Author Archives: Rehan Ahmad

About Rehan Ahmad

Rehan Ahmed is currently working as Head of Waste Disposal Unit at Supreme Council for Environment, Kingdom of Bahrain. He has over thirty four years of professional experience on projects related to waste management, recycling, reuse and recovery & environmental impacts assessments. Rehan has been instrumental in construction, development, operation and management of Hafira industrial landfill site and establishment of healthcare waste treatment facility in Bahrain.

A Message on Earth Day

By | | , , , ,
1 Comment

Earth Day has now grown into a global environmental tradition making it the largest civic observance in the world and is widely celebrated event in which over one billion people from over 190 countries will participate by taking suitable actions for saving our mother Earth. The Earth Day was first organized in 1970 to promote respect for life on the planet and to encourage awareness on air, water and soil pollution. Each year a different theme or topic is selected. The theme of Earth Day 2018 is ‘End Plastic Pollution’. Plastic pollution is poisoning our oceans and lands, injuring marine life … Continue reading →

Food Waste in Ramadan: Trends and Counter-Measures

By | | ,
6 Comments

Muslims countries, Arab nations in particular, generate huge quantities of food waste which increases substantially during the month of Ramadan. As per conservative estimates, around 15-25% of all food purchased or prepared during Ramadan find its way to the garbage bin before even being used or consumed. Food Waste Trends in Ramadan The trend shows that during Ramadan, the demand for beef, mutton, chicken and related meat products increases by almost 50% of the normal demand, which in itself is very high. Similar is the fate of other related food items like vegetables, fruits and dairy products etc. which are … Continue reading →

Ramadan: A Catalyst for Green Living

By | | , ,
1 Comment

The true meaning of Ramadan is to take care of our body, soul, people, surrounding and ecosystems. The month of Ramadan is a golden opportunity to make a real shift towards ‘green living’ that is environmental friendly, non-polluting, non-wasteful and aim towards conservation of natural resources. During Ramadan, let us create awareness on use of resources, think and act positively towards our environment and change our unfriendly habits which are impacting our ecosystem. Let us seize this opportunity to adopt a model for a green and environmentally responsible behavior that addresses urgent environmental issues. Ramadan witnesses an over-consumption of meat, … Continue reading →

إعادة استخدام الكتب المدرسية للمساعدة في إعادة توظيف المعرفة للطلاب المحتاجين

By | | ,
Leave a comment

مع بداية كل سنة أو فصل دراسي، فإنه يتم طباعة الالاف من الكتب المدرسية الجديدة لشرائها واستخدامها، وبنفس الوقت فإنه يتم التخلص من نفس العدد تقريباً من هذه الكتب والمواد الدراسية بعد أن تم استخدامها حيث تذهب لصناديق القمامة ومكبات النفايات ليتم دفنها، او ضغطها والتخلص منها هناك وتشغل مساحات واسعة. وبالعادة فإنها لا يتم إعادة استخدام هذه الكتب والمواد أو إعادة تدويرها حتى، مما يؤدي إلى توليد كميات مهولة من النفايات الورقية. وفي بداية الفصول الدراسية وفي العديد من المدارس الخاصة فإنه يتوجب على الاهل أن يشتروا لأبنائهم كتباً مدرسية جديدة وذلك لتغيير الطبعة أو بعض التعديلات الطفيفة التي … Continue reading →

Food Wastage in Ramadan: An Urgent Call to Action

By | | , , ,
2 Comments

The month of Ramadan witnesses a great rush of frantic buyers who are buying and storing food items and allied commodities. Unfortunately, Muslims countries, especially Gulf nations, generate huge quantities of food waste which increases manifolds during the month of Ramadan and festivals like Eid ul Fitr and Eid ul Adha whereby the consumption and wastage of food increase at an alarming level. Firstly, the food habits change in the month of Ramadan whereby Sahoor or breakfast/ meal is taken early in the morning. Later after sunset Iftar/ Fatoor (opening of the fast) is taken usually with specially cooked food, … Continue reading →

How to Green Your Ramadan: An Easy Guide

By | | , ,
Leave a comment

Ramadan is a month which is very different than other months in terms of activities, praying and eating habits. The month call for not eating and drinking from sunrise to sunset to boost physical and mental endurance and to understand the hardships faced by the unprivileged human beings who do not have enough resources to satisfy their basic necessities. The true meaning of Ramadan is purifying ourselves, taking care of our body, soul, people, surrounding and ecosystems which is supporting us. The month of Ramadan is a golden opportunity to consider making a shift towards a green and sustainable lifestyle … Continue reading →

The Benefits of Natural Ventilation in Buildings

By | | ,
9 Comments

Natural ventilation is a method of allowing fresh outdoor air into indoor living spaces by natural means without the use of air conditioning units and other types of mechanically driven devices. It  is the process of changing or replacing stale or noxious air with fresh air in any space to provide high indoor air quality to control temperature, replenish oxygen, remove moisture, odors, smoke, heat, dust, airborne bacteria and carbon dioxide. Ventilation is important as it reduces unhealthy air pollutants, such as formaldehyde and radon. It reduces excessive moisture and humidity levels, which can lead to mold growth and can … Continue reading →

Reusing Textbooks Can Repurpose Knowledge for Needy Students

By | | ,
1 Comment

For every academic term or semester, thousands of new textbooks are being printed, bought and used. On the other hand, almost the same number of textbooks and course material are being discarded after its use and find its way to the garbage bins ultimately landing at the landfill site where they are being buried, compacted and disposed occupying precious land area. Usually these textbooks are not being reused or recycled generating huge quantities of paper waste. In many of the private schools, the textbooks have to be bought in every term due to change in edition or minor revisions putting … Continue reading →

The Menace of Plastic Water Bottles

By | | ,
9 Comments

It is common to see people greatly misuse plastic water bottles considering it free, taking a bottle, sipping it half and throwing it away. These used and partially consumed water bottles are then collected and thrown away in municipal garbage bins from where  it is collected and transported to landfills and waste dumps. These water bottles thus have a high carbon footprint and represent enormous wastage of precious water source and misuse of our other fragile resources. In many cases, these water bottles are being littered around the commercial and religious places. Plastic water bottles are a common feature in … Continue reading →

Water Scarcity in Bahrain

By | | , ,
3 Comments

Bahrain is listed among the top ten countries that are likely to suffer from a water crisis in the next 25 years. The World Resources Institute (WRI) have estimated that 33 countries, half of which are in the Middle East, would suffer from a severe water crisis by 2040. According to the study that included 167 countries, the top ten countries that would face water crisis by 2040 are Bahrain, Kuwait, Palestine, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia and Oman. The finding shows that the Middle East is already probably the least water-secure region in the world as it … Continue reading →

إجعل رمضانك أخضر

By | | , ,
Leave a comment

في شهر رمضان نشهد إختلافاً كبيراً في العادات والأنشطة اليومية سواء من عادات الأكل أو الصلاة . وتأتي الدعوة لعدم الأكل والشرب من شروق الشمس إلى غروبها في هذا الشهر لتعزيز قدرات التحمل البدني والعقلي، وفهم الصعوبات التي يواجهها المحرومين ممن ليس لديهم ما يكفي من الموارد لتلبية حاجاتهم الأساسية. ويتجلى المعنى الحقيقي لشهر رمضان بتنقية أنفسنا مع الحرص على صحة الجسم، والروح، وعلاقاتنا الانسانية  بالإضافة إلى علاقتنا مع النظم البيئية التي تدعم وجودنا على هذه الارض. شهر رمضان هو فرصة ذهبية للتفكير في إمكانية التحول نحو “نمط الحياة الخضراء” الذي يتمثل بأسلوب حياة صديقة للبيئة، تتجنب التلوث والإسراف، وتهدف … Continue reading →

Energy Conservation in Bahrain: Perspectives

By | | , ,
3 Comments

Bahrain has one of the highest energy consumption rates in the world. The country uses almost three times more energy per person than the world average. Based on 2022 statistics, the country consumed 22 MWh of energy which is 5 times the Middle East average and 7 times the global average. Infact, the per capita energy consumption in Bahrain is among the highest worldwide. The country is witnessing high population growth rate, rapid urbanization, industrialization and commercialization with more visitors coming in, causing fast growing domestic energy demand and is posing a major challenge for energy security. The Bahrain Government … Continue reading →