What's
New @ Ramsar What's
New @ Ramsar
2
February 2005
Headline
story. World Wetlands Day. The second
of February is World Wetlands Day, and around the world activities of all sorts
are being sponsored by governments and civil groups at all levels, both today
and on nearby dates at their convenience. At the Ramsar Secretariat, where the
STRP meetings are going on all this week, a "debate" is being held
this afternoon on the ability of ecosystems like mangroves and coral reefs to
mitigate the effects of natural disasters such as the recent devastating tsunami
in South Asia. In addition to the STRP members themselves, participants include
experts for a number of relevant organizations, including the WMO, FAO, UNEP,
IUCN, WWF and others, and it is co-chaired by Philippe
Roch, environment minister of Switzerland, and Kemi
Awoyinka of Wetlands International, with introductory presentations
by Douglas Taylor of Wetlands International,
Rebecca Tharme of the Integrated Water
Management Institute, and Mette Wilkie of
FAO. It is expected that by the end of the afternoon the participants will have
agreed a recommendation that can be taken forward as a contribution to the lessons
learnt from the recent disaster.
To those of you who are involved in WWD activities, please do send us something about them, from a brief description to a longer report, with photographs as well if you wish, and we will try, as in past years, to create of record of as many of your efforts as we can. [02/02/05]
Who's where? STRP meeting now under way. The Convention's Scientific and Technical Review Panel (STRP) has begun its 12th meeting at the Secretariat's facilities in Switzerland, and will be debating upcoming technical issues in preparation for Ramsar COP9 throughout this week. [01/02/05]
Headline
story. Mexico
designates 4 Ramsar sites for World Wetlands Day. Following the high
profile events of World Wetlands Day last year with 34 designations, this year
Mexico continues to increase its number of Ramsar sites by adding four more
to the List of Wetlands of International Importance. The new designations are
a dune slack complex in the city of Veracruz, a national park in the island
of Cozumel in the Caribbean, and a coastal lagoon and a mountain lakeshore in
Michoacán state, where the WWD celebrations will be focused this year.
Mexico now has 55 Ramsar sites with a surface are of 5,115,393 hectares. Summaries
of the sites have been prepared by Iván Darío Valencia. [01/02/05]
México designa 4 sitios Ramsar para el Día Mundial de los Humedales. Tras haber designado un número récord de 34 nuevos sitios para la misma fecha en 2004, en esta ocasión México ha añadido 4 nuevos sitios a la Lista de Humedales De Importancia Internacional. Los nuevos sitios son un complejo de lagunas interdunarias en la ciudad de Veracruz, un parque nacional en la isla de Cozumel en el Caribe; así como una laguna costera y un sector de un lago de montaña en el estado de Michoacán, en donde las celebraciones se enfocarán este año. Las descripciones resumidas de los sitios han sido preparadas por Iván Darío Valencia.
Headline
story.The
United States designates two Wetlands of International Importance in California.
To
commemorate World Wetlands Day 2005, two sites designated by the United States
of America have been added to the List of Wetlands of International Importance,
the Tijuana River National Estuarine Research Reserve
(TRNERR) and Grassland Ecological Area,
both in the state of California. TRNERR is one of the few unfragmented estuaries
in southern part of the state and is located at the very southwestern corner
of the country on the border with Mexico. Grassland is the largest remaining
freshwater wetland complex in the state and is renowned for its very large congregations
of wintering waterfowl and shorebirds. Brief site descriptions have been prepared
by Ramsar's Iván Darío Valencia based on the information
supplied in the Ramsar Information Sheets accompanying the designations, and
they can be seen here. The United
States now has 21 Wetlands of International Importance, with a surface area
totaling 1,258,751 hectares. [01/02/05].
Headline
story. Switzerland names mountain
wetlands for World Wetlands Day. The
Government of the Secretariat's host country, Switzerland, has designated three
valuable as well as very scenic Wetlands of International Importance as part
of its celebration of World Wetlands Day, 2 February. Switzerland now has eleven
Ramsar sites totaling 8,676 hectares. Laubersmad-Salwidili
(1,376 ha) is a subalpine area of transitional and raised bogs on the northern
slopes of the Alps, in the north-central canton of Lucerne, and is part of the
UNESCO Biosphere Reserve "Entlebuch". The Rhonegletschervorfeld
consists of the alpine region around the tongue of the Rhône glacier,
the source of the mighty Rhône River, and Vadret
da Roseg includes the alpine alluvial zone at the outflow of two
glaciers in the far east of the country. The
French version of the press release prepared by BUWAL, Switzerland's Bundesamt
für Umwelt, Wald und Landschaft (or in French OFEFP, Office fédéral
de l'environnement, des forêts et du paysage), can
be seen here in PDF or on BUWAL's Web site at http://www.environnement-suisse.ch/buwal/fr/medien/presse/artikel/20050128/01150/index.html.
Brief descriptions of the sites have been prepared by Ramsar's Assistant Advisor
for Europe, Estelle Gironnet, and are linked
to wonderful photographs of each of the new designations, for your delight.
[29/01/05]
Yesterday's News!
Tanzania
designates fascinating coastal complex. The Secretariat is extremely
pleased to announce that the United Republic of Tanzania has named its fourth
Wetland of International Importance, entitled Rufiji-Mafia-Kilwa
Marine Ramsar site (08°08'S 039°38'E), a complex of coastal
and marine habitats covering 596,908 hectares, comprising the delta of the Rufiji
River; the Mafia Island about 25km offshore and surrounding smaller islands,
sandbars, and coral reefs; the Songo-Songo Archipelago to the south; and adjacent
waters, i.e. the Mafia Channel and waters between Mafia and Songo-Songo. A large
part is composed of mangrove forests (an estimated 55,000 ha) as well as extensive
intertidal flats, seagrass beds, and sandbars, all thought to be ecologically
interlinked with the flow of the river. Songo-Songo 
has
a highly diverse and extensive coral assemblage with records of 49 genera of
hard and 12 genera of soft corals. Five species of globally threatened marine
turtles have been recorded, including Green Turtle and Hawksbill, as well as
a small population of Dugong dugong. A count in the delta alone in 2001
recorded 40,160 waterbirds of 62 species at a minimum. The delta's artisanal
fishery of about 7,000 fishermen produces about 4,500 tonnes of finfish per
annum, as well as prawns, and thousands of families in Songo-Songo and on Mafia
similarly make their livings from fishing. Fishing and extraction of other coastal
and mangrove resources, as well as cultivation (especially rice), seaweed farming,
and tourism are the major activities within the site. [28/01/05] 
Swiss
Grant for Africa: approval for projects in six African countries.
The Secretary General has signed grant agreements with the Convention's Administrative
Authorities in Burkina Faso, Côte d'Ivoire, and Liberia
for the implementation of several COP8 Resolutions in those countries. The grants
to Liberia and Côte d'Ivoire will serve for the: i) designation of new
Ramsar sites, ii) preparation of National Wetlands Policy outlines, iii) draft
report of their civil wars' impacts on their wetlands and, iv) strengthening
of the Ramsar focal points' operational capacities. Liberia, which does not
yet have a National Wetlands Committee, will establish one; in Burkina Faso,
where a Ramsar National Committee has just been created, the government intends
to do designate nine new Ramsar sites, update the three Ramsar sites' RISs,
and strengthen the Ramsar focal point's capacities. In addition, Cameroon
and Cape Verde have also been granted Ramsar/Swiss assistance to help
them prepare for accession to the Convention, and Gabon has a grant to
help upgrade the data on their Ramsar sites and provide a training session for
selected members of parliament. Gabon have also been granted Ramsar/Swiss Funds
assistance for similar activities. The total amount disbursed is 110,500 Swiss
francs for one year's duration, and the results will be presented during Ramsar
COP9 in Kampala. -- Abou Bamba, Ramsar.
[More info on the Swiss Grant for
Africa.] [27/01/05]
China
names nine new Ramsar sites for World Wetlands Day. The
Secretariat is delighted to announce that the Government of the People's Republic
of China has designated nine new Wetlands of International Importance, with
a surface area of nearly 400,000 hectares. One of them, Shuangtai Estuary on
the Liao River in northeastern China, makes up part of what has been called
"the world's largest reed bed". The other eight new Ramsar sites are
all in Qinghai and Yunnan Provinces and the Tibet Autonomous Region and are
all high-altitude marshes and lakes, one as high as 6,500 meters asl, among
the headwaters of the Yangtze, Yellow, and Yalu Tsangpo / Brahmaputra Rivers.
All of these have very important hydrological functions, both locally and downstream,
and all are extremely valuable sites for migratory birds, including the endangered
Black-necked Crane Grus nigricollis. Because of the relative isolation
of the sites, some of them have high levels of endemism, particularly with fish
species, and they are vital sources of livelihood for the populations nearby.
These new mountain designations have been made as part of China's efforts in
the "Wetland Conservation and Wise Use in the Himalayan High Mountains"
initiative and have been assisted by support from WWF China and WWF's Global
Freshwater Programme.
Brief descriptions of the nine new sites, drawn from the Ramsar Information Sheets submitted with the designations, have been put together with assistance from Ramsar's Ms Shahzia M. Khan.
[26/01/05]
Ramsar
Tsunami Reference Group. As
part of the global response to the disaster, the Ramsar Convention Secretariat
has asked Wetlands International to work with Ramsar International Organisation
Partners (IOPs) to coordinate efforts to bring together scientifically sound
advice on wetlands in the region in order to assist governments in choosing
the most effective response measures. The Ramsar Tsunami Reference Group has
been established involving Wetlands International, WWF, IUCN, BirdLife International
and the International Water Management Institute to combine resources, share
information and produce timely advice as and when it is needed. The highest
and immediate priority of this group is to coordinate rapid assessment of the
affected areas with involvement and assistance of all remote sensing specialists,
interested agencies and organisations. To provide an opportunity of interaction,
debate and cooperation, eight internet-based discussion groups the related subjects
are available on http://www.wetlands.org/tsunami/.
[20/01/05]
New
Intern for Africa chosen for Ramsar Secretariat. The
Secretariat is pleased to announce that Lucia Scodanibbio
from South Africa has been selected as the next Intern/Assistant Advisor for
the African region, replacing Ahmed El-Sabban
from Egypt. Lucia graduated with a First class BSc (Honours) in Plant and Freshwater
Ecology from the University of Cape Town. She also holds a BSc degree in Biology,
Earth and Environmental Sciences from the same university. She has recently
finished working on an 18-month project in Mozambique, promoting integrated
water resources management for the Zambezi River, and she also has field experience
in the Kosi Bay system in Kwazulu/Natal Province of South Africa and in Makerere
University Biological Field Station, Kibale National Forest Park, Uganda. After
the experience she gains in the Ramsar Secretariat, Lucia aims to work in integrated
basin management issues in the Zambezi and elsewhere in Africa. The Ramsar Secretariat
looks forward to welcoming Lucia in February 2005. [17/01/05]
European
Regional Meeting report and photos ready. The "5th European
Regional Meeting
on the implementation and effectiveness of the Ramsar Convention" was held
in Yerevan, Armenia, 4-8 December 2004, and was attended by 109 participants,
representing 35 Contracting Parties in the European Region, four intergovernmental
organisations, three of Ramsar's international organisation partners, several
non-governmental organisations plus a number of invited experts. The aims of
the Meeting, its detailed programme and annotated agenda, the participants list
and texts of most of the presentations delivered during the plenary sessions
and workshops are available on the Ramsar Convention Web site here.
And now, the Report of the meeting can be
seen in all its glory, here,
and a number of poignant photographs as
well, here. [12/01/04]
Small
Grants Fund -- call for project proposals. The Ramsar
Small Grants Fund was established by Ramsar COP4 in 1990 as a mechanism
to assist developing countries and those with economies in transition in implementing
the Convention and to enable the conservation and wise use of wetland resources
- since that time, it has provided funding and co-funding, up to 40,000 Swiss
francs (about US$ 34,000) per project, for something like 175 projects totaling
about 7 million francs. Projects for the 2004 cycle will be selected by the
Standing Committee's Subgroup on Finance in March 2005. The
call for proposals is now being made for the 2005 cycle, with a deadline of
30 June 2005 for application and with a decision to be made by the
Standing Committee around the end of the year. Here
is the text of the call for proposals, and the "operational guidelines"
for the SGF can be found here
in Word and PDF format. [11/01/04] 
Ramsar
/ MedWet call for film entries.
The Ramsar Convention
on Wetlands and its Mediterranean Wetlands Initiative are calling for entries
for the Ramsar /MedWet Award for films on water and wetlands. The Ramsar / MedWet
Award is given in the ecofilms Festival, 21 - 26 June 2005, Rhodes, Greece.
A jury composed of experts from the Ramsar Convention Secretariat and MedWet,
as well as professionals from the cinema industry, bestow the Award accompanied
by a prize of €4.000 (four thousand euro) provided by the two sponsors.
The deadline for submission of entries for the 2005 awards is 1st March. More
information from Sofia Spirou, MedWet Communications Officer, can be
seen here, and you can access the entry form at http://www.ecofilms.gr/01.1.ecofilms_call_en.htm.
[11/01/05]
Ramsar
and Partners prepare advice on post-tsunami rehabilitation.
"Wetlands have an important role to play in ensuring a sustainable future
for people in the areas of South and Southeast Asia, devastated by the recent
tsunami events. For example, the recovery and rehabilitation of mangroves and
linked coastal and marine habitats will be vital to increase coastal protection
and support coastal fisheries. Safeguarding other wetland systems in the region
will also be important to secure sufficient freshwater supplies. . . . As
part of the global response, the Ramsar Convention Secretariat has asked Wetlands
International to coordinate efforts to bring together scientifically
sound advice on wetlands in the region to assist governments in establishing
the most effective response measures. A joint effort will be established with
Ramsar's International Organisation Partners and other relevant research, environmental
and aid organisations to combine resources, share information and produce timely
advice as and when it is needed." Here
is Ramsar Secretary General Peter Bridgewater's
message on the Ramsar response to the recent coastal catastrophe. [09/01/05]
Ramsar
Sites updates. Switzerland
updates data and extends one Ramsar site. Switzerland has extended
the Kaltbrunner Riet Ramsar site by seven hectares to include all the marsh
and its buffer zone within the designated area and has updated Ramsar Information
Sheets and maps for seven of its eight designated Wetlands of International
Importance with excellent quality information. (In Resolution VI.13 (1996),
the Parties committed themselves to updating the data provided for their Ramsar
sites at least every six years.) Mr Meinrad Küttel,
head of the Administrative Authority for Switzerland, notified that the remaining
update for the Les Grangettes Ramsar site will be done after its extension,
which is in process. [06/01/05]
Burkina
Faso creates National Ramsar Committee. In furtherance of Recommendation
5.7 of Ramsar COP5, held June 1993 in Kushiro, Japan, the government of
Burkina Faso has just established its Ramsar National Committee, "to provide
a focus at national level for implementation of the Convention" in the
words of the Recommendation. By the ministerial joint decree no. 2004-25/MECVF/MAHRH/MRA/MESSRS,
dated the 16th of September 2004, the Ministries of Environment, Water and Agriculture,
Higher Education and Scientific Research, and Animal Resources have nominated
the new members of the Ramsar National Committee, which includes researchers,
university professors, government organizations, and NGO representatives with
different qualifications in the field of wetland management. The creation of
the committee, a model of the kind of broad-based cooperative body envisaged
by the COP in Recommentation 5.7, is the result of close fruitful consultations
between the Ramsar Secretariat and the Ministry of Environment of Burkina Faso.
Here Ramsar's Abou Bamba provides more detail,
the text of the decree (in French), and some photos. [05/01/05]
Secretary General's New Year's message. Peter Bridgewater, Secretary General of the Convention, looks back at 2004 and sketches out the challenges awaiting the Ramsar Convention in 2005. Here. [31/12/04]
Vacancy
announcement. IUCN seeks Water Programme Coordinator
for Med Centre. The IUCN Centre for Mediterranean Cooperation
in Malaga, Spain, is seeking a new staff member with immediate effect to
assist in setting up and implementing the emerging IUCN programme for the Mediterranean
region. This challenging staff position arises as IUCN establishes itself in
the pleasant working environment of the Parque Tecnologico near Malaga, Spain.
The IUCN Malaga Office is supported financially by the Ministry of Environment,
Madrid, and the Consejeria de Medio Ambiente (Andalucia). The Water Programme
Coordinator will be responsible for developing and implementing a programme
of work at Mediterranean regional level to meet the strategic goals defined
for the programme. This will be done in partnership with other organisations,
particularly working closely with the UNEP Mediterranean Action Plan, the Ramsar
Convention and MedWet, the Global Water Partnership, the international network
of river basin organisations and IUCN members. Here is the announcement.
[link
later removed] [23/12/04]
Announcement.
Freshwater symposium set for American Museum of Natural
History. The symposium "New Currents in Conserving Freshwater
Systems" will take place in New York City on 7-8 April 2005, sponsored
by the American Museum of Natural History's Center for Biodiversity and Conservation,
in collaboration with the World Wildlife Fund, U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service,
and National Park Service. Major funding is provided by the National Oceanic
and Atmospheric Administration. Additional support is provided by the American
Society of Ichthyologists and Herpetologists, The Nature Conservancy, and the
American Fisheries Society. The meeting will provide "a forum for scientists
and conservation practitioners to highlight recent successful initiatives in
freshwater conservation, to discuss cutting-edge ideas and tools, and to investigate
how and where these innovations might be implemented on the ground". More
information can be found here. [22/12/04]
Evian
Encounter 2004 reaffirms developing an Himalayan Regional Initiative.
The Evian Encounters are an important component
of the Ramsar Evian project financed by the Groupe
Danone, owner of the Evian Mineral Waters 
Society.
They are designed to bring together high-level officials of the Convention's
Contracting Parties, along with the Convention's NGO International Organization
Partners and other relevant international organizations, in order to discuss
in an informal atmosphere the current approaches and challenges in the implementation
of the Ramsar Convention. The Evian Encounter for the
Himalaya-Hindu Kush-Pamir-Allay region and the Mekong River basin countries,
the fifth in the series since 1998, was held in Evian, France, 1-6 November
2004, and after fruitful exchanges, the consensus amongst the countries of the
region on the need for a regional Himalayan wetlands initiative was re-affirmed.
The participants agreed that further development of the 
Initiative
should be focused on developing a regional strategy for delivery of the common
vision; the geographical and altitudinal (high altitude and downstream) scope
and focus; identification of additional key objectives to those developed by
the Sanya workshop; development of a "Himalayan
Initiative Framework Agreement", simplifying coordination and
governance structures, and the next steps towards Ramsar COP9, including priorities
for project development for initiating implementation. The participants of the
Evian Encounter 2004 wish to express their gratitude to the Danone Group and
the Evian Water Company and their staff for their support through the Danone/Ramsar
project which permitted the holding of the Encounter. The
detailed report of the meeting, with a lot of photographs, can be seen here.
[21/12/04]
Reminder
for Parties. Deadline for National Reports. In
diplomatic notifications of 22 April, the Ramsar Secretariat passed on the news
that the Parties' National Reports for COP9 will be due by 28 February 2005,
and stressed that it is important that the Parties meet that deadline so that
the staff can complete its analyses of the status of implementation for circulation
to the Parties with the agenda papers in advance of COP9. The National Report
Forms were earlier distributed to the Administrative Authorities but can be
requested from the Secretariat (ramsar@ramsar.org) or downloaded from the Ramsar
Web site in English, Français,
or Español. [21/12/04]
Uruguay
designates its second Ramsar site along the Uruguay river.
Twenty years after acceding to the Convention and designating the Bañados
del Este and Franja Costera as its first Ramsar Site, Uruguay has renewed its
commitment to the Convention and made a big step by adding a second site to
the List of Wetlands of International Importance: the Esteros
de Farrapos e Islas del Río Uruguay. The site is due to be
incorporated soon in the National Protected Area System. Currently, the Ministry
of Housing, Land Development and Environment is elaborating a 
management
plan for the site. The Information Sheet was compiled by the Ministry of Livestock,
Agriculture and Fisheries. Iván Darío
Valencia of the Secretariat has prepared this
description of the site in both English and Spanish, festooned with
maps and exemplary illustrations as well. [19/12/04]
Uruguay designa su segundo sitio Ramsar en el Río Uruguay. 20 años después de acceder a la Convención y designar a los humedales Bañados del Este y Franja Costera como sitio Ramsar, Uruguay ha renovado su compromiso con la Convención y dado un gran paso al incorporar su segundo humedal a la Lista de Humedales de Importancia Internacional: los Esteros de Farrapos e Islas del Río Uruguay. Se espera que el sitio se incorpore pronto al Sistema Nacional de Áreas Naturales Protegidas. Actualmente, el Ministerio de Vivienda y Ordenamiento Territorial y Medio Ambiente se encuentra elaborando un plan de manejo para el sitio. La Ficha fue compilada por el Ministerio de Ganadería, Agricultura y Pesca.
Seychelles
becomes 144th Ramsar Party. On 22 November 2004 Seychelles
deposited with the Director-General of UNESCO its instrument of accession to
the Convention on Wetlands, as amended by the Paris Protocol (1982) and Regina
Amendments (1987), and the Convention will enter into force for this small group
of islands off the eastern coast of Africa on 22 March 2005. Seychelles' first
Ramsar site is the "Port Launay Coastal Wetlands"
(Port Glaud Wetlands), 29 hectares in Port Glaud District, one of the best mangrove
wetlands on Mahé, the main island, supporting all seven species of mangrove
in the region. The Convention's Senior Advisor for Africa, Mr Abou Bamba,
says that "the coastal areas of Seychelles are among the most beautiful
and productive in the world" and he pointed to Seychelles' process towards
accession as "one of the best examples of 
Ramsar
cooperation among the Secretariat, the national authorities, and international
and local NGOs" -- the WWF Global Freshwater
Programme, WWF Madagascar, and
Switzerland through the Ramsar Swiss Grant
for Africa have been instrumental in helping Seychelles to prepare for accession
and to compile the necessary data for this and other potential Ramsar sites.
Here is Abou Bamba's brief illustrated
report on the new site. [17/12/04]
Jamaica's
new stamps feature Ramsar sites.
Here's a hot story that was meant to be posted here on What's
New @ Ramsar in early November: "In
celebration of World Environment Day this year, the
Government of Jamaica, with the assistance of the National Environment
& Planning Agency (NEPA, the Ramsar Administrative Authority), launched
a series of stamps to celebrate the beauty and diversity of Jamaica's coastal
wetlands. Two of the stamps featured Parottee and Salt Spring Ponds, both wetlands
that are part of the Black River Lower Morasss, a 5,700-hectare Ramsar site
made up of both inland freshwater and mangrove ecosystems." So wrote Sandra
Hails to the Ramsar CEPA List on 2 November, and the illustrated
story can be seen on the CEPA Programme's
corner of our Web site.
But let that be a lesson to
you -- fireworks are happening on the CEPA site even as we
speak, and to be sure of getting all of the best Ramsar news, you should also
consult regularly the CEPA news pages,
and the most adventurous amongst you will also consider subscribing to the CEPA
e-mail list. [17/12/04]
Myanmar
joins the Ramsar Convention. The Ramsar Secretariat is very pleased
to announce that Myanmar has deposited its
instrument of accession with the Director-General of UNESCO as of 17 November
2004, and thus the Convention, as amended in 1982 and 1987, will enter into
force for Myanmar on 17 March 2005. The new Party's first Wetland of International
Importance is "Moyingyi Wetland Wildlife Sanctuary"
(256 ha, 17°33'N 096°37'E), a state-owned area in Southern Bago comprising
floodplain and a storage reservoir that is important for flood control. Some
15 villages with about 14,000 inhabitants are located in the surrounding area
and depend upon the wetland for traditional fishing and water supply for paddy
fields. A number of vulnerable and near-threatened bird species are supported.
The Wild Bird Society of Japan has been assisting Myanmar's Nature and Wildlife
Conservation Division with capacity building and research studies, and Japan's
Ministry of Environment has worked with the Forest Department in inventorying
the country's wetlands and preparing management plans.
The Secretariat warmly welcomes Myanmar to the community of Ramsar nations. As of today, the Convention's 143 Contracting Parties have designated 1399 wetlands for the Ramsar List, covering 122,828,174 hectares. [16/12/04]
Wetland
Training Seminars in the Czech Republic. The Wetland
Training Centre, operating as part of the non-governmental organisation
ENKI in cooperation with the Ministry of Environment of the Czech Republic,
has launched a new programme of training seminars dealing with wetland conservation
and managment. The first of a series of training seminars aimed at national,
regional and local administration offices responsible for nature conservation
in the Czech Republic, "Wetlands and Their Role in Landscape Functioning",
took place 5-7 October 2004 in the Trebon Basin Protected Landscape Area and
Biosphere Reserve. The second seminar of the programme will take place in May
2005, and the seminars are structured so as to enhance the implementation of
Ramsar Convention in the Czech Republic as well as ensure wetland conservation
according to Czech legislation. Martina Eiseltová,
ENKI, and Libuse Vlasakova, Ministry of
Environment, have contributed this
brief illustrated report. [15/12/04]
Chile
designates large tidal flat in Tierra del Fuego. Bahía
Lomas (58,946 hectares, 52º38'S 069º10'W) becomes the next
to southernmost site in the world after the neighbouring Reserva Costa Atlantica
de Tierra del Fuego in Argentina. The designation is the first legal measure
of protection granted to the site, which is expected to be nominated as a Western
Hemisphere Shorebird Reserve shortly. The site features the largest intertidal
flats in Chile, fronting a 69 km long beach and several salt marshes. The bay
is renowned for its high concentrations of migratory shorebirds from October
to March. Here is further detail,
prepared by Ramsar's Iván Darío Valencia, and some photos.
[13/12/04]
Chile designa extensa planicie intermareal en Tierra del Fuego. Bahía Lomas se convierte en el segundo sitio Ramsar más meridional del mundo después de la vecina Reserva Costa Atlántica de Tierra del Fuego en Argentina. La designación es la primera medida legal de protección otorgada al sitio, el cual espera ser nominado como Reserva Hemisférica de Aves Playeras en el futuro cercano. El sitio tiene las planicies intermareales más amplias de Chile, extendiéndose frente a una playa de 69 km de largo y varios pantanos salinos. La bahía es reputada por sus altas concentraciones de aves playeras migratorias de octubre a marzo. Aquí.
Feedback and suggestions
are welcome to the Ramsar Convention Secretariat, Rue Mauverney 28, CH-1196
Gland, Switzerland (tel +41 22 999 0170, fax +41 22 999 0169, e-mail 
).
Back
Issues of the Bulletin Board. Early in every month, the current edition
of the Bulletin Board is copied to the Ramsar
Archives page, and you can dig through the back issues there --
their contents are still indexed on the Global
Index page in perpetuity.
