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A role for the Wetland Convention in Wetland Restoration

A role for the Wetland Convention in Wetland Restoration. Christopher Briggs Secretary General of the Ramsar Convention on Wetlands. What are Wetlands ?. Wetlands cover over 1.5 billion hectares. almost the size of Russia. Wetland Services include:. Transport. Food. Fishing.

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A role for the Wetland Convention in Wetland Restoration

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  1. A role for the Wetland Convention • in Wetland Restoration • Christopher Briggs • Secretary General of the • Ramsar Convention on Wetlands

  2. What are Wetlands?

  3. Wetlands cover over 1.5 billion hectares almost the size of Russia.

  4. Wetland Services include: Transport Food Fishing Hunting Entertainment

  5. ... but also: Wetlands provide all our water and clean our waters They protect against natural disasters (tsunamis, hurricane etc) and reduce flood and drought impact They play a key role in climate change adaptation and mitigation(eg blue carbon, peat for C storage)

  6. Wetlands are being lost and degraded 40% LOST IN 40 YRS Drainage, dykes Land conversion Agriculture Over abstraction Pollution Climate change

  7. Wetland restoration Can restore some wetlands with many ecosystem services recovered quickly. Other types have slow recovery with only partial functions restored According to wetland type, restoration can take years (mudflats), hundreds of years (grey dunes) or millennia (blanket bogs). Variable cost – from 90 EUR/km2 (mangroves) to over 100,000 EUR/km2 (coral reefs)

  8. Benefits:reduce poverty India, Sundarbans Livelihoods project Over 16 million mangroves planted • They will bring economic and nutritional value to local communities, protect from floods and store CO2 Viet Nam • 50,000 ha mangroves planted over 12 years • Cost: 1.1. million USD • 7.3 million USD saved per year • Benefits for 7,750 families

  9. Benefits: mitigate effects of climate change The Netherlands 250,000 people repeatedly evacuated for the risk of floods in early 1990s Breaking the trend: instead of building higher dikes, leave “room for the river” Outcomes: Increased safety for 4 million people and improved environmental quality of the region

  10. Benefits: provide clean water South Africa, Manalana Wetlands 3.5 ha restored in 2006 Project benefits: 182,000 EUR (twice the costs) Wetland now acts as safety net for poor households Senegal, Lake Guiers Provides 65% of Dakar’s drinking water 22 million EUR 5-year restoration project funded by ADF, GEF and government

  11. Benefits: reduce emissions of CO2 Germany, Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania Restoration of 30,000 ha of peatland drained for agriculture Emissions reduced by 300,000 tons of CO2eq. pa Estimated damage from avoided CO2 loss : 21.7 million EUR/year or 700 EUR/ha Carbon offsetting scheme created, based on this experience

  12. Conditions to be fulfilled Work across the sectors egclimate change, economic investment, development planning, housing, sanitation and water resources, food production, transport and education Involve the local community Raise awareness and influence behaviour and practices that led to the degradation Address restoration at catchment level

  13. Thank you for listening • www.ramsar.org

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