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...no hotels in Sharm El-Sheikh can hold outdoor buffets now because of the ubiquitous flies, that have appeared in the past few years as a result of raw garbage or sewage dumped nearby. Even more ominous is the arrival of a new species, the deadly desert mosquito, happily breeding in open-water tanks, sewage pipes and newly planted lawns, golf courses and plants which have been imposed on the desert landscape...

...Sinai, seen gloriously from the tiny peak of its namesake mountain, is a case in point. One looks out into the night sky to see two large areas of light pollution on the horizon: the reflected lights shining high over Dahab and Sharm El-Sheikh. Not for those cities the desert glories of vivid stars, comet showers and incredible moonlight. Developed speculatively on the questionable theory that predicted world tourism increases of 60 percent will increase Egypt's share of tourism, the coastal over development has -- within a two-year period -- destroyed what was one of the loveliest coastlines in the world... Once-silent mountainous deserts now host not caravans of majestic camels, but buses, 4x4s, taxis, commercial vehicles and ATVs backed up by jeeps for refueling, taking the noisy machines deep into the hinterland. Not to mention the waves of wind-borne garbage. The fragile carrying capacity of the desert is hopelessly eroded.

Sharm El-Sheikh is now a colony of Cairo, judging by its noise, lights, garbage, flies, mosquitoes and work force. The shops only sell Cairene curios and carpets; most taxi drivers are from the Delta; and even the tour guides are not locals, but importees with a minimal knowledge of the peninsula. Whilst developers say critically that, "The Bedouins are just take, take, take," the Bedouins themselves stand powerless in the areas being developed whilst everything most dear to them is taken, taken, taken. Land, work, lifestyle, quality of living and opportunity and, most tragically, the environment -- in which their unique nomadic culture is grounded -- is eroded. Why such a culture should not be valued more in a country of which 95 percent is desert seems strange to many and baffling to the Bedouins themselves....

Wise planners in Cairo talk of the need to consult with communities before development is undertaken, so that local needs and requirements may be improved. Neither consulted nor respected, development has been forced upon Sinai's residents, regardless of their needs, so that, for example, toxic waste from the hospitals of Sharm El-Sheikh was being dumped (along with Sharm's other garbage) on the impoverished village of Ruwaysat, behind the bay, where some 20 sheep and goats die every day as a result. Since the nearby Bedouin village of Hyanoor was bulldozed to make way for even more tourism development, this may be a relatively small price to pay.

Yet no hotels in Sharm El-Sheikh can hold outdoor buffets now because of the ubiquitous flies, that have appeared in the past few years as a result of raw garbage or sewage dumped nearby. Even more ominous is the arrival of a new species, the deadly desert mosquito, happily breeding in open-water tanks, sewage pipes and newly planted lawns, golf courses and plants which have been imposed on the desert landscape....