Dubai, July 19 (IANS/WAM) The doors of the first environment-friendly mosque in the Islamic world were opened for worshippers here Friday by Awqaf and Minors Affairs Foundation (AMAF).
The Khalifa Al Tajer Mosque on Bur Saeed Street in Deira saw some 3,500 worshippers attending the first Friday sermon by Sheikh Salih Al Maghamsi, imam of Madina's Quba Mosque.
Located on 105,000 square feet of land, the new green mosque was designed with energy efficiency in mind and was built with environment-friendly material. The building, which covers 45,000 square feet, uses thermal-insulation systems for lowering energy consumption and air conditioners that emit reduced greenhouse gases.
"Environmental awareness is a pillar in Islam", Tayeb Al Rais, secretary-general of AMAF, a Dubai government body, said in remarks at the opening ceremony,
He expressed the hope that similar green projects would be implemented in line Dubai's vision for a sustainable future.
"The new mosque was built to meet guidelines set out by the US Green Building Council Standards and Specifications," he said.
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"The mosque integrates renewable energy solutions in its design. This is illustrated in the exterior lighting poles that are fitted with solar panels, battery storage system that is powered by solar energy, and the use of solar panels instead of energy draining electric heaters for the purpose of water heating."
The mosque also meets recent legislation in Dubai that requires new buildings to include green standards in the design, construction and operation of buildings, he noted.
--IANS/WAM
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