The Ramsar Convention on Wetlands... and waterbirds

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Rosalyn Bryan
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1 The Ramsar Convention on Wetlands... and waterbirds Prof Nick Davidson Ramsar Convention Secretariat Global flyways workshop Seosan City, October 2011

2 Why a Convention on Wetlands? The Ramsar Convention was developed in the 1960s because of concerns over destruction of wetlands and its impact on people and biodiversity especially waterbirds Opened for signature in the town of Ramsar, I.R. Iran on 2 February 1971 First of the modern global intergovernmental environmental agreements Pre-dates significant UN environmental attention Now 160 Contracting Parties (member governments) globally USSR A. FIROUZ (chair) S-AFRICA M.F.MÖRZER BRUIJNS G.MATTHEWS E. CARP USSR A. FIROUZ (chair) S-AFRICA M.F.MÖRZER BRUIJNS G.MATTHEWS E. CARP Photo E. Kuijken Photo E. Kuijken

3 1971: The Convention s text Recognised the interconnectivity of all wetlands from the mountains to the sea, including: Marine/Coastal Wetlands Mangroves, coral reefs, sea-grass beds, tidal-flats, estuaries, up to 6m depth at low tide Inland Wetlands Marshes, lakes, rivers, floodplain forests, peatlands, oases, wadi, karst and caves Human-made wetlands: Rice fields, fish ponds, reservoirs, ditches and canals

Designation & management of Wetlands of International Importance

4 Key turning-points in Ramsar evolution 1971: The Convention s text Three pillars of implementation 1. wise use of all wetlands 2. Designation & management of Wetlands of International Importance (Ramsar sites) to maintain their ecological character 3. International cooperation

5 1971: The Convention s text Inspirational and far-sighted Scope: wetlands & water; ecosystems & people Initial focus on waterbirds, and Ramsar sites 40 years evolution of implementation to respond to full scope of water and wetlands First intergovernmental agreement to combine conservation and sustainable use of resources Text recognises: that wetlands constitute a resource of great economic, cultural, scientific, and recreational value, the loss of which would be irreparable ; and the fundamental ecological functions of wetlands as regulators of water regimes So to deliver wise use requires landscape and waterscape-scale, ecosystem-based, approaches to decision-making and management Managing wetlands to support basin-scale water management and delivery is essential

6 Ramsar Sites 1930 Ramsar sites >18.5 Million hectares size: from <1 ha to > 6 million ha Largest protected areas network globally

7 Global Ramsar Site network

population #2: threatened species (globally/nationally) #3:

8 Ramsar Sites for waterbirds Site designation criteria: #5: >20,000 waterbirds #6: > 1% of biogeographic waterbird population #2: threatened species (globally/nationally) #3: maintaining regional biodiversity #4: critical stages in life-cycle

9 Ramsar Sites for waterbirds

10 Ramsar Sites for waterbirds

11 The Ramsar site network for waterbirds Ramsar Parties (long-term targets for Criteria 5 & 6) expected to designate all wetlands which qualify Despite current coverage, many gaps in flyways network BirdLife s IBAs and Ramsar Sites assessments: Europe: by 2001, 24% of qualifying IBAs were Ramsar designated Africa: by 2002, only 14% WOW Critical Sites Network Tool will help Parties identify further priority wetlands to designate:

12 Designation: key shorebird sites Sites with >100,000 shorebirds

14 Ramsar designation gaps MEOW saltmarshes:

15 Ramsar designation gaps MEOW saltmarshes:

16 Ramsar designation does not stop pressures... Frequency of threats to Ramsar sites: Reported by Parties in Ramsar Information Sheets Water regulation Agricultural impacts Overall land-use change Land-use change impacts Agricultural impacts Water regulation impacts

17 Is the Ramsar Convention effective??? Does Ramsar site designation help maintain wetland health? In recent surveys conducted by the World Bank, WWF, academics and the Ramsar Secretariat: Ramsar site managers reported that designation has helped maintain the conservation status of wetlands Listed as Ramsar sites Benefits of Designation include: increased public awareness about the importance of the sites, increase participation by local stakeholders in management, greater support for protection of the site and surrounding (buffer) areas, increased conservation funding (both domestic and international), and Enhanced opportunities for promoting scientific research and ecotourism.

18 Is the Ramsar Convention effective??? 1. Wetlands (and Ramsar sites) are in relatively better state if Ramsar Convention is being implemented 2. Developing and implementing a National Wetland Policy is particularly important action 3. The wider the range of different types of implementation being done, the better the state of wetlands Indicator B Effectiveness Index at COP10 Indicator B Effectiveness Index at COP10 Indicator A (ii) Effectiveness Index at COP10 Indicator A (ii) Effectiveness Index at COP countries 49 countries Yes No, In preparation, Planned Yes No, In preparation, Planned National Wetland Policy National Wetland Policy Number of "yes" answers to 10 questions about processes Number of "yes" answers to 10 questions about processes

The role of the Ramsar Convention in biodiversity conservation

The role of the Ramsar Convention in biodiversity conservation Solongo Khurelbaatar Assistant Advisor for Asia-Oceania Secretariat, Ramsar Convention on Wetlands asia.oceania@ramsar.org Our Wetlands Rivers