“The forum springs from the Kingdom’s awareness of the significance of the environment and its concern for environmental risks that it is exposed to in rapid development activities,” President of Meteorology and Environment Protection Presidency Prince Turki bin Nassir said in a statement to the Saudi Press Agency on Friday.

King Abdullah is concerned about environment protection and gives the highest priority to protect the environment when economic and development projects are implemented, the prince added in his statement.

Topics to be discussed at the three-day forum carrying the theme Exchange and Sustained Development, are Nuclear Energy as a Strategic Power Source, Ways to Reduce the Impact of Oil Exploration and Production on Environment and Implementation of the Strategy for Sustained Development and Environment.

The Saudi Environment Society is organizing the forum under the supervision of the Presidency of Meteorology and Environment Protection with the participation of experts, researchers and decision makers. 

Some important agreements related to environmental protection will be signed at the forum with the Ministry of Education to develop a culture of environmental preservation in the new generation.

The forum will also announce the launch of a new chair for environmental studies. It will be known as the Chair of Prince Turki Bin Nasser for Environmental Research and Studies.

The forum will also announce two awards — one of them for the company that makes the most notable contribution to protect the environment. The other one will be the Prince Turki Bin Nasser Prize for Environment to encourage contributions in the field by students in the Gulf Cooperation Council countries.

“The forum will be a turning point for collective and systematic environmental activities,” the prince said, stressing the importance of each individual in society participating in the efforts to avoid environmental threats.

The Kingdom has taken necessary precautions for the protection of the environment and the implementation of environmental standards.

The prince also announced the Kingdom’s plans to launch green cities. “We have drawn up plans and strategies that would realize the existence of model environmentally friendly cities in its general form and also a system in which a city’s residents follow a lifestyle to preserve the environment,” he said.

The prince added that the Saudi Environment Society was established because “we cannot work without the participation of the people and nor can we achieve our goals without friends and ambassadors for preserving the environment.”

The forum will also be accompanied by an exhibition with the participation of 60 companies and organizations.