Environmental activists on Tuesday expressed their “absolute rejection” of plans to establish fish farms in Aqaba, warning against their adverse impact on marine life and coral reefs.

 

The Jordanian Federation for Environmental NGOs said that although two high-level committees at the Aqaba Special Economic Zone Authority (ASEZA) ruled against the project due to its negative impact on the marine life, ASEZA is still pressing ahead with the project.

 

A private engineering and construction company, chaired by a current parliamentarian, is planning to establish the project in the Aqaba Marine Park, according to the federation, an umbrella for eight of the Kingdom’s environmental NGOs.

 

The federation on Tuesday sent a letter to Environment Minister Taher Shakhshir, in which they briefed him about the project and its impact on the marine environment.

 

The federation also urged the minister to “take strict and precautionary measures to prevent the implementation of this dangerous and highly sensitive project” and to protect what is left of Aqaba’s coastline that is open to the public.

 

The fish farms are projected to be established in the Aqaba Marine Park, a nature reserve located 15 kilometers from downtown Aqaba.

 

The government declared the seven-kilometer beach located along the southern coastline of the port city as a marine park in 1997 with the aim of protecting the marine environment from rising pollution resulting from the rapid growth of Aqaba’s population and expansion in its industrial activities, according to the park’s website.