Huda Al Tunaiji (Ras Al Khaimah)
Dr. Saif Al Ghais, Director General of the Environment Protection and Development Authority in Ras Al Khaimah, said: “The desert environment is the most famous ecosystem in the country, and an important part of its history and heritage, which is rich with plant and animal life.”
He stressed the importance of preserving this rich environment through its sustainability and achieving an environmental balance that is in line with the requirements of sustainable development through the application of 4 factors. Because the country lies within the arid tropical zone that extends across Asia and North Africa. In his interview with Al-Ittihad, he said: The sandy desert is the largest terrestrial habitat prevailing in the country, as it extends from the Arabian Gulf in the south to the Empty Quarter, and from the east to the gravel plains overlooking the Hajar Mountains, pointing out that the desert system is characterized by a lack of vegetation cover, low rainfall rates and high Evaporation rates during the summer, while it is greener during the winter, due to the frequent rainfall.
He stated that desert sand is an important component of eco-tourism and the most important factor that attracts lovers of nature tourism, and protecting the components of the system supports environmental efforts to enhance the axis of sustainability, as well as protecting it from individual behaviors that may cause long-term damage.
He pointed out that the UAE has sought to enact laws to preserve the nature of these areas and everyone has an obligation to preserve and develop them in a way that contributes to the benefit of future generations, pointing out that people view them as sand dunes with high temperatures devoid of life, but there are types of deserts around the world. It makes up a third of the land on the planet, including cold, coastal, hot and semi-arid.
He mentioned that those deserts witness a low rate of rain that does not exceed 26 centimeters per year, with high evaporation rates, and low humidity in general, as rainfall rates differ from year to year, including in our local environment.
Al-Ghais revealed that the importance of preserving the desert system lies in 4 factors, the first of which is the cultural factor linked to the history of the desert and the Arabs who were able to adapt to the scarcity of resources in the unique system, devoid of manufactured materials and limited to recycled, it is an integrated system that enables man to build his history despite Lack of plant and animal resources and easily coexist with it.
He touched on the second factor related to environmental aspects, beginning with human-related activities and climate changes, as the desert plays a key role linked to climate changes, and the phenomenon of desertification comes as a result of environmental conditions or human action, such as wrong individual behaviors, such as the use of four-wheel drive vehicles that pass on the bushes and contribute to eradicate plants. He added: This results in the disintegration of soil particles, as there is no support for the stability of these particles, and thus the ease of transmission by wind and the disappearance of the fertile and productive layer that makes up only the first centimeter.
He stressed that this effect can be clearly observed, as plants do not grow back in the lanes used by cars, which increases the pace of desertification faster than the normal situation, noting that the third factor in wrong agricultural practices is the depletion of groundwater that affects the balance of the system.
He pointed out that the fourth factor related to the protection and sustainability of biodiversity that characterizes this unique system, by avoiding the removal of one of its components, for example, avoiding hunting species of birds, because if we eliminate one of them that feeds on a type of insects, then we will have disrupted the system.
sustainability
Al-Ghais emphasized that the continuity of the system means the sustainability of the desert environment and biodiversity, as the local desert environment system is active during the night, and most desert animals are active during this period and are dependent on plants.
For example, he mentioned the jerboa animal, one of the types of animals that do not drink water, and are content with collecting seeds, entering its hole and closing it. As for the camel, which enjoys a temperature of 46 in July, it can with amazing efficiency adapt and live in these and other hot conditions.
Enjoy the desert environment
In the context of the sustainability of biodiversity in the desert system, Dr. Al-Ghais called for avoiding walking on the sides of the road in those areas, and the reason is that some reptiles and snakes resort to these areas to obtain ventilation from passing vehicles, and some may benefit from ventilation in removing insects stuck in his body.
Dr. sealed. Saif Al Ghais, in his speech, invited community members to enjoy the desert environment during the winter in a way that contributes to maintaining its sustainability, stressing the importance of spreading awareness among the various segments of society in order to protect the ecosystem in cooperation with various sectors and authorities in the country.