05 June 2020
The Environmental Protection Authority in Ras Al Khaimah announced the names of the governmental and private entities that won the Environmental Sustainability Award at its first session in 2020, where 14 government agencies and an industrial company participated in the award.
The Department of Economic Development won the first place at the level of government agencies, followed by Ras Al Khaimah Transportation Authority in second place. Then in the third place came Federal Electricity and Water Authority.
For the industrial sector, UTICO company won the first position, and in the second place RAK Ceramics Company, then Steven Rock Company in the third place.
Dr. Saif Mohamed Al Ghais, Director General of the EPDA said that this award comes in the framework of the authority’s endeavor to achieve sustainable development and to achieve the vision and directions of His Highness Sheikh Saud bin Saqr Al Qasimi, member of the Supreme Council of the Federation and the ruler of Ras Al Khaimah, may God protect him to protect the environment and the sustainability of natural resources under the supervision, and follow-up His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Saud Al Qasimi, Crown Prince and Chairman of the Executive Council. The award also supports the strategic goals of EPDA, which is to enhance the participation of government sectors and the private sector in environmental awareness, reduce the environmental footprint and involve them in contributing to raising the level of environmental awareness towards all segments of society.
“The Environmental Sustainability Award aims to consolidate the principles of sustainable development and generalize the concept of environmental culture among the various sectors of society.” Added Al Ghais.
“ It also aims to foster a sense of societal environmental responsibility, and to activate targeted and distinguished environmental activities in the environmental field, and it seeks to estimate and encourage outstanding contributions in the field of conservation On the environment by institutions seeking excellence and innovation” He continued.
Al Ghais went on to say that the participants in the award were evaluated on three basic criteria represented in the policies that support environmental sustainability in the region. Existence of a plan, goals and regulations that support environmental sustainability, the quality of environmental initiatives to protect the environment and the sustainability of natural resources; As the existence of justifications and needs for the initiatives established in the regions and their diversity, as was taken into account in the third criterion the results and effects of these initiatives and the benefit of them on the stakeholders and beneficiaries.
For his part, he affirmed the authority’s keenness to affirm the principles of sustainable development and generalize the concept of environmental culture. As the Environmental Sustainability Award aims to consolidate the broad concept of environmental management in the emirate, and this award represents one of the important pillars to encourage environmental work and spread awareness and spread the spirit of competition between the local and federal departments and the private sector in the Emirate of Ras Al Khaimah to achieve and apply best environmental practices in the field of environmental conservation, as it was based The evaluation of the results of the achievement of the entities participating in the award for the indicators and measures included in the standards, the most important of which are the proportion of environmentally friendly technologies used in the authorities and the percentage of reducing the carbon footprint and reducing the consumption of electricity and water.
Al Ghais added that the Environmental Sustainability Award is one of the 4 awards that EPDA has launched in the past three years as a pioneering qualitative shift from merely practicing environmental awareness traditionally to creating and managing a package of international innovative awards such as the Soft Control Award for a sustainable environment. As well as local awards like the Student Environmental Protection Teams Award, and innovated from a distance environment, and the Environmental Sustainability Award that brought about a significant change in the environmental commitment of government institutions and industrial companies.