This week champions for wetlands conservation from around the world are gathering in Dubai, United Arab Emirates for the 13th Conference of the Parties (COP13) to the Ramsar Convention. Named after the Iranian city where it was signed, the Ramsar Convention is an intergovernmental treaty that provides the framework for national action and international cooperation for the conservation and wise use of wetlands and their resources.
Under the “three pillars” of the Convention, Contracting Parties (countries) commit to 1). Work towards the wise use of all their wetlands; 2). Designate suitable wetlands for the list of Wetlands of International Importance (the “Ramsar List”) and ensure their effective management; and, 3). Cooperate internationally on transboundary wetlands, shared wetland systems and shared species. There are currently 170 country parties to the Convention that have designated a total of 2331 Ramsar sites that cover more than 249 million hectares. Many Ramsar sites are designated due to their importance for shorebirds, and of the current total of 106 WHSRN sites, 42 are Ramsar sites.
A significant focus at COP13 will be the conservation of coastal habitats, including intertidal and ecologically associated wetlands. These are among the most threatened ecosystems worldwide: a recent study considered that 50% of the world’s coastal wetlands were lost during the 20th Century. As a consequence, many species that depend on them are at risk of global extinction, especially migratory species, such as shorebirds, sea turtles and sea mammals. Furthermore, human coastal communities and the wider population are suffering declines and loss of ecosystem services, including adverse impacts on fisheries, shellfisheries and blue carbon storage, and an increased risk of disaster from sea level rise, tidal waves and storm surges.
American Oystercatchers at the Ramsar and WHSRN site Reserva Nacional de Paracas in Paracas, Peru. Photo: Diego Luna Quevedo.
Coastal wetlands are linked internationally by migratory species, particularly shorebirds. To conserve these ecosystems, there is an urgent need for concerted and collaborative international action among governments, including sharing of expertise, to accelerate and enhance action at the national and subnational level. At COP13, delegates will consider adopting a resolution on “promoting the conservation and wise use of intertidal wetlands and ecologically-associated habitats”. Under the draft resolution, parties are encouraged, among other actions, to identify and protect critically important coastal sites for migratory birds in each flyway; develop global guidance on the conservation and management of working coastal wetlands (e.g. shellfisheries, saltpans, aquaculture etc.); and operationalise a global initiative to promote coastal wetland restoration.
The “intertidal habitats” resolution is of particular relevance to WHSRN, as 76 sites within the network are coastal, and WHSRN is, by definition, a mechanism for enhancing concerted and collaboration action for shared migratory shorebirds across an international network of sites. Adoption of the resolution will help strengthen the international framework for the conservation of such sites, and provide new opportunities for enhanced habitat management and restoration.
