Abu Dhabi, 12 October 2015: The Ministry of Environment and Water (MOEW) today launched the National Blue Carbon Project report, marking the first national quantification of the UAE’s Blue Carbon* stocks, which will help guide decision-making in coastal ecosystem preservation and climate change mitigation. The Project was a collaborative initiative managed and facilitated by a partnership between MOEW and the Abu Dhabi Global Environmental Data Initiative (AGEDI), and implemented in collaboration with the Environment Agency-Abu Dhabi (EAD) alongside the local authorities of the other emirates.  

The report was launched at the 11th edition of the Ecocity World Summit 2015 in Abu Dhabi by MOEW in collaboration with AGEDI and EAD, who had joined to celebrate the launching of the report. Alongside the event, Dr. Stephen Crooks, one the Project’s two principle investigators presented the project findings. The Project facilitated the quantification of carbon stocks of 18 mangroves of the UAE across three key areas: in the Sea of Oman (Kalba) of Sharjah Emirate (four); in the Arabian Gulf of the Northern Emirates (six); and in the Abu Dhabi Emirate (eight). Furthermore, after quantifying carbon stocks, data were analysed to compare findings across the various areas, all of which are highlighted in the report.  

On this occasion, H.E. Dr. Rashid Ahmed Mohammed Bin Fahad, Minister of Environment and Water, said: “The National Blue Carbon Project report aims to broaden the scope of knowledge of blue carbon, its associated ecosystem services and the importance of assessment across coastal environments. This project is the first of its kind in the region and looks towards strengthening the UAE’s leading position in issues concerning the environment, biodiversity and climate change at both regional and global levels.”

He also mentioned that the Blue Carbon Project represents an important step in the efforts to conserve biodiversity and mitigate climate change, which is one of the main objectives of the national strategy for biodiversity--improving the contribution of ecosystems in carbon stocks by 2021 to help mitigate climate change by strengthening the capacity of marine and coastal ecosystems to absorb greenhouse gases. These systems have a better ability to absorb than any other source. The project is an important landmark in the efforts to transform the national economy into a low-carbon green economy in line with the UAE Green Growth Strategy by linking biodiversity and ecosystem services along economic standards, where 'the value of natural resources' and 'best use of resources' are key elements in the major sights supporting the mechanism for strategy implementation.

H.E. Razan Khalifa Al Mubarak, Secretary-General of EAD, added: “Coastal ecosystems are an extremely important part of our culture and heritage, and they must be protected to safeguard our future – and this is something that can only be facilitated with access to timely, actionable information. This collaborative project is a reflection of a shared commitment to helping guide decision-making towards environmental sustainability – across the UAE, and for generations to come.”  

The findings suggest that mangroves of the Northern Emirates are generally larger than those of Abu Dhabi Emirate – however, this varied. 

Moreover, significant differences were also found in the carbon stocks of mangroves in the Northern and Eastern Emirates compared to those sampled in Abu Dhabi, with the greatest differences being in the plant carbon pools. 

Similarly, deeper soil layers showed larger variations in carbon stocks. Even though plant carbon stocks in the Northern and Eastern Emirates greatly exceeded that of the Abu Dhabi mangroves,
 
Finally, the carbon stocks of hyper-arid and hyper-saline mangroves of the UAE are at the lower end of carbon stocks, but were found to have some similarities with other parts of the world. For example, globally, mangrove carbon stocks have been reported to be about 1000 Mg C/ha. Furthermore, the size of the UAE’s carbon stocks of mangroves of sandy substrates is similar to what has been reported for Madagascar. The very high carbon stocks measured for Kalba South are in Sharjah (667 Mg C/ha) are similar to productive mangroves in many parts of the world; in fact, these Blue Carbon ecosystems hold the largest carbon stocks found across the Arabian Peninsula. 

The Project is a continuation of a prior study, the Abu Dhabi Blue Carbon Demonstration Project (Phase I), which illustrated the full potential of coastal ecosystems for carbon storage and their other benefits. The values of Blue Carbon and related ecosystem services were then incorporated into the coastal and marine management policies of the Abu Dhabi Emirate. The Project also enhanced local capacity to better manage these ecosystems, and supported regional and international replication and up-scaling efforts. 

In addition to EAD, the Project was implemented with the engagement of Dubai Municipality, Environment and Protected Areas Authority of Sharjah, Environment Protection and Development Authority of Ras Al Khaimah, Umm Al Quwain Municipality, and Municipality and Planning Department Ajman. The Principal Investigators of the study are members of the International Blue Carbon Scientific Working Group: Dr. Stephen Crooks and Dr. Boone Kauffman. 

The technical report, decision-makers’ summary and executive summary are all available for download alongside other resources at AGEDI's complete online resource library.   

*Background
Blue Carbon refers to coastal vegetation, which studies have shown can sequester carbon far more effectively than terrestrial forests. As such, conserving these important ecosystems is one of the most promising new ways to reduce atmospheric carbon dioxide, and limit global climate change. Blue Carbon ecosystems can be found all over the world, and in the UAE are made up of mangrove forests, seagrass meadows and saltwater marshlands, which serve as carbon sinks.