13 March 2020
Dr. Saif Muhammad Al-Ghais, Director of the Environmental Protection and Development Authority in Ras Al-Khaimah, revealed the commencement of maintenance work at the port of Khour Khuwair port that was damaged during the last period by a ship colliding with it. The company in question began to compensate the fishermen whose boats were also damaged, indicating that the coming period will witness Maintenance of all port berths in the emirate, as part of the periodic maintenance of these ports whose construction contributed to preserving the fishing sector.
Al-Ghais confirmed that EPDA has completed electronic linking operations for remote mentoring with all six cement factories operating in the emirate, along with some other factories. This comes within a plan aimed at linking all factories known to increase their emissions with a remote monitoring system using cameras. EPDA has succeeded, through the applications of artificial intelligence, remote monitoring and control by other available methods, such as the drone and others, in reducing emissions and raising air quality ratios, which is in line with the announced national plan in this regard.
Al Ghais added: Ras Al Khaimah includes about 642 industrial establishments out of a total of 2325 environmental licenses in the emirate, and these establishments were divided according to their environmental impacts, and they were classified and appropriate control methods were identified. 17 crusher operating in Ras Al Khaimah. Pointing out that the authority monitored a significant improvement in adherence to environmental standards, which reflected positively on reducing emissions and improving air quality, pointing out that the rest of the facilities are being monitored through two other systems: “Bayraq” and “Tarf”, and EPDA will continue to expand the use of industrial intelligence in monitoring the installations.
Al-Ghais revealed that 115 violations were filed last year. 84 violations of them were the by the fishing sector represented in hunting in prohibited places such as natural reserves and hunting in cave places, and failure to adhere to fish sizes by some fishermen. EPDA closed one of the private desalination stations operating in the northern regions after monitoring harmful violations In the environment; it was represented in the unsafe disposal of high salinity return water. Which is harmful to the marine environment if it is not disposed of properly and at long distances from the beaches, to avoid its harmful effects on marine life and fish that live close to the beaches.
Al Ghais pointed out that EPDA in implementation of the national agenda 2021, obligated some factories that use groundwater to stop these uses and replace that with desalinated water that was connected to all factories located in the Ghail region within the efforts made to preserve the most important natural resources in the country. In this context, EPDA has closed one of the Desalination plants that perform unsafe disposal of returned water from desalination processes, which causes harm to the marine environment.