Circular Decarbonization and Biodiversity Initiatives Enhance Environmental Stewardship
Authors: Carpenter Chris 
Published: August 2024

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This article, written by JPT Technology Editor Chris Carpenter, contains highlights of paper SPE 216385, “Excellence Journey Toward Environmental Stewardship Through Circular and Sustainable Decarbonization, Ecosystem, and Biodiversity Initiatives,” by Mohammed S. Alhazzaa, SPE, Ioannis Georgiou, SPE, and Hashem H. Al Ghanem, SPE, Saudi Aramco. The paper has not been peer reviewed.

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The complete paper presents circular environmental initiatives at Abu Ali Island in Saudi Arabia’s Eastern Province that led to sustainable and systematic decarbonization, ecosystem, and biodiversity programs. The island features a rich scope of terrestrial, marine, and avian life. Mangrove forests were a driving force behind the preservation effort. The island is home to one of the biggest mangrove ecosystems in the region, with more than 5 million mangrove trees. To further diversify the initiative, a fish hatchery also is under development.

Methodology and Results

The operator’s development strategy was to look for ways to improve ecosystems. Therefore, the company designated Abu Ali Island as a Corporate Biodiversity Protected Area in 2014 in conjunction with its environmental protection team. Since then, the following environmental initiatives were launched to enhance biodiversity:

- Development of mangrove nurseries and plantation campaigns

- Construction of the Abu Ali Fish Hatchery, in the final stages of development at the time of writing

- Abandoning subsea pipelines for artificial coral-reef growth

- Rerouting treated sewage water to irrigation systems

- Converting food waste to compost

- Continuous beach-cleaning campaigns

Development of Mangrove Nurseries and Plantation Campaigns.

In November of 2022, the Abu Ali Mangrove Nursery was inaugurated. It is one of the largest mangrove nurseries in the world, with a capacity for 3 million mangrove seedlings. The nursery facilitates growth of healthy saplings of a superior quality in a timely fashion at a reduced cost.

The mangrove nursery will support a mangrove plantation that will support Saudi Arabia’s food security. Mangroves create an insular ecosystem that can serve as an underwater nursery, a place where juvenile fish and shrimp can grow in relative security before venturing into the open ocean. The local species of birds, fish, shrimp, and tortoises rely on the mangroves, as do migratory birds, which travel thousands of kilometers every year to rest on the island and feed in these habitats.

Abu Ali Fish Hatchery.

In addition to the mangrove nursery and plantation, the development effort includes a fish hatchery on Abu Ali Island with a capacity of 10 million fingerlings per year. The hatchery will integrate modern fish-culture technology using recirculation aquaculture systems with an appropriate level of monitoring and control to optimize fish production, while economizing the use of utility services for operation and maintenance of the plant.

Fig. 1 shows a 3D model of the hatchery and its associated facilities. The aim of the hatchery will be to produce and cultivate endemic fish species through a complete life-cycle process, starting with wild-caught brood stock and ending with the release of the juvenile fish in the Arabian Gulf. Endemic fish that are in decline in the gulf because of fishing pressure will be produced and released, enhancing native fish stocks, preserving the gulf’s biodiversity, and supporting local fishing communities.