Initiatives Qatar Has Done to Aid in Saving the Ocean

Here is how Qatar has ramped up its efforts to help safeguard the ocean, from broad measures to protect marine life to collective community beach clean-ups around its beaches.

The seas cover 71 percent of the earth's surface area and are home to roughly a million species, making them a vital source of food and income for over 800 million people throughout the world.

The ocean also manages everything in our environment, from global weather patterns to food systems, making it the planet's most precious resource.

Despite its importance, humans have embraced activities that endanger its resources over time, including as pollution, overfishing, and man-made climate change. Its health, as well as the well-being of everyone who depends on it, is in jeopardy. As a result, change is as necessary as ever.

Every year on June 8, the world comes together to commemorate the United Nations World Oceans Day to raise awareness about the ocean's importance to the ecosystem and measures to help reverse the detrimental effects humans have had on it.

This year's topic is Revitalization: Collective Action for the Ocean, which encourages all countries to adopt innovative practices in order to ensure the ocean's survival for future generations.

"As the last years have demonstrated, we must work together to achieve a new balance with the ocean that does not drain its abundance but rather restores its vibrancy and gives it new life," the UN declared on its website.

Every year, though, one issue remains: what efforts have been made to conserve the ocean?

Qatar produces more than 2.5 million tons of municipal solid trash each year, according to EcoMena. In addition, the country has one of the highest per capita garbage generation rates in the world, generating up to 1.8 kg of waste each day, of which only 8% gets recycled.

To mark the occasion, here are four initiatives taken by Qatar and its people to correct the data.

Beach clean-ups have become an important part of Qatar's commitment to its National Vision 2030 plan and the 2030 Sustainable Development Agenda.

Throughout the year, Qatar Museums, along with numerous other small-community groups, have held weekly beach clean-ups to raise awareness about sustainable waste management practices.

To safeguard the environment and improve coastal and marine life, tens of thousands of kilos of dangerous garbage, including hundreds of tonnes of single-use plastic, were collected from various areas across the country. After that, the garbage was separated and shipped to be recycled.

Moreover, Qatar's Ministry of Municipality and Environment declared last year that it wants to build marine protected zones covering 30% of the country's water in the next ten years.

The initiative aims to safeguard ecosystems and sensitive species, such as whales, sharks, and dugongs, for current and future generations, all of which are important for marine environment preservation and eco-tourism.

In fact, the Arabian Gulf is home to the world's second-largest population of dugongs and the world's largest concentration of whale sharks.