A CALL TO SAVE TUBLI BAY

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 MANAMA 000469

SIPDIS

STATE FOR NEA/ARPI DBERNS
AMMAN FOR JWHITTLESEY

E.O. 12958: DECL: 03/07/2015
TAGS: ECON SENV PREL PGOV BA
SUBJECT: A CALL TO SAVE TUBLI BAY

REF: MANAMA 299

Classified By: Ambassador William T. Monroe for reasons
1.4 (b) and (d).


1. (C) Summary. The Municipal Councils of Manama and Isa
Town are suing businesses for illegal dumping in Tubli Bay
and questioning the validity of land reclamation contracts in
the bay. Parliamentarians are investigating the reclamation
schemes that have already reduced the bay to half its
original size, despite protective legislation that has been
in place since 1975. The bay is an important ecosystem,
known for its mangroves, shrimp, and migratory birds. Action
to halt reclamation in Tubli Bay is complicated by the fact
that yet-to-be reclaimed "land" there has already been sold.
It is also not clear how committed parliamentarians are to
taking on this cause. End Summary.


2. (C) The Bahrain press reported in February that the
Municipal Councils of Manama and Isa Town are suing
businesses for illegal dumping in Tubli Bay, one of three
protected areas in Bahrain. In addition, the Councils are
questioning the validity of contracts for reclaiming
additional land in the bay. The bay at one time spanned 25
square kilometers but now measures only about 10 square
kilometers due to land reclamation projects and dumping.
According to Minister of Municipalities and Agriculture Ali
Al Saleh, the two Municipal Councils have also petitioned the
lower house of parliament, the Council of Representatives
(COR),to stop all future development and restore the
remaining portion of the bay to its natural condition, a
decision the Minister publicly supports (reftel). If all
existing contracts for land reclamation are carried out, the
bay could shrink further to a mere 7.5 square kilometers.
Municipal Council authorities established a 24-hour manned
station at the bay February 10 and reportedly captured seven
illegal dumpers the first night.


3. (U) This shallow, tidal inland bay is unique and
environmentally important, said Dr. Ismail Al Madani,
Director General for Environmental and Wildlife Protection at
the Public Commission for the Protection of Marine Resources,
Environment, and Wildlife. He explained that the mangrove
swamp area of Tubli Bay is an ecosystem teeming with birds,
fish, and other marine organisms. The bay is a wetlands area
for migratory birds, including flamingos. It had been a
hatchery and habitat for large quantities of shrimp, which
were considered to be the tastiest shrimp in Bahrain. The
bay was also a popular spot for swimming. Now it is a
garbage-strewn pool surrounded by dense concentrations of
business and residential property -- including the Embassy,
which sits on reclaimed Tubli Bay land.


4. (C) A well-placed real estate executive told us that the
royal family and other prominent Bahrainis are the chief
beneficiaries of land reclamation projects around the
country. While not specifically mentioning Tubli Bay, he
said that owners of land still underwater can decide whether
to reclaim and develop the land themselves or sell it to
another investor. Al Madani said that the primary issue in
the Tubli Bay problem is that citizens hold valid ownership
titles to land under the bay. Private ownership of land is
recognized in the constitution, and the owners have a right
to their property. The only way to stop additional
reclamation of Tubli Bay, said Al Madani, is for the
government to compensate these owners by either purchasing
the land or giving them title to other property, perhaps for
land to be reclaimed from the sea.


5. (C) Protective legislation to halt further land
reclamation and dumping in Tubli Bay was enacted in 1975 and
again in 1995, to little effect. The COR recently formed a
committee to investigate irregularities in contracts related
to Tubli Bay land reclamation, and the Shura Council is in
the midst of drafting additional protective legislation. Al
Madani, who said he has worked on saving Tubli Bay for 15
years, commented that the COR politicians jumped on the
Tubli Bay bandwagon only to promote themselves and to
embarrass the owners of the yet-to-be reclaimed land.


6. (C) Comment: Al Madani may well be right, that many of
those involved in the Tubli Bay controversy are only seeking
to garner publicity. Whatever the motives, however, the
environment of Tubli Bay will stabilize and possibly improve
if the reclamation and dumping are halted. For the bay to be
saved, the government must develop a method to compensate the
owners of land still under water for giving up their claims.
There is little room for flexibility in government spending
and the parliament exerts strong oversight of the budget,
thus diminishing the chances that the government would simply
purchase the owners' parcels of land from them. A more
likely scenario is that the owners are compensated by
obtaining rights to future land to be reclaimed elsewhere
from the sea.
MONROE