Environmentalism Slowly Comes to Saudi Arabia

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 04 RIYADH 002563 SIPDIS SIPDIS Interior for International/Senhadji EPA for International/Medearis, Buckley E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: SENV KFLU SA SUBJECT: Environmentalism Slowly Comes to Saudi Arabia ¶1. Summary: Saudi environmental and natural resource institutions were late in getting established and remain small in size and influence. Meetings with the Presidency of Meteorology and Environment (PME) and the National Commission for Wildlife Conservation and Development highlighted that public environmental awareness is gradually developing, however, in part as negative environmental impacts to health and biodiversity become more apparent to the Saudi public. Emerging areas of environmental concern include habitat and coastal zone conservation (especially along the Red Sea),reintroduction of captively breed indigenous endangered species, and improvement of the Saudi public's awareness of environmental problems. In an effort to combat these problems, the PME specifically requested opportunities to participate in EPA internships that would broaden the PME's ability to conduct environmental assessments. Saudi Arabia also intends to join the Convention on Biological Diversity. End summary. ¶2. Amman-based Regional Environment, Science, Technology and Health Officer, joined by Riyadh Econoffs, met Dr. Ali Althowaini, Assistant Deputy for Meteorology and Environmental Affairs at the Riyadh Regional Center of the Presidency of Meteorology and Environment (PME),on March 21 for an overview of environmental issues in Saudi Arabia. ESTH Officer and Econoff also met Dr. Hany Tutwani, International Relations Advisor for the National Commission for Wildlife Conservation and Development, on March 22 for a conversation focusing on natural resources and conservation. -------------- -------------- Resource Conservation Started With Captive Breeding Program -------------- -------------- ¶3. Dr. Tutwani said that the National Commission for Wildlife Conservation and Development (NCWCD) was established by the Saudi Government twenty years earlier, with a goal of reestablishing fauna. The NCWCD's mission eventually also evolved into conservation of habitat and fauna in the Kingdom. According to Dr. Tutwani, NCWCD is a lean organization with only 80 staff, not including the roughly 200 employees that operate the officially designated protected conservation areas managed by the NCWCD. ¶4. Currently, NCWCD's mission has four components: habitat conservation, captive breeding, awareness, and legislation. Among other legal obligations, NCWCD is the Saudi Government's representative to the Committee on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES). Tutwani noted the bulk of CITES work in Saudi Arabia centered on a fragrant wood, "agar"; hunting birds such as falcons and peregrines; caviar (from the endangered sturgeon); pet birds; and ornamental fish. ¶5. The NCWCD has captive breeding programs for ungulates, including oryx, ibex, and gazelles, and a bird called the Hubara bustard. Scientific research is undertaken as part of these programs, such as DNA fingerprinting, but the main purpose of the captive breeding programs is to reintroduce the animals into the wild, Tutwani said. He noted the presence in Saudi Arabia of several rare species such as dugongs (in both the Arabian Gulf and the Red Sea),leopards and caracal. -------------- -------------- Hunting Popular But Banned Because of Avian Influenza -------------- -------------- ¶6. NCWCD also administers hunting permits. Hunting remains quite popular, according to Tutwani, throughout the Kingdom. Hunting with nets and firearms was banned years ago, he said. Saudis normally hunt with falcons and a breed of dog called salukis, but all hunting was banned this year as a protective measure against avian influenza. The popularity of hunting has "considerably reduced" the number of prey animals, he said, leading to support for the captive breeding programs. Tutwani RIYADH 00002563 002 OF 004 noted that the NCWCD plays a role in avian influenza prevention by monitoring the location of bird flocks, and notifying the Ministry of Agriculture as to the best sites for test sampling of migratory birds. The Ministry of Agriculture then performs the sampling and testing of those birds. Saudi Arabia participates in the Asia-Pacific Working Group on Avian Influenza, organized under the Bonn Convention on Migratory Species. -------------- Protected Area Network Gradually Taking Shape -------------- ¶7. An ambitious plan to establish 153 officially protected areas in the Kingdom is slowly being implemented, Tutwani said. Saudi Arabia currently has 16 protected areas, which represent around 4% of total land area. This year, the NCWCD will create protected areas in the northern Red Sea and in the Arabian Gulf. Tutwani commented that some areas were "beyond recovery," and that the NCWCD focuses on flagship areas and regions that can still benefit from conservation protection. ¶8. The NCWCD operates the 16 designated protected areas, which are distinct from the National Parks operated by the Ministry of Agriculture and are open to public visits and camping. The NCWCD-administered protected areas are not open to regular public use, Tutwani said, although limited public access can be arranged. -------------- -------------- Disappointed with Results on Environmental Awareness -------------- -------------- ¶9. Regarding development of public environmental awareness, Tutwani said that the results were "not what we wished for." The purpose of creating public awareness is to build support for the NCWCD's work, and make the public understand the benefits of conservation and environmental protection. He noted there has been some change in the Saudi public's viewpoint towards conservation, but commented that the "consumptive lifestyle" is "not always to the benefit of natural resources." During the meeting with emboffs, Tutwani provided a tour of the small visitor's center at NCWCD headquarters, which a visiting group of raucous Saudi school students was also in the process of touring. The NCWCD established the Saudi Wildlife Fund in 1998 to elicit private financial and moral support for the NCWCD. Tutwani said the Wildlife Fund is "quite active." There are also government-sponsored NGOs, such as the Saudi Environmental Society and the Saudi Biological Society, that work to increase public awareness of environmental issues. ¶10. An impetus for moving Saudi Arabia's conservatively religious public to a higher level of environmental awareness might be found in Islam precepts. When asked about the relationship of Islam to natural resource protection, Dr. Tutwani, said that the Quran says that natural resources should be protected since they are part of God's creation. -------------- -------------- Planning to Join Convention on Biological Diversity -------------- -------------- ¶11. Regarding the NCWCD's work in monitoring and developing legislation and treaties, Tutwani said that the main Saudi environmental laws on conservation include the protected area law; a wildlife trading act, which he claimed is stricter than CITES; and laws regulating hunting in the Kingdom. Saudi Arabia aims to join the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), and is a current member of CITES, the Bonn Convention on Migratory Species and various regional bio-diversity agreements. The Gulf Cooperation Council also has a biodiversity committee for which Saudi Arabia serves as Secretariat. He noted that the NCWCD filled a gap and SIPDIS provided a model for other GCC countries because the NCWCD was the first wildlife authority in the region. RIYADH 00002563 003 OF 004 -------------- Role of the PME Regional Office -------------- ¶12. ESTH regional officer visited the Presidency of Meteorology and Environment's (PME) headquarters in Jeddah, as well as PME's regional office in Riyadh, for discussions on PME's role in environmental protection and its current areas of focus. (Embassy note. The presence of PME's headquarters in Jeddah, rather than the capital, stems from the fact that Saudi Arabia's civil aviation ministry, which had been PME's original bureaucratic home as a meteorogicial agency, is headquartered in Jeddah. PME was spun off as a separate agency from the aviation ministry in 1970. The Riyadh Center is one of PME's five regional offices in the Kingdom. End note.) ¶13. Dr. Ali Althowaini, the Assistant Deputy for Meteorology and Environmental Affairs at the Riyadh Regional Center of the PME described PME's role in environmental protection. Every new development project in Saudi Arabia needs an Environmental Impact Assessment, which is reviewed by the PME. If the project will affect wildlife or has other unusual features, a committee with relevant expertise is assembled to review the pertinent aspects. The PME is also responsible for coastal zone management (CZM),and has a draft law on coastal zone management pending by the Council of Ministers. -------------- -------------- PME Request for Bilateral Cooperation with the EPA -------------- -------------- ¶14. Dr. Ali Althowaini launched the discussion with a request to send PME professionals to work alongside EPA specialists on two or three month internships in the US. He emphasized that he wants the experience to be practical, hands-on and field-related, not a classroom effort. He said the areas he would like to focus on for these internships are air pollution, hazardous waste and sewage treatment. ESTH Officer replied that he would take up the suggestion with EPA and report back on EPA's initial views through Embassy Riyadh. -------------- -------------- Interest in Environment Management, Enforcement in US -------------- -------------- ¶15. Dr. Althowaini was interested in two environmental issues in the US: the environmental impacts from hurricane Katrina and acid rain. ESTH Officer, emphasizing the scale of Katrina, said that the impacts of hurricane Katrina would undoubtedly be severe, especially because of the petrochemical industry in the area, and that assessments and remediation efforts were underway. On acid rain, ESTH Officer emphasized good results from desulphurization programs and transboundary agreements between the US and Canada. ¶16. Dr. Althowaini also asked about enforcement of environmental laws in the U.S., noting that a lengthy inter-agency coordination effort was required in order to prosecute environmental crimes in Saudi Arabia. ESTH Officer noted EPA's strong preference for pollution prevention versus post-facto cleanup and prosecution. ESTH Officer also noted that EPA consults carefully with industry when developing new regulations and standards to make sure those regulations are practical and as efficient as possible. -------------- -------------- Saudis Come "A Long Way" on Environmental Thinking -------------- -------------- ¶17. On environmental thinking in Saudi Arabia, Dr. Althowaini echoed his NCWD colleague, saying that Saudis have "come a long way" in recognizing the importance of the environment, in part because of linkages between health and environment such as allergies and asthma. But, this shift is "not enough," RIYADH 00002563 004 OF 004 he continued. He went on to say that part of the greater interest in weather and environment comes from the increasing amount of travel and general integration with global society by Saudis.