First home-grown grass planted around Qatar’s 2022 FIFA World Cup stadiums
The first game of the 2022 FIFA World Cup may still be four years away, but that has not reduced the speed of Qatar’s preparations.
Qatar, which is looking to plant its own grass and trees at the different stadiums, got the initiative off to a flying start.
According to the Supreme Committee for Delivery and Legacy’s (SC) official website. the first instalment of grass grown at SC’s ground-breaking Turf Nursery have been planted around the Al Bayt Stadium in Al Khor City.
The nursery, which has been custom built to provide turf and trees for different 2022 FIFA World Cup venues, is a first-of-its-kind initiative anywhere in the region.
It is also a glowing endorsement for SC’s commitment towards ensuring that the quadrennial tournament will leave a lasting sustainable and environmental legacy for the country, reported Gulf Times.
The ground-breaking Tree Nursery spans a total area of more than 880,000SqM, which is approximately equal to the size of the iconic Aspire Park.
Located in the Umm Salal Muhammad North area, it currently contains more than 16,000 trees and 679,000 shrubs. It also boasts of 60 types of trees and shrubs, originating from Qatar, Thailand and Spain, reported The Peninsula.
The wide varieties of plants and trees make it one of the largest and most diverse nurseries in the region, and the biggest landscape turf farm in the world.
Further enhancing its sustainability quotient is its irrigation system, which used only recycled water fed from the nearby Doha North Sewage Treatment Works Plant.
After the end of the tournament, the facility will be converted into a public park, thus further contributing to the SC’s efforts to leave a lasting environmental and social legacy.
“This is a very exciting time for us as we prepare to plant the turf on the first pitch of one of the new stadiums for 2022. The grass surrounding Al Wakrah and Al Rayyan stadiums will follow closely next November,” Yasser Al Mulla, SC’s Landscape and Sport Turf Management Senior Manager, was quoted as saying by Qatar Tribune.
“The grass was first planted on the ‘motherland,’ which is the term used to describe the land selected and tested to plant the turf and measure its suitability in the atmosphere and weather conditions in Qatar.
“First, we planted an area of 22,000SqM and, upon successful testing, this was increased to 423,000SqM, cultivated with the same turf. It was harvested three times per year with the total amount being 1,200,000SqM,” he added.
