Libya: Ashaafean, a unique reserve threatened by climate change

Long refuge for hyenas, rare birds and plants, the Ashaafean nature reserve, near the Libyan Tripoli capital, is today threatened by climate change and human activity.

Two hours away from Tripoli, beyond the mountains of Nafusa, the Ashaafean park is home to semi-arid forests, meadows and desert landscapes.But "climate change, the lack of precipitation and the long episodes of drought in the summer made the reserve vulnerable to fires," Anas al-Qiyadi, of the Libyan Wildlife Association, explains to AFP..

And with the forest exploitation combined with rampant urbanization, "the diversity of fauna and flora is altered", he adds.

In mid-September, Ashaafean became the first Libyan site to be appointed biosphere reserve by UNESCO, a classification which aims to promote sustainable development and protect ecosystems, while supporting research and education.

"The central area of 83.000 hectares of the biosphere reserve houses a variety of rare or threatened species, in particular medicinal and aromatic plants as well as wildlife species on the Red List of the IUCN (the International Union for Conservation of Nature), such as the striped hyena (Hyaena Hyaena), the earthly turtle (Testudo Graeca) and the Houbara bustard (Chlamydotis Undulata) ", indicates UNESCO.

- volunteers -

M.Qiyadi hopes that this inclusion on UNESCO's list will participate in better protection of the site, appointed by the Libyan authorities Reserve Nature in 1978.

During the decade of violence which followed the fall of the regime of Muammar Gaddafi in 2011, the authorities, weakened and divided, were unable to protect the nine natural reserves of this country in North Africa, more inmore threatened by human activity.

Ashaafean is home to 350 varieties of plants as well as twenty species of birds, reptiles and mammals in danger.Several initiatives are underway to protect the reserve, including a program to elevate threatened turtles in captivity and then release them in the wild, says Mr..Qiyadi.

"A few days ago, we released 36 turtles threatened in protected forests," he added.

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Volunteers have also mobilized to water the trees during the long episodes of drought, continues the associative manager, adding that irrigation networks alone remain insufficient.

"Because the source of water is far from the reserve, we have launched with a group of volunteers an initiative to irrigate and plant more trees, but that requires continuous mobilization," he explains.

- "Preservation" -

Faith fires, fussy by extreme heat, struck several countries around the Mediterranean last summer, notably neighboring Algeria.

If Libya has been generally spared this year, it has been affected since 2015 by large forest fires, carrying many animals and ravaging trees of several centuries in many centuries..

Tareq al-Jdeidy, researcher at the University of Tripoli, led the campaign that allowed Ashaafean to be declared by UNESCO Biosphere Reserve, which he considers to be "a step towards better protection".

"This will draw the attention of international environmental organizations dedicated to the protection of animals and plants, which will contribute to the preservation and development of the reserve", he hopes.

According to UNESCO, most of the 65.000 inhabitants of this biosphere reserve live from sustainable traditional agriculture, wood collection and beekeeping.

M.JDeidy hopes to make it a pioneering park in the fight against desertification and that its development will have local economic benefits.