Remote cloud forests in Vietnam, hundreds of atolls in Micronesia, and a mangrove forest in El Salvador were among the 23 ecosystems which were added Thursday to a U.N. network established to fight the loss of biodiversity and promote sustainable development that helps local communities.The World Network of Biosphere Reserves now has 529 sites in 105 countries after the 23 new sites were added by the U.N. Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) following a three-day meeting this week at its Paris headquarters.At each reserve, local communities try to enhance their socio-economic development while promoting biodiversity conservation. The sites approved Thursday include habitats in three countries that until now have not had a reserve in the network-the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Qatar, and El Salvador.The Marawah biosphere reserve in the UAE includes sea-grass beds, coral reefs, and mangroves. At Qatar's Al-Reem site, which includes limestone formations under which lies an oil field, locals have opened breeding centers to reintroduce native animals-such as the Arabian oryx and desert gazelle-alongside modern oil and natural-gas infrastructure.El Salvador was home to two new biosphere reserves, one a mangrove forest and the other mountain vegetation over lava fields.Eight of the other new sites are in North, Central, and South America. Five are in Asia, three in Europe, one in Africa, and one in Australia. The Middle East had three, including Jabal Al Rihane in Lebanon.
