The UAE has been listed as the top Middle Eastern nation in the Environmental Performance Index published by Yale and Columbia universities.
Ranking countries on environmental sustainability, the index puts the UAE in joint 39th place globally out of 180 nations, with Denmark topping the list and India coming last.
The index ranks countries on performance indicators that consider the health of their environment, how they enhance or damage ecosystems, and their efforts to combat climate change.
What it takes to be top
“High-scoring countries exhibit long-standing and continuing investments in policies that protect environmental health, preserve biodiversity and habitat, conserve natural resources, and decouple greenhouse gas emissions from economic growth,” the index report states.
The UAE’s overall score is 52.4 out of 100, which compares to 77.9 for Denmark and 18.9 for India, and places it first out of 16 countries from the “Greater Middle East”.
The score is a weighted average of 40 categories, and in five of these — marine protected areas, wetland loss, household solid fuels, black carbon growth rate and CO2 from land cover — the UAE achieves a maximum 100.
A high score of 80.3 is awarded for biodiversity, which averages performance across a range of categories, including some that look at how much of the country’s land habitats are in protected areas.
Worst performers
Low scores include just 11.7 for the marine trophic index (MTI), which means that, among the fish and other marine organisms caught, an increasing number are smaller species from lower down the food chain.
“If MTI decreases over time, this may be due to countries depleting stocks of higher level fish and resorting to lower level taxa, also known as ‘fishing down the food web’,” the EPI states in a briefing document.
The UAE’s worst score, 3.4, is for PM2.5 pollution, which indicates that the air contains high levels of particulate matter up to 2.5 micrometres in diameter.
Thought to increase the risk of cancer, heart disease and strokes, among other health effects, particulate matter in the UAE comes from sources including oil production and refining, traffic, mineral dust and shipping.
The UAE has in a past had a mixed performance in international environmental indices. The World Wide Fund For Nature’s Living Planet Report, for example, has several times ranked the UAE as having the highest per capita environmental footprint in the world. This is partly because the extreme climate leads to heavy use of air conditioning.
Also, the country’s rapid urbanisation has been shown to have had a harmful effect on some native wildlife, such as reptile species, while coastal development has affected coral reefs.
Efforts have been made, however, to promote coral growth by, for example, sinking along the coast rock barriers with coral species cultivated on them.
Around the region
Other countries listed in the EPI’s “Greater Middle East” region include Israel, in 57th place, Jordan, in joint 81st place, Kuwait, in joint 87th place, and Bahrain in 90th place.
Tunisia is ranked 96th, Saudi Arabia is 109th, Egypt is joint 127th, Iran is in 133rd position, Qatar comes 137th, Lebanon 142nd, Oman joint 149th, Algeria joint 155th, Morocco joint 160th, Iraq 169th and, in last place for the region, Sudan is in 171st place.
“Many bottom-tier countries face war and other sources of unrest as well as a lack of financial resources to invest in environmental infrastructure,” the report says.
It adds that “only a handful of countries”, including Denmark and the UK, which is ranked second overall, are set to achieve greenhouse gas neutrality by 2050, a key aim if temperature increases are to be kept within safe limits.
Many other nations, including large countries such as China, India and Russia are, the report says, “headed in the wrong direction”, with greenhouse gas emissions “rapidly rising”. India, in last place, is described as having “low scores across a range of critical issues”.
“Deteriorating air quality and rapidly rising greenhouse gas emissions pose especially urgent challenges,” the report summary says of India, which is expected to become the world’s most populous nation within the next decade.
Produced by the Yale Centre for Environmental Law and Policy at Yale University, and Columbia University’s Centre for International Earth Science Information Network, the Environmental Performance index is funded by the McCall MacBain Foundation and is published every two years.
Data comes from research institutions, academia, international organisations and government agencies, although generally data is not accepted directly from governments.
TERMINAL HIGH ALTITUDE AREA DEFENCE (THAAD)
What is THAAD?
It is considered to be the US's most superior missile defence system.
Production:
It was created in 2008.
Speed:
THAAD missiles can travel at over Mach 8, so fast that it is hypersonic.
Abilities:
THAAD is designed to take out ballistic missiles as they are on their downward trajectory towards their target, otherwise known as the "terminal phase".
Purpose:
To protect high-value strategic sites, such as airfields or population centres.
Range:
THAAD can target projectiles inside and outside the Earth's atmosphere, at an altitude of 150 kilometres above the Earth's surface.
Creators:
Lockheed Martin was originally granted the contract to develop the system in 1992. Defence company Raytheon sub-contracts to develop other major parts of the system, such as ground-based radar.
UAE and THAAD:
In 2011, the UAE became the first country outside of the US to buy two THAAD missile defence systems. It then stationed them in 2016, becoming the first Gulf country to do so.
The specs
- Engine: 3.9-litre twin-turbo V8
- Power: 640hp
- Torque: 760nm
- On sale: 2026
- Price: Not announced yet
Global Fungi Facts
• Scientists estimate there could be as many as 3 million fungal species globally
• Only about 160,000 have been officially described leaving around 90% undiscovered
• Fungi account for roughly 90% of Earth's unknown biodiversity
• Forest fungi help tackle climate change, absorbing up to 36% of global fossil fuel emissions annually and storing around 5 billion tonnes of carbon in the planet's topsoil
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
Lexus LX700h specs
Engine: 3.4-litre twin-turbo V6 plus supplementary electric motor
Power: 464hp at 5,200rpm
Torque: 790Nm from 2,000-3,600rpm
Transmission: 10-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 11.7L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh590,000
UK's plans to cut net migration
Under the UK government’s proposals, migrants will have to spend 10 years in the UK before being able to apply for citizenship.
Skilled worker visas will require a university degree, and there will be tighter restrictions on recruitment for jobs with skills shortages.
But what are described as "high-contributing" individuals such as doctors and nurses could be fast-tracked through the system.
Language requirements will be increased for all immigration routes to ensure a higher level of English.
Rules will also be laid out for adult dependants, meaning they will have to demonstrate a basic understanding of the language.
The plans also call for stricter tests for colleges and universities offering places to foreign students and a reduction in the time graduates can remain in the UK after their studies from two years to 18 months.
MATCH INFO
Asian Champions League, last 16, first leg:
Al Ain 2 Al Duhail 4
Second leg:
Tuesday, Abdullah bin Khalifa Stadium, Doha. Kick off 7.30pm
Electric scooters: some rules to remember
- Riders must be 14-years-old or over
- Wear a protective helmet
- Park the electric scooter in designated parking lots (if any)
- Do not leave electric scooter in locations that obstruct traffic or pedestrians
- Solo riders only, no passengers allowed
- Do not drive outside designated lanes
ELIO
Starring: Yonas Kibreab, Zoe Saldana, Brad Garrett
Directors: Madeline Sharafian, Domee Shi, Adrian Molina
Rating: 4/5
More coverage from the Future Forum
What to watch out for:
Algae, waste coffee grounds and orange peels will be used in the pavilion's walls and gangways
The hulls of three ships will be used for the roof
The hulls will painted to make the largest Italian tricolour in the country’s history
Several pillars more than 20 metres high will support the structure
Roughly 15 tonnes of steel will be used
Company profile
Name: Steppi
Founders: Joe Franklin and Milos Savic
Launched: February 2020
Size: 10,000 users by the end of July and a goal of 200,000 users by the end of the year
Employees: Five
Based: Jumeirah Lakes Towers, Dubai
Financing stage: Two seed rounds – the first sourced from angel investors and the founders' personal savings
Second round raised Dh720,000 from silent investors in June this year
Farasan Boat: 128km Away from Anchorage
Director: Mowaffaq Alobaid
Stars: Abdulaziz Almadhi, Mohammed Al Akkasi, Ali Al Suhaibani
Rating: 4/5
Tearful appearance
Chancellor Rachel Reeves set markets on edge as she appeared visibly distraught in parliament on Wednesday.
Legislative setbacks for the government have blown a new hole in the budgetary calculations at a time when the deficit is stubbornly large and the economy is struggling to grow.
She appeared with Keir Starmer on Thursday and the pair embraced, but he had failed to give her his backing as she cried a day earlier.
A spokesman said her upset demeanour was due to a personal matter.
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ESSENTIALS
The flights
Emirates flies from Dubai to Phnom Penh via Yangon from Dh2,700 return including taxes. Cambodia Bayon Airlines and Cambodia Angkor Air offer return flights from Phnom Penh to Siem Reap from Dh250 return including taxes. The flight takes about 45 minutes.
The hotels
Rooms at the Raffles Le Royal in Phnom Penh cost from $225 (Dh826) per night including taxes. Rooms at the Grand Hotel d'Angkor cost from $261 (Dh960) per night including taxes.
The tours
A cyclo architecture tour of Phnom Penh costs from $20 (Dh75) per person for about three hours, with Khmer Architecture Tours. Tailor-made tours of all of Cambodia, or sites like Angkor alone, can be arranged by About Asia Travel. Emirates Holidays also offers packages.
6 UNDERGROUND
Director: Michael Bay
Stars: Ryan Reynolds, Adria Arjona, Dave Franco
2.5 / 5 stars
The bio
Favourite book: The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho
Favourite travel destination: Maldives and south of France
Favourite pastime: Family and friends, meditation, discovering new cuisines
Favourite Movie: Joker (2019). I didn’t like it while I was watching it but then afterwards I loved it. I loved the psychology behind it.
Favourite Author: My father for sure
Favourite Artist: Damien Hurst
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
The specs
Engine: 3.0-litre six-cylinder turbo
Power: 398hp from 5,250rpm
Torque: 580Nm at 1,900-4,800rpm
Transmission: Eight-speed auto
Fuel economy, combined: 6.5L/100km
On sale: December
Price: From Dh330,000 (estimate)
SPEC%20SHEET%3A%20APPLE%20IPHONE%2015%20PRO%20MAX
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