محيط-العقبة-التجاريaqaba-trade-and-environment.htm

The situation in the Gulf of Aqaba has forced long-standing enemies to work together in order to preserve the regional environment. Peace has brought to the forefront the possibilities of establishing new forms of cooperation within the framework of environmental concerns. By signing the historic "Peace Accord," Jordan and Israel dedicated themselves to the numerous environmental side agreements that were encompassed within the treaty. However, all four Gulf- bordering states - Egypt, Israel, Jordan, and Saudi Arabia - have taken steps and are committed to protect areas of particular beauty along their own coasts. Plans for multilateral cooperation to protect the fragile environment of the Gulf of Aqaba are finally coming to fruition. Integrated regional efforts to protect the Gulf of Aqaba must incorporate mechanisms fostering environmentally sustainable development along its shores.

The Gulf of Aqaba has not received much scientific study in past decades (1), primarily due to the lack of peace efforts in the region. As a strategic location, the Gulf of Aqaba was treated as being too distant from the center of economic activities and more important, an area vulnerable to Israeli attacks. Therefore, knowledge of the Gulf’s physical, chemical, and biological processes is fragmentary. However, human activity in the Gulf has increased rapidly since the implentation of the signing of the Peace Accords on September 7, 1994. Intense commercial and industrial development has taken place along the coast. The massive economic development of the Gulf of Aqaba’s coastline weighs heavily on the Gulf’s marine environment. Furthermore, the prospects for the increase in tourism in great. However, increased tourism may negatively affect the delicate habitats in the Gulf of Aqaba. To use Israel as an example, in the less than ten mile coast of Eilat, there are thousands of hotel rooms, numerous tourist and eating facilities, a dolphinarium, a pleasure boat marina, a commercial harbor, a naval base, an oil terminal, a research laboratory, a protected coral reef nature reserve, and an underwater observatory. This adds up to a crowded Gulf where the physical presence of so many people in the waters and coral reef areas affect the cleanliness and clarity of the water, which in turn impacts the development of the reefs (2).

If tourists are to be attracted to the new sites in the Gulf of Aqaba region, successful tourism development will require vigilant environmental control and preservation if tourists are to be attracted to the new sites. The lack of environmental control will severely restrict the country’s ability to attract private capital and international visitors. Environmental impact assessments are required for tourism development projects in the Gulf of Aqaba zone and elsewhere. The preparation of environmental impact assessments for private sector tourism development projects is the responsibility of the developer, however, this may differ from country to country. In the case of Egypt, the developer commissions and pays for an environmental consulting firm to carry out the environmental impact studies and to prepare the documents on the studies. This document is then evaluated by the Tourism Development Authority of the Ministry of Tourism of the host country. The Ministry of Tourism is also responsible for monitoring the status of the environment in tourist areas. Projects that meet the Ministry of Tourism's environmental protection criteria are approved and allowed to be implemented (3).

Measures should be continued to prevent environmental degradation; innovative means should be continued to ensure that development is carried out in an environmentally sound matter. A thorough understanding of the nature and effects of pollution caused by human activity is critical in order to implement appropriate remedial and preventive strategies. Environmental decision makers must have considerable information about a variety of sources of pollution in the Gulf of Aqaba, including urbanization, tourism, industrialization, and oil pollution and how all these forms of pollution affect the delicate coral reefs in the region.

As a result of the international conferences, an informal body of eight founding national governmental partners were committed to the support of the establishment of the International Coral Reef Initiative (ICRI). Some of ICRI's objectives call for:

The gulf, which forms the Red Sea's eastern "finger," is home to the world’s northernmost coral reefs. The Gulf of Aqaba is one of two northerly extensions of the Red Sea, with the Gulf of Suez lying to its west. The Gulf of Aqaba is a semi-enclosed sea just 180 kilometers long with its coral reefs and abundant marine life facing threats from municipal sewage, industrial pollutants, oil spills, and unregulated tourism. The Gulf extends from the Israeli and Jordanian shores in the north, to the shallow, 270 meter-deep sills of the Strait of Tiran in the south. The short coastlines of Israel and Jordan are by no means strategically insignificant, but they are relatively short -- 14 and 27 kilometers, respectively. The coastlines of Egypt and Saudi Arabia dominate the eastern and western portions of the Gulf and are separated by 14 to 26 kilometers of the Gulf’s waters. The Gulf lies within the Syrian-African rift, which accounts for its surprisingly deep waters. The average depth of the Gulf of Aqaba is 800 meters, descending to 1,800 meters in its deepest regions (5).

The Gulf of Aqaba receives no continual year-round flow from freshwater rivers and the amount of water derived from annual rainfall is a mere 25 to 30 millimeters. The lack of fresh water influx and the high evaporation rate create particularly high saline conditions within the Gulf. The water temperature ranges from a low 21 degrees Celsius at the bottom to 26 degrees at the surface. During the summer, the temperature in some shallow waters has been recorded at 27 to 29 degrees (6).

Scientists have recognized several distinctive coral communities within the Gulf: lagooner, platform, contour, sharem, and coral islet. Inhabiting these reef systems are nearly 1,000 species of fish, 110 species of reef-building coral, and 120 species of soft corals. Unfortunately, the semi-enclosed configuration of the Gulf, which fails to expedite the dispersion of contaminants, coupled with minimal wave activity, renders the Gulf susceptible to pollution. Cases of high pollution are evident near the Jordanian port of Aqaba, Israel’s port city, Eilat, and to a lesser extent Egypt’s port of Nuweiba. In these ports, chronic pollution from oil terminals, shipping facilities, and other land-based sources constitute a significant environmental concern. The Gulf serves as an important shipping lane for the states surrounding its shores. The Gulf of Aqaba also attracts tourists to its warm clear waters and unique coral reefs. Increased human activity -- development of shipping, industry, and urban centers along the coast -- threaten to degrade significantly the environment in which these sensitive ecosystems thrive (7).

States bordering the Gulf would benefit greatly from access to information on existing resources for preventing, controlling, and remedying pollution in the Gulf. A directory of experts or individuals and organizations working in marine protection would be useful to organizations and agencies that require consultants on technical, scientific, or policy making. Information on pollution control technology and emergency equipment should be available to control various forms of marine pollution which is necessary in order for the Gulf bordering states to deal more effectively with such emergencies. Although there are cordial relations among three out of the four neighboring states in the Gulf, overall support and guidance of an information system might be sought from an agency or an entity outside the region, such as the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP).

Tourism is important to Jordan because of the its need for foreign exchange earnings. The development of the tourism sector has been a constant theme in Jordanian national programs for more than two decades. The conceptual basis of these programs is that tourism development must be an integrated and comprehensive effort (8). The number of tourist that frequent the city of Aqaba for recreation is increasing rapidly because of the international reputation of the coral reefs that attract divers from all over the world. However, dive tourism is restricted in Jordan due to its very small coastline, much of which is occupied by essential industrial developments. The restriction on dive tourism may be beneficial; the loss of diversity and degradation of reefs are the predictable results of spearfishing, garbage proliferation, coral damage by swimmers and divers, and the extensive collection of corals, shells, and other marine animals.

Successful tourism will depend on the availability of clean, non-polluted water and healthy coral reef ecosystems. Tourism can be an environmentally friendly way of generating income from coral reef ecosystems, but only when resort development and operations are carefully controlled. Therefore, increased development requires more education. Conservation education will be especially important for tourists. Hotels and other tourist attractions should develop or be provided entertaining educational programs and literature for visitors (9). Inappropriate monitoring and regulation of tourism have proven rather destructive to coral reef ecosystems. A marked difference in coral densities and an abundance of fauna may be observed between reefs that experience low and high visitor frequency rates. In the absence of regulation and education, tourists have a proclivity for breaking off pieces of living coral, spearfishing, and killing corals by stepping on them or anchoring in the reef areas.

The region's major asset is its diverse tourist potential due to its unique location - at the border of desert and sea, and at the crossroads of four countries; interesting topography - mountains and deserts; proximity to the world-renowned coral reefs; and favorable climate - suitable for year-round outdoor activities and bathing. Joint tourism promotion through cooperation will benefit Jordan, Egypt, Israel and potentially, Saudi Arabia.

In recent years the Gulf of Aqaba has experienced an increase in tourism. It is expected that this trend will continue in the new era of peace, and that Aqaba region will witness a significant surge of movement of people and goods to become a regional link for international trade and tourism. About 265,000 tourists visited Aqaba in 1995 and the number should surpass 300,000 this year.

1994	1995	1996
JD 400 million	JD 600 Million	JD 700 Million

Despite strong economic trends, a recent confidential study by a private consultant did not recommend the establishment of a five- star hotel in the northern part of the town of Aqaba, citing location disadvantages and the nature of visitors. The same study showed that eighty percent of tour operators were not satisfied with the type, quality and quantity of hotel services and accommodations available. In spite of that, a twelve percent annual increase in tourism is expected in 1996, covering both holiday makers and business guests. An increase in package tours as opposed to individual travelers is also forecast, while average length of stay will remain unchanged. One of the main reasons, but not the only one, is that while there is a surge in the number of Israeli tourists, very few of them spend a night in Aqaba. In economic terms, the above figures still translate into more income to the hotel owners and all those in the tourist industry (11).

Tourist revenues in some countries -- Egypt, Israel, and Jordan -- would decrease enormously where others- Saudi Arabia, Sudan, and Yemen -- would suffer from the loss of commercial fisheries.

Industrialization around the Gulf of Aqaba adds significantly to the pollution of the marine environment. The exportation of phosphate from Jordanian industries is a major type of pollution from the port of Aqaba. Approximately one percent of phosphate is lost into the atmosphere during the loading process. The Gulf settles in the Gulf of Aqaba, increasing the water born phosphate concentration. The increase of phosphate in the sea leads to several possible consequences, the most serious being "phosphate poisoning." Phosphate dust can bring about the death of corals through stress caused by reduced light intensity and increased sediment load (12).

Industries in the Gulf of Aqaba often use water for cooling and other manufacturing processes. Power generation and fertilizer production are currently the primary sources of heated effluents released into coastal marine water from the city of Aqaba. Several thousand cubic meters of water are released per hour in the form of jets 180 meters off shore and at a depth of 20 meters. A consequence of the discharge into the Gulf is that the water is 3 degrees Celsius higher than that of the surrounding water, which has an average temperature of 23.1 degrees Celsius. Considering that the Gulf of Aqaba marine organisms live within a few degrees of their upper thermal limits, an increase in temperature of about one or a few degrees Celsius can have profound affects on these organisms (13).

Industrial discharges into the Gulf also contain suspended particles. Identifying the effects of these contaminants on the marine environment is important; any factor that reduces light penetration, such as a continuous thick film of oil, interrupts the photosynthetic cycle of specific coral reefs, leading to secondary effects. Corals need sunlight because they depend for their survival on tiny algae that live in their tissues. The photosynthetic algae provide the polyps with carbon, and benefit in return from nitrates and phosphates produced as waste by the polyps. The lack of sunlight also upsets the relationship between the polyps and their algae. When there is an ample supply of nutrients in the water, the algae no longer depend on their host for these materials. Although the algae proliferate in the host cells, they begin to withhold the products of photosynthesis from the polyp, which starves. Eventually the algae either leave or are expelled by the host (14). Heavy metals also pose a serious threat to the environment in the Gulf of Aqaba. Sources of metals include land-based operations such as klinker production and fertilizer manufacture in Aqaba and sea-water desalinization in Eilat. Like phosphate, some metals enter the sea via the atmosphere as dust particles carried by northerly prevailing winds (15).

Israel ships oil via the Gulf of Aqaba, however, the 1978 Camp David agreements stipulate that Israel buy 2.5 million tons of oil per year from the Southern Sinai desert’s Abu Rodeis oil fields. Therefore an oil spill could result from one of these tankers. Due to the long narrow straits of the Gulf of Aqaba an oil spill of two thousand tons or more could be catastrophic (16). Although there have hundreds of oils spills in the Gulf of Aqaba region, there has not been one of catastrophic measures. However, tourism and the desire to build infrastructure for tourism has already caused significant damage to coastal ecosystems. Tourism should also provide poor countries with economic incentives to preserve their ecological resources. This economic incentive is reached indirectly: if developers pollute swimming areas with industrial wastes, kill to much coral, or even ruin too many views, the tourists will not come to the country. Egypt’s tourist industry would be better served if the national government spent its available funds on cleaning up the Nile and fighting air pollution in Cairo rather than on building resorts (17).

Coral reef ecosystems are under increasing pressure, primarily from human interaction. Of the approximate 600,000 km2 of coral reefs worldwide, it's is estimated that about ten percent have already been degraded beyond recovery and another thirty percent are likely to decline significantly within the next twenty years. Unless more effective coral reef management is implemented, more than two thirds of the world’s coral reefs may become seriously depleted within two generations. The increase in population growth and migration to the coastal areas where coral reef ecosystems thrive exacerbate the problem. Coastal congestion leads to increased competition for limited resources, to increased coastal pollution, and to problems related to coastal construction (18).

Coral reefs are the most complex and probably the most sensitive to pollution out of all marine habitats primarily due to their self-supporting characteristics. Factors that reduce light penetration, such as a continuous thick film of oil, interrupts the photosynthetic cycle of specific coral reefs, leading to secondary effects. Corals need sunlight because they depend for their survival on tiny algae that live in their tissues. As noted earlier, the lack of sunlight also upsets the relationship between the polyps and their algae. When there is an ample supply of nutrients in the water, the algae no longer depend on their host for these materials. Although the algae proliferate in the host cells, they begin to withhold the products of photosynthesis from the polyp, which starves. Eventually the algae either leave or are expelled by the host. As a result, due to increased industrial development along the northern Gulf of Aqaba, a constant decrease in the density of living coral has been observed. Pollution has adversely impacted the associated invertebrates and fish fauna (19).

An oil spill is probably the most visually compelling and thus infamous form of environmental degradation witnessed within Middle Eastern waters. Oil pollution can damage the reproductive system of corals, interfere with the production of larvae, and inhibit normal settling. Oil can also induce feeding and behavioral changes among fauna. Experiments indicate a range of responses to oil, including abnormal mouth opening and feeding behavior, mucus secretion, decreased growth rate, and increased rate of tissue death (20). Although an oil spill of any size could be detrimental to the ecosystem of the Gulf of Aqaba, at present, oil pollution in the vicinity of the city of Aqaba presents a relatively minor problem.

Governmental priority must be placed on the development and implementation of integrated coastal zone management strategies to effectively manage the ecosystem in the Gulf of Aqaba. Strategies should address human activities in the coastal and marine areas and involve the combination of: public education; community development; global legal instruments; institutional restructuring; regulation and enforcement of reef resource exploitation; and coral reef ecosystem monitoring. These techniques must be used in combination with one another. They must be supported from at scales ranging from the village to the nation, and of course, at the regional level. The techniques must be oriented toward long term sustainability of ecosystems and designed to be adaptive to different cultures and governments, and changing situations without comprising effectiveness (21).

The concept of a Coral Reef Initiative to provide a focus on the plight of reefs and on the actions necessary to reverse the trend of degradation has been proposed at various international conferences in 1994. The Coral Reef Initiative was initiated because of the clear recognition that many nations face similar threats to coral reefs and related ecosystems and similar problems managing those threats.

Tourism should provide poor countries with economic incentives to search for substitutes in order to preserve their ecological resources. This economic incentive is reached indirectly: if developers pollute swimming areas with industrial wastes, kill to much coral, or even ruin too many views, the tourists will not come to the country.

Dive tourism is restricted in Jordan due to its very small coastline, much of which is occupied by essential industrial developments. The restriction on dive tourism may be beneficial; the loss of diversity and degradation of reefs are the predictable results of spearfishing, garbage proliferation, coral damage by swimmers and divers, and the extensive collection of corals, shells, and other marine animals.

"The sea is life," says an old Arab proverb, "the sea is sustenance. Without it we perish under the sand. (23)" Although a little extreme, this quote represents traditional norms in the region. The people in the region are very cultural; rapid change is not very popular, thus, economic growth, which may disrupt cultural norms, in the Gulf of Aqaba region may weigh too heavily on the native population.

Oil spills in international waterways are always transnational issues. An oil spill is "the inadvertent discharge of crude or refined oil and related products onto land or into inland water, estuaries, harbors, and open seas and oceans." Over the past few decades, hundreds of thousands of oil spills have occurred, but the total number of spills worldwide is not known because of the absence of an international agreement to report them. Ninety-seven percent of the spills are considered minor and, in some cases, catastrophic (23). Oil spills have many adverse effects: it causes economic losses to many parties, it may foul the coastline, and it may cause severe harm to ecosystems in the body of water. The environmental effects of major spills have led to international cooperation in prevention and control. However, international cooperation in prevention and control do not by themselves provide a fast and effective response to individual oil spills in diverse locations (24).

There are numerous shipping and industrial activities that could cause a major oil spill at any time. Although oil spills are detrimental in any habitat of the world, it is of particular importance to prevent oil spills and the resulting ecological damage in the Gulf of Aqaba because of its delicate physical characteristics: its unique and vulnerable marine habitats, its highly valued recreational beaches, and the sensitive political relationships among the four countries bordering the Gulf. The physical characteristics of a body of water in which an oil spill occurs are of paramount importance in determining how the oil will spread, what its impact on the environment will be, and what methods will be used to clean up the spill (25).

The best way to prevent environmental damage from oil spills is to protect against the release of oil into the environment. However, much of the oil that enters the Gulf’s marine environment comes not from large oil tankers, but from smaller oil platform accidents, and the dispersion of oil from pleasure boats. Nations must address the releases of small incidents of oil as well as the disastrous spills in order to prevent harm to marine ecosystems. Regarding tankers, the design of vessels can play an important role in decreasing the likelihood of accidents and oil spills. Key design features include: (a) building double hulls with strong, special beams and springs to cushion blows to the vessel; (b) equipping vessels with technology to detect nearby rocks; (c) equipping vessels with advanced guidance and alarm systems to avoid collision with other vessels; and (d) assuring that the design of the pumping and piping systems is appropriate to avoid any leakages during loading and unloading (26).

In any case of an oil spill, a well-trained emergency staff with well-equipped containment and cleanup machines is the last line of defense against environmental damage to the Gulf’s ecosystem. An emergency response system requires: (a) a specialized and highly qualified implementation staff; (b) well-maintained equipment, supplied with the necessary materials; and (c) a good network of roads throughout the coastline so the necessary equipment could be routed to the scene of the emergency (27).

Methods to clean up oil spills must be evaluated and chosen on a case by case basis, taking into account such parameters as the type and quantity of oil spilled, the location of the spill, whether conditions, and sea temperature. The location of the spill will affect how access will be gained to the site of the oil spill, what marine resources are threatened with contamination, and how quickly and where the oil may come to shore.

Through the evaluation of an oil spill, the emergency response team will be able to choose the level of cleanup and the methods for accomplishing the cleanup. The methods being studied and which are being used to dispose of oil on the surface of the water includes confinement, mechanical removal of the oil, use of dispersants to facilitate the removal of the oil, the sinking of oil, and burning the oil. Spills can be more easily dealt with if they are confined to a small area on the water surface. In the Gulf of Aqaba, where currents are low, conventional anchored booms can play a major role in pollution prevention and cleanup. Booms that consist of absorbent materials can be used to contain oil originating within the area or to prevent oil slicks formed at sea from entering sensitive areas (28).

Oil that has been concentrated close to the shoreline may be removed from the water surface by shore-based pumping equipment. However, some pumping equipment may not be effective because very heavy water-in-oil emulsions are often too viscous to be pumped easily. Skimmers are effective in removing emulsions, but surface nets can be used to pick up oil lumps with great success. Sorbent materials are one of the most direct method of removing oil. Sorbent materials absorb oil and then allow this sorbed oil to be physically picked up out of the water. Sorbing is also beneficial because it prevents the oil from spreading (29).

When the maximum amount of oil has been picked up by mechanical means and the use of sorbents, the last trace of pollution can be cleared by low-toxicity dispersants. Dispersants change the interfacial properties of oil and water, enabling an oil layer to be broken up more easily by subsequent agitation into very small droplets which may be readily dispersed in the body of the sea where processes, such as bio-degradation, can deal with the oil. Oil on water can be transferred from the surface to the bottom of the sea by the application of sinking sorbents. However, the procedure cannot be regarded as a technique for removing oil from the marine environment, which could have a detrimental effect on the delicate coral reefs in the Gulf of Aqaba. The sinking of oil may be justified by the need to protect sensitive shore areas, fish breeding grounds, or seabird populations. The advantage of the method of sinking is that it provides a means of dealing with a large amount of oil quickly. However, its use in shallow, calm waters should be discouraged. In principle, there is no difference in physical mechanism between sorbing oil by floating or sinking sorbents (30).

Despite the numerous methods of cleaning a possible oil spill from the Gulf of Aqaba, coordination amongst the Gulf’s bordering shores must be the number one priority. Without coordination and communication, a relatively timid spill can be detrimental to the ecosystem of the Gulf. A regional contingency plan for the region has to be drawn up which includes Israel, Jordan, Egypt, and possibly Saudi Arabia. Under the contingency plan, it is hoped that coordination efforts will be undertaken in the event of an oil spill. While some spillage of oil into the Gulf of Aqaba is inevitable, the impacts of these spills can be minimized if the nations bordering the Gulf dedicate themselves to developing and implementing regulations.

Al-Khoshman, Mahmoud A.; "Oil Spill Prevention, Cleanup, and Emergency Response in the Gulf of Aqaba: A Technical Analysis;" Protecting the Gulf of Aqaba: A Regional Environmental Challenge; Environmental Law Institute;Washington, D.C.: February 1993; pg. 217.

Ben-Tal, Danny; Peace and Pollution; http://ariga.co.il/peacebiz/green/pollute.htm

El-Halaby, Khaled; "Toward Establishing an Environmental Information System for the Gulf of Aqaba;" Protecting the Gulf of Aqaba: A Regional Environmental Challenge; Environmental Law Institute;Washington, D.C.: February 1993.

Jamenson, Stephen C. · McManus, John W. ·Spalding, Marc D.; State of the Reefs: Regional and Global Perspectives; An International Coral Reef Initiative Executive Secretariate Background Paper; May 1995, pgs. 12, 24.

Mancy, Khalil Hosny; "Gulf of Aqaba Ecological Overview and Call to Action;" Protecting the Gulf of Aqaba: A Regional Environmental Challenge; Environmental Law Institute; Washington, D.C.: February 1993; pg. 19.

Sachs, Aaron; "The Aqaba Paradigm: A Shared Oasis;" World Watch; Vol. 6 No. 6, November · December 1993; pg. 7.

Sandler, Deborah; "Environmental Law and Policy for the Gulf of Aqaba: An Israeli Perspective;" Protecting the Gulf of Aqaba: A Regional Environmental Challenge; Environmental Law Institute; Washington, D.C.: February 1993.

Sultan, Fouad; "Tourism Development: An Egyptian Perspective;" Protecting the Gulf of Aqaba: A Regional Environmental Challenge; Environmental Law Institute; Washington, D.C.: February 1993.

Wahbeh, Mohammed; "Agenda for Scientific Research in the Gulf of Aqaba;" Protecting the Gulf of Aqaba: A Regional Environmental Challenge; Environmental Law Institute; Washington, D.C.: February 1993; pg. 30.

Watzman, Harim; "Red Sea Pays the Price of Peace;" New Scientist; No. 1965; February 18, 1995; pg. 9.

International Coral Reef Initiative; http://www.nos.noaa.gov/icri/csd/whole.html

(1) Wahbeh, Mohammed; "Agenda for Scientific Research in the Gulf of Aqaba;" Protecting the Gulf of Aqaba: A Regional Environmental Challenge; Environmental Law Institute; Washington, D.C.: February 1993; pg. 27.

(2) Sandler, Deborah; "Environmental Law and Policy for the Gulf of Aqaba: An Israeli Perspective;" Protecting the Gulf of Aqaba: A Regional Environmental Challenge; Environmental Law Institute; Washington, D.C.: February 1993.

(3) Sultan, Fouad; "Tourism Development: An Egyptian Perspective;" Protecting the Gulf of Aqaba: A Regional Environmental Challenge; Environmental Law Institute; Washington, D.C.: February 1993; pg. 190-192.

(4) Mancy, Khalil Hosny; "Gulf of Aqaba Ecological Overview and Call to Action;" Protecting the Gulf of Aqaba: A Regional Environmental Challenge; Environmental Law Institute; Washington, D.C.: February 1993; pg. 23.

(9) Jamenson, Stephen C. · McManus, John W. ·Spalding, Marc D.; State of the Reefs: Regional and Global Perspectives; An International Coral Reef Initiative Executive Secretariate Background Paper; May 1995, pgs. 12, 24.

(12) Wahbeh, Mohammed; "Agenda for Scientific Research in the Gulf of Aqaba;" Protecting the Gulf of Aqaba: A Regional Environmental Challenge; Environmental Law Institute; Washington, D.C.: February 1993; pg. 30.

(14) Watzman, Harim; "Red Sea Pays the Price of Peace;" New Scientist; No. 1965; February 18, 1995; pg. 9.

(16) Ben-Tal, Danny; Peace and Pollution; http://ariga.co.il/peacebiz/green/pollute.htm

(17) Sachs, Aaron; "The Aqaba Paradigm: A Shared Oasis;" World Watch; Vol. 6 No. 6, November · December 1993; pg. 7.

(19) Watzman, Harim; "Red Sea Pays the Price of Peace;" New Scientist; No. 1965; February 18, 1995; pg. 9.

(21) Jamenson, Stephen C. · McManus, John W. ·Spalding, Marc D.; State of the Reefs: Regional and Global Perspectives; An International Coral Reef Initiative Executive Secretariate Background Paper; May 1995, pgs. 26.

(22) Sachs, Aaron; "The Aqaba Paradigm: A Shared Oasis;" World Watch; Vol. 6 No. 6, November · December 1993; pg. 7.

(23) Al-Khoshman, Mahmoud A.: A Shared Oasis; Oil Spill Prevention, Cleanup, and Emergency Response in the Gulf of Aqaba: A Technical Analysis; "Protecting the Gulf of Aqaba: A Regional Environment Challenge; Environmental Law Institute;" Washington, D.C.: February, 1993; pg. 217.