DOHA: Qatar Bird Club (QBC) is coordinating with the Ministry of Environment and Public Works Authority (Ashghal) to establish a number of new wildlife and bird sanctuaries using wastewater, Brian Hunter, Chairman of Sub-committee on Conservation, said during the second general membership meeting held at the Friends of Environment Center (FEC) on Sunday.
"Wastewater management is a continuous challenge in Qatar but provides huge opportunity to create beautiful areas for wildlife conservation," said Hunter adding they have already identified 13 areas in Qatar for the wildlife initiative.
Due to the growing urbanisation and increase in population in the country, some areas that serve as home to birds and other animals are affected.
"The water level in Abu Nakhla lagoon, a proposed Important Bird Area in Qatar and one of the chief sites for bird watching, is rising, leaving the birds virtually no space to stay," Hunter noted. Despite its current status, however, Hunter said the lagoon witnesses wintering birds in great number.
Setting up new areas dedicated to birds in wildlife will offer vast opportunities for the country including environment education for all ages, recreation and eco-tourism. The planned wildlife and bird areas will provide public access which is safe and controlled and facilities for viewing wildlife.
For the success of the wildlife initiative, the conservation committee has charted an action plan which includes a review of the waste water sites, a visit to the sites with Ashgahal engineers, prioritisation of new bird conservation areas, development of a conceptual management plan and further consultation and collaboration with the Ministry of Environment and Ashghal.
Aside from the club's efforts to establish bird sanctuaries, Dr El Sadiq Awad Bashir, Director of QBC, detailed the many achievements of the organisation, including the creation of a bird consultative committee, involvement in the Environment Impact Assistance programme, and the completion of a library which currently contains 12 big volumes of Birds of the World, books on Middle Eastern birds, and a volume on endangered birds donated by BirdLife International.
The newly designed logo of the club was also presented during the meeting along with the progress reports of the club's different sub-committees, one of which was a tentative documentation of birds found in Qatar.
The Survey and Reporting Committee chaired by Jamie Buchan has made a tentative listing of around 300 documented birds in Qatar, specifying their scientific, English and Arabic names and present status.
QBC is also planning to hold a number of activities for its members, first of which is a field trip to Al Ruwais and Shahaniya areas this coming Friday.
By Raynald Rivera
© The Peninsula 2009
