JEDDAH, Oct 29 (KUNA)) -- A Saudi environmentalist on Monday called for more regional and international cooperation in marine environmental cooperation.
Prince Turki bin Nasser bin Abdel-Aziz, chairman of Saudi Arabia's Meteorology and Environmental Protection Administration (MEPA), made the call while addressing the ninth world marine preservation conference, which kicked off here on Monday.
He stressed the importance of the conference in marine environmental protection, social and economic development and human health and welfare.
Saudi Arabia attaches much attention to marine environment, and adopts the ecological system in environment management as part of the kingdom's plan to apply sustainable development in all sectors, Abdel-Aziz added.
The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is keen on marine environmental protection and, thereupon, it contributes to international efforts in this context, he said.
For his part, Secretary-General of the Regional Authority for Preservation of the Environment of the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden Zyad Abu Gharara said the fact that Saudi Arabia was the first Arab country to host the conference showed the Kingdom's growing pioneering role in the preservation of marine environment.
He stressed the importance of the international event, which came at a time when there was growing pressure on marine environment in light of looming climate reflections.
The Red Sea and Gulf of Aden are of paramount economic and environmental importance at both world and regional levels on the basis that they are used by international ships and tankers, not to mention economic, development and tourist projects along them, he added.
Some 18 regional and international environmental organizations form 141 nations are attending the three-day gathering to thrash out how to reduce the negative impacts of climate change on marine environment.
