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UAE’s natural habitats face serious threat

The emirates has the world's largest ecological footprint meaning that the demands made by the local community on the resources available and the amount of waste generated by the average consumer is far higher than any other country in the world.

This, according to Dr Frederick Launay, Director, WWF-UAE, is alarming and a serious concern for all.

"The ecological footprint indicates that the UAE is one of the highest generators of waste in the world, ahead of the countries such as the United States, Canada, China and Italy. Some of the country's major habitats are also in danger and are threatened by various factors such as dredging, development, pollution, etc," he said. Coral reefs, which are crucial for the local fishing industry, are being threatened by such factors and there is an urgent need to address this issue. Spurred on by the increasing tourism activity seen in the country, a large number of habitats are also being endangered mainly by careless recreational use.

"Wadis, which are unique by their endemic fauna of reptiles, fish, amphibians and invertebrates, are being increasingly threatened by tourism and pollution. Sandy deserts, which are home to a rich variety of endemic wildlife, are also being threatened by off-road driving and infrastructure development," said Dr Launay.

The main challenges facing the environmentalists in the UAE, according to the report, are the unprecedented rate of development taking place, a large expatriate population and a high ecological footprint.

A large number of species present in the Gulf region are also facing extinction with 32 species being listed in the IUCN red-list.

"The UAE has fauna and flora where typical Asian species together with African type wildlife. Four hundred species of birds have been recorded in the UAE with 90 of these breeding in the country. The civil society here has to be more proactively involved in order to make a difference," said Dr Launay.

The WWF has been quite active in the UAE and some of their ongoing projects include holding an environment 'spellathon' where 110,000 students participated in four emirates and a published wildlife book.

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