Tourist destination aims to become carbon neutral city

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• published: 03 Aug 2015
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The threat of climate change affects countless cities around the globe, with many putting sustainable options at the top of their agendas. It's thought more than half the world's population lives in cities, which are responsible for around 75 percent of all C02 emissions. The Egyptian Red Sea city of El Gouna is trying to change that by aiming to become a completely carbon neutral city. From boat tours and water sports to the numerous yachts dotted along its marina, El Gouna may look like any other Red Sea tourist resort. But there's something special happening here, they're moving towards becoming the first carbon neutral city in Egypt and Africa. Earlier this year, El Gouna officials signed an agreement with the Egyptian Ministry of State for Environmental Affairs and the Italian Ministry of the Environment to implement a plan to upgrade this already green city to carbon neutral status. The city is a private development and already recycles around 85 percent of its waste. It has already established a reputation for being environmentally friendly. According to the founder of El Gouna, Samih Sawaris, the initiative has its roots in his fondness for the water. "It really started in the sea because I love the sea, I love diving," he says. "It used to hurt me to see what we're doing to the environment. And I'm a fisherman so it used to hurt me to see how we're losing fish populations because of the destruction of the environment." By today's modern standards, being environmentally friendly is no longer enough. Nowadays, Egyptian government estimates show that total greenhouse gas emissions at tourist establishments in the country amount to approximately 35 million tons of carbon dioxide a year. According to Egyptian Ministry of Tourism statistics, 80 percent of the country's tourism is based on the coast. In modern urban environments, carbon neutrality means offsetting carbon emissions with an equal amount of carbon credits. This is achieved by monitoring and managing energy use to reduce energy demand, switching to alternative sources and investing in projects aimed at offsetting or preventing carbon emissions. Here in El Gouna, this involves a process called 'Biosequestration', the biological capture and storage of carbon dioxide through trees. El Gouna only gets a small amount of water from the Nile. While the 21 wells of salty water that lie near the coast are the main providers of water, this desalination plant converts less-salty brackish water from inland wells into drinking water for the town. Plant director, Aschraf Hillal, says nearby fish and other natural inhabitants are also thriving as part of the plan. "There are 21 salt water wells and we put the water through reverse osmosis," he says. "Out of this we obtain 33 percent fresh water. The water from the brackish wells is diverted into these ponds here, where fish and mangrove and salicornia thrive." Here at the El Gouna farm, they're also playing an important role in the strategy by supplying olive trees and date palms. Their animals are fed on surplus food left over by local hotels. "We use the manure that's produced by our animals," says farm manager, Ulli Winkler. We are not using any other fertilisers than that. And, on the other hand, the hotels will not have a problem with all their residual food because we've got the ducks and the goats and the sheep to consume it." Energy engineering students at the Technische Universitat Belin (TUB) have already carried out analysis of the cost, policy regulations and socio-economic and environmental impacts. Here at their campus in El Gouna, work is underway to test the new generation of photo-voltaic panels. "Most of the people are looking forward to it and working with it." You can license this story through AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/metadata/youtube/fa44112a580e737cacc69b3a91bc8267 Find out more about AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/HowWeWork