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.

Recycling of Aluminium Cans

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Aluminium is a soft, durable and lightweight metal, made from Bauxite ore, which is mined from the earth. Bauxite is converted into alumina, a fine white powder, which is then smelted at over 700°C to become aluminium, which is one of the versatile products universally being used by consumers in a number of applications. The process is expensive and uses huge resources, including energy and fuel. Making cans out of aluminium for storing soft drinks and juices is one of the commonly used phenomenons as it takes five tonnes of Bauxite to make just one tonne of aluminium cans. Many … Continue reading →

World Environment Day 2016: Focus on Illegal Wildlife Trade

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World Environment Day, also known as WED, is commemorated annually on 5th June and is one of the principal vehicles through which the United Nations stimulates worldwide awareness on the environment and promotes suitable actions. WED’s agenda is to empower people to become active agents of sustainable and equitable development, promote an understanding that communities are pivotal to changing attitudes towards environmental issues, advocate partnership which will ensure all nations and peoples enjoy a safer and more prosperous future. The theme of World Environment Day 2016 is “Fight against the Illegal Trade in Wildlife” or Zero Tolerance for Illegal Wildlife Trade, … Continue reading →

نصائح لتقليل النفايات الغذائية

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تبذير الطعام له آثار بيئية واقتصادية وكذلك الاجتماعية.  ارتفاع نصيب الفرد من الدخل والإنفاق، ومستويات المعيشة، القدرة على تحمل التكاليف و اللامبالاة تجاه الطعام كلها عوامل لها تأثير سلبي كبير على مواردنا المحدودة. في مراكز التسوق والمطاعم على سبيل المثال ، من الشائع أن نرى كميات متراكمة من الطعام غير المستهلك كليا أو جزئيا. للأسف، الرفاهية تؤدي إلى تفشي  توليد النفايات الغذائية في جميع أنحاء الشرق الأوسط، وخاصة دول مجلس التعاون الخليجي. خطورة الوضع يمكن قياسها من كون أن أكثر من 300 طن من النفايات الغذائية يتم توليدها يوميا  في البحرين وهذا يشكل حوالي 11٪ من إجمالي  نفايات البلدية . … Continue reading →

Tips for a Green Ramadan

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Ramadan is quite different from other months in terms of activities, praying and eating habits. During this month, Muslims should abstain from eating and drinking from sunrise to sunset to boost physical and mental endurance and to understand the hardships faced by the poor and needy 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 lifestyle’ that is environmental-friendly, non-polluting, … Continue reading →

Zero Emissions Day: Our Planet is Counting on Us

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The Zero Emissions Day (or ‘Ze Day’) aims to put the Global 24 hour Moratorium on the Combustion of Fossil Fuels. The day started on March 21, 2008 with the launch of a website calling for “A Global Moratorium on Fossil Fuel Combustion on September 21” in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada. The message, “Giving our planet one day off a year”, was simple yet profound and was translated into 12 languages for easy reach of people. The idea behind is of giving everything a ‘rest day’ so why not for emissions and environment. The notion behind the Zero Emissions Day is … Continue reading →

Earth Hour – Making of a Movement

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Earth Hour is a worldwide movement for the planet organized by the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF). Earth Hour engages a massive mainstream community on a broad range of environmental issues. The event is held worldwide and held towards the end of March annually, encouraging individuals, communities, households and businesses to turn off their non-essential lights for one hour as a symbol for their commitment to the planet Making of a Movement Earth Hour started in 2007 in Sydney, Australia and was conceived by World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF). On the occasion, 2.2 million individuals and more than 2,000 businesses turned their lights off … Continue reading →

Earth Day 2015 – It’s Our Turn to Lead

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Like Earth Days of the past, Earth Day 2015 will focus on the unique environmental challenges of our time. As the world’s population migrates to cities, and as the bleak reality of climate change becomes increasingly clear, the need to create sustainable communities is more important than ever. Earth Day 2015 will seek to do just that through its global theme: It’s Our Turn to Lead. With smart investments in sustainable technology, forward-thinking public policy, and an educated and active public, we can transform our cities and forge a sustainable future. Nothing is more powerful than the collective action of … Continue reading →

نصائح لتقليل النفايات الغذائية

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للنفايات الغذائية آثار بيئية واقتصادية واجتماعية أيضاً. إن ارتفاع معدلات الدخل والإنفاق الفردية، ومستوى المعيشة، والقدرة على الإنفاق، وسلوكياتنا في إهدار الطعام تؤثر سلباً على مواردنا المحدودة. فأصبح من الشائع أن نرى أكوام من الطعام المتبقي في أطباق الطعام في مراكز التسوق والمطاعم. وللأسف فإن القدرة على الإنفاق أدت إلى زيادة متسارعة في إنتاج وتراكم النفايات الغذائية في دول الشرق الأوسط عامة، وفي دول مجلس التعاون الخليجي خاصة. ويمكن قياس خطورة الوضع من خلال الحقائق التي تبيّن أنه يتم إنتاج أكثر من 300 طن من النفايات الغذائية يومياً في البحرين، مما يشكل حوالي 11% من النفايات البلدية. حيث يتم إلقاء … Continue reading →

New Fines for Littering in Bahrain

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Littering is a common phenomenon both in urban and rural areas of Bahrain. Streets, sidewalks, parking lots, roads and highways are mostly covered with food wrappers, soft drink and water bottles, plastic bags, handbills, cigarette butts, tissues, papers etc. Litter has the potential to cause harm to human health, safety, welfare as well as the environment. Littering can be a fire hazard and it attracts pests and rodents. Litter also cause accidents on roads as drivers avoid litter on road. Litter also harm plants, vegetation and natural areas. The temptation to ‘litter’ is usually motivated by disrespect to the law and … Continue reading →

Wildlife Protection in Bahrain

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Wildlife maintain ecological balance of nature, food chain and nature cycles and plays an important role in the environment and for human progress through availability of large gene pool for the scientists to carry research and breeding programs in agriculture, animal husbandry and fishery. The World Conservation Union estimates that there are more than 16,000 wildlife species that are currently threatened with extinction. In the last 500 years, 820 species have become extinct as a result of human activity.  Bahrain has very limited wildlife population, and its conservation is of great importance. Al Areen Wildlife Park located in Sakhir is a … Continue reading →

Unending Benefits of Natural Ventilation

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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 →

World Wetlands Day – Celebrating Our Wetlands

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World Wetlands Day (WWD) is celebrated on 2nd February every year. It marks the date of the signing of the Ramsar Convention on Wetlands on 2nd February 1971. WWD was celebrated for the first time in 1997. Every year there is a different theme and the theme for World Wetlands Day 2018 is “Wetlands for a Sustainable Urban Future”. What is a Wetland A wetland is a land area that is saturated with water, natural or artificial, static or flowing, fresh, brackish or salty and include areas of marine water, the depth of which at low tide does not exceed … Continue reading →