Last Updated: July
20. 2008 7:30PM UAE / July 20. 2008 3:30PM GMT
ABU DHABI // Local
developers have been altering many of Abu
Dhabi’s 200 islands – some natural, some
man-made – to make way for high-rise buildings,
marinas and luxury villa developments.
These shoreline reclamations and island re-shapings
are being closely watched by the Urban Planning
Council, because it is one of the capital’s
defining policies to maintain the islands’
natural beauty and wildlife.
“Several of the islands have been changed over
the years, but not much is allowed now,” said
Peter Hellyer, a consultant specialising in the
UAE’s history, heritage and environment.
Coconut Island, behind the Intercontinental
Hotel, was nothing more than “sea water” at one
point, said Mr Hellyer. Now Aldar Properties is
reshaping what was originally built in the
location to house a 160-room Ritz Carlton resort
and about 80 villas for nationals and GCC
citizens. The project is set to open in 2011.
A rendering of the plans shows an eventual shape
that looks vaguely like the continent of Africa,
with a large lagoon in the middle.
Dubai has gained international attention for
populating the barren waters off its coast with
man made islands. Another two are reportedly
underway, near the Burj Al Arab hotel, and
Nakheel is still finishing number of its
announced reclamation projects including Palm
Deira, Palm Jebel Ali, and the Universe.
So far, the conventional wisdom about damage to
marine life is not playing out in Dubai: Nakheel
has said that the islands of the World have been
drawing, rather than repelling, in sea life.
For Abu Dhabi, the greater challenge is less
about reshaping new islands but putting the
proper transportation in place so people can get
to them from the city’s centres. On Lulu Island,
another island created on reclaimed land in
front of the Corniche, Sorouh Real Estate’s
masterplan provides a bridge, underground
tunnel, monorail and water taxis as options.
Aldar is also finishing up the dredging and
shaping of the Al Gurm resort, which will
eventually have an eco-friendly 322-suite resort
as well as residential villas. Its Al Raha Beach
development is being built on reclaimed land
with some dredging being done around the Yas
Island project, which will host a Formula 1 race
in the autumn.
Meanwhile, Mubadala’s property and hospitality
division is filling in land around Sowwah Island
– which is set to become the capital’s new
financial centre. It will feature a cluster of
tall office buildings and a new headquarters for
the Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange at its centre,
with 13 bridges connecting it to Abu Dhabi and
Reem islands.
Perhaps the largest land reclamation project in
the emirate is the Dh37 billion (US$10bn)
Khalifa Port at Taweelah. It will have a number
of facilities, including the world’s largest
aluminium smelter, on a 275-hectare artificial
island about 4.6km from Abu Dhabi. The island,
which will be connected to the mainland by
causeway, was built offshore so as to preserve
the natural environment.
“We didn’t want to build something very near the
shore because it would have impacted the
corals,” said Majid Yavary, the deputy director
of capital projects at Abu Dhabi Ports Company,
has said.
Among the most environmentally damaging aspects
of reclaimed land is the disruption of tidal
flows of nutrients from the deeper parts of the
ocean to the shallower coastal areas.
Still, when it comes to Abu Dhabi, “in terms of
the amount of area that is involved, it’s pretty
small stuff”, said Mr Hellyer. “Especially in
comparison to the Palms in Dubai.”
ABU DHABI // Local
developers have been altering many of Abu
Dhabi’s 200 islands – some natural, some
man-made – to make way for high-rise buildings,
marinas and luxury villa developments. 
