A new federal draft law on integrated waste management has been passed by the Federal National Council (FNC), UAE. The law regulates the proper management of waste disposal methods to prevent or reduce the negative effects resulting from waste generation and management, and reduce the amount of waste produced in the country. It is also aimed at boosting the country's efforts on the economic front and will lay down sustainable and smart solutions to use the material for alternative purposes, as per a news agency report. Describing it as a turning point in environmental management in the UAE, FNC speaker Dr Amal Abdullah Al Qubaisi said the bill was “an nprecedented federal legal framework to deal with challenges posed by the issue of wastes management, which is closely related to the issues of environment protection and public health.” The draft law covers all aspects of waste management from production, classification, collection, and transport to storage, recycling, treatment, and disposal. The provisions of the law reportedly include a fine of Dhs 1million for offenders. As per the draft law, any private entity found disposing of, or burning waste in undesignated areas including roads, public parks, water channels, etc., will receive a fine. Nuclear and radioactive wastes are excluded from the law.