All About Wetlands: World Wetlands Day

Today is World Wetlands Day! The day is celebrated after the signing of the Ramsar Convention of Wetlands in 1972. Given that a convention was signed for this special ecosystem and that we celebrate World Wetlands Day on the 2nd of February every year, wetlands must be of great value to the world. [1]

Wetlands are defined as areas which are flooded by water but also support life-like aquatic plants and certain animals. The flooding of wetland areas can be permanent or seasonal. A special marker of these ecosystems is that the areas are not water bodies like rivers or lakes but are also not dryland areas. [2]

Found all around the world, except in Antarctica, wetlands are important areas of biodiversity and support conditions which are important for the mitigation of climate change and other impacts such as flooding. The plants in the wetlands play a vital role in the prevention of flooding. [2] These carbon-rich ecosystems can store twice as much carbon as forests and are a large provider of freshwater [6].

Wetlands are important areas of natural water filtration as they filter out pollutants and act as storage areas for water which is important for mitigation of the impact of drier seasons [1]. Wetlands also support a variety of animals and plants, ranging from grasses to mangroves and frogs to moose [2]. There are many types of wetlands and South Africa houses different wetland systems including lakes and estuarine systems but many of these systems have been lost [3].

The rate of loss of wetland systems in South Africa is close to the global loss, with South Africa at 35-60% and global loss of 64% since 1900 [4, 5]. There are known contributors to these high levels of deterioration such as drainage for development, mining and pollution [3].

There are certain wetlands which are protected by the Ramsar Convention which means they are monitored and maintained. There are also ways you can participate in the protection of wetlands like visiting a wetland near you, saving water, buying organic and biodegradable products and even sharing information you find on wetlands [1].

Live green, see green,

Shannon

References

1. Buchanan, S., Lockhart, H., Bowen, D. (2020). World Wetlands Day: 11 reasons wetlands are vital for humans and animals. Two Oceans Aquarium [ONLINE] Available from: https://www.aquarium.co.za/blog/entry/11-reasons-why-wetlands-are-vital-for-humans-and-animals#:~:text=Not%20only%20do%20wetland%20ecosystems,protect%20our%20planet%20and%20ourselves (Accessed 01/02/2021).

2. Caryl-Sue and Evers, E. (ed.) (2012). Wetland. National Geographic: Resource Library. [ONLINE] Available from: https://www.nationalgeographic.org/encyclopedia/wetland/#:~:text=Wetlands%20go%20by%20many%20names,three%20major%20kinds%20of%20wetlands.&text=A%20swamp%20is%20a%20wetland,water%20and%20dominated%20by%20trees (Accessed 01/02/2021).

3. Department of Environmental Affairs (2018). Wetlands for a Sustainable Future: What you should know about South Africa’s wetlands. Department of Environmental Affairs World Wetlands Day Factsheet.

4. Department of Environment, Forestry and Fisheries (2019). Working for Wetlands. Projects and Programmes [ONLINE] Available from: https://www.environment.gov.za/projectsprogrammes/workingfowetlands (Accessed 01/02/2021).

5. Ramsar Convention on Wetlands (2014). Wetlands: a global disappearing act. Ramsar Convention on Wetlands Factsheet series, Factsheet 3.

6. United Nations: Climate Change (2021). Wetlands Disappearing Three Times Faster than Forests. United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change [ONLINE] Available from: https://unfccc.int/news/wetlands-disappearing-three-times-faster-than-forests#:~:text=Approximately%2035%25%20of%20the%20world's,is%20accelerating%20annually%20since%202000.&text=Up%20to%2040%25%20of%20the,are%20at%20risk%20of%20extinction (Accessed 02/02/2021).