Big chance for small islands

One week left to put Bu Tinah on world wonder of nature list

ABU DHABI // With only a week to go until voting closes for the New Seven Wonders of Nature, environmentalists are asking everyone to get behind a small archipelago off Abu Dhabi that is among the 28 finalists.

Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid, the Vice President and Ruler of Dubai, publicly cast his vote for the island on Monday and called on citizens to do the same.

Bu Tinah and its surrounding coral reefs and seagrass beds constitute one of the UAE's greatest natural treasures. But it is up against stiff international competition.

The Maldives, Australia's Great Barrier Reef, the Galapagos Islands in Ecuador and the Grand Canyon in the US are also competing.

Voting closes at 3pm next Friday and the results will be announced about midnight on November 11.

None of the 28 finalists know how they are doing, but the organisers of the campaign to support Bu Tinah are optimistic.

"First we want to thank everyone who got involved with the campaign, whether through voting, tweeting, making T-shirts, promoting Bu Tinah in their schools, or encouraging their friends and family to vote," said Eduardo Goncalves, the director of the environmental awareness sector at the Environment Agency - Abu Dhabi (Ead).

"It has proven how much people in the UAE want to preserve our unique natural heritage. People are genuinely proud of Bu Tinah and rightly so."

The remote area has already made it through a number of knockout rounds in the contest, which started with a list of 440 candidates.

"The competition right now is wide open," Mr Goncalves said. "The results are in the hands of people and who they vote for."

Situated 130km west of Abu Dhabi, Bu Tinah is home to a large share of the country's population of dugongs, shy marine creatures that feed on seagrass and grow up to three metres in length.

Abu Dhabi has a dugong population second only to Australia's. There are about 3,000 dugongs in the emirate with about 1,250 counted in the waters around Bu Tinah.

The protected archipelago also offers a habitat for rare marine turtles, dolphins, flamingos and Socotra cormorants - agile seabirds that depend on Abu Dhabi's islands for their global survival.

Bu Tinah, a core area of the Marawah Marine Biosphere Reserve, is off-limits to visitors. But Ead has given people the chance to become better acquainted by visiting the Corniche, where a 16-metre-high dome aims to recreate the area.

Mr Goncalves urged residents to visit the exhibit and to vote.

"If you haven't already voted, then please do so today. It's not too late to vote - every single vote will make a difference. If you have already voted, then vote again," he said.

Nour Salman, 25, a human resources professional, said: "I read about the campaign a few months ago and I have been meaning to vote but never got the time. I will do it, this is a great initiative."

* People can vote by texting Bu Tinah to 3888, or through the campaign website butinah.ae.