In her press statement on the 30th anniversary of Iraq's occupation of Kuwait, Dr. Wajdan Al-Aqab, President of the Kuwait Environment Protection Society, affirmed that the Kuwaiti environment suffered unprecedented destruction due to the military operations and the burning and destruction of oil wells during the brutal Iraqi invasion. She noted that "the state has come a long way at a great cost to rehabilitate the deteriorated ecosystems, but much remains to be done." She pointed out that "Kuwaiti lands were transformed into a theater of military operations during the Iraqi invasion, where heavy military equipment, including tanks and armored vehicles, spread and moved across the fragile desert surface, leading to changes in the precise topographical features, soil disintegration and fragmentation, destruction of vegetation cover, and the killing of wild animals. Iraqi forces also planted at least two million landmines in the Kuwaiti desert.".
Dr. Al-Aqab explained, “The environmental crime resulted in the bombing and setting of oil wells, creating what became known as oil lakes or death traps that covered vast areas and swallowed thousands of silent victims, such as birds and wild animals.” She emphasized the importance of considering the marine environment, as well as the components of the Kuwaiti desert—its soil, wildlife, land features, and groundwater—as a true asset and natural capital that must be developed and rehabilitated. She pointed out that “the environmental impact extended to the GCC countries, with the pollution of the Arabian Gulf and its western coast extending extensively along the coasts of Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and Bahrain, affecting the marine environment and fish stocks. This prompted the GCC countries to join forces during those dark days to protect the environment and its components, attempting to halt the spread of the negative cross-border impact, especially in shared water bodies. The world is also aware of the impact of the fires and their black smoke, laden with deadly pollutants, which traveled thousands of miles across continents.”.
She added, in a related context, “The environmental renaissance began with the revelation of the extent, nature, and impact of the destruction on various environments in the State of Kuwait. This led to the Kuwait Environment Protection Society’s call for a governmental body to work on environmental issues, culminating in the establishment of the Environment Public Authority in 1995. This was followed by the efforts of Kuwaitis in enacting Environmental Protection Law No. 42 of 2014 and the diligent work undertaken in cooperation with relevant authorities to rehabilitate damaged environments, treat soil, and eliminate the oil lakes that had covered the Kuwaiti desert.” She emphasized, “The Society has taken the first steps in guiding high school students to pursue studies in environmental science and environmental engineering, in order to implement Article 119 of Environmental Protection Law No. 42 of 2014, as amended by Law No. 99 of 2015, which mandates that government agencies and bodies establish environmental departments. Believing in the importance of moving forward towards a genuine environmental renaissance in the State of Kuwait, a country whose map has been marked by the most heinous acts of aggression, the Society is now addressing the relevant authorities.” The state recognizes the importance of utilizing the energies of young people who have studied these specializations to meet the country's needs in this rare field. Therefore, we appeal to those concerned and demand that the Civil Service Commission in the State of Kuwait seriously consider including engineering and environmental sciences among the specializations in the Commission, as well as including them in the work plan and sending the numbers of graduates in these specializations to the state ministries to confirm the existence of such specializations in the country, instead of waiting for the ministries to request these specializations. From experience, ministries do not submit requests for specializations that they are unaware exist in the field of work, despite their need for them. Thus, the graduate is confronted with bureaucracy and red tape that deprives him of his right to highlight his important specialization and wrongs the state by not benefiting from him.”.
Dr. Al-Aqab pointed out that on more than one occasion the Civil Service Bureau has stated that specializations are only included at the request of state ministries and agencies, even though the Civil Service Bureau is the competent authority in clarifying specializations, preparing graduates who are able to work and ready to enter the labor market, and submitting them to ministries and agencies to take the necessary action. She added, “It is not permissible, of course, to change the name because there is no similar name for it in the Bureau, in application of Article 41 of the Constitution of the State of Kuwait, which stipulates the right of the Kuwaiti citizen to obtain a job and also to choose the type of job. Accordingly, it is not permissible to change the name of the specialization because there is no equivalent for it in the Bureau, and it is more appropriate to create these specializations and include them in its tables.”.
