Environmental initiatives and projects accredited by the ‘Government Creativity Lab’ of the UAE Ministry of Environment and Water
The ‘Government Creativity Lab’ sessions have witnessed exchange of views, ideas and opinions that was a result of creative scientific bases, which led to the adoption of several environmental initiatives and projects across the three areas that the creative lab was built around.
1. Pan-UAE Air Quality Network
In the area of air quality the ‘Government Creativity Lab’ adopted the Pan-UAE Air Quality Network, an initiative aimed at improving air quality to reduce emissions from various stationary sources like factories, power plants and transportation through the use of an integrated, standardized national framework aimed at measuring air quality and identifying pollutants and matter concentrations present in today’s air. The network also seeks to report and integrate collected data for air protection system in the UAE in order to calculate two vital indicators, air quality index and particulate matter across the country.
This system provides all the basic information to manage air quality data in the UAE, starting from the point of measurement to drawing the map of the concentration of pollutants. The system includes standards and regulations for measurement stations, data reporting methods, calibration software, turning points, databases, and calculating air quality index and particulate matter index.
2. UAE Smart Mapping of Natural Capital
The ‘Government Creativity Lab’ has also adopted and implemented the UAE Smart Mapping of Natural Capital, which includes a set of biological and geographical surveys, environmental and economic assessments of terrestrial and marine environments and habitats at the national level by using the best scientific and technological global practices.
The project aims to determine the existing natural resources of the UAE and evaluate them environmentally and economically, identify ecosystems services at the national-level and their economic value, and make them available to
decision-makers, which can later be put into account when making decisions related to land use and investment opportunities and also for business and finance purposes.
3. The National Program for the Sustainability of Wildlife
This program aims to protect wildlife in the UAE through an integrated package of policies and procedures, research and initiatives related to the protection of native species; organizing the trading of animal and plant species; identifying exotic (invasive) plant and animal species; controlling and reducing their promulgation; preventing their import and tightening control on animal and plant species trading sector in the UAE in accordance with international conventions and national laws.
4. Announcing the commitments made by private sector partners towards waste management initiatives and projects
The commitment made by private sector partners aims to strengthen the relationship between the public and private sectors in the field of waste management while also promoting the participation of private sector in the implementation of innovative and sustainable solutions to tackle the essential environmental challenges in the UAE. This proves to be highly significant as the private sector plays an important role in this field through its flexibility and ability to help transfer knowledge and environment-friendly technology and utilize for local use.
5. Launch of a national regulatory framework for waste management
This framework aims to develop a clear and specific policy for waste management in all stages based on the integrated management principles.
Under this framework, the MoEW, in collaboration with its strategic partners, will develop unified standards, procedures and controls for each stage of the waste management cycle--starting with sorting, collection, transport, storage and recycling to the proper and safe disposal of waste, which can help enable the Ministry and other stakeholders to achieve the goals set by UAE Vision 2021.
6. UAE mine for waste collection in neighborhoods and residential areas
This initiative aims to encourage and involve members of the community and its institutions to contribute in efforts directed towards the reduction of waste, while also raising the proportion of processing waste. The idea of this initiative is to establish centers in neighborhoods and residential areas to collect and separate waste from the source, which is an unprecedented move in the region that will have positive effects and results in the long term.
7. UAE Environmental Excellence Program
The UAE Environmental Excellence Program is a program for sustainable environmental management that classifies and evaluates UAE government bodies and private institutions in accordance with national environmental standards; taking into account best global practices and standards. The program aims to achieve a quantum leap in applying environmental standards and indicators on the government and private agencies level and upgrading them to the best international standards.
8. Launching a program aimed at monitoring the use of building materials that absorb air pollutants and aligning its use with set green building standards in the UAE
