UAE’s soil survey results unveiled

The Ministry of Environment and Water and the Environment Agency – Abu Dhabi (EAAD) announced on Tuesday the results of a nationwide soil survey project that lasted nearly two years. The announcement came at an official ceremony jointly hosted by the Ministry and EAAD and attended by a number of public and private sector institutions, universities and media organisations. The project had contributed in providing integrated records supported by maps of the territories of each region including the emirates of Sharjah, Ajman, Umm Al Quwain, Fujairah and Ras Al Khaimah. A number of competent local and federal authorities and universities such as United Arab Emirates University, University of Sharjah, International Centre for Biosaline Agriculture (ICBA) as well as specialist instutions from USA, Australia, New Zealand and Thailand participated in the survey. The surveys were completed using the latest norms and standards of the United States Department of Agriculture - Natural Resources Conservation Service (USDA-NRCS), modified to fit the United Arab Emirates conditions. A total of 65,000 observation sites have been fully described, classified and populated to the comprehensive database of the results. Additionally, various thematic maps, such as irrigated suitability, soil salinity, current land use, land degradation, vegetation are also included. The project covered the emirates of Sharjah, Ras Al Khaimah, Ajman, Umm Al Quwain and Fujairah and analysed an estimated area of five thousand square kilometers.