World Wetlands Day: Call for conserving water bodies for better future

Climate change minister highlights importance of natural resources.

ISLAMABAD: The country’s predicaments vis-à-vis the detrimental effects of climate change were highlighted by the climate change minister on the occasion of World Wetlands Day, which is being observed today. 

Minister for Climate Change Mushahidullah Khan urged the public to play their role in conservation of wetlands in the country.

“I urge the people of Pakistan to pledge for sustainable use of natural resources and protection of wetlands across the country for our shared future,” Khan said in a statement issued on Sunday.

With the theme “Wetlands for Our Future”, the day aims to highlight the role wetlands for survival of humans, biological diversity and mitigating impact of floods.

“The theme of this year’s World Wetlands Day highlights the unprecedented significance of wetlands for our better tomorrow,” Khan said.

Wetlands include lakes, marshes, peat lands, wet grasslands, streams and rivers. They not only purify and replenish our water and provide fish that feed people but also act as a natural sponge against flooding and drought and protect our coastlines. Besides, the natural water bodies are burst with biodiversity, and are a vital means of storing carbon.

“Unfortunately, these benefits and many others remain widely unknown and they are often viewed as wasteland. This notion needs to be reversed. In Pakistan, wetlands are home to a rich biodiversity and provide livelihood to local communities,” said the minister.

In view of the devastating floods in the country over the past few yeas, the role of wetlands to reduce intensity of floods has been highlighted at various platforms. Ramsar Advisory Mission (RAM) to Pakistan in 2012 came up with key recommendations that can help mitigate damages caused by floods, use floodwater for ground level recharge, restoration of floodplains and riverine ecosystem.

Khan said as a signatory to the Ramsar Convention, Pakistan has been an active member of this global platform for conservation and use of wetlands resources. In Pakistan, there are about 225 wetlands, covering 780, 000 hectares, which makes up 10 per cent of the country’s total land mass. A total of 19 wetlands in the country have been designated as Ramsar Sites, having international significance in view of criteria of the Ramsar Convention.

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.

Published in The Express Tribune, February 2rd, 2015.