Oman’s be’ah plans first-ever ‘Raptor Restaurants’ to sustain rare birds

Nature conservation: Two specially-designed feeding sites to be established at be’ah facilities during 2021

@conradprabhu

Oman Environmental Services Holding Company (be’ah), the country’s solid waste management entity, says it plans to introduce the concept of ‘raptor restaurants’ – sites within landfills where slaughterhouse waste can provide sustenance to endangered species of raptor birds found in the Sultanate.

Raptors, a generic description for all birds of prey, are essentially carnivorous birds distinguished by their large talons, strong bills and superior flight capabilities. Sightings of raptors in the Sultanate include the Egyptian Vulture and the Steppe Eagle, which are classified as ‘endangered’ in the IUCN’s Red List of Threatened Species.

According to be’ah — part of Oman Investment Authority (OIA) — raptors are a common sight over its landfills. Citing studies undertaken by the Environmental Society of Oman (ESO) and the Office for the Conservation of the Environment (Diwan of Royal Court), it noted that multiple sightings of these birds have been recorded over dumpsites at Al Multaqa, Tahwa, Masirah and Raysut in the Sultanate.

“These conservation bodies approached be’ah with this data, and concerns that the birds’ local population was falling, citing decline in food availability due to decommissioning of traditional open dumpsites, as the reason. The Company worked on an initiative that could boost their numbers in these areas and thus, Raptor Restaurants were born,” said be’ah in its latest sustainability report.

It explained that the concept grew out of its quest for innovative waste disposal practices. “be’ah continues to innovate to find better solutions to waste disposal challenges.

It strives to include the local biodiversity and wildlife in its scope as these are important pillars and the reason for all initiatives towards sustainability,” the company stated.

Significantly, at least two such Raptor Restaurants are proposed to be established at be’ah’s dumpsite facilities in the Sultanate during 2021.

These feeding areas are essentially “dedicated sites where clean and safe waste from slaughterhouses is laid out for the raptors without compromising the safety and hygiene of the US EPA-standard landfills”, the company said.

Following a pilot study launched in 2019 to test the concept in Oman, bird populations rose from under 20 to around 500, be’ah added.