(MENAFN- Khaleej Times) The projects to preserve wetlands in the country should be integrated in a positive way with urban growth and contribute to the community, according to Secretary-General of the Ramsar Convention Anada Tiega.
Commenting on his first ever visit to the UAE on a tour of the Ras Al Khor Wildlife Sanctuary - which is declared a Ramsar site in the country - Tiega said such projects should not be conceived as an impediment to the urban development.
"Ramsar convention is an intergovernmental treaty that provides the framework for national action and international cooperation for the conservation and wise use of wetlands and their resources," he said. Tiega said the convention underlines the concept of 'wise use' of wetlands, which can be described as the maintenance of their ecological character, achieved through the implementation of ecosystem approaches, within the context of sustainable development.
He expressed his satisfaction with various developmental projects and the way the areas that fall under the site are managed and supervised by the municipality. The tour included the mangrove area, the bird-watching hides, and the Business Bay Canal area.
Head of the Marine Environment and Wildlife Sanctuary Section Mohd Abdul Rahman Hassan, Abdul Razzaq Abdulla from the National Focal Point for Ramsar Convention from the Ministry of Environment and Water, in addition to the Ras Al Khor Scientific Committee members including Dr Mohd Ali Reza Khan, specialist in Wildlife and Zoo Management, Kevin Hyland from the Wildlife Protection Office, and staff members from the Marine Environment and Wildlife Section accompanied the secretary general on his tour. The secretary general later met the director of the Environment Department of the Dubai Municipality Hamdan Al-Shaer and discussed various topics related to the development and habitat enhancement in Ras Al Khor wildlife sanctuary. Also, both officials discussed the need for community education and participation with regard to the wetland value and sustainable use of resources.
"The Ramsar Convention is the only global environmental treaty that deals with a particular ecosystem. The treaty was adopted in the Iranian city of Ramsar in 1971 and the Convention's member countries over all geographic regions of the planet" Al Shaer said.
He said the Ras Al Khor Wildlife Sanctuary is the first Ramsar site in the UAE, and Dubai Municipality is well aware about the conservation needs of the area in line with the requirements made under the Ramsar Convention and pointed out that the developmental process going on at the site under civic body's supervision clearly proves that.
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