Resolutions of the San José Conference

Resolution VII.7 on laws and institutions concerning wetlands

"People and Wetlands: The Vital Link"
7^th Meeting of the Conference of the Contracting Parties
to the Convention on Wetlands (Ramsar, Iran, 1971),
San José, Costa Rica, 10-18 May 1999

1. RECALLING Recommendation 4.10 and Resolution 5.6, and their annexes, which provide Guidelines for the implementation of the wise use concept and Additional guidance for the implementation of the wise use concept respectively;

2. FURTHER RECALLING that the Wise Use Guidelines and Operational Objective 2.1, Action 2.1.1 of the Strategic Plan 1997-2002 urge Contracting Parties to undertake reviews of legislation and practices to ensure that they are acting to assist the implementation of the Convention and wise use;

3. NOTING the advice given in the National Reports to this Conference of the Contracting Parties that 45 Parties have undertaken reviews of legislation and institutions to ensure that they are promoting wetland conservation and wise use;

4. FURTHER NOTING that Technical Session II on National Planning for Wetland Conservation and Wise Use during this meeting of the Conference of the Contracting Parties had presented to it, and considered in detail, the annex to this decision entitled Guidelines for reviewing laws and institutions to promote the conservation and wise use of wetlands; and

5. EXPRESSING its appreciation to IUCN’s Environmental Law Programme, and in particular to the authors of the cases studies and annex to this Resolution, for providing their combined advice and guidance, based on their experiences, so that Contracting Parties are equipped with specific guidelines to assist them undertake reviews of legislation and institutions relating to wetlands;

THE CONFERENCE OF THE CONTRACTING PARTIES

6. ADOPTS as guidance for the Contracting Parties the annex to this Resolution entitled Guidelines for reviewing laws and institutions to promote the conservation and wise use of wetlands, and URGES those Parties that have yet to undertake such reviews to give this activity their highest priority;

7. URGES Contracting Parties to note and apply with equal vigour the related guidance provided as an annex to Resolution VII.6, Guidelines for developing and implementing National Wetland Policies, aware of the close relationship between policy instruments and legislation;

8. ENCOURAGES those Contracting Parties undertaking or planning to undertake reviews of their laws and institutions to ensure that these not only aim to remove constraints to conservation and on the implementation of wise use, but also seek to introduce positive incentive measures to support the effective application of the wise use obligation;

9. ALSO ENCOURAGES Contracting Parties to integrate into their National Wetland Policies or equivalent instruments, wherever possible, the elements of the other guidance for member states adopted under the Convention such the Guidelines for the implementation of the wise use concept (Recommendation 4.10) and Additional guidance for the implementation of the wise use concept (Resolution 5.6), the Guidelines for management planning for Ramsar sites and other wetlands (Resolution 5.7), the Guidelines for international cooperation under the Ramsar Convention (Resolution VII.19), and the Convention’s Outreach Programme (Resolution VII.9); and

10. FURTHER URGES development assistance agencies to give priority to supporting projects which will result in the application of these annexed Guidelines and resultant reviews of the laws and institutions in developing countries and those in economic transition.

For further information about the Ramsar Convention on Wetlands, please contact the Ramsar Convention Bureau, Rue Mauverney 28, CH-1196 Gland, Switzerland (tel +41 22 999 0170, fax +41 22 999 0169, e-mail ramsar@ramsar.org). Posted 7 July 1999, Dwight Peck, Ramsar.