Revitalising heritage

HSBC Oman’s Frankincense Research Project in collaboration with Environment Society of Oman seeks to determine the right frequency of tapping frankincense trees

Frankincense trees are not only important for the protection of the environment but are also an integral part of the Omani heritage. Preliminary findings indicate that the manner in which trees are tapped to harvest frankincense can lead to degeneration beyond repair. HSBC Oman’s Frankincense Research Project in association with Environment Society of Oman (ESO) aims to determine the right frequency of cutting to retrieve a good yield without harming the trees. The study will also pinpoint the potential impacts of climate change on the growth pattern of Frankincense trees.

Concrete findings and recommendations to ensure the sustainability of frankincense farming, a primary source of Dhofar’s livelihood, will then be disseminated to farmers, relevant government authorities including the Ministry of Agriculture and Ministry of Environment and Climate Affairs and the local community for implementation. Educational programmes in school will also be introduced to spread long-term awareness amongst youth to ingrain a greener mindset.

Three goals
The project aims to engender three major benefits, the first is to revitalise the generations-old business of frankincense farming and the second is to minimise urban sprawl in Dhofar and finally to engage and build capacities of the local farmers. Initiated in February 2010, the project is funded by HSBC and executed by the Environment Society of Oman (ESO), and it aims to successfully promote environmental awareness and to support unique local attributes to Oman.

The ESO’s lead researcher of the project, Dr Mohsin Al Amri has been conducting quantitative fieldwork which includes collecting, recording and analysing data since the start of the project and will continue for the next four years. To date, 180 were sampled in four identified areas in the Governorate of Dhofar, which were then classified according to the circumference of the trunk and tagged. A part-time technician was also trained directly by Dr Al Amri, to build local capacities and highlight the importance of safeguarding Frankincense farming among the community. Three weather stations were also installed to pinpoint the potential impacts of climate change.

The frankincense produced by each tree is weighed and the data collected is stored in the project’s database. At the end of the project, a maximum yield can be estimated for each of the four sites. All the parameters collected over the first year of research represent the baseline data of the project. The data collected in the subsequent years will be benchmarked against this data to identify trends in terms of abundance, health and yield. At the end of the four-year research, the project will attempt to establish a correlation between the different characteristics of the frankincense trees and their yield. 

 

Top^