Shorouk Awad (Dubai)
Heba Al Shehhi, Director of the Biodiversity Department at the Ministry of Climate Change and Environment, identified 10 benefits that the UAE derives from its wetlands, topped by mitigating climate change, regulating climate phenomena, reducing damage caused by natural disasters, recharging groundwater, and supplying fresh water. Being a major source of biodiversity, in addition to purifying water, controlling pollution and removing toxins, providing green urban spaces, and benefiting from them in eco-tourism, and in other fields such as fish farming.
Al-Shehhi stated in statements to Al-Ittihad that as a result of the UAE’s enjoyment of many wetlands, such as “peat” lands, salt marshes, tidal flats, beach lakes, sandy and muddy flats, and others, it has achieved several achievements, added to its record of achievements in preserving diversity. In 2019, the “Hatta Wetland” reserves in Dubai and “Wasit” in Sharjah were listed for wetland sites of global importance “Ramsar”, bringing the total internationally recognized sites to 10 sites in the UAE, after it was 8 sites during The year 2018, which is an indication of the diversity and richness of natural resources of the Emirates and the international standards enjoyed by these sites. She emphasized the continuity of the Ministry of Climate Change and Environment, in cooperation with the competent local authorities, to identify sites of global importance to be included in the Ramsar lists, which contributes to the leadership of the UAE in its efforts to preserve biodiversity.
Regarding the names of the rest of the sites that joined the “Ramsar” sites in the country, she said: “They are the (Ras Al Khor Wildlife Sanctuary) and (Jebel Ali) in Dubai, the (Mangrove Trees) and (Sir Bu Nair Island) reserve in Sharjah, and the (Wadi Wurayah) reserve. ) in Fujairah, (Al Wathba) and (Bul-Sayyef) Reserves in Abu Dhabi, and (Al-Zawra) Reserve in Ajman.
carbon storage
She explained some of the benefits referred to above, by saying: “The benefit of wetlands in reducing the damage caused by natural disasters lies in the coastal ones as a natural protective insulator, and during the rainy season, they act as a natural sponge, absorbing and storing large amounts of rain, and reducing floods. In the dry season, they release the stored water, and the benefit of wetlands lies in mitigating climate change and regulating natural climatic phenomena by storing carbon and regulating and controlling levels of greenhouse gas emissions. Coastal wetlands also play a pivotal role in responding to climate change and regulating the effects of its harmful phenomena by By providing large stores of carbon, and the benefit related to the source of biodiversity lies in the fact that wetlands are a habitat and habitat for the breeding of many types of waterfowl, fish, amphibians, migratory birds, mammals, reptiles and many more, while the benefit of wetlands lies in the recharge of groundwater, in their continuous reception The rain that the country witnesses annually, which contributes to replenishing the shallow aquifer of the earth with water.”
Land Diversity
She emphasized that the UAE, since its accession to the International Convention “Ramsar” on Wetlands in 2007, has played a leading role in the protection of wetlands by identifying wetlands of international importance and including them on the list of the Convention. The ten sites of wetlands of global importance, which confirms the diversity of the wetland environment in these sites between marshes and vast tidal flats. All of these sites reflect the diversity and richness of natural resources of the UAE and the international standards they enjoy.