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It gives us great pleasure to strongly commend the Governor of the Red Sea, General Mahmoud Assem, for his decision to protect the Indo-pacific dolphin (Tursiops aduncus) population in the Hurghada area.

Over the past years the amount of stress exerted upon this population by the tourism industry has been phenomenal, with unregulated and unsustainable dolphin watching and swimming-with activities happening on daily basis.

The first step for the protection of this species has just been taken: the Red Sea Governor’s Decree 379/2011 has established the south western area of Fanous Reef as a “safe zone” where all vessels, large and small, are banned from entering at this sensitive ecological hotspot. Diving and snorkeling activities can take place within the “safe zone” as long as best practices for dolphin watching are abided by.