DubaiDubai

Quick HistoryQuick History• Formed in the early 1800s• Geographic location made it perfect for

trade• Massive oil reserves found in the late

1960s• Rapidly the economy expanded as

foreign companies invested $$$• By 1971 the city’s size expanded 300%• Dec. 2, 1971 Dubai and 6 other

emirates formed the UAE

History cont…History cont…

• While most of the city was built on oil revenue the government invested much of that money into more sustainable development

• Today the bulk of Dubai’s revenue comes from tourism, property and financial services

TourismTourism• Burj-al-Arab• 7-Star Hotel• Heli-pad• Controlled

access• Rooms range

between $1000- $25,000 / night

This is as close as I got!

LuxuryLuxury

Palm IslandPalm Island

Palm IslandsPalm Islands

• Largest Man-made islands ever!!• Islands in the shape of giant palm trees• Each encircled by a large breakwater• Three in total:

– Palm Jumeriah– Palm Jabel Ali– Palm Deira

• Construction began in 2001

ConstructionConstruction

• Dredgers 20 miles offshore constantly sucked up sand from the ocean floor.

• Palm Jumeirah took 80 million cubic meters of land.

• Palm Jabel Ali is even bigger!!• Palm Deira was planned on being the

biggest, but was scaled back after the financial crisis

Palm JumeriahPalm Jumeriah

• 8km long “tree trunk”

• 17 “fronds” between 100m-1km

• Host hotels, villas, mega malls, amusement parks, etc.

The WorldThe World

The WorldThe World

• A total area of 20 square miles• $14 billion to build• 300 islands arranged to look like the

globe• Each island is 5 to 20 acres• You can buy your own for as little as $7

million or as much as $35 million

Environmental ImpactEnvironmental Impact

• Construction is taking its toll on local marine life

• Coral beds and sea grass habitats are being destroyed

• These play a major role in the local ecosystems

• Recent estimates put the habitat loss at 35%

Nakheel’s ResponseNakheel’s Response

• Nakheel is the company building the islands

• They acknowledge the damage and promise to reverse it after construction

• One suggestion is to build artificial reefs after construction is completed and the sediment has settled

• They also are employing marine biologists to monitor and repair damaged reefs