Committee set up to reset borders of Dana Biosphere Reserve

AMMAN — A technical committee to redraw the boundaries of the Dana Biosphere Reserve has been set up to tap copper ore in Jordan’s southern region, the Environment Minister Nabil Masarweh said on Wednesday, according to the Jordan News Agency, Petra.اضافة اعلان

Masarweh told the news agency that the committee, in implementation of a Cabinet decision, will study the coordinates of the reserve’s temporary boundaries as claimed by the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources.

"It will also bring up to date the environmental regulations for mining operations and exploration in the targeted areas, and search for alternative lands to be annexed to the reserve in order to safeguard its biodiversity," the minister said.


Women that work at local projects near Dana Biosphere Reserve say a that government decision to open parts of the reserve up copper mining would affect their livelihoods. (Photo: Wikipedia)

The committee consists of representatives of the energy, agriculture, and tourism ministries, the Department of Lands and Survey, the Royal Scientific Society, the local council of Tafileh Governorate, the Royal Society for the Conservation of Nature, the Geologists Syndicate, the University of Jordan, and the Natural Resources Authority.

The International Union for the Conservation of Nature will attend as an observer.

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