International Conference on Combating Sand and Dust Storms
(Challenges and Practical Solutions)
CSDS 1
Regional Cooperation on Sustainable Dust Disaster Management
Alireza Daemi & Bahram Taheri
Vice Minister of Ministry of Energy – I. R. Iran
Iran, Tehran, July 3rd to 5th. 2017
Why should we have cooperation on Dust management in MEWA ?
Interaction on Drought, Dust Storms and Climate
Dust Storms
Drought
Reducing
precipitation
Location of Dust and Sand Sources
Impacts
Effects on Human Health
types of dust in terms of particles
Clay
Silt
Higher potential to
absorb pollutants
Transfer Capability to long
distances due to lower
weight
Soil pollution is caused by the
various wars in the region and the
possibility of existence of various
pollutants in the dust
The potential to adsorb
heavy metals
Effects on Human Health
Heavy metals in the dust contains lead, mercury, cadmium and arsenic which inhaling them are caused:
- Heart beat irregularities
- Heart attacks
- Respiratory problems
- Severe and chronic headaches
- Severe allergies
- Skin diseases
- Obesity
- Types of Cancer
- Infertility
- The imbalance of hormones
- Abortion
- Anemia
- Weakened immune system
- Metabolic disorders
- Damage to kidney, liver and brain
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Dust Effects on Natural Ecosystems and Climate
•
Reducing precipitation
•
Destroy the soil structures
•
Absorption and scattering of solar radiation
•
Affect air temperature
•
Dust fertilization and increase formation of phytoplankton
•
Ecosystem changes
7
Mission of the Conference

Creation of a Regional Partnership on Combating Sand and Dust
Storms (RPCSDS)

Designation of a Plenary Assembly to constitute the decision
making body of the RPCSDS. To embrace all the partners in a
yearly meeting to review and prioritize RPCSDS actions while
facilitating a balanced regional decision-making process.

Striving to become an interactive, responsive partnership, open to
governments, regional organizations, institutions and other
stakeholders at various levels.

A unified and authoritative voice is needed to better coordinate
efforts in combating regional Sand and Dust Storms.
Partnership Requirements

Partners Types

National Focal Points

Creation of an Intergovernmental Technical Panel On RPCSDS
Notes:
I. R. Iran to volunteer to become the first Secretariat for the RPCSDS
Core Fundamentals for RPCSDS

Soil is a finite natural resource.

It is non-renewable on a human time-scale.

However, despite the essential role that soil plays in the life of people, there
is increasing degradation of soil resources due to inappropriate practices,
burgeoning population pressures and inadequate governance over this
essential resource.

Soils, the foundation of agricultural development and ecological
sustainability, provide the basis for food, feed, fuel and fiber production,
clean water availability, nutrient cycling, organic carbon stocks, global
biodiversity.

Soils serve as a platform for construction and construction material.

However, soil quality varies with site conditions and management
practices.
Vision
The mandate of the RPCSDS should be to improve governance of the
regional cooperation, with international support through the UN Secretary
General to:
 guarantee healthy and sustainable lifestyle in relation to the existing
historical backgrounds as far as it relates to the sand and dust storms and
their natural and anthropogenic causes, whether related to short-term
water management issues or the long-term climate change related causes.
 to support and preserve other essential ecosystem services, in accordance
with the sovereign rights of each State over its natural resources and
cultures, keeping each country harmless of negligence of other parties
 The RPCSDS should be an interactive and responsive partnership.
 The RPCSDS should set the NEXUS approach in optimizing the response
measure and risk management due to dust and sand storms.
Mission (1)

RPCSDS should develop awareness among governments,
other stakeholders and the public

Contribute to the development of capacities,

Build on best available science and technology

Facilitate/contribute to the exchange of knowledge and
technologies among stakeholders to develop proper response
measures to challenges and risks through adoption of
practical solutions
Mission (2)

RPCSDS should address the insufficiencies of the existing water resource
management practices in partner countries to upgrade them to at least IWRM
standards.

RPCSDS should address the insufficiencies within more than two-decades which
IWRM practice in resolving the meso-scale problems arising from the neglect that
environmental, social, economical and political ramifications of basin-level
management of water resources or lack there of, strongly and negatively impacts
neighboring micro cultures, societies, nations and civilizations.

RPCSDS should address the priority setting based on historical rights between the
upstream and downstream water rights associated with ecosystems and population
centers.
Conveying a Message from the Creation of an Artist!

Fertile ground has always had the chance of taking a new creative form, the strokes
of artist are a depiction of nature's ability to sustain a continuous state of flux
and/or transformation.

Nature (in particular soil and water) and human-kind are inextricably linked and
man has been always identified by water and soil!

The background image is a photograph in which the sprouts of grass have emerged
between the cracks of earth in the path of a drained river, where there is life in
nature, there is beauty, and where there is life and beauty, man knows that he/she
can live!

Ref: Soil Art Exhibition in FAO HQs in Rome, June 20th, 2017
Thanks for your Attention