Muscat: The Environment Authority (EA), represented by the National Biodiversity Survey project’s team, continues its efforts to improve the ranking of the environmental performance index of the Sultanate of Oman in the field of biodiversity.
The step aims to enhance building a national database of species, updating their areas of existence and the changes that occurred in them, in addition to recording, monitoring and documenting elements of biodiversity in the Sultanate of Oman.
The work team, in cooperation with the Environment Department in the Governorate of Musandam, recently carried out two-week field survey for the National Survey of Biodiversity Project in Musandam Governorate. According to the team’s division, the project included 119 survey squares from the category of surveys of high-priority areas, which were divided into dimensions of 5×5 km across the governorate.
The work team met with Sayyid Ibrahim Said al Busaidi, Governor of Musandam. The team highlighted the tasks and specializations of the team, and the biodiversity of rare natural animal species that live in wild environments in the Sultanate of Oman and the challenges it faces. It also spotlighted the efforts of the team and the preliminary results it has achieved since project’s inception in 2022 in the Governorate of Dhofar.
The field work resulted in surveying (77) sites, equivalent to (1925) square kilometres, and installing 45 trap cameras, which will be monitored periodically to ensure that they remain active for a period of 6 months from the date of their installation.
The joint team managed to complete (65 per cent) of the project’s work in the governorate, while the remaining work will be completed according to the work plan prepared for 2023.
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