Shorouk Awad (Dubai)
Over the course of 18 years, the environment sector witnessed a real leap in its various fields during the era of the late Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan, may God have mercy on him. The late, may God have mercy on him, represented in the stage of empowering the state to search for excellence and development for a country that accepts the challenge, elevating the present, and looking forward to a sustainable future based on a balance of the requirements of economic and social growth, and the entitlements of preserving the environment and ensuring the sustainability of its natural resources and biological diversity. The environment sector was distinguished during the era of the late, may God have mercy on him, which is an extension of the establishment stage, for leadership in empowerment and global leadership in the environmental sustainability scene, and for unique achievements in various fields of the environmental sector such as agriculture, livestock, reserves, air quality and climate action, and the success in establishing an integrated environmental system, As well as the adoption of integrated policies that affected the environment in the UAE, and won international recognition in a large and remarkable way.
environmental sustainability
During the era of the late Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan, may God have mercy on him, the UAE strengthened its position and active role in the environmental sustainability scene on the global stage. National axes, including the sustainable environment axis, which included many indicators directly related to the environment and climate change, such as the air quality index and the waste treatment index, among others.
Efforts to achieve the environmental vision and respond to emerging challenges accelerated with the launch of the UAE Vision 2021, and a set of national legislation, policies and strategies were issued, for example, the National Green Development Strategy 2012, the Emirates Energy Strategy 2017, the National Water Strategy 2018, and the National Strategy for Climate Change and Environment 2017, and the 2014 National Biodiversity Strategy, along with many local environmental policies and strategies.
Leading in global indices
According to the reports and indicators of global competitiveness for the year 2020, the UAE, during the era of the late, may God have mercy on him, topped the international scene in 8 global indicators related to the areas of environmental work, while it ranked first at the regional level in 19 indicators, and according to the report of the Competitiveness Yearbook «IMD» The UAE ranked first in the world in the environmental laws index, the satisfaction with environmental conservation efforts, the sulfur dioxide emissions intensity index, and the marine reserves index, where the country owns 16 marine protected areas, and the percentage of the total area of natural reserves in the country increased from 15.07 percent. During the year 2019, it reached 15.53 percent of the total area of the country, in addition to the increase in the area of land reserves from 17.1% to 18.4% in 2020, while the percentage of the area of marine reserves reached 12.01 percent, and the “domestic solid fuel” index, and the “Lands” index. wetlands”, the “losing rangelands” index, and the “ecosystem services” index.
At the regional level, the UAE ranked first in 19 environmental indicators, 8 of which were the same indicators that it topped at the global level, and the remaining 11 indicators were distributed among the “viability of the ecosystem” indicator, the “biodiversity” indicator and the indicators of “water treatment” Sanitation”, “pesticide regulation”, “marine protected areas”, “ISO 14001 environmental certificates”, indicators of “pollution problems”, “lack of exposure to particulate pollution”, and “environmental balance” indicator.
Food security
The achievements in these four areas came as a result of the UAE government, during the era of the late Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan, may God have mercy on him, paid great attention to them. Sufficient for the establishment of farms and farms, which in turn contributed to increasing the cultivation of vegetables and fruits and the numbers of animals such as camels, cows, sheep and goats, in addition to the poultry sector, while the great developments in the field of fishing at the state level contributed to the preservation of this heritage profession. As for nature reserves, Interest in it has increased steadily in the UAE, given its importance in preserving biological diversity and protecting endangered species.
air quality
With the acceleration of the UAE’s renaissance in a short period of time and the increasing population and economic growth, and the resulting pressures and forces affecting air quality, the state worked during the era of the late, may God have mercy on him, to reduce it and address its negative effects and projections as quickly as possible, and the best proof of that It took proactive steps to maintain its air quality, including direct monitoring of ambient air quality in 2007 through a network of ground monitoring stations, which included at that time 22 stations distributed throughout the country, and the number has now increased to 54 active monitoring stations.
Employing artificial intelligence
The country has also achieved many unique achievements in the field of maintaining and improving ambient air quality over the past few years, such as directing the actual measurement of the air quality index in 2014, employing artificial intelligence such as satellites to monitor air quality during 2016, and monitoring the compliance of various industrial activities with national standards. and others.
improve air quality
Among the indicators indicating the success of the UAE in maintaining and improving air quality, the noticeable improvement in its quality levels during 2020 compared to 2019, where the percentage of green days recorded increased from 81% during 2019 to 87.9% from the beginning of January to November of 2020. The percentages of all air pollutants in the country decreased during the year 2020 compared to 2019, as nitrogen dioxide decreased by 13%, sulfur dioxide by 9%, carbon monoxide by 2%, ground ozone by 3%, and concentrations of particulate matter by 9%. diameter less than 10 microns by 3%, and particulate matter concentrations with a diameter less than 2.5 microns by 13%.
strategic plans
During the era of the late, may God have mercy on him, the UAE played a leading role at the regional and global levels in facing the most dangerous and threatening challenge to life on the planet. Over the past years, it made many national efforts for climate action, represented in launching policies and strategic plans such as the National Plan for Climate Change, The National Program for Climate Adaptation, the Emirates Energy Strategy 2050, and others.
Economic and environmental balance
The dissemination and use of clean energy solutions was considered one of the main pillars of the UAE model of working for the climate and reducing greenhouse gas emissions, as the country sought within the energy strategy until 2050 to achieve a balance between economic needs and environmental goals with investments amounting to 600 billion dirhams, and raising the efficiency of individual consumption. and institutional by 40%, and others.
food technology challenge
The agricultural field was also distinguished, during the era of the late, may God have mercy on him, which is an extension of the foundation stage, by launching a competition at the global level under the title “Food Technology Challenge”, and aims to employ advanced technology in finding efficient and effective tools and techniques to overcome the challenges of the agricultural sector, To achieve sustainable food production in the country.
climate action
As for climate action during the era of the late Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan, may God have mercy on him, who was keen, with his approach based on empowerment, for the UAE to continue its active and influential role regionally and globally in confronting the climate change file as the main challenge for development in the Emirates and the countries of the world, and its unlimited support for the efforts of Climate action and urging it to increase its contribution, taking into account the positive balance between the requirements of economic and social growth and the entitlements of preserving the environment, strengthening international cooperation to benefit from all economic and social opportunities, and continuing the approach established by the late Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan, may his soul rest in peace. During the era of the late, may God have mercy on him, the UAE entered a new phase of climate action, in which it continued to reduce pollution and preserve the balance of natural life to ensure the rights of future generations to a better future. The country is also preparing to host the twenty-eighth session of the Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP28) in 2023, to reach the goal of climate neutrality by 2050.
Practical Initiatives
In the past year 2021, the UAE stimulated international efforts to confront the negative consequences of climate change represented in the threat to biodiversity, air and ocean pollution, rising temperatures, floods and other consequences, by seeking to implement its new practical initiatives that qualified it to impose its position to be a prominent player. At the regional and global levels in managing and addressing climate change, the initiatives were distributed between national projects, international pledges and memoranda of understanding, to be added to its track record of achievements extending from the foundation stage to empowerment, in the face of the challenge of climate change, and commitment to all international agreements it signed, starting with the Convention The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate at the global level, achieving the requirements of sustainable economic development, and ensuring a better future for current and future generations at the local level. These initiatives were distributed as contributing measures to reduce the effects of climate change, to several sectors such as the environment, agriculture, health, energy and infrastructure, in addition to the private sector, and focused in their entirety on achieving a set of goals that push forward the UAE’s ambitious march to build a low carbon economy that contributes to Protecting the environment and reducing emissions, providing sustainable economic opportunities, and implementing its unprecedented strategic initiative at the regional and global levels to achieve climate neutrality 2050, given its firm commitment to reducing carbon emissions.
Climate Neutrality
The initiative to announce the Emirates in 2021 with the goal of achieving climate neutrality by 2050, constituted a model for work and cooperation to ensure a better future for humanity in the coming decades, and the culmination of the efforts of the state and its work path, for the climate at the local and global levels during the past years, as the initiative provides opportunities For sustainable development and economic progress, it also contributes to increasing industrial competitiveness and enhancing the position of the UAE as an ideal destination for living and working and establishing prosperous societies and a global economic center that attracts investments, in line with the ten principles of the new fifty, where the UAE will invest more than 600 billion dirhams in clean and renewable energy until 2050, It will play its global role in the fight against climate change.
priorities and goals
The priority of climate change, on which the policy focuses, set a set of goals, including raising the share of clean energy in the total domestic energy mix to 50% by 2050, reducing individual and institutional consumption by 40% by 2030, and ensuring the strengthening of adaptation capabilities by 2030, while setting priority targets for conservation. On nature, by achieving the preservation of 22% of the land and inland water areas, 20% of the coastal and marine areas important for biodiversity, and the rehabilitation of 80% of the degraded lands by 2030, through a set of initiatives and projects. It also identified priority targets for enhancing air quality by improving air quality to reach 100% according to the national borders 2040, through a wide range of initiatives, programs and projects, as well as identifying priority targets for enhancing food safety by reaching 100% for the food safety index at the state level 2040, and others.
It also identified priority goals for the sustainability of agricultural production by increasing productivity per unit area and cubic meter of irrigation water 2026, implementing urban agriculture by 60% 2050, and achieving self-sufficiency of targeted animal products by 100% 2040, as well as setting priorities for integrated waste management by treating 75% of waste Municipal solid waste by 2025, to reach 85% by 2035, and to reduce the intensity of municipal solid waste generation to 1.4 kg/person/day by 2025, and to reach 1.2 kg/person/day by 2035.
environmental policy
Among the policies that formed a strategic priority for the state during the era of the late, may God have mercy on him, is the state’s general environmental policy that was adopted in 2020 and aimed at enhancing the quality of life, supporting the achievement of the 2030 sustainable development goals, promoting diversity and economic prosperity, and preserving environmental systems and their ecological resources and services. It also constitutes the comprehensive umbrella and tool system for all efforts and directions of action for the environment and climate and strengthening the capabilities of local agricultural and livestock production in the UAE, and was based on 8 main priorities, including climate change, preservation of the natural environment, air quality, food safety, and sustainability of agricultural, plant and animal production. and the sound and integrated management of waste and chemicals.
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