always wants to invest in what it knows is coming next, but it wants to create what is coming next within the framework of what it has "on the shelf." What is on the shelf is oil, coal, dams, and non-renewable resource usage. It hasn't changed much in the last 100 years, has it? Now you will see a change of free choice. You're going to see decisions made in the boardrooms that would have curled the toes of those two generations ago. Now "the worst thing they could do" might become "the best thing they could do." That, dear ones, is a change of free choice concept. When the thinkers of tomorrow see options that were never options before, that is a shift. That was number four. ….”

River Dams and Irrigations Dykes Damaged

Tempo Interactive, Aris Andrianto, Friday, 13 November, 2009 | 20:56 WIB

Purbalingga: Due to continuous rainfall, 23 dams and irrigation dykes have been damaged, resulting in thousands of hectares of agricultural lands at risk of getting insufficient water.

“The erosion of river banks is the main reason for this,” said Adi Saptono, Purbalingga Public Works Office chief in charge of Irrigation, yesterday.

The rivers include the Klawing, Kuning, Serayu, Grantung and Laban. Every year, around half a hectare of the rivers leak out at about one kilometer internvals. Purbalingga Agriculture Office chief Lily Purwati said the damages to the dam could adversely affect the farmers’ planting pattern.

City to build water pipeline from Jatiluhur dam

Indah Setiawati, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta | Wed, 11/04/2009 9:06 PM

The Jakarta Administration plans to build a pipeline connecting the Jatiluhur dam in Purwakarta, West Java, to one of the city’s water treatment facilities in Buaran, East Jakarta next year.

“We plan to process the raw water in Jatiluhur reservoir and channel the processed water through a pipe directly to [water operators in] Jakarta, Bekasi and Karawang. The water operators will then distribute the water to customers,” Governor Fauzi Bowo said Wednesday.

He said he would discuss the project with the Public Works Ministry this week to work out the financial costs, which were expected to be shouldered by the city, central government and private parties.

“The total investment is estimated to be about Rp 3 trillion. We hope the feasibility study will be completed by the middle of 2010 and the project can start by 2011,” he said.

The decision to build the pipeline was taken in part because of problems including increased pollution of raw water supplied to the city, expected higher demand for tap water, and increased competition for water for irrigation.

Fauzi said the raw water supply from Jatiluhur, had been contaminated by domestic and industrial pollution from the Tarum Barat canal, which brought the water to the city.

He said the recent increase in ground water tax would push some customers to switch to tap water, which would force the city to increase tap water supply.

This June he issued a gubernatorial decree on the new tax rate for groundwater, which ranged from six to 16 times the current tax rate, depending on the tax payers’ category, which included non-business entities as well as small and large businesses.

The policy aims to prevent further land subsidence in the city due to excessive groundwater extraction. According to data from the Jakarta Water Regulatory Body (BR PAM), the city could only fulfill 60 percent of the residents’ clean water needs. The remaining 40 percent is fulfilled by groundwater supply.

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Farmers spend own climate change adaptation fund

Floods exacerbate quake victims' misery in Jambi

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta | Thu, 10/01/2009 5:03 PM

Heavy downpour in Jambi has lead to floods that inundated several major streets and residential areas across the city, reports said on Thursday.

The flooding came shortly after a 7.0-magnitude earthquake jolted the city at 8:52 a.m., one day after a 7.6-magnitude earthquake hit Padang, West Sumatera.

Tempointeraktif.com reported that the depth of the flood ranged from 20 to 50 centimeters, inundating several major places like Jl. Sersan Zuraida, Rawasari bus station, and Jl. Orang Kayo Pingai as well as densely populated residential areas like Legok and Sulanjana.

Traffic congestion was also reported on a number of streets due to the floods.

Rasyid, a resident, said that he was very upset after the flood and the quake.

"The drainage canals have been not working for a long time ago," he said.

Toilets donated to Aceh villagers

Nani Afrida, The Jakarta Post, Nagan Raya

Despite the "modern" age, toilets were still new to most villagers in Nagan Raya, a new regency some 80 kilometers south of Banda Aceh, where locals used to end up going behind bushes or in rivers.

Like other villages, Meunasah Dayah in Beutong subdistrict has no toilets. Not a single house has a private toilet either.

In fact most villagers had heard more about the "western" toilet equipment than they had experience using it.

Nyak Puteh, 28, is one of the Meunasah Dayah villagers, who previously wouldn't think twice about defecating in an open place like the backyard or near an irrigation network.

"We usually defecate in the evening or morning. It depends on when we need to go," Nyak Puteh said.

Whenever he defecated, he said he was accompanied by his wife Nurhayati, 35. In the village, he said, it wasn't advisable to go out to the forests alone at night because there were many dangerous wild animals, including bears and wild boars.

Defecating in the open was once normal in the village. During the dry season, however, it would become a serious problem as the dried feces made a putrid odor everywhere.

"We had to find a clean place even though it was difficult to do. We paid no attention to public toilet facilities because people needed to queue up there, which was a nuisance," Nyak Puteh said.

Deep down, Nyak Puteh said, he wished for his own toilet, just like the government public toilets. Unfortunately, he said, he had no money to buy one because it was mainly spent on treatments for his chronic tuberculosis.

There are around 170 families in Meunasah Dayah village, but none had a private toilet.

"Maybe it's because villagers don't understand the importance of sanitation. They have been defecating out in the open since their ancestors' times," Banta Lidan, head of the village, said.

Most of the villagers have had little or no education. Many opting to work over not go to school.

Banta Lidan, who was chosen as head of the village last year, said he was sorry about the poor sanitary condition of his village.

When Islamic Relief representatives visited the village and announced plans to construct toilet facilities, Banta agreed immediately.

"If we have toilets, people will be able to take care of their health better. And the village will become cleaner," Banta said.

Islamic Relief and the UNICEF water, environment and sanitation (WES) project have built some 170 toilets in the village. They have provided all the necessary materials for toilets ranging from cement, bricks and zinc to septic tanks. The organizations have also taught people how to build toilet amenities.

The project aims to promote hygiene and develop community skills.

With a private toilet, Nyak Puteh said, he feels happy now. He can go to the toilet any time he wants, without his wife or bears or wild boars.

Banta Lidan said he was relieved simply because his village is now free from feces.

Govt to make list of all underdeveloped villages in 2008

Samarinda, E Kalimantan (ANTARA News) - The government would make a list of all underdeveloped villages in 2008 and increase fund allocated for the Self-Contained People Empowerment Program (PNPM) that was made to develop the underdeveloped villages, State Minister for Underdeveloped Regional Development Muhammad Lukman Edy said.

"The government would therefore increase amount of the fund to Rp30 trillion in 2008 from Rp9 trillion spent for the program in 2007. It hopes that PNPM scheme can be implemented in about 50,000 villages next year," he said after attending a seminar which was held on the sidelines of the Nusantara Islands Youth Festival here on Friday.

Lukman said 35,000 out of 73,000 underdeveloped villages in Indonesia were found in the eastern part of the country.

"Seventy percent of the underdeveloped villages don't have basic infrastructure. The people life in isolated places which don't have electricity, clean water and irrigation either," he said.

The implementation of PNPM has involved local people's role in the building of village starting from making a plan to a phase after the finishing of the building of the village, he said.

The people were allowed to decide what they would do with the fund amounting to Rp250 million earmarked for the developing of their village, he said.

The program has covered about 15,000 villages in 2007