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conservation and the management of wetlands have emerged as a challenge as these are linked to other development issues
The suo motu public interest litigation by the Meghalaya High Court very recently, to monitor the conservation of wetlands in the State brings the focus back on this important ecosystem.
Since 1971, February 2 is observed every year as ‘World Wetland Day’ to mark the adoption of the Ramsar Convention, an international treaty for the conservation of wetlands, which was signed in the Iranian city of Ramsar.
The theme this year was ‘Protecting Wetlands for Our Common Future”. It is a theme that has appropriately positioned wetlands in the sustainable development perspective, as espoused in the Brundtland report, ‘Our Common Future’, and published by the UN World Commission on Environment and Development in 1987.
Wetland Conservation and Management: A Growing Challenge
Wetlands are among the most biologically diverse ecosystems on Earth, providing crucial services such as water filtration, flood control, carbon sequestration, and habitat for numerous species. However, rapid urbanization, industrialization, and climate change are causing their depletion at an alarming rate. The recent suo motu (on its own motion) public interest litigation (PIL) by the Meghalaya High Court highlights the urgent need for wetland conservation in India.
What Are Wetlands?
Wetlands are areas where water covers the soil or is present near the surface for a significant part of the year. They can be natural (e.g., lakes, rivers, mangroves, and peatlands) or man-made (e.g., reservoirs, rice paddies, and artificial ponds). Globally, wetlands cover 12.1 million km², constituting around 6% of the Earth’s surface but providing 40.6% of global ecosystem services.
1. The Importance of Wetlands
A. Environmental Importance
1. Biodiversity Hotspots: Wetlands are home to thousands of plant and animal species, including migratory birds and endangered species.
2. Natural Water Filters: They purify water by trapping pollutants, sediments, and heavy metals.
3. Flood and Drought Mitigation: Wetlands absorb excess water during floods and release it during droughts, acting as a natural buffer.
4. Carbon Sequestration: Peatlands and mangroves store vast amounts of carbon, helping mitigate climate change.
B. Economic and Social Importance
1. Livelihood Support: Fishing, agriculture, and tourism around wetlands provide employment to millions.
2. Cultural and Religious Significance: Many wetlands are sacred sites or hold historical importance.
3. Urban Green Infrastructure: Wetlands enhance urban resilience by managing stormwater and reducing the urban heat island effect.
2. Challenges in Wetland Conservation
Despite their significance, wetlands face numerous threats, leading to both qualitative and quantitative degradation.
A. Loss of Wetlands Over Time
1. Historical Decline:
• Since 1900, nearly 50% of the world’s wetlands have been lost.
• Between 1970 and 2015, wetland surface area declined by 35%.
• The Wetland Extend Trends (WET) Index estimates a global wetland loss of -0.78% per year—three times the rate of natural vegetation loss.
2. Biodiversity Loss:
• 81% of inland wetland species and 36% of coastal/marine species have declined since 1970.
• The extinction risk for wetland-dependent species is increasing worldwide.
B. Major Threats to Wetlands
1. Urbanization and Infrastructure Development:
• Expansion of cities leads to wetland encroachment for housing, roads, and industries.
• Example: Mumbai lost 71% of its wetlands between 1970 and 2014.
• Chennai has lost 85% of its wetlands, as per a WWF study.
2. Agricultural Expansion:
• Wetlands are drained for farming, leading to habitat destruction.
• Example: East Kolkata wetlands shrank by 36% in 30 years (1991–2021).
3. Pollution:
• Industrial and domestic waste discharge contaminates wetlands, affecting aquatic life and water quality.
• Chemical runoffs from agriculture cause eutrophication (excess nutrients lead to oxygen depletion).
4. Climate Change:
• Rising temperatures and altered rainfall patterns impact wetland hydrology.
• Example: Peatlands and mangroves, crucial for carbon sequestration, are disappearing due to rising sea levels.
3. India’s Wetland Conservation Efforts
India is a signatory to the Ramsar Convention (1971), an international treaty for wetland conservation.
A. Ramsar Sites in India
• As of 2023, India has 75 Ramsar sites, covering 1.33 million hectares (only 8% of the country’s total wetland area).
• These wetlands are found across diverse landscapes—from Himalayan lakes to coastal estuaries.
B. Government Initiatives
1. National Plan for Conservation of Aquatic Ecosystems (NPCA): Focuses on wetland restoration and sustainable management.
2. Wetlands (Conservation and Management) Rules, 2017: Prohibits activities that harm wetland ecosystems.
3. State Wetland Authorities: Established to implement conservation policies at the state level.
4. Global Strategies for Wetland Conservation
The 14th Ramsar COP (2022), held in Wuhan, China, and Geneva, Switzerland, emphasized:
1. Integrating Wetland Conservation with Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and Global Biodiversity Frameworks.
2. Linking Wetland Conservation with Climate Change Mitigation Efforts.
3. Encouraging Governments to Implement Nature-Based Solutions for Water Management.
Lessons from Global Conservation Models:
• European Union (EU): Strict wetland protection laws.
• United States: Wetland mitigation banking (developers offset wetland destruction by restoring wetlands elsewhere).
• China: Large-scale wetland restoration projects.
5. The Way Forward for India
A. Need for an Ecosystem-Based Approach
1. Integrate Wetland Management with Urban Planning:
• Example: Restoring urban wetlands to manage floods and pollution.
2. Strengthen Legal and Policy Frameworks:
• Enforce wetland protection laws more strictly.
• Increase Ramsar site coverage beyond 8% of India’s wetlands.
3. Improve Data and Monitoring Mechanisms:
• Use GIS and Remote Sensing for wetland mapping and tracking changes.
4. Community Involvement and Awareness:
• Engage local communities in wetland conservation through eco-tourism and sustainable livelihoods.
5. Enhancing Research and Innovation:
• Promote wetland-friendly agricultural practices.
• Invest in AI and biotechnology to improve wetland health monitoring.
Conclusion
Wetlands are vital for biodiversity, climate resilience, and human well-being. However, their conservation is a complex challenge, requiring a multi-dimensional approach. India’s rapid urbanization, industrialization, and agricultural expansion have led to significant wetland loss, making conservation efforts crucial.
By adopting sustainable policies, strengthening legal frameworks, engaging local communities, and leveraging technology, India can balance development and conservation, ensuring that wetlands continue to provide essential services for future generations.
Many pressures
Wetlands, one of the most biologically productive ecosystems, provide multiple benefits. Globally, wetlands cover an area of 12.1 million km2, or around 6% of the earth surface, providing 40.6% of global ecosystem services. However, they are under severe stress, both qualitatively and quantitatively, due to various development activities including population growth, urbanisation, industrialisation, and increasing demand for land to cater to various human needs and climate change.
Since 1900, as much as 50% of the area under wetlands has been diverted to accommodate various other uses, as one of the studies indicated. Wetland surface area, both coastal and inland, declined by about 35% between 1970 and 2015. Globally, the rate of loss estimated with the Wetland Extend Trends (WET) index is (-)0.78% a year, which is more than three times higher than the loss rate of natural vegetation as estimated by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. Around 81% of inland wetland species population and 36% of coastal and marine species have declined since 1970. The extinction risk of wetland species, both plants and animals, is increasing, globally.
The conservation and the management of wetlands have emerged as a major challenge as they are linked to other development issues and can serve in devising nature-based solutions for water management and the mitigation of climate change impacts, besides providing blue-green infrastructures in urban areas. Recognising the importance of wetlands in the larger development context, the Ramsar Convention COP14 that was held in Wuhan, China and Geneva, Switzerland from November 5-13, 2022, laid stress on preparation of the fifth Ramsar Strategic Plan and recognised that the conservation and management of wetlands cannot be a stand-alone initiative. It needs to be contextualised and appropriately linked to other international environment development initiatives.
Accordingly, the COP14 argued that implementation of the Ramsar Strategic Plan would be an important contribution towards the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals, meeting the Global Biodiversity targets, the United Nations Framework Convention of Climate Change. It would also align with the UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration, and any relevant work of the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES), the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) and other global programmes relating to wetlands. The global changes resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic and greater knowledge about the impacts of biodiversity loss and climate change since COP13, or the 13th Meeting of the Conference of the Parties to the Ramsar Convention on Wetlands (2018), reinforce the urgency to arrest the loss of wetlands.
The situation in India
India is a signatory to the Ramsar Convention. As of 2023, the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change has designated 75 Ramsar sites (wetlands of international importance) in the country. These are distributed from the coasts to Himalayan territory, and are diverse in nature. Even some of the river stretches such as that of the Upper Ganga river are designated as Ramsar sites.
However, identification of Ramsar site does not necessarily contribute to its conservation. Moreover, the area under Ramsar sites together cover 1.33 million hectares or around 8% of 15.98 million ha wetlands, presently known and mapped as reported in the National Wetland Decadal Change Atlas, 2017-18 prepared by Space Applications Centre (SAC), Government of India. Based on the location, wetlands are classified as inland and man-made. By 2017-18, India had 66.6% of wetlands as natural wetland (43.9% as inland wetland and 22.7% as coastal wetland).
The area under wetlands is not a static figure. The general trends indicate a reduction in natural wetlands and an increase in man-made wetlands across the country. The SAC study showed that natural wetlands along the coast are declining even in a short span of 2006-07 to 2017-18. According to an estimate by the Wetlands International South-Asia (WISA), nearly 30% of the natural wetlands in India have been lost in the last four decades due to urbanisation, infrastructure building, agricultural expansion and pollution. The loss is more in urban areas, especially around major urban centres. It is reported that from 1970 to 2014, Mumbai lost 71% of its wetlands.
Another study has shown that wetlands in east Kolkata have shrunk by 36% in 30 years from 1991 to 2021. A recent WWF study has indicated that Chennai has lost 85% of its wetlands. There have been several studies indicating the loss of ecosystem services due to the degradation of wetlands around the world. One such study, of Cali city in Colombia, has brought out that the estimated loss of total ecosystem services due to loss of urban wetlands is $76,827 a hectare in a year. In the peri-urban area the loss is estimated at $30,354 a ha a year.
The bigger dimension
At present, most wetland management initiatives in India address the ecological and environmental aspects of the wetland ecosystem. The studies are also limited to some of the major wetlands. At the global level, apart from wetland biodiversity, there is stress on wetland distribution and a characterisation of wetland and human impacts to evaluate and prioritise wetlands for conservation.
Given the varied ecosystem services and values that they offer to society, wetlands form an integral part of ecological, economic and social security. It is important to recognise this larger dimension and investigate the physical, social and economic factors, including alterations, in land use within the catchment area, the drivers which have led to modifications in wetland surroundings, and the ex-situ pressure contributing to wetland degradation and the governance structure.
Wetlands act as a source as well as sink of carbon. Therefore, their role in climate change mitigation has to be carefully evaluated and monitored, something which is hardly attempted now. More effective and comprehensive management strategies are required in response to escalating stress from various climatic and anthropogenic factors. The present approach is insufficient to address all these issues. Wetland management warrants an innovative ecosystem-based approach and it should be mainstreamed within the development plan, as advocated during the Ramsar COP14.
Source the hindu
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