Little is known about the main sources of ambient particulate matter (PM) in the 22 Eastern Mediterranean Region (EMR) countries. We designed this study to systematically review all published and unpublished source apportionment (SA), identification and characterization studies as well as emission inventories in the EMR. Of 440 articles identified, 82 (11 emission inventory ones) met our inclusion criteria for final analyses. Of 22 EMR countries, Iran with 30 articles had the highest number of studies on source specific PM followed by Pakistan (n = 15 articles) and Saudi Arabia (n = 8 papers). By contrast, there were no studies in Afghanistan, Bahrain, Djibouti, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria, Tunisia, United Arab Emirates and Yemen. Approximately 72% of studies (51) were published within a span of 2015–2021.48 studies identified the sources of PM₂.₅ and its constituents. Positive matrix factorization (PMF), principal component analysis (PCA) and chemical mass balance (CMB) were the most common approaches to identify the source contributions of ambient PM. Both secondary aerosols and dust, with 12–51% and 8–80% (33% and 30% for all EMR countries, on average) had the greatest contributions in ambient PM₂.₅. The remaining sources for ambient PM₂.₅, including mixed sources (traffic, industry and residential (TIR)), traffic, industries, biomass burning, and sea salt were in the range of approximately 4–69%, 4–49%, 1–53%, 7–25% and 3–29%, respectively. For PM₁₀, the most dominant source was dust with 7–95% (49% for all EMR countries, on average). The limited number of SA studies in the EMR countries (one study per approximately 9.6 million people) in comparison to Europe and North America (1 study per 4.3 and 2.1 million people respectively) can be augmented by future studies that will provide a better understanding of emission sources in the urban environment.

Selected heavy metals and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) were determined in marine sediment from 28 sites Djibouti city. The concentrations of trace elements varied from 0 to 288.1mg/kg with relative abundance of trace metals in sediments was in the order of Zn>Cu>Ni>Cr>Co>Pb>Cd. Zn, Cu and Ni exceeded consensus based sediment quality guideline values 7, 14, 15 sites respectively. Enrichment factor and pollution load index showed relatively low to moderate contamination. The concentrations of total 16 PAHs varied widely depending on the sample location and ranged from 2.65 to 3760.11ng·g−1, with the mean concentration value of 387.87ng·g−1. Compositions and relative abundance of individual PAH using molecular diagnostic ratio using congener's m/z 178 and 202 indicated pyrolytic origin and reflecting a petroleum combustion, grass/wood and coal combustion and a petrogenic source. This study represents the first pollution baseline and a reference for future studies in Djibouti.

Djiboutian coral reefs are poorly studied, but are of critical importance to tourism and artisanal fishing in this small developing nation. In 2014 and 2016 we carried out the most comprehensive survey of Djiboutian reefs to date, and present data on their ecology, health and estimate their vulnerability to future coral bleaching and anthropogenic impacts. Reef type varied from complex reef formations exposed to wind and waves along the Gulf of Aden, to narrow fringing reefs adjacent to the deep sheltered waters of the Gulf of Tadjoura. Evidence suggests that in the past 35 years the reefs have not previously experienced severe coral bleaching or significant human impacts, with many reefs having healthy and diverse coral and fish populations. Mean coral cover was high (52%) and fish assemblages were dominated by fishery target species and herbivores. However, rising sea surface temperatures (SSTs) and rapid recent coastal development activities in Djibouti are likely future threats to these relatively untouched reefs.

Hg and ²¹⁰Po were measured in the muscle tissue of commercially important fish species collected in the main coastal cities of the Djiboutian coast (Tadjoura Gulf) to evaluate the potential risk associated with their consumption. The levels of Hg among the different species ranged from 0.02 to 1.69 mg/kg w.w and exceeded tolerable limits as reported by the national regulation (2000-0727/PR/MAEM) and the Codex Alimentarius. The probabilistic distributions of health hazard were evaluated through Monte-Carlo simulation, which confirmed the carcinogenic risk from Hg. The levels of ²¹⁰Po ranged from 4.1 to 134.5 Bq/kg w.w among muscle tissues of the eight commercially important species. The carcinogenic risk was in an unacceptable range and simulation revealed that children were the most vulnerable population. The results obtained confirms that the health impact is reduced when consuming two servings per week.

Slowing and reversing climate change and keeping energy prices at affordable levels are the main important achievements of the use of renewable energy. About 210% increase in energy consumption from 1990 to 2018, reduction in fossil fuel reserves, and high capacity of renewable energy in Arab countries encourage them to increase the use of renewable and sustainable energy sources as a key way to supply the energy in future and have a sustainable economy. There is no a comprehensive review study to focus on the capacity and strategies of renewable energy in Arab countries at the transnational level until 2030. To fill this gap, this article investigates the current and future capacities and strategies of renewable energy production by 22 Arab countries, which are the center of fossil energy production in the world, until 2030. Indeed, it provides a roadmap for advancement towards energy production from renewable sources in these countries. It is observed that Egypt and Morocco with an installed capacity of 5980 and 3447 MW, respectively, had the highest installed renewable energy capacity among the Arab countries in 2020. The results also showed that most ambitious goal is related to Djibouti, where it is targeted to supply 100% of energy from renewable resource by 2035. Finally, it should be mentioned that most Arab countries focus on solar and wind energy, and very little attention is paid to geothermal, biomass, and hydroelectric energy.