TEHRAN – An Iranian delegation led by Shina Ansari, the head of the Department of Environment (DOE), is participating in the ninth session of the Committee on Environment and Development (CED9) being held from July 1-3 in Bangkok, Thailand.

Ambassador of Iran to Thailand, Nassereddin Heidari, welcomed the delegation on Wednesday, doe.ir reported.

The official is scheduled to expound on the country's measures in the environment sector, participate in specialized meetings, hold meetings with her counterparts from other countries, and explore ways to boost regional and international interactions in the environment sector.

Bringing together ministers, leaders, and policymakers, the event aims to reinforce regional cooperation to address key environmental and development challenges, including climate change, biodiversity loss, pollution, sustainable resource management, and disaster risks.

The session will consist of a ministerial segment on the first day, followed by a senior official segment on the second and third days. A series of associated events, side events, and exhibitions will be organized to foster in-depth dialogue and facilitate substantive exchanges among participants.

It will review progress in the priority areas outlined in the Ministerial Declaration, on Protecting Our Planet through Regional Cooperation and Solidarity in Asia and the Pacific, adopted by the Committee at its seventh session in 2022, as well as standing issues to be addressed by the Committee, with an added focus on promoting synergistic policymaking and integrated implementation to advance the Sustainable Development Goals and address the triple planetary crisis — climate change, biodiversity loss, and pollution.

The CED is a subsidiary body of the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP). It is convened every two years to review regional trends, identify priorities for action, promote dialogue, consider common regional positions, and promote a collaborative approach to addressing the development challenges of the region between Governments and civil society, the private sector, and the UN System and other international organizations. The Committee provides recommendations to the Commission. Every four years, the Committee is convened at the ministerial level to provide high-level guidance.

Measures to strengthen preservation of natural habitats

To strengthen the preservation of natural habitats and protected areas, the DOE has taken different measures, such as inaugurating a national committee for the smart protection of the environment, revising protected areas management, combating drought impacts, and developing fire extinguishing infrastructure.

The national committee for smart protection of the environment consists of university professors and experts. It has so far held four sessions discussing plans for the smart protection of Golestan National Park, Tandooreh National Park, a protected area located northeast of Iran, the DOE monitoring center, and ecological drought, IRNA quoted Vahid Kheirabadi, an official with the DOE, as saying.

The inauguration of a knowledge-based ‘satellite fire observations system (known as the Sahm System) in the past Iranian year 1404 (March 2025 – March 2026) was one of the main achievements of the department, the official added.

Satellite data provided by the system has enhanced fire detection and monitoring and made it possible to prepare specialized reports for areas under management.

The DOE has recently launched the Bushehr fire station and has kicked off the construction of two new fire stations in Bemo National Park and the Miankaleh peninsula, Kheirabadi further noted.

Moreover, the department has developed a national drought and ecological monitoring system, which is planned to be unveiled in the near future.

To combat drought, some 150 billion rials (about 87,000 dollars) have been allocated to sensitive ecosystems. The fund will be spent on repairing springs, canals, water troughs, and reservoirs, as well as the purchase of modern equipment for storing water and transporting it to provinces affected by drought.

The official went on to say that over the past Iranian year, the DOE revised and prepared management plans in numerous areas, and the revised plans are being implemented in 30 key regions.

The protected areas under the DOE’s supervision now account for 12 per cent (19.8 million hectares) of the country’s land area. To preserve these areas, the DOE has developed smart, specialized protection plans, IRNA quoted Hamid Zohrabi, an official with the DOE, as saying in January.

Referring to frequent wildfires in the country’s forests, the official said the plans include holding specialized training courses on extinguishing wildfires in cooperation with local communities.  

To make environmental protection smarter, the DOE has signed a memorandum of understanding with a knowledge-based company. Accordingly, the DOE will be equipped with a system that provides early warnings before a fire outbreak, the official added.

Since most protected areas are impassable and inaccessible, the DOE aims to install cameras and sensors to detect heat and fire sources early, Zohrabi noted.

MT/MG