A bale of 57 endangered sea turtles was released into the wild at Jumeirah Saadiyat Island on Thursday.
The turtle species consisted of 39 hawksbill, 17 green turtles and one loggerhead.
Organised by Environmental Agency Abu Dhabi, the release was attended by volunteers as members of the public watched on, coming after 214 turtles were rescued since the winter of 2023.
Nearly all species of turtle are classified as endangered. Slaughtered for their eggs, meat, skin, and shells, turtles suffer from poaching and over-exploitation while also facing habitat destruction and accidental capture in fishing gear.
Our ultimate goal is to release them back into the wild
Thomas Kaferle,
General Manager of SeaWorld Yas Island
Working alongside SeaWorld Yas Island and the National Aquarium, the EAD manages the rescue of sea turtles off the UAE coastline, often finding the animals injured or undernourished.
Some of the turtles are showcased in SeaWorld Yas Island and the National Aquarium to increase awareness of the dangers these animals face.
This comes as part of a larger effort by the agency to protect endangered species of turtles, dugongs and dolphins from the perils they face at sea like loss of habitat, loss of nesting sites and marine pollution as a result of climate change.
How are the turtles rescued?
“We have holding pools that are there, we have a hospital, when we bring them in, we are able to do an assessment on them,” said Thomas Kaferle, general manager of SeaWorld Yas Island.
“We'll do an assessment and see why the animal was having problems and why we needed to rescue it and then we'd monitor it as long as we need to. Our ultimate goal is to release them back into the wild.”
Mr Kaferle explained that, aside from the pools and the hospitals, there are ambulances that respond to reports of injured turtles so they can be brought back for treatment.
The team of researchers also bring back dead turtles that have been washed ashore to assess how they died to prevent more deaths in future.
Once released, satellite imaging and migratory trackers are attached to the rehabilitated turtles to gather data and make sure they journey back to their nesting sites.
“Satellite tracking helps us monitor a turtle in terms of migration routes, its behaviour, where it goes to feed. It really helps us understand how a turtle is doing post-rehabilitation and in its natural habitat,” said Dr Hind Al Ameri, a specialist in marine biodiversity at EAD.
Why do they need rescuing?
“The majority of the turtles we receive are cold-stunned. Marine turtles are reptiles, they are cold-blooded animals, so, the external temperature helps them regulate the internal temperature. During winter, they become lazy, they can't swim properly, and don't eat properly,” said Dr Al Ameri.
Dr Al Ameri emphasised that the younger ones are especially impacted by this because they are not as used to the sea as their elders. Barnacles form on the back of the turtles making them heavy and unable to swim, and that's when the rescue teams step in to help.
“Sea turtles are an important part of the marine ecosystem and losing them would mean losing balance in our seas,” said Dr Al Ameri.
“One example is how hawksbill turtles feed on jellyfish and, if the turtles weren't there to feed on them, we'd have a larger population of jellyfish which would affect the number of fish which would in turn affect us as humans as we won't get as many fish as we currently do.”
Turtles released into wild at Saadiyat Island - in pictures
More from Neighbourhood Watch:
Ways to control drones
Countries have been coming up with ways to restrict and monitor the use of non-commercial drones to keep them from trespassing on controlled areas such as airports.
"Drones vary in size and some can be as big as a small city car - so imagine the impact of one hitting an airplane. It's a huge risk, especially when commercial airliners are not designed to make or take sudden evasive manoeuvres like drones can" says Saj Ahmed, chief analyst at London-based StrategicAero Research.
New measures have now been taken to monitor drone activity, Geo-fencing technology is one.
It's a method designed to prevent drones from drifting into banned areas. The technology uses GPS location signals to stop its machines flying close to airports and other restricted zones.
The European commission has recently announced a blueprint to make drone use in low-level airspace safe, secure and environmentally friendly. This process is called “U-Space” – it covers altitudes of up to 150 metres. It is also noteworthy that that UK Civil Aviation Authority recommends drones to be flown at no higher than 400ft. “U-Space” technology will be governed by a system similar to air traffic control management, which will be automated using tools like geo-fencing.
The UAE has drawn serious measures to ensure users register their devices under strict new laws. Authorities have urged that users must obtain approval in advance before flying the drones, non registered drone use in Dubai will result in a fine of up to twenty thousand dirhams under a new resolution approved by Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed, Crown Prince of Dubai.
Mr Ahmad suggest that "Hefty fines running into hundreds of thousands of dollars need to compensate for the cost of airport disruption and flight diversions to lengthy jail spells, confiscation of travel rights and use of drones for a lengthy period" must be enforced in order to reduce airport intrusion.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
More coverage from the Future Forum
Can NRIs vote in the election?
Indians residing overseas cannot cast their ballot abroad
Non-resident Indians or NRIs can vote only by going to a polling booth in their home constituency
There are about 3.1 million NRIs living overseas
Indians have urged political parties to extend the right to vote to citizens residing overseas
A committee of the Election Commission of India approved of proxy voting for non-resident Indians
Proxy voting means that a person can authorise someone residing in the same polling booth area to cast a vote on his behalf.
This option is currently available for the armed forces, police and government officials posted outside India
A bill was passed in the lower house of India’s parliament or the Lok Sabha to extend proxy voting to non-resident Indians
However, this did not come before the upper house or Rajya Sabha and has lapsed
The issue of NRI voting draws a huge amount of interest in India and overseas
Over the past few months, Indians have received messages on mobile phones and on social media claiming that NRIs can cast their votes online
The Election Commission of India then clarified that NRIs could not vote online
The Election Commission lodged a complaint with the Delhi Police asking it to clamp down on the people spreading misinformation
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Mamo Year it started: 2019 Founders: Imad Gharazeddine, Asim Janjua Based: Dubai, UAE Number of employees: 28 Sector: Financial services Investment: $9.5m Funding stage: Pre-Series A Investors: Global Ventures, GFC, 4DX Ventures, AlRajhi Partners, Olive Tree Capital, and prominent Silicon Valley investors. UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
