Sustainability Omani firm to launch trading platform for recyclable wastes Oman’s solid waste services provider, Beeah, is working on a platform to facilitate auctions and trades in recyclable wastes, the Oman Daily Observer reported. The company, which is part of the state-owned Oman Investment Authority, said the initiative will help spur investments in recycling and value-adding ventures. The firm said the proposed trading platform will […] September 2, 2022
Sustainability UAE rallies private sector to realise 2050 net-zero pledge The UAE has launched its first ‘Climate-Responsible Companies Pledge,’ in a bid to boost the private sector’s role in helping the country achieve its target of net zero carbon emissions by 2050 – dubbed the Net Zero 2050 Strategic Initiative. More than 21 UAE-based companies have so far signed up to the pledge, unveiled by […] September 1, 2022
Sustainability Sharjah bans single-use plastic bags from January 2024 Sharjah will ban single-use plastic bags and materials in Sharjah as of January 1, 2024, WAM, the UAE state news agency, reported. The Sharjah Executive Council’s decision aims to protect the environment from the dangers of plastic pollution and reduce the negative effects resulting from harmful practices. It will help organise the shift from the […] August 24, 2022
Analysis Sustainability Beeah: the hero of zero waste is ready for its next mission The emirate of Sharjah is poised to become the Middle East’s first zero-waste city, after building the region’s first waste-to-energy plant. Yet even before the plant’s inauguration in May, Sharjah had the highest waste diversion rate in the region, at 76 percent, thanks to the pioneering efforts of local environmental and waste management group Beeah. […] August 23, 2022
Analysis Sustainability Make it rain: UAE pins its hopes on cloud seeding Condensation streaming down windows is a familiar sight in Dubai’s summer, an illusion of rain at the hottest time of year. The UAE’s average rainfall is extremely low in August, but in recent years there has been a rise, which some experts attribute to cloud seeding – when a dedicated fleet of planes take to […] August 23, 2022
Analysis Sustainability To get ahead, plastics producers need to be running in circles The volume of plastics produced globally every year has soared over the past half century, from 15 million tonnes in 1964 to more than 300 million tonnes today. This figure is forecast to double again over the next two decades and nearly quadruple by 2050. But synthetic polymers have one major drawback: they generally take […] August 23, 2022
Analysis Energy Sharjah wins waste-to-energy race as rest of region cleans up its act Dubai had the Gulf’s first “seven-star” hotel and Abu Dhabi hosted the inaugural “day-night” Formula One Grand Prix. The emirate of Sharjah can claim a UAE first too – one that is less glitzy but potentially more transformative – the first waste-to-energy power plant. The Sharjah waste-to-energy facility, officially inaugurated in May, adds another dimension […] August 23, 2022
Energy Abu Dhabi unveils hydrogen plan to bolster UAE’s eco ambitions Abu Dhabi unveiled its hydrogen policy and regulatory framework on Monday – part of the UAE’s push to become a global force in the low-carbon economy. The Department of Energy (DoE) said its framework aimed to accelerate the UAE’s national hydrogen strategy, adding that it is working with public and private sector stakeholders including Abu […] August 22, 2022
Analysis Sustainability UAE invests in future flood control after record rainfall The UAE’s recent record levels of rainfall, resulting in loss of life and flood damage, pose budgetary challenges for authorities, but also opportunities for regional infrastructure investors. The National Centre of Meteorology said last month was the wettest July in the UAE for over 40 years. It said that 234.9mm of rain fell between 22:30 […] August 5, 2022
Sustainability Australia’s Great Barrier Reef coral at record level in some parts Two-thirds of Australia’s Great Barrier Reef showed the largest amount of coral cover in 36 years, but the reef remains vulnerable to increasingly frequent mass bleaching, an official long term monitoring programme reported on Thursday. The recovery in the central and northern stretches of the UNESCO world heritage-listed reef contrasted with the southern region, where […] August 4, 2022
Opinion Sustainability Europe’s heatwave is wake-up call to invest now in climate solutions Whether for environmental reasons or purely a business transaction, investors must fund green technology August 3, 2022
Manufacturing Kuwait sovereign wealth fund invests in Italian ATM operator Italian fund FSI, the main investors in which include state lender CDP and the sovereign wealth funds of Kuwait and Singapore, has signed a preliminary deal for an investment in payments card and cash machine operator BANCOMAT. FSI and BANCOMAT have agreed the terms under which FSI is set to invest in BANCOMAT “to sustain […] July 27, 2022
EXCLUSIVE Tourism Etihad CEO issues call to make aviation industry net zero There is no “single bullet” to solve the climate crisis and airlines must work together to create a sustainable aviation sector, the CEO of Etihad Airways has told AGBI. Tony Douglas, group chief executive officer, Etihad Aviation Group, said: “This is about industry – from the giants to the start-ups – governments, regulators and academics […] July 25, 2022
Opinion Sustainability Blockchain is the antidote to greenwashing Reporting ESG investments accurately is complex - companies need to embrace digital transformation July 18, 2022
Sustainability Jordan port workers protest after deaths from gas leak Workers at Jordan’s Red Sea port of Aqaba began a work stoppage on Sunday to protest poor safety precautions following the deaths of thirteen people in a chlorine gas leak accident at a major berth, unionists said. The deaths and injury of over 300 workers came after a crane loading chlorine containers onto a ship […] July 4, 2022
Sustainability Sydney braces for more floods as thousands flee homes Fresh evacuation orders were issued for thousands of Sydney residents on Monday after relentless rains flooded several suburbs in Australia’s largest city, with officials warning of more wild weather over the next 12 hours. An intense low-pressure system off Australia’s east coast is forecast to bring more heavy rain through Monday across the southern regions […] July 4, 2022
Sustainability Climate target aided by surging oil price, says top US banker Oil and gas-producing countries can capitalise on the commodity price boom to fuel their transition to net zero, the boss of one of the world’s leading financial institutions said yesterday. Arshad Ghafur, president of the MENA region at Bank of America, made the comment in a speech to the Dubai International Financial Centre’s Fintech Week, […] June 29, 2022
Analysis Sustainability $50bn climate change pledge critical to UAE’s oil reduction The UAE’s big-ticket promise to pledge a further $50 billion to abate global climate change must be wisely planned to deliver a meaningful path towards a sustainable economy, according to experts. “[Such investments] are likely to generate the most efficiency if allocated to reduce the reliance of productive sectors on hydrocarbons which will further diversify […] June 28, 2022
Sustainability Wildfire in southwest Turkey enters third day Firefighters sought to contain a wildfire in southwestern Turkey from land and air on Friday as the blaze raged on for a third day, with windy conditions fanning the flames and spreading them through a forested area. Scenes of burning woodland near the Aegean coastal resort of Marmaris sparked fears of a repeat of last […] June 24, 2022
Sustainability Sweltering heatwave adds to power cuts misery Iraq’s problems are piling up and threatening protests: Price increases, a faltering power grid and a summer heatwave made all the more unbearable by electricity outages limiting air conditioning and the use of fridges for many. While the southern city of Basra is used to scorching summers, this year it has started sooner than expected, […] June 23, 2022
