The Ramsar Bulletin Board, 2 December 2009

First national Ramsar conference in Austria and designation of the 12th transboundary Ramsar site. In 2007 Austria organised the first meeting for European Ramsar STRP national focal points in Mittersill. Now, two years later, Austria was again the first country to organise a national Ramsar conference, 11-12 November 2009, focusing on “the significance of wetlands for drinking water supply, climate change mitigation and biodiversity support”. Around 140 experts gathered in Eisenstadt, the capital of Austria’s youngest federal state Burgenland, including participants from the neighbouring countries Hungary, Slovenia and Switzerland. Read more. [02/12/09]

Kazakhstan’s 6th Ramsar site in 2009. The government of Kazakhstan has designated its sixth new Wetland of International Importance in the year 2009, complementing its first Ramsar site, which was originally listed by the Soviet Union back in 1976. “Alakol-Sasykkol Lakes System” (914,663 hectares, 46°16’N 081°32’E) is a State Nature Reserve in the far east of the country – it’s Kazakhstan’s largest reserve for nesting wetland birds and a major migratory stop, with over a hundred thousand waterbirds and semi-aquatic birds stopping annually. Read more. [02/12/09]

Wetlands as carbon sinks. An article by Melanie Lenart in the recent Nature Reports on climate change (26 November) discusses the unappreciated role of wetlands in carbon storage, using the Olentangy River Wetlands Research Park in Ohio (USA) as an illustrative case, and the need for recognition of that role in the upcoming Copenhagen climate change debates. Various collaborators in the Ramsar Convention’s efforts to promote this message, such as William Mitsch, the Olentangy Park’s director, and Susanna Tol of Wetlands International, explain the rationale for advocating the inclusion of wetlands in carbon credit schemes and urge that wetlands be included in the Copenhagen negotiating text. The article is at http://www.nature.com/climate/2009/0912/full/climate.2009.125.html.

CMS and AEWA call for tenders. Following an expression of interest from a potential donor, the CMS and AEWA Secretariats are inviting submission of tenders for the following project: Review of and guidelines for mitigating/avoiding the conflict between migratory birds and electricity power grids in the African-Eurasian region. Deadline for submission: 31 December 2009. The CMS and AEWA Secretariats reserve the right to cancel this project should funds not be made available.  For more information please visit http://www.unep-aewa.org/activities/call_for_tenders.htm. [01/12/09]

Who's Where?

The Ad Hoc Working Group on Administrative Reform is having its 3rd meeting in the Secretariat's facilities at IUCN in Gland, Switzerland, 02 December 2009.  [02/12/09]

Nathalie Rizzotti, Project Officer, is in Thailand, 23 November to 3 December 2009, to assess the Evian "Water Protection Institutes" project "Raising awareness for improved management of Beung Kong Long Ramsar site". [20/11/09]

For more old Ramsar Secretariat travel news, see also 'Who Was Where', 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009

Yesterday's News

From the Ramsar Forum. Article on legal responsibility for wetland mitigation sites. “Dear colleagues, Wetland regulators may deal with various business entities, including limited liability partnerships (LLPs) and limited liability companies (LLCs). Terri Radwan and I have just published an article in the National Wetlands Newsletter, entitled “Corporate Shell Games: LLPs, LLCs, and Responsibility for Mitigation Sites,” which examines the extent to which certain business entities are legally responsible (or not) for wetland mitigation. Although the focus is US law, the general principles discussed may be analogous in other countries. If you are interested, the article can be downloaded (for free) from: http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=1498780. Best regards, Royal C. Gardner.” [01/12/09]

Vacancy announcement. PhD study on constructed wetlands. UNESCO-IHE Institute for Water Education, The Netherlands, in cooperation with Universidad del Valle, Colombia, announces a vacancy for a PhD student for a study of constructed wetlands that will be supervised by dr. Diederik Rousseau, dr. Hans van Bruggen and Prof. Piet Lens (all UNESCO-IHE), and Prof. Miguel Peña (Universidad del Valle). See the attached announcement, and more information can be obtained from dr. Diederik Rousseau (d.rousseau@unesco-ihe.org). Fluency in English and Spanish is required, and the deadline for applications is 18 December 2009. [01/12/09]

Visita de la Secretaria de Ramsar y WWF a la Laguna Macaya en Bolivia. El Gobierno de Bolivia está trabajando en la preparación de la información técnica para la designación de la Laguna Macaya como Humedal de Importancia Internacional, ya que es uno de los principales sitios que sirven de hábitat para los flamencos Altoandinos, así que fuimos invitados a conocerlo . . . . Fotos. [01/12/09]

Mexico names marine site on Gulf of California. The government of Mexico has designated its 114th Wetland of International Importance for the Ramsar List. “Canal del Infiernillo y esteros del territorio Comcaac (Xepe Coosot)” (29,700 hectares, 29°10'N 112°14'W) is a channel between Island Tiburón and the Sonora coast in northwestern Mexico, characterized by the presence of sea-grass beds, mangrove estuaries, seasonal creeks and small coral reef patches. Read more. [27/11/09]

TheVI Workshop of the Regional Strategy for the Conservation and Sustainable Use of High Andean Wetlands, organized by the Bolivian Government through the Ministry of Environment and Climate Change and the Secretariat of the Ramsar Convention, with financial support from the Danone Group, was held in La Paz, Bolivia, from 21-24 September 2009. The main objective of the VI Workshop of the Strategy was to discuss the impact of climate change in high Andean wetlands and the definition of priorities for the triennium 2009-2012 with special emphasis in the definition of funding mechanisms for its implementation. Report (PDF, 5MB) [26/11/09]

El VI Taller de la Estrategia Regional para la Conservación y Uso Sostenible de Humedales Altoandinos, organizado por el Gobierno de Bolivia a través del Ministerio de Ambiente y Cambio Climático y la Secretaria de la Convención Ramsar, con el apoyo financiero de Danone,  tuvo lugar en La Paz, Bolivia del 21-24 de Septiembre de 2009. El objetivo principal del taller fue discutir el impacto del cambio climático sobre los Humedales Altoandinos y la definición de prioridades para el trienio 2009-2012 con énfasis en la definición de mecanismos de financiación para su implementación. Informe (PDF, 5MB)

Dos nuevas publicaciones sobre la aplicación de la Convención Ramsar en Ecuador. Como resultado del proyecto “Capacitación en Base de una Revisión de la Legislación e Institucionalidad Relacionados con la Gestión de Humedales en el Ecuador” financiado bajo el Fondo Humedales para el Futuro (FHF) en 2007, el Centro Ecuatoriano de Derecho Ambiental (CEDA), en coordinación con el Ministerio del Ambiente de Ecuador (MAE), ha publicado dos nuevos documentos, que se encuentran disponibles en su página web (www.ceda.org.ec). Continúe leyendo » [25/11/09]

New staff member for the Secretariat. The Secretariat extends a cordial welcome to Sofia Méndez Castillo of Honduras, who has been selected to be the new Intern / Assistant Advisor for the Americas region. Read more. [24/11/09]

La Secretaria de Ramsar da una cordial bienvenida a Sofia Méndez de Honduras, quien ha sido seleccionada como nueva pasante/asistente para las Américas. Para más información. [24/11/09]

Turkey names 13th Ramsar site. The Ministry of Environment and Forestry has designated Lake Kuyucuk (Kuyucuk Gölü) (416 hectares, 40°45’N 043°27’E) as Turkey’s 13th Wetland of International Importance. As summarized by Nadezhda Alexeeva from the RIS, this Wildlife Reserve is one of the most important wetlands of Kars province in northeastern Turkey –  the freshwater stream- and spring-fed lake is surrounded by treeless steppe and sparse Phragmites reed patches, and the area may be typical of what much of the Anatolian Steppe grassland-wetland community used to consist of before widespread degradation of its water bodies over the past several hundred years. More details here, with photos.  [20/11/09] [français et-y español]

Upcoming meetings. WAZA conference on Australia fish. The World Association of Zoos and Aquariums will be holding a meeting, 23-25 November 2009, on "Challenges and opportunities in conserving the indigenous freshwater fishes of Australia". It will take place at the Adelaide, Australia, Zoo and is being co-organised by the Chester Zoo, the IUCN Freshwater Fish Specialist Group, and the Adelaide Zoo and is supported by the University of Adelaide and the Ramsar Convention. Read more (PDF). [20/11/09]

World record for Hong Kong Wetland Park. Carrie Ma reports on one of the Park’s World Wetlands Day activities to mark the start of their four-month promotional programme on WWD 2010. As part of their Bird Watching Festival on 17 October, a total of 2,041 students and members of the public gathered to create a 959.35 metre long and 1.2 metre wide painting with the theme of "Birds and Wetlands". Guinness World Records have now informed the Park that their "Birds and Wetlands" Painting for the Guinness World Records activity has set a new world record for the "largest painting by numbers". You can read the press release here. The awareness-raising about wetlands extended well beyond the participants and spectators through the media’s interest in this Guinness Record event  – an invaluable opportunity to highlight wetlands, World Wetlands Day, and the Ramsar principles. [18/11/09]

Danone Fund for Nature experts workshop. The Danone-IUCN-Ramsar partnership hosted a three-day expert workshop on “Achieving carbon offsets through mangroves and other wetlands,” 9-11 November 2009, at the Ramsar Secretariat premises. Some 47 experts on wetland restoration, socioeconomic valuation, carbon measurement, and carbon markets reviewed the latest knowledge on the role of wetlands in the carbon cycle, good practices in wetland restoration, methods for carbon measurement in different types of wetlands, and current and developing approaches to carbon markets relevant to wetlands. They identified which types of wetlands can be readily restored and over what timeframes, and for which types of wetlands current carbon measurement methodologies can be readily applied. They also identified mechanisms available for elaborating carbon evaluation in mangroves and set out a plan to develop mechanisms for crediting delivery of carbon offsets in mangroves and other wetlands, through wetland restoration projects that are in line with the principles and practices of the Ramsar Convention. The full report of the meeting will be posted soon; in the meantime visit the workshop Web site, our page on the DFN fund itself, and the report by the IISD Climate-L.org. [17/11/09]

Wetland Link International’s first Oceania conference. Organised by the Hunter Wetland Centre in Australia and funded by the Australian government (Department of Environment, Heritage, Water and the Arts), the WLI conference brought wetland scientists together at the Hunter Wetland Centre in Newcastle, Australia, 28-31 October 2009, with a broad range of people who carry out wetland education / participation activities. Ramsar’s CEPA Programme Officer, Sandra Hails, was an active participant and provides this illustrated report. [16/11/09]

Central African Republic’s Sangha River Ramsar site. The Central African Republic has benefited from a Ramsar Swiss Grant for Africa project, “Establishment of a network of Ramsar sites along the Congo Rivers,” to complete the process of designating its second Wetland of International Importance. Rivière Sangha située en République Centrafricaine (275,000 hectares, 02°40’N 016°15’E), a National Park and Nature Reserve, is noted for the presence of large areas of dense periodically flooded forests with rivers, marshes and lakes found within. Read more. [16/11/09]

STRP briefing note on wetlands and climate change. The Ramsar Convention is calling for the support of Contracting Parties and others in ensuring that wetlands will be fully recognized at the crucial upcoming Meeting of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change in Copenhagen in December 2009. The Scientific and Technical Review Panel (STRP) has compiled the attached briefing note based upon recent decisions adopted by Ramsar Contracting Parties and on recent information and recommendations provided by the STRP in relation to wetlands and climate change. The Secretariat urges Contracting Parties and others to use this briefing note as an aide-memoire to prepare for and during the important Copenhagen meeting to ensure that wetland issues be given the consideration they merit. [13/11/09]

1st China Wetlands Cultural Festival. On Monday 2 November 2009, the 1st China Wetlands Cultural Festival, with the theme of ‘Wetlands and Culture’, was launched in Hangzhou City with much fanfare. The celebrations included the opening of the 3rd International Wetlands Forum; the opening of the new National Wetland Museum of China adjacent to China’s 37th and newest Ramsar site, the Xixi Wetland Park; and a ceremony to hand over the Ramsar site certificate to the representative of the Hangzhou City government. Ramsar's Lew Young provides this illustrated report. [12/11/09]

Seychelles names large coral atoll. Seychelles has designated as its second Wetland of International Importance the Aldabra Atoll (43,900 hectares, 09°24’S 046°20’E), a UNESCO World Heritage site (1982) in the Western Indian Ocean, some 1150km southwest of the main island, Mahé. As described by Ramsar’s Cynthia Kibata, based on the RIS, Aldabra is the largest raised coral atoll in the world and is widely recognized as one of the most remarkable oceanic islands on Earth. It comprises seven wetland types, including permanent shallow marine waters, coastal saline lagoon area, marine subtidal aquatic seagrass beds and mangrove swamps. The numerous habitat types allow for the support of many different species at different stages of their life cycles. This includes endangered and vulnerable species such as the green turtle Chelonia mydas and the Aldabra giant tortoise Geochelone gigantean; endemic species of flora (40 species) and fauna such as the Madagascar sacred ibis Threskiornis aethiopicus abbotti and 100% of the populations of two species of endemic insectivorous bat (Chaerephon pusillus and Triaenops pauliani). Land use on Aldabra is extremely low with the only uses being research, an education outreach programme, and minimal tourism as tourists are not allowed to stay overnight. The main threats facing the site are potential oil spills from a nearby tanker route, alien invasive species introduction and establishment, and, as with other low-lying islands, climate change. [10/11/09]

New Assistant for the Africa region. The Ramsar Secretariat welcomes Ms Cathleen Cybele of Mauritius as our new Assistant Advisor for Africa/Intern, to begin in mid-January 2010 – she will be replacing in that post Ms Cynthia Kibata, who will be staying on for some months on a consultancy basis to help with a number of outstanding tasks for the Africa region. Cathleen is a graduate of the University of Lille in France and the University of Kent in the UK and has served as the manager of a national awareness campaign for Rare Pride in Mauritius and, most recently, as a conservation educator for the Mauritian Wildlife Foundation. We look forward to working with Cathleen in the new year. [10/11/09]

Danone Fund for Nature: Call for new project proposals. “Imagine a project which restores a wetland, ensures tangible benefits for local communities and sequesters carbon. Imagine a unique partnership to develop and invest in such projects. Together the Danone Groupe, the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), and the Ramsar Convention on Wetlands are promoting a new class of green development projects -- wet carbon. In the start-up phase, the partners are looking to learn by doing through developing and investing in pilot projects. If you have know of a potential wet carbon project, please have a look at our guidance for project proposal (PDF).”

Please submit your wet carbon project concept note in confidence to: Name: Carole Martinez, DFN Field Project Coordinator, Comité français de l’UICN, 26 Rue Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire, 75005 Paris, France (carole.martinez@uicn.fr, Tel/Fax: +33 1 47 07 71 78, Mob: + 33 6 76 29 49 57, Skype: martinez.carole).

Agreement to protect Pacific wetlands under Ramsar Convention. "A memorandum of cooperation was signed between the Secretariat of the Pacific Regional Environment Programme (SPREP) and the Ramsar Convention Secretariat on November 2, 2009. . . . Through this partnership, SPREP has provided support to Pacific islands countries to protect their wetland areas through conducting training programmes on wetlands management, updating national wetland information and through raising awareness on why our wetlands are important." Read the SPREP press release here. Text of the MOC. [04/11/09]

Workshop on wetlands and carbon offsets. As a contribution to the implementation of Danone/IUCN/Ramsar “Danone Fund for Nature” Initiative, next week the Ramsar Secretariat is hosting an expert workshop bringing together a wide group of authorities on wetland restoration, socio-economic valuation, carbon measurement and carbon markets to develop mechanisms for crediting delivery of carbon offsets in mangroves and other wetlands, through wetland restoration projects that are in line with the principles and practices of the Ramsar Convention. The “Danone Fund for Nature” Initiative is a trilateral agreement, signed by the Ramsar Convention, IUCN and the private sector Danone Group at the Ramsar’s 10th Conference of Parties in Changwon, Republic of Korea in November 2008. "Achieving Carbon offsets through mangroves and other wetlands" expert workshop; Danone Fund for Nature. 9-11 November 2009, in Gland, Switzerland. Read more on the IUCN Web site. [04/11/09]

Photos of the Sundarbans. Rubaiyat Mansur Mowgli and Elisabeth Fahrni Mansur announce the launching of their new book ‘Living with Tides and Tigers – The Sundarbans Mangrove Forest’. "The stunning collection of photographs documents the wildlife, various ecological aspects and the people of this unique jungle. Interspersed with personal accounts about our experiences over the past nearly 20years in the forest and insightful background information, the attractive coffee-table book aims to increase awareness about this fragile ecosystem. It is available from www.mowgliz.com, www.amazon.de from November 10th 2009, and will be available in Bangladesh from December 8th 2009 - making it an ideal Christmas present or Company Year-End gift!" [03/11/09]

ASEAN meetings on wetlands and biodiversity, Singapore. In late October 2009, Lew Young, Ramsar’s Senior Advisor for Asia/Oceania, has been participating in two key meetings in Singapore of the Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN), one a 9-day Wetland Management Training Course at the Sungei Buloh Wetland Reserve, the second a conference on biodiversity. His brief reports can be seen here. [02/11/09]

SGF 2009 portfolio of project funding opportunities. The Ramsar Small Grants Fund (SGF) was established in 1990 as a mechanism to assist developing countries and those with economies in transition in implementing the Convention and to support the conservation and wise use of wetland resources, with a strong human and social dimension. The newly-released SGF Portfolio 2009 (PDF) describes 28 project proposals that have been favorably evaluated by Ramsar personnel and are available for funding by aid agencies and organizations with an interest in their objectives and likely benefits. Alexia Dufour provides the details here, and visit the Small Grants Fund page on this Web site. [19/10/09]

Importante rencontre des gestionnaires de sites Ramsar en France. Les 7 et 8 octobre dernier a eu lieu à Evian, en France, un important séminaire pour les gestionnaires de sites Ramsar français. Une centaine de personnes étaient présentes. Des représentants de tous les secteurs liés à la gestion des zones humides étaient là tels que des élus locaux, l’autorité administrative nationale Ramsar, des responsables d’administrations régionales, des scientifiques, des représentants de l’agence de l’eau ou encore des ONG environnementales. Cette rencontre a été organisée par la Ligue de Protection des Oiseaux (LPO) en collaboration avec le Ministère de l’Ecologie et les agences de l’eau, le Secrétariat Ramsar et les Eaux Minérales Evian. En savoir plus. [26/10/09] (English and French available.)

Ramsar and UN-Habitat: joint efforts on sustainable management of urban wetlands. At a meeting in Nairobi last week, the Secretary General of the Ramsar Convention Anada Tiega, the Chair of the Convention’s Scientific Body (STRP) Heather MacKay, Mr Paul Mafabi of the Ramsar Center for East Africa (RAMCEA) and representatives of UN-Habitat Mr Rafael Tuts and Ms Karin Buhren discussed collaboration to join efforts and expertise in producing a comprehensive guidance for managing urban wetlands taking into account ecosystem approach and issues such as climate change, ecosystem services, food production, human health and livelihoods. Read more. [22/10/09]

Now available. Press release (PDF) from Audubon of Florida on the recent Ramsar designation of Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary in Florida, USA. (20/10/09)

Argentina names southernmost Ramsar site. The government of Argentina has designated a beautiful and valuable new Wetland of International Importance in the province of Tierra del Fuego, one which at the time of listing becomes the Convention’s southernmost site. As summarized by Nadia Castro, Glaciar Vinciguerra y turberas asociadas(2,760 hectares, 54º45’S 068º20’W) includes glaciers; lakes; Sphagnum-, Cyperacea-, and tree-dominated peatlands; Nothofagus (Southern beech) forests; and permanent and seasonal rivers, at an altitude between 200 and 1300 m. A full description and some amazing photos by Rodolfo Iturraspe can be seen here. [15/10/09]

Ramsar message on World Food Day. “The United Nations Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) invites us on today’s occasion of the World Food Day (16 October) to ‘Imagine achieving food security in times of crisis’. The call is supported by substantial contributions from several hundred experts who gathered in Rome earlier this week for a high-level forum to discuss ‘How to feed the world 2050’, in preparation of mid-November’s World Summit on Food Security.” – from the Secretary General’s message for World Food Day. [16/10/09]

USA names  key Florida sanctuary. Following on from the United States’ designation of the Aububon Society’s Francis Beidler Forest in the state of South Carolina in 2008, that Party’s 25th Ramsar site has been named as Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary, which is owned and managed by Audubon of Florida. The new site (5,261 hectares; 26°24’N 081°31’W) lies inland of the cities of Naples and Ft Myers and provides a vital link between several south Florida watersheds. Ramsar's Nadia Castro provides further details and a number of photographs courtesy of the site authorities. [14/10/09] Audubon press release (PDF). 

Rwanda’s Marshlands Law. The Secretariat is pleased to congratulate the Republic of Rwanda for the elaboration of a draft law determining the use and management of marshlands of Rwanda. The draft law incorporates the Ramsar wise of wetlands principle in the national legislation and is a good example of how an MEA can be embodied in the national environmental legislation. Cynthia Kibata provides the details. [14/10/09]

11th Transboundary Ramsar Site declared by Poland and  Czech Republic. The “Krkonose/Karkonosze subalpine peatbogs” were added on 21 September 2009 to the list of Transboundary Ramsar Sites during the 7th international conference on geoecological problems of the Karkonosze mountains, held in the Polish tourist village of Szklarska Proreba. The Giant Mountains (Krkonose in Czech, Karkonosze in Polish) mark the natural border between Poland and the Czech Republic, form an isolated mountain range with a particular geological history, and function as a biogreographical refuge area and isolated outpost for several Arctic and Alpine species. Tobias Salathé describes the new TRS and its significance for both Parties. [09/10/09]

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 ).