Environment Ministry Unveils Qatari Mainland Rehabilitation Project to Protect Vegetation Cover

MoECC unveils new edition of the Qatari mainland rehabilitation project to protect the vegetation cover and eradicate desertification

The Ministry of Environment and Climate Change (MoECC) has launched a new edition of the Qatari mainland rehabilitation project to protect the vegetation cover and eradicate desertification in all regions of the country through focusing on meadows that have historic and environmental significance.

The project includes a five-year project to rehabilitate 100 meadows after performing inventory checks, collating meadows-related data and giving the priority to meadows that evidently pose threats to the damage of vegetation cover, including rare plant species by observing an array of ecological and social criteria in selecting the meadows.

The current phase of the aforementioned project primarily aims to rehabilitate 36 meadows during 2024, through cleaning and removing waste and ultimately replant them and place barricades on the designated perimeter to prevent vehicles from pulling into them.

During the implementation of the rehabilitation plan, the Wildlife Development Department will operate to remove the Ghwoef tree (Mesquite), after MoECC had removed over 5,000 Ghwoef trees, during the past five years, from the Qatari land and meadows, in coordination with the competent authorities.

On this occasion, Director of the Wildlife Development Department at MoECC Mohamed Al Khanji emphasized that the department increasingly prioritizes the rehabilitation of the Qatari mainland and has been committed to developing the vegetation cover in all areas nationwide, in addition to launching multiple awareness campaigns specifically for this purpose, pointing out that MoECC has set ample plans to performs these steps during the upcoming five years.

The department currently plans to complete the inventory project in Qatar and set the special database. Over 1,273 meadows have been identified in all regions nationwide, with the project including compiling vegetation cover data of each meadow and monitoring the potential threats, Al Khanji pointed out.

Al Khanji emphasized that the ministry is making tremendous efforts to protect meadows nationwide, where some of them have been entirely closed, in pursuit of protecting some rare and endangered plant species. He highlighted that other meadows have been partially closed to be replanted and rehabilitated to help the vegetation cover regrow naturally, adding that other meadows have been conserved as a critical source for plant genetic resources in the State of Qatar.

The mode of protection included barricading the meadows to prevent vehicle access that could potentially result in damaging them, with the exception being given to the public to visit those areas, he noted, affirming that directional signages were placed on the perimeter to raise the public awareness on the importance of conserving meadows and plant.

Source: QNA