SUBJECT ASSOCIATION ACTIVITY NO 4, WETLANDS CONSERVATION
WETLANDS CONSERVATION .
world wet lands conservation day February 2
World Wetlands Day is celebrated on the second day of February every year, though it was not originally celebrated until 1997.This day serves to recognize the influence and positive production that Wetlands have had on the world and in terms brings communities together for the benefit of Mother Nature. This day, also raises global awareness because wetlands play a significant role not only in people but in the planet. Community protectors and environmental enthusiast all come together on this day to celebrate their love for nature through celebration, which recognizes what wetlands have done for not only us humans, but all sorts of organisms in this world.
The Convention on Wetlands of International Importance, also known as the Ramsar Convention, defines wetlands as including: lakes and rivers, swamps and marshes, wet grasslands and peatlands, oases, estuaries, deltas and tidal flats, near-shore marine areas, mangroves and coral reefs, and human-made sites such as fish ponds, rice paddies, reservoirs, and salt pans. Meanwhile, the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) or Wetlands Reserve Program, describes wetlands as "those areas that are inundated or saturated by surface or groundwater at a frequency and duration sufficient to support, and that under normal circumstances do support, a prevalence of vegetation typically adapted for life in saturated soil conditions. Wetlands generally include swamps, marshes, bogs and similar areas." Wetlands vary widely in their salinity levels, climatic zones, supported flora, surrounding geography, whether they are coastal or inland and so on.
Wetlands Action for People and Nature -2022
Wetlands are ecosystems where water is the primary factor controlling the environment and the associated plant and animal life. A broad definition of wetlands includes both freshwater and marine and coastal ecosystems such as all lakes and rivers, underground aquifers, swamps and marshes, wet grasslands, peatlands, oases, estuaries, deltas and tidal flats, mangroves and other coastal areas, coral reefs, and all human-made sites such as fishponds, rice paddies, reservoirs and salt pan's .These lands are critical to people and nature, given the intrinsic value of these ecosystems, and their benefits and services, including their environmental, climate, ecological, social, economic, scientific, educational, cultural, recreational and aesthetic contributions to sustainable development and human well-being's Though they cover only around 6 per cent of the Earth’s land surface, 40 per cent of all plant and animal species live or breed in wetlands. Wetland biodiversity matters for our health, our food supply, for tourism and for jobs. Wetlands are vital for humans, for other ecosystems and for our climate, providing essential ecosystem services such as water regulation, including flood control and water purification. More than a billion people across the world depend wetlands for their livelihoods – that’s about one in eight people on Earth.
🌴World Wetlands Day themes from 1997-2022
💧2022 wet lands action for people and nature
💧 2021 Wetlands and water
💧2020 Wetlands and Biodiversity
💧 2019 Wetlands and Climate Change
💧 2018 Wetlands for a Sustainable Urban Future
💧 2017 Wetlands for Disaster Risk Reduction
💧 2016 Wetlands for Our Future: Sustainable Livelihoods
💧 2015 Wetlands for Our Future
💧 2014 Wetlands and Agriculture: Partners for Growth
💧 2013 Wetlands Take Care of Water
💧 2012 Wetland Tourism: A great experience
💧2011 Forests for water and wetlands
💧 2010 Caring for wetlands – An answer to climate change
💧 2009 Upstream, Downstream: Wetlands connect us all
💧 2008 Healthy Wetlands, Healthy People
💧 2007 Fish for tomorrow?
💧 2006 Livelihoods at Risk
💧 2005 There's Wealth in Wetland Diversity – Don't Lose It
💧 2004 From the mountains to the sea – Wetlands at work for us
💧 2003 No wetlands – no water
💧 2002 Wetlands: Water life and culture
💧 2001 A wetland world – A world to discover
💧2000 Celebrating our wetlands of international importance
💧 1999 People and wetlands- the vital link
💧 1998 Importance of water to life & role of wetlands in water supply
💧1997 WWD celebrated for the first time
💦WETLANDS IN INDIA
🌲THREATS TO WETLANDS
v Urbanization -Wetlands near urban center's are under increasing developmental pressure for residential, industrial and commercial facilities. Urban wetlands are essential for preserving public water supplies.
v Anthropogenic activities-Due to unplanned urban and agricultural development, industries, road construction, impoundment, resource extraction and dredge disposal, wetlands have been drained and transformed, causing substantial economic and ecological losses in the long term.
v Agricultural activities -Following the Green Revolution of the 1970s, vast stretches of wetlands have been converted to paddy fields. Construction of a large number of reservoirs, canals and dams to provide for irrigation significantly altered the hydrology of the associated wetlands.
v Hydrologic activities-Construction of canals and diversion of streams and rivers to transport water to lower arid regions for irrigation has altered the drainage pattern and significantly degraded the wetlands of the region.
v Deforestation-Removal of vegetation in the catchment leads to soil erosion and siltation.
v Pollution-Unrestricted dumping of sewage and toxic chemicals from industries has polluted many freshwater wetlands.
v Salinization -Over withdrawal of groundwater has led to salinization.
v Aquaculture-Demand for shrimps and fishes has provided economic incentives to convert wetlands and mangrove forests to develop pisciculture and aquaculture ponds.
v Introduced species-Indian wetlands are threatened by exotic introduced plant species such as water hyacinth and Salvinia. They clog waterways and compete with native vegetation.
v Climate change -Increased air temperature; shifts in precipitation; increased frequency of storms, droughts, and floods; increased atmospheric carbon dioxide concentration; and sea level rise could also affect wetlands.
🌴WETLANDS FUNCTIONS
The main functions performed by wetlands are: water filtration, water storage, biological productivity, and provide habitat for wildlife. Additional functions and uses of wetlands are described in wetland. Wetlands aid in water filtration by removing excess nutrients, slowing the water allowing particulates to settle out of the water which can then be absorbed into plant roots. Studies have shown that up to 92% of phosphorus and 95% of nitrogen can be removed from passing water through a wetland. Wetlands also let pollutants settle and stick to soil particles, up to 70% of sediments in runoff. Some wetland plants have even been found with accumulations of heavy metals more than 100,000 times that of the surrounding waters' concentration. Without these functions, the waterways would continually increase their nutrient and pollutant load, leading to an isolated deposit of high concentrations further down the line. An example of such a situation is the Mississippi River’s dead zone, an area where nutrient excess has led to large amounts of surface algae, which use up the oxygen and create hypoxic conditions (very low levels of oxygen). through wetland’s ability to absorb nutrients, they are able to be highly biologically productive (able to produce biomass quickly). Freshwater wetlands are even comparable to tropical rainforests in plant productivity. Their ability to efficiently create biomass may become important to the development of alternative energy sources. Wildlife Habitat is important not only for the conservation of species but also for a number of recreational opportunities. As a conservation purpose, wildlife habitat is managed for maintaining and using the resources in sustainable manner.
Comments
Post a Comment