Ramsar Convention: a Tool for Wise Use of Wetlands

2007·1.1 MB·

by  Asad R Rahmani

Editorial
A
Ramsar Convention: tool for wise use of wetlands
Wetlands are transitional areasbetween aquatic andterrestrialecosystems where the watertable isusually
atornearthesurface,orthelandiscoveredundershallowwater.Wetlandsincludemarshes,swamps,floodplains,
bogs, peat lands, shallow ponds, littoral zones of larger water bodies, and tidal marshes. Wetlands are very
—
diverse, but they all share—one fundamental feature: the complex interaction oftheir basic components soil,
water, animals and plants that fulfil many functions and provide many products that have sustained humans
overthecenturies (Wetlands International 2002). Ofcourse, not every wetland performs all these functions, but
most do.
InIndia,wetlandsaredistributedinallthebiogeographicregionsandexhibitsignificantecologicaldiversity,
primarilybecauseofthe variability inclimate, geology, habitatandtopography.Wetlandsprovide amultitude of
services, including waterpurification and regulation offlows, fisheries, habitats for plants, animals and micro-
organisms, opportunities forrecreation andtourism, andsoforth (Wetlands International 2002).
TheRamsarConventioncameintoforcein 1975;thereare 157ContractingParties.Inall, 1,704wetlandsites
have been designated as Ramsar sites, with a total area of 152 million hectares (www.ramsar.org). India
becameaContracting PartytotheConventioninOctober 1981, anddesignatedtheChilikaLake(Orissa)andthe
Keoladeo National Park(Rajasthan) as its firsttwo Ramsarsites. Fouradditional sites were designated in 1990:
SambharLake(Rajasthan),LoktakLake(Manipur),HarikeLake(Punjab),andWularLake(Jammu& Kashmir). In
2000,the MinistryofEnvironmentandForests,GovernmentofIndia, identified 13 new wetlandsanddesignated
themasRamsarsites.ThedecisioncameinthewakeoftheannouncementbytheGovernmentatthe7"’Conference
ofthePartiestotheRamsarConvention(COP7)heldatSanJose(CostaRica)inMay 1999. In2005,sixmoresites
weredesignatedasRamsarSites.Atpresent,25wetlandshavebeendesignatedasRamsarsitesinIndia. However,
these25 Ramsarsitesdonotrepresentevenafractionofthediversity ofwetlandhabitatsexisting in thecountry.
InIndia,theMinistryofEnvironment&Forests(MoEF)isthenodalagencyforimplementingtheconservation
programmeonwetlands,mangrovesandcoral reefs. Startedinthe 1980s,theprogrammeisguidedby aNational
Committee on Wetlands, Mangroves and Coral Reefs, constituted to advise the government on appropriate
policies and programmes for the conservation of these ecosystems, to suggest specific sites for conservation
action, andtoidentifyresearchandtrainingpriorities. Several wetlandsitesin thecountry havebeen selectedon
a priority basis for conservation and management action, financial support for which is being extended by the
Ministry(MoEF2001).
TenbiogeographiczoneshavebeenidentifiedinIndia:Trans-Himalaya,Himalaya,Semi-arid,Desert,Gangetic
Plain, Deccan, Western Ghats, North-east, Coasts and Islands (Rodgers and Panwar 1988). The wetlands in the
Trans-Himalayaareextremelyimportantfortheprotectionofbirds,especiallyforgloballythreatenedspeciessuch
asthe Black-neckedCrane Grusnigricollis.
Some ofthe important high altitude lakes such as Tso Kar, Tsomoriri, PangongTso, and marshes such as
Hanley,PhoktseyandChushul,arelocatedinthisregion;mostofthemhavebeenidentifiedasIBAsandpotential
RamsarSites.
TheGangeticPlainisoneofthemostfertileregionsofth—eworld,withanearly3,000yearhistoryofhuman
occupation. Thisregionisfamous foritsfloodplain wetlands resultsofcopious rainfall in the Gangetic Plain
and also inthe Himalayafrom where mostoftheriversoriginate. Large areasareannually floodedand when the
floodrecedes,itleaveslow-lyingareasunderwater.Thesewetlandsareextremelyproductiveintermsofvegetation
biomassandaviandiversity(Howes 1995). Someofthe mostimportantwetlandIBAsandpotentialRamsarSites
are found in this region with significant populationsofwaterfowl. Sultanpurin Gurgaon, Bhindawas in Rohtak,
Patnajheelin Etah, Lakh-Bahosi in Farrukhabad, Saman in Mainpuri, Sandi in Hardoi, Kawarin Begusarai and
Nawabganj inUnnao, aresomeofthemore spectacularwetlandsformigratory waterfowl inwinter.Themarshes
.
and wetlands ofthe Gangetic drainage system show a long history ofstability in the geological sense. Thus, a
large number of marsh-dependent species are found such as the Striated Marsh Warbler Megaluruspalustris
,
BristledGrassbirdChaetornisstriatus,Rufous-rumpedGrassbirdGraminicolabengalensis Yellow-belliedPrinia
,
Prinia flaviventris, Swamp Francolin Francolinus gularis, Bengal Florican Houbaropsis bengalensis and a
variety ofducks.
The flood plains ofthe Brahmaputra and the marshes and swamps in the hills ofnorth-east India and the
Himalayanfoothillsareimportantforhumansandbiodiversity.TheBrahmaputraValley,withitshighrainfalland
numerous rivers provide wintering grounds to large congregations ofwaterbirds. Most ofthese waterbirds are
migratory while some are resident and breed in this region. The wetlands of this region support a number of
threatened species; anumberofIBAs and potential RamsarSites have been identifiedin thisregion.
IntheRannofKutchinGujarat, vastsalineexpansesarefoundwherebothGreaterPhoenicopterusroseus
andLesserP. minorflamingosbreedwhenconditionsaresuitable.ThewetlandsoftheDeccanpeninsulasupport
ahighproportionoftheglobal populationofthe Spot-billedPelicanPelecanusphilippensis withmanycolonies
,
associatedwiththewaterstoragereservoirsor ‘tanks’ onthe DeccanplateauinsouthernIndia.Thecoastalareas
ofIndiaperhapsformthemostneglectedbiogeographiczoneofIndia,mainlybecausetheydonothavecharismatic
species such as theTigerand the Rhinoceros. However, they dohave fabulousbirdcongregations, as seen inthe
ChilikaLake(IBAandRamsarSite)andBhitarkanika(IBAandRamsarSite)inOrissa,thePointCalimereWildlife
Sanctuary(IBAandRamsarSite)inTamilNadu,theSunderbans(IBAandRamsarSite)inWestBengal,theSewri
mudflats(IBAandpotential RamsarSite)inMaharashtraandtheKoriCreekinGujarat.
Theexisting Ramsarsitelistof25 sitesin Indiaclearlyprovesthatallthebiogeographical regionsofIndia
arenotproperlyrepresented,andsomeofthepotentialsitesaremissing,e.g. manyimportantsitesintheGangetic
Plain, North-east, Semi-Arid, DesertandDeccan. Underthe Important BirdAreas Programme ofthe BNHS and
BirdLife International we havepreparedalistofadditional 135 wetlandswhich are potential RamsarSites. This
exercise is done objectively taking into consideration IBA and Ramsar criteria. We have identified potential
RamsarSitesmainlybasedontheirbiodiversityvalues,whichwastheoriginalaimoftheRamsarConvention. We
have also tried to coverthe whole country and all biogeographic regions and theirprovinces.
WehopethatmanyofthesepotentialsiteswillbeconsideredbytheGovernmentofIndiaundertheRamsar
Convention.
ASAD RAHMANI
R.
ZAFAR-ULISLAM
REFERENCES
Ui
Howes, J.R. (1995): Conservation and Sustainable Use ofFloodplain Wetlands. Asian Wetland Bureau, Kaula Lumpur, 123 pp.
(ProceedingsoftheWorkshopon theConservation and SustainableUseofFloodplainWetlands, December 1993,Calcutta
-AWB Publication No. 113).
Ministry ofEnvironmentand Forests (2001): State Forest Report 2001. Forest Survey ofIndia, Dehradun.
Rodgers, W.A. & H.S. Panwar (1988) Planning a Protected Area Network in India. 2 volumes. Wildlife Institute of India,
Dehradun.
Wetlands International (2002): Waterbird Population Estimates: Third Edition. Wetlands International Global Series No. 12,
Wageningen, The Netherlands.
126 J. Bombay Nat. Hist. Soc., 104 (2), May-Aug 2007