CONCERNED councillors have urged measures to protect ecological areas in Buhair Valley to be fast-tracked after ‘unacceptable delays’ in action despite the land being officially proclaimed as a ‘nature reserve’ two years ago.
The Southern Municipal Council stressed the need to map out protected areas and fence them off to stop people from trespassing and destroying the historic site.
His Royal Highness Prince Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa, Crown Prince and Prime Minister, had declared that the ecological areas in Buhair Valley that contain terrain and rocky hills be considered a ‘nature reserve’ in July 2022.
“The leadership’s intervention clearly reveals the importance of the area, but it has been two years since the official declaration and nothing has been done yet to protect the valley or even fence it off in an eco-friendly manner,” said council chairman and area councillor Abdulla Abdullatif.
HRH Prince Salman also directed the relevant authorities to take ministerial measures to preserve the zone and insisted that its ecological significance be taken into account during ongoing infrastructure development. He affirmed the kingdom’s commitment to preserve and develop areas of natural and historic value to support the country’s role as a tourism attraction.
The council has now sent an official request to the Cabinet seeking an explanation as to why it was taking so long for necessary measures to be taken by the relevant ministries and government bodies to safeguard the valley.
“Tankers and trucks continue to dump waste and sewage water in the valley,” Mr Abdullatif claimed. “There appears to be no monitoring by environmental inspectors at night and we fear the area could be irreparably damaged if neglected for much longer.
“Residents have witnessed several migratory bird carcasses. A few were spotted with plastic bottles covering their beaks, a few others were found trapped inside plastic bags, or dead after drinking sewage water. There have also been reports of other wildlife found dead and injured too.”
The GDN reported in August last year that police patrols had to be called to Buhair Valley to disperse social media fanatics from the area carrying out an idiotic TikTok dare. The viral challenge on the application encouraged people to flock to the site to fish and post videos. However, as highlighted earlier, farmed fish in the lake had been introduced by the Health Ministry to help eradicate the problem of mosquitoes plaguing the area.
“Where are the boundaries that exactly determine the protected parts of the valley?” asked Mr Abdullatif. “The place is a natural wonder and we want it to remain so. There are housing and commercial projects getting built around the valley and we want people to continue enjoying the beautiful scenery.
“The government needs to work fast on the map, present it to the council, and come up with real protection measures to safeguard the place for generations to come.”
Buhair Valley dates back to prehistoric times as fossils found of aquatic creatures indicate.
Wadi Al Buhair – ‘wadi’ meaning valley and ‘buhair’ meaning ‘little sea’ – contains rock formations belonging to the middle Eocene epoch, between 40 and 48 million years ago.
The fossils were shells left behind by single-celled organisms known as foraminifera, which would bore holes into the limestone and leave behind empty spaces after they decomposed.
However, decades of illegal dumping had turned some parts of the area into a toxic wasteland.
Residents complained of unhygienic conditions and pungent gases when material was used to lay the foundations for a government housing complex in 2013 and a major clean-up operation was launched to empty the valley of waste.
Around 3,700 people in Bahrain signed an online petition earlier this year, calling for a halt to the alleged ‘destruction in the valley’ and supporters trekked down to the valley seeking the most picturesque spots to paint, photograph and draw.
mohammed@gdnmedia.bh
&uuid=(email))