Author Archives: Salman Zafar

About Salman Zafar

Salman Zafar is the Founder of EcoMENA, and an international consultant, advisor, ecopreneur and journalist with expertise in waste management, waste-to-energy, renewable energy, environment protection and sustainable development. His geographical areas of focus include Middle East, Africa, Asia and Europe. Salman has successfully accomplished a wide range of projects in the areas of biomass energy, biogas, waste-to-energy, recycling and waste management. He has participated in numerous conferences and workshops as chairman, session chair, keynote speaker and panelist. Salman is the Editor-in-Chief of EcoMENA, and is a professional environmental writer with more than 300 popular articles to his credit. He is proactively engaged in creating mass awareness on renewable energy, waste management and environmental sustainability in different parts of the world. Salman Zafar can be reached at salman@ecomena.org or salman@bioenergyconsult.com

Waste-to-Energy Pathways

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Waste-to-energy is the use of modern combustion and biological technologies to recover energy from urban wastes. The conversion of waste material to energy can proceed along three major pathways – thermochemical, biochemical and physicochemical. Thermochemical conversion, characterized by higher temperature and conversion rates, is best suited for lower moisture feedstock and is generally less selective for products. On the other hand, biochemical technologies are more suitable for wet wastes which are rich in organic matter. Thermochemical Conversion The three principal methods of thermochemical conversion are combustion (in excess air), gasification (in reduced air), and pyrolysis (in absence of air). The most … Continue reading →

Solid Waste Management in the Middle East – Major Challenges

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Middle East is one of the most prolific waste generating regions of the world. Lavish lifestyle, ineffective legislations, infrastructural roadblocks, indifferent public attitude and lack of environmental awareness are the major factors responsible for growing waste management problem in the Middle East. High standards of living are contributing to more generation of waste which when coupled with lack of waste collection and disposal facilities have transformed ‘trash’ into a liability. Major Hurdles The general perception towards waste is that of indifference and apathy. Waste is treated as ‘waste’ rather than as a ‘resource’. There is an urgent need to increase public awareness about … Continue reading →

النفايات الطبية في دول مجلس التعاون الخليجي

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كان هناك وعي متزايد بالحاجة للإدارة الآمنة للنفايات الطبية في جميع أنحاء العالم . تتولد النفايات الطبية من جميع القطاعات الصحية بما في ذلك المستشفيات والمختبرات ومراكز التشخيص والبحث، وعيادات طب الأسنان وبنوك الدم والمشارح ومراكز التشريح، والمستشفيات البيطرية والمختبرات الصناعية ,, إلخ . النفايات الطبية التي تشكل أكبر خطر على صحة الإنسان هي النفايات المُعدية (أو النفايات الطبية الخطرة) التي تشكل 15 – 25 في المئة من إجمالي نفايات الرعاية الصحية . ويمكن أن تشمل النفايات المعدية جميع أنواع النفايات التي تلوثت او يشتبه في تلوثها  بسوائل الجسم مثل الدم ومشتقاته، وأنابيب القسطرة والقفازات، والفحوصات المستخدمة لفحص البكتيريا  ومخازن … Continue reading →

Avoiding Common Debt Traps

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Common sense tells us it’s better to be debt-free than to incur debt. However, if you’re going to have a comfortable life — and have yet to obtain an immense personal fortune — some debt is generally unavoidable. After all, few people are in a position to purchase a home, or a car or pay for a college education outright. However, there are right ways to go about taking on these debts and wrong ways. In far too many cases, people who recognize we need those things willingly engage in deception to take unfair advantage of us. With this mind, … Continue reading →

How To Dispose Of Paint

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As with most home improvement projects, it is likely that you will have some leftover painting supplies when you are done painting. However, you will soon discover that landfills will not accept paint. It is considered hazardous waste and not something that they want to risk putting in the landfill where it might leach into the water supply. Since you are reading this article, you clearly want to get rid of your paint in an economical manner that is also safe for the environment. Why Paint is Harmful to the Environment There are a lot of chemically-made compounds that go … Continue reading →

الإسلام وحماية البيئة

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حماية البيئة هو جانب هام من جوانب الإسلام. بما اننا خلفاء في الأرض، فإنه يقع على عاتقنا كمسلمين العناية بالبيئة، فهناك غرض محدد وراء وجود أنواع مختلفة، سواء كان ذلك نباتات أو حيوانات.  لذا يتوجب على المسلمين التفكير في العلاقة بين الكائنات الحية وبيئتها والحفاظ على التوازن البيئي الذي خلقه الله فحماية البيئة أمر أساسي للمعتقدات الإسلامية، والبشرية لديها مسؤولية لتضمن الحفاظ الآمن للبيئة حماية البيئة والحفاظ على الموارد  المنظور الإسلامي حول حماية البيئة يعكس صورة إيجابية عن الإسلام وكيف يحتضن كل مسألة  تواجه البشر على وجه الأرض.  الموقف الإسلامي تجاه البيئة والحفاظ على الموارد الطبيعية لا يعتمد فقط على … Continue reading →

Illnesses Caused by Dirty Water

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Did you know that over 780 million people worldwide lack access to clean water? Accessible water to is so dirty, that it can cause several potentially fatal diseases. These illnesses range from Cholera to E. Coli, Polio to Typhoid fever and each one presents a host of severe symptoms, which result in over three-quarters of a million deaths annually. On Human Rights Day, Waterlogic highlight the regions worst affected by each disease as well as suggesting actions to take and help make their water safe to drink — including one technology used in the plumbed-in water dispensers.  

Solid Waste Management in Oman

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Solid waste management is a challenging issue for the Sultanate of Oman because of limited land availability and adverse impacts on environment and public health. With population of almost 3.9 million inhabitants, Oman generates more than 1.7 million tons of solid waste each year. The average per capita waste generation is more than 1.2 kg per day, which is equivalent to about 4700 tons of municipal waste every day. Solid waste in Oman is characterized by very high percentage of recyclables, primarily paper and cardboard (15%), plastics (20.9%), metals (1.8%) and glass (4%) (Source: Waste Characterization and Quantification Survey, Be’ah, 2013). However the country is … Continue reading →

Solar Energy in Morocco

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Morocco, being the largest energy importer in North Africa, is making concerted efforts to reduce its reliance on imported fossil fuels. Renewable energy is an attractive proposition as Morocco has almost complete dependence on imported energy carriers. Morocco is already spending over USD 3billion a year on fuel and electricity imports and is experiencing power demand growth of 6.5 per cent a year. The National Energy and Energy Efficiency Plan was launched in 2008 which aims to develop renewable energy to meet 15 percent of the country’s energy demand and to increase the use of energy-saving methods.  According to the Moroccan Ministry … Continue reading →

Tips for Air Conditioning Repair: Signs to Watch For

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There are plenty of homeowners out there who make the decision to purchase an AC unit for their home, without necessarily understanding how best to care for the unit. After all, it is often as simple as turning it on and letting the AC unit get the job done. While there is generally no trouble with letting a brand new unit cool the air around your home, there is always a chance that something might go wrong. If you do not understand the warning signs, you might end up paying much more than you normally would for repairs to your … Continue reading →

How To Lessen Your Contribution To Noise Pollution

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If you are constantly bugged by disturbing or unwanted noise to the point that it interferes with your normal daily activities, then you are categorically experiencing noise pollution. This is a disruptive type of sound that can be annoying and life-altering because it can affect your mood, responses, relationships or socialization, and performance. Extreme noise pollution can greatly affect an individual’s quality of life. It can also cause chronic stress which impacts overall health. Noise pollution would usually come from different sources such as industrial noise or those coming from construction, electrical machinery, or from traffic noise such as sounds … Continue reading →

النفايات الغذائية خلال شهر رمضان في الشرق الأوسط

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مع حلول شهر رمضان المبارك خلال الأيام القليلة القادمة، ضخمة الهدر الغذائي في منطقة الشرق الأوسط تخطف الأضواء مرة أخرى. بل هي الحقيقة المقبولة على نطاق واسع أن ما يقرب من نصف مجرى النفايات البلدية الصلبة في منطقة الشرق الأوسط ويتكون من النفايات الغذائية والمواد المرتبطة بها. كمية متزايدة من فضلات الطعام في الشرق الأوسط على وجه السرعة يتطلب استراتيجية قوية لإدارة النفايات الغذائية لضمان التقليل والتخلص بطريقه صديقة للبيئة. النفايات الغذائية في رمضان دول الشرق الاوسط اعترفوا انهم أعلى مبذرون غذاء في العالم، وخلال شهر رمضان الحالة يأخذ منعطفا نحو الأسوأ. في عام 2012، قدر أن بلدية دبي في … Continue reading →