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Good response to DM’s desert clean-up drive

DUBAI — Tonnes of garbage were collected from the deserts as part of the Dubai Municipality’s second annual ‘Keep the desert clean’ campaign on Thursday.

Hussain Nasser Lootah, Director-General of the municipality, inaugurated the drive in the desert area of Al Warqa. Cultural and entertainment programmes, exhibitions and awareness sessions were organised as part of the inauguration which ended with a mass clean-up drive.

Inaugurating the activities, Lootah said the move is aimed at spreading awareness on the importance of preserving the desert and getting rid of the bad practice of leaving food and other wastes over the desert areas which badly affect the environment and landscape.

“The campaign had received excellent response last year from desert visitors. The community interaction was also very clear with the huge number of participants from companies and societal groups. So we are up with the second consecutive year,” he said. Representatives of various institutions and groups were present at the event.

Students from the Dubai Club for Special Sports contributed to the event with preparing paintings and cartoons which carried the environment message. Energetic children led by Abrar from Salma Al Ansari School, Satwa, staged a drama titled ‘My sweaty environment’, which received wide applause.

After the inaugural session, schoolchildren, volunteers from private firms and municipality staff started the mass clean-up drive.

Municipality staff distributed bags for waste collection, pamphlets and promotional gifts for volunteer groups from the temporary traditional tents erected at the venue. Camels and horses carrying posters reading the message and with dustbins on the back, to collect waste, also participated in the drive.

Camel and horse riding facilities for the participants, which were meant for spreading the message of deserts, gave a festive mood to the function. The municipality also conducted cleaning activities in association with various tourism groups in Al Aweer area. Abdul Majeed Saifaie, Director of the Waste Management Department, said the campaign would shed light on one of the important environmental issues in the UAE and intensify the efforts to raise awareness as well as publicise the steps taken by the authorities concerned to address it.

“In the spring season, desert areas witness a high turnout of picnickers. Sandy hills and roadside areas experience a lot of activities such as mountain biking, camping etc. As the level of environmental awareness of the visitors varies, some of them leave the place clean and collect the waste resulting from their activity and dispose it of safely, while some others leave large quantities of waste without thinking of others who would use the area later, in addition to distorting the area’s general appearance,” Saifaie said.

“The drive will educate young people about maintaining hygiene in all places, make the public aware of appropriate ways to get rid of the waste —where to drop waste bags and how to reduce waste generation — and the importance of using materials that are recyclable and can be reused.”

“It will also create a positive image of the desert environment, highlight its value, and, indeed, educate them about the legal procedures applicable for leaving the waste carelessly,” he added.

The Waste Management Department has issued a set of local orders and legislation for individuals to keep the desert clean. In addition, the municipality is also planning field visits to desert areas to guide visitors on cleanliness.

Telecommunications company du sent the message through four million SMSes to its customers’ mobile phones. Moreover, it also used social networking sites for campaign publicity. Last year, the campaign won the best environmental initiative award from the Organisation of American Ideas based in Texas.— news@khaleejtimes.com