Happy World Wetland Day!
Did you know 37 years ago today, in a small resort town in Iran an international group met to develop a convention for the conservation and management of wetlands? The town, Ramsar is located on the Caspian Sea and the convention which the gathered experts developed is know to this day as RAMSAR or The Ramsar Convention on Wetlands more correctly. The convention commits the 158 signatures to;
- designate internationally significant wetlands to a jointly held list,
- commit to wise use of wetlands
- establish some wetlands and reserves while promoting training, research, and management
- and to cooperate amongst signatories
Since 1997 people all over the world have undertaken activities to recognise World Wetlands Day. The RAMSAR organisation track loads of international activity and the Dept of Environment, Water, Heritage, and the Arts list a stack of activities in Australia.
The Burnett and associated river systems are home to a wide range of really significant wetlands from ephemeral wetlands high in the catchment, to billabongs, dry season water holes in major water courses, through to coastal wetlands like those in the lower end of the Kolan. Wetlands are important for Water Quality acting like “kidneys” filtering impurities and in turn supporting a seething mass of life and growth.
So have a happy World Wetlands Day today.