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Abu Dhabi: The UAE and Qatar will continuously monitor coral reefs, and form the nurseries for more than a quarter of the ocean's known fish species.
This was announced at a press conference on Monday to present the findings of a project which confirmed widespread coral growth throughout Abu Dhabi's and Qatar's territorial waters.
The goal of the project titled ‘Coral Reef Investigations in Abu Dhabi and Eastern Qatar' was to develop a long-term conservation management plan for these coral reef habitats, for the benefit of the reefs themselves, sustainable local fish stocks for future generations of UAE and Qatari citizens, said Ibrahim Al Ansari , General Manager in the UAE of Dolphin Energy which funded the project.
The project was a highly successful collaborative venture between researchers from the Environment Agency Abu Dhabi (EAD) and Qatar's Supreme Council for the Environment and Natural Resources (SCENR).
It was sponsored by Dolphin Energy Limited and managed by the UAE's Emirates Wildlife Society (EWS) and the regional branch of the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF).
Expert scientific support was provided by coral reef specialists from the National Coral Reef Institute (NCRI) in Florida.
"We recommended comprehensive legislation to protect coral reefs. Many of these reefs are in a good state of health but, unfortunately, an almost equal number have been severely impacted by natural and man-made disturbances," said Razan Khalifa Al Mubarak, Managing Director of Emirates Wild Life Society and World Wide Fund for Nature.
"The bulk of the world's coral reefs are threatened by human activity. We have already lost 27% of the planet's reefs. Corals species are, therefore, accorded the highest conservation priority for the WWF Marine Program on a global scale.
The significance of the project was that it was the first of its kind ever to be carried out in the Gulf. Over the three year period, the various project teams undertook scale mapping of coral using satellite imagery, as well as ground verification, accuracy reports, fieldwork around the islands, training of scientific personnel at SCENR and EAD, a coral reef monitoring training manual, production of the conservation master plan and completion of a definitive coral reef documentary.
The Arabian Gulf is one of the areas that is most severely affected by the loss and degradation of coral reefs. According to recent estimates, 30 per cent of the Gulf's coral reefs are at a threatened-critical stage; and up to 65 per cent may have already been lost due to natural causes (temperature fluctuations, diseases), and anthropogenic stresses (oil pollution, unmanaged coastal development, unregulated commercial and recreational fishing). The Arabian Sea, including Arabian Gulf, is classified by the WWF as a "critically endangered" eco-region of the world and, therefore, should be the focus of priority conservation action.
It is in this context that the EWS-WWF together with its partners- EAD and SCENR - embarked on a three year project. Yousef I. Al-Hamar Director, Technical Affairs Department of Supreme Council for the Environment & Natural Reserves of State of Qatar also spoke on the occasion.
Factfile:
- Coral reefs contribute $375 billion to the global economy annually .
- Coral reefs are amongst the most biologically diverse marine ecosystems in the world.
- In the UAEand Qatar, coral reefs and their associated mangrove and sea grass habitats play important ecological, economic, recreational and cultural roles.
- These habitats provide food and shelter for numerous fish and marine species, protect coastal areas from storm surge, prevent coastal erosion and support commercial fishing and an array of recreational activities.
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