environment

12 03, 2024
  • Satellite images reveal how the Tal al-Hara woods, in the northwest of Syria’s southern Daraa province, were all but stripped bare by logging between October 2011 and November 2022. (Google Earth)

Under the axe: The fall of Daraa’s forests and fruit trees

By Walid Al Nofal|2024-03-13T13:34:49+01:00March 12, 2024|

Trees have fallen under the axe in Daraa and across Syria since the spring 2011 revolution, cut for wood to sell or use as an alternative to heating and cooking gas during war, siege and economic crises. Since 2020, however, logging has increased to include fruit-bearing trees on private farmland and within cities.

26 07, 2023

In thirsty Daraa, uncontrolled well drilling drives groundwater deeper

By Walid Al Nofal|2024-02-09T14:30:59+01:00July 26, 2023|

Across Daraa province, groundwater is receding deeper into the earth. On top of climate factors like rising temperatures and fluctuating or delayed rainfall, human activity is taking a toll: Thousands of unlicensed wells have been drilled in recent years due to a lack of state oversight and a struggling public water network.

28 10, 2022

Seeds of Syria: How a birthplace of agriculture lost troves of its native crops, and why we should all worry

By Lyse MauvaisSolin Muhammed Amin|2024-06-07T14:42:23+02:00October 28, 2022|

Home to the wild ancestors of our most important crops, Syria once hosted one of the world’s biggest seed banks and grew several native varieties of wheat. But this collapsed during the war, and Syrians are now struggling to find good-quality seeds. How did the country lose its seed treasure, and with it, a wealth of genetic resources for humanity?

28 09, 2022

The dying bees of Syria

By Lyse MauvaisSolin Muhammed Amin|2023-01-19T21:01:13+01:00September 28, 2022|

Beekeeping is an ancient tradition in Syria, where native bees used to produce world-famous honey. But decades of intensive farming, economic hardship and environmental degradation have shattered the delicate relationships that once united bees and humans.

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