It has allowed plants, such as early sand grass and various orchids, to pop their heads out of the soil for the first time in years.

BBC: Modern cowboy keeps cattle safe

However, standing in one of the country's 30 solar plants -- overlooked by sand dunes on all sides, Dawoud tells CNN that he hopes that solar technology may eventually offer a viable alternative energy source to power the UAE's huge desalination needs.

CNN: Counting the carbon cost of bringing water to the desert

The holes twist through a phantasmagoric landscape of sand dunes thrown up half a century ago when phosphate mines worked the site, and which native plants and grasses have since overgrown.

WSJ: Cabot Links, Streamsong, Bandon: When Building a Course Makes Sense | Golf Journal by John Paul Newport