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Turning the Desert Green
ONE of the most torpor Unt problem* facing humanity today t* that caused by the increasing desertification of much of the world's surface. In South America. across the Sahel belt of Africa, and across much of Asia as well, the pressure of man and his animals upon the fragile environment of these arid zones has meant that the desert Is creeping forward, overwhelming formerly fertile agricultural land. Droughts add to the problem, so that tn many countries, a rising population has to be fed from an ever declining areas of farm land. The potential for human catastrophe Is immense.
The United Arab Emirate* He* in the heart of the world's arid zone, bordering on the great desert of the Rub al Khali, or Empty Quarter, of the Arabian Peninsula, one of the most inhospitable place* on earth. It has little rainfall, tn some years virtually none, while It* landscape, to the causal observer, appears almost barren.
Yet in the UAE. unlike other countries tn the arid zone, the process of desertification is not taking place. Instead, thanks to a massive programme of investment in the planting of greenery, the sands have been halted, and arc actually being rolled back. It has taken vast sums of money to achieve this, but the people of the Emirates have made the discovery that, with the right amount of commitment it is possible to reverse the tide, and to establish forests and waving fields of grass and wheat where once only the desert winds blew.
The inspiration for the
try's President, Sheikh Zayed bln Sultan Al Nahyan. Himself born on the edge of the desert, he grew up at a time when the people of the country were accustomed to hunger and thirst when plagues of locusts descended upon the land to eat every blade of grass, and every carefully-tended ear of com.
From the experiences of his . childhood, he become determined that, should the opportunity arise, he would spare no effort to make sure that the hardships through which he had lived would not be suffered by the younger generation. The results of his efforts are now plain for all to see.
Not all of the Emirates is a desert of course. The country has had a long tradition of agriculture in the fertile oases, where for at least 5,000 years farmers have tapped the underground water reserves to grow their crops. As the climate be came harsher 3,000 to 4,000 years age. the early Inhabitants developed a new skill, of tunnelling for kilometres under-ground to reach the sources of water, and to chan-
nel them to the palm groves •nd small field*. The oldest such channel, or fah| . to be found h«» been dated to •round 1OOO BC and the technique is still lA use In oases like AJ Ain and Dhajd
Up In the mountains, the people developed the skill of digging into the beds of the valleys, to trap the water under the gravel upstream, and then to lead It In small channel* down the valleys until it reached a place where small terraced fields could be created. It was tiring, back-breaking work, as can be seen from the terraced farm* that continue in use today, but at least it meant that some agriculture was possible
In the last 20 year*, the population of the country has risen more than ten fold, but the rate of growth of agricultural production has kept pace, so much so that this desert land Is not only self-sufficient tn salad crops and poultry for much of the year, but is even exporting some crops, including strawberries, to market* as far away as Europe, something that would have the recent past
The bulk of the country's agricultural production comes from four areas, In and around the Inland oasis-city of Al Ain. 160 km east of Abu Dhabi, the fertile but narrow strip along the East Coast. from the oasis of Dhald. 60 kilometre* east of Sharjah, and from the gravel plains that make up much of the northern emirate of Ras al Khalmah.
With an Intensive programme of drilling of water wells, ft has become possible to extend dramatically the area under cultivation, and In the period between 1978 and 1990. the amount of land under cultivation rose from 18,000 hectares to over 250,000 hectares. Further expansion has taken place since, with the number of small farms growing year by year. In 1973. there were fess than 5,000. but there are now over 19.000.
Studies on the country's soil have shown that much of the land, apart from the rocky mountain slopes and sand dunes, can be cultivated provided that the water is available, and the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries, the Department of Agriculture In Al Ain and the Abu Dhabi Municipality, covering the western region of Abu Dhabi emirate, have carried out an extensive programme of the drilling of water wells. Coupled with this, the Government also levels and prepares land for local farmers, which they are then given free, along with subsidised seeds, machinery, and advice on pest control.
The Government also has its own agricultural research stations, in centres like Dhaid and Al Ain, where new varieties of crops are tested to see how they adapt to the local climate. It has been shown, for example, that it is possible to cultivate wheat, although the high cost per hectare probably means that ft will never be possible to replace Imports. For some other crops, however, self-sufficiency is well on the way.
The depletable underground water resources are, naturally, of great Importance, and the annual rainfall Is never enough to replace in the aquifers the amount taken out for agriculture and for homes and industry. Recognising that this poses the greatest longterm challenge to the successful development of the coun-
Continued from page 8 try's agriculture, , the Government has embarked on a three-part programme designed to make the. best possible use of this scarce and valuable resource.
Agriculture goes beyond the mere growing of crops to include animal husbandry in all its forms. One are where growth has been dramatic is in the keeping of poultry, for meat and for eggs. Twenty years ago. the only poultry in the country were those kept by farmers for their own use, but now there are a number of modern poultry ’ farms, in Fujairah, Al Ain. Falaj al Mu' Alla, Dubai and other places, which are producing thousands of tons of meat and millions of eggs a year, eagerly snapped up by local consumers. An additional benefit of course, is the reduction of the country's food import bill.
The same is true of dairy products. Herds of Imported cattle in Digdagga (Ras al Khaimah), Al Ain, Al Habab (Dubai), and- in Dibba and Rugheilat in Fujairah have adapted swiftly to the climate, and are now producing growing amounts of milk, as well as products like cheese and yo ghurt for the local market. Gradually, too, local beef production is getting under way. to supplement other tradition ally kept livestock.
Agriculture is only part,
however, or the process of tht •''Greening of the Emirates." Much more readily noticeable by the visitor is the planting of trees and gardens throughout the country's towns and cities and along many of the main highways. Here again the driving force has been President Sheikh Zaycd, who began planting of ornamental trees in i Al Ain over 30 years ago. As the , success of the programme has become apparent his lead has been followed throughout the country.
The latest figures suggest that over 80 million trees have now been planted in the last 20 years, a staggering number, along with a further 18 million or so palm trees.
The planting has been of. two kinds. In the cities and towns, there has been a beautification campaign, with the creation of parks and gardens for the local population, often complete with playgrounds for children that make a welcome addition to the facilities available. (n the capital city of Abu Dhabi, there arq now around 20 gardens and iparks of various sizes, while major thoroughfares like the Cornlche have also been planted.
Dubai, too, has an impressive programme of creating parks and gardens,
Similar programmes can be seen in other major towns, like Shatjah, Fujairah and Al Ain.
Besides the urban programme, however, there has also been a massive programme out in the desert, particularly in the emirate of Abu Dhabi, and it is here, of course, that the bulk of the nearly 80 million trees have
hectares of young forests already planted, and with tens of thousands more already being planned. changing
the environment, too, holding back the relentless onward march of the sands. At the same time, they provide ndw micro-environments in which wildlife and native plants can flourish, protected by fences
been planted.
Those fortunate to fly over the landscape can now see great patches of green where once only the occasional bush broke up the harsh lines of the sand dunes. The planting has been not only extensive, but imaginative too. Local trees and shrubs that have proved their ability to survive in the arid climate, like acacia and casuarina, march in line side by side with introduced varieties from other arid countries like Australia, watered by kilometre after kilometre of trickle irrigation.
As the trees grow to maturity, their roots will reach down to the natural water supplies underneath, and the hope is that, in the future, many of the plantations will be able to survive with HtGe attention.
They are changing the face
are spreading, along with hares, butterflies and other fauna, all benefiting from the new planting. Eventually, these plantations, and the fodder fields that are often planted nearby, may be used for programmes to reintroduce to the wild some of the country's larger animals, like the Arabian Oryx and the Sand or Arabian gazelle.
Preparing of the future, the Government, through bodies like the Emirates University, is now carrying out experiments on the growing of highly saline tolerant plants In the large areas of 'sabhka' (salt flats), that are common along the coast. Initial results, hailed by Inter national scientists, suggest that valuable discoveries have been made of plants that can be used to produce vegetable oils and feed for animals on land that was previously completely useless.