October 2, 2013: Dubai, UAE: A dozen more beaches and marinas will receive the internationally recognised Blue Flag. This announcement by the Blue Flag national coordinators Emirates Wildlife Society in association with WWF (EWS-WWF), in partnership with the Foundation for Environmental Education (FEE), means the UAE community has 12 more reasons to enjoy the beautiful coastline now the weather cools.

Programmes Director at EWS-WWF, Lisa Perry, said: “Blue Flag is a highly prestigious and well-recognised symbol and serves to highlight coastal excellence internationally so for the UAE to now have an additional 12 Blue Flags awarded, is a real achievement for the country. This news is very positive and places the UAE as a leader in the Blue Flag programme regionally.”

Since the pilot phase in 2011, EWS-WWF team has been working with authorities and stakeholders to raise environmental standards of beaches and marinas nationwide. With these newly awarded sites listed below, the UAE now boasts a total of 24 Blue Flags across the emirates.

The newly awarded sites are:

Abu Dhabi
- Al Bateen Marina
- The Club beach
- Saadiyat Beach at Saadiyat Island
- Lagoon beach
- Phase 2 beach
- Hilton beach
- Le Meridien
- Sir Bani Yas on Desert Islands

Dubai
- Jumeirah Beach Hotel Marina
- Jumeirah Beach Hotel beach
- Le Royal Meridien beach
- Sheraton Dubai Jumeirah Beach Resort beach

Blue Flag Project Manager at EWS-WWF, Moaz Sawaf said: “Being able to award 12 more beaches and marinas with the Blue Flag across the UAE this year is very encouraging. It is the result of the hard work, commitment and determination put in by the site managers in each of the locations and will greatly benefit not only the conservation and protection of the UAE’s coastline, but will also help to boost tourism. We encourage more beaches and marinas to apply for the Blue Flag by contacting EWS-WWF.”

The Blue Flag programme is awarded on the basis of compliance of up to 32 criteria for beaches and 24 criteria for marinas covering four key areas: environmental education and information, water quality, environmental management, safety and services.

These newly awarded sites join a global list of more than 4000 beaches and marinas across 46 different countries, from the tropical shores of the Caribbean islands to the rugged cliffs of New Zealand.