• ‘Zayed Marine Reserves’ includes installation of 200 artificial caves under the ‘Year of Zayed’ 2018 initiatives
The Ministry of Climate Change and Environment (MoCCAE) and Delma Marine Industrial Supply & Marine Services Company (Delma Marine) have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to build artificial habitats to ensure the sustainability of the marine environment and step up the development of living aquatic resources in the UAE.
The MoU was signed by His Excellency Dr Thani Ahmed Al Zeyoudi, Minister of Climate Change and Environment and Ayoub Al Khajah, Director General of Delma Marine.
His Excellency Dr Thani Al Zeyoudi said: “This agreement aims to strengthen the partnership between the government and private sectors and promote the value of social responsibility among private sector companies. The ‘Zayed Marine Shields’ initiative includes installation of 200 artificial caves as part of ‘Year of Zayed’ initiative to support the sustainability of the marine environment, promote research and studies on marine biodiversity, build incubators for young fish in the coastal marine environment and to enhance the fisheries stock.
Al Zeyoudi added that the agreement aims to support the ‘Artificial Caves Program’ launched by the ministry in 2016 as part of the ongoing efforts of the Ministry of Environment and Climate Change to promote fishing as an occupation and improve the sustainability of fish stock.
Al Zeyoudi expressed his gratitude to Delma Marine for its contribution to the program and said the effort served as a shining example to demonstrate the social responsibility commitment of private sector organizations. He was confident that similar sustained efforts would in turn lead to more constructive partnerships in the implementation of green technology and ensure a productive and sustainable future for generations to come.
Delma Marine will undertake the manufacturing and installation of 200 caves using eco-friendly materials in areas identified by the ministry in collaboration with concerned environmental authorities. The installation will start in April 2018.
For his part, Ayoub Al Khajah noted that Delma Marine was delighted to be granted the opportunity to cooperate with the ministry in the field of fish stock replenishment and said: “Installation of ‘Zayed Marine Reserves’ will start next year as part of the activities of ‘Year of Zayed’. At Delma Marine, we are always keen to support sustainable development efforts through applying the latest eco-friendly solutions and advanced technologies to raise capacity in protecting the environment. We seek to do our bit in contributing to support the directives of the federal and local government authorities towards spreading the culture of sustainability and promoting the green economy.”
The Artificial Caves Program, which the Ministry started to implement in 2016, included the establishment of an artificial marine reserve in Ras Dhadna with 400 cement caves, establishment of five fishing sites using artificial caves in the Bird Island of Dibba, five fishing sites using 150 artificial caves in the emirate of Umm Al Quwain, and installation of 150 caves in the Emirate of Ajman in a 300 square meters location.
As part of the cooperation with the Ministry, the Ras Al Khaimah Environmental Protection and Development Authority (EPDA-RAK) has installed 600 artificial caves in a protected area in the emirate. The Environment and Nature Reserves Authority in Sharjah has completed a project of installing 72 marine shields in the eastern region of the country, 56 of them in Kalba and 16 in Dibba Al Hosn .