Dubai-based design firm X Architects has created a bird watching facility on a former waste water and rubbish tip in the northern UAE emirate of Sharjah.
The Wasit Natural Reserve has been given a visitor centre to educate people on the wetland ecosystem and provide information about the birds that frequent the area and other wetlands areas of the emirate.
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The reserve’s sand dunes, salt flats and lagoons are home to 350 species of birds and provide a landing zone for 33,000 individual migrants.
The H-shaped centre tries to blend into its surroundings. When visitors arrive, a pathway leads them underground into a linear gallery, where a transparent wall allows them to experience the birds’ natural environment.
The process of rehabilitation the eco-system damaged by the waste dump started in 2005. So far, 40,000 square metres of rubbish have been removed, 35,000 trees have been re-planted and toxic chemicals have been cleaned from the soil.
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The centre was opened last year.
Images via X Architects