The Ramsar Convention on Wetlands

World Wetlands Day 2003: Ireland

World Wetlands Day 2003 in Ireland

Coastwatch

Coastwatch Tel: +353 (0)55 25843 Fax: +353 (0)55 25842 Email: dubsky@iol.ie Web: www.coastwatcheurope.org

Collecting Wetland Information and wetland seminar with launch on Feb 10th 2003.


Please contribute information about your local wetland to an all Ireland wetland event planned for Monday 10th Feb. 03, by Coastwatch Ireland, The Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust Northern Ireland and The Irish Peatland Conservation Council.

Coastwatch and their partners in NI the Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust, are looking for beauty, value and functions of wetlands, as well as problems and misuse with view to addressing these. The Irish Peatland Conservation Council IPCC are looking for frog and tadpole information. Frog survey cards and information available at www.ipcc.ie.

How:
1. Go out this week and gather the information about your wetland as by guidelines from the three partners (back of this page)
2. Contact us with the information as soon as you have it. That finishes frog work.
3. Prepare any photos, drawings and notes for exhibition on Feb 10th 2003

You are invited with your wetland information and any questions, concerns or recommendations to the Feb 10th wetland workshop and launch in ENFO.

The event will include short overview papers, a panel of experts to ask and discuss wetland issues with, followed by Luka Bloom's musical launch of wetland posters and legal guide for the layman. Space is strictly limited.

For invite and details please email Karin Dubsky of Coastwatch dubsky@iol.ie , phone the Wexford Coastwatch office 055 25843, fax 055 25842 Mobile - 086 8111 684.

What are wetlands anyway?
Wetlands are areas of wet land, or shallow water. In a recent pilot project 26 different wetland types were identified in Co Wexford alone. See www.wexfordwetlands.org . Few European countries could boast such diversity in similar area. Wetlands have many functions and values. However, they are neither adequately protected by law, nor is the law which we do have enforced as well as it could be. Even knowledge about wetland functions is poor. One example is the totally neglected role of wetlands in flood control. Even though Climate change appears to be hitting and flooding is a serious problem, essential floodplains around many of our rivers are still being filled in, thus actively compounding our problems.
We know very little about most wetlands. Your information is really important. Sunday 2nd Feb was World Wetland Day. If you want to find out more about wetlands around the world and our own latest government report to the Convention, look at the web www.Ramsar.org. Coastwatch, is the non government Irish 'Focal Point' for the Ramsar World Wetland Convention.

Contribute to an All Ireland Wetland Exhibition.

To prepare, check you have photo film, or sketch pad. If you have an open mind as to which wetland to visit, look down the list of Ramsar World wetland types (enclosed) relevant to Ireland for inspiration. Or look at the wetland examples from the Wexford wetlands pilot project www.wexfordwetlands.org .

Any time during the week of Sun 2nd Feb ( World wetland day) and Sunday 9th February
1. Take photos or sketches of your local wetland to raise awareness of the
- - beauty and/or value of wetlands, and/or
- - wetland functions and/or
- - problem or misuses we must try and halt or reverse
2. Note down, mark on map, or sketch where you took the photo or drawing/painting. So that you can find the site again.
3. If photos, develop the film and chose up to 6 photos. Any size is fine.
4. Sign back of each photo/drawing and mark order if they are to be hung in sequence.
5. For each display please add a note with the following information:
- - Theme (beauty, function ..) and caption for your picture(s).
- - Wetland name and location
- - Artist/Photographer name and address, contact email, or phone
- - Date taken
- - Signed statement 'I agree to have my work exhibited and agree to have the exhibit published if selected on Feb 10th'. If you include children in the picture then you also need a note from a parent to agree to publication.
- - NB- (If you do not wish the wetland location, and or your name to be known, this information can be withheld from the exhibition. But you must make that clear on the back of the photo) You may wish to add extra comment or reference, especially if you believe the site is threatened or you want follow up action.
6. Email or fax information in point 4 across to either james.orr@wwt.org.uk or dubsky@iol.ie 055 25842 for the exhibition inventory and labels.
7. For those who cannot come to Dublin on Feb 10th, please send the material to arrive by Friday Feb 7th, to Karin Dubsky, Coastwatch Coordinator, Whitewalls, Ballymoney, Co Wexford.. Please can we keep this information for the exhibition?

On Monday 10th February Workshop, exhibition and launch day in ENFO. (see prog.)
Anyone bringing exhibits should be in ENFO by 10.00 a.m. to put up own exhibit. We will have display boards, Velcro, tape and washing line with cloth pegs for quick hanging. After the event you may wish to take your exhibit back or give it to Coastwatch as start of a wetland exhibition, which is to be added to and tour during the year.

Contribute to the IPCC Frog and Tadpole Survey
The Irish Peatland Conservation Council will take your frog and tadpole finds and collate them as they come in during the week. Any finds notified by Fri 7th February 10 am will be included in the frog survey report presented by IPCC in the workshop on Feb 10th. So to prepare, lift information from the website www.ipcc.ie . When out at your wetland, take a close look for a frog, tadpoles left from last year, or egg mass and complete information card. Send back immediately.

Contacts:
WETLANDS FROM BEAUTY AND VALUE TO THREAT AND DAMAGE
Karin Dubsky Coastwatch TCD and Wexford office, dubsky@iol.ie 055 25842
James Orr -Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust, Castle Espie Co Down, james.orr@wwt.org.uk 00 44 0797 022 5253
FROGS:-
Noreen mc Loughlin Iirish Peatland Conservation Council 01-8722384 ipcc@indigo.ie

Coastwatch Tel: +353 (0)55 25843 Fax: +353 (0)55 25842 Email: dubsky@iol.ie Web: www.coastwatcheurope.org

Dublin office:
Civil & Environmental Engineering
Trinity College Dublin
Dublin 2
South-East office:
Whitewalls
Ballymoney
Gorey, Co. Wexford

All Ireland Wetland Event
10th February 2003
ENFO, Andrew Street Dublin 2

10.00 am Opening of workshop on Our Wetlands and putting up last displays

10.15 High and low points of Wetland protection on the Island of Ireland
Chairman: Dr. Michael Gunn, Birdwatch and Coastwatch
Wetland protection in Northern Ireland an NGO view - Dr James Orr, NI WWT
Wetland Protection in the Republic an NGO view. - Karin Dubsky, Coastwatch
The Wexford wetland project and matters arising - Eamon Hore, Wexford Co Council
Frogs and tadpoles - interim findings - Dr. Peter Voss IPCC

11.00 Coffee and walk around photos and drawings.

11.15 Media representatives chose favourites for publication and explain why

11.30 Panel to discuss and answer your wetland questions with panellists from government and state agencies, including Jim Ryan, Duchas, Dept of the Environment responsible for the Ramsar Convention in Ireland and Laurence Gill, constructed wetland specialist, TCD.

12.15 Official launch of Wetlands Materials Brendan Linehan, Director ENFO

12.30 Luka Bloom presents a musical note to celebrate wetlands

12.45 A toast to Wetlands and results of work on wetlands 2002 to 2003 -
Prof Eduardo Peris Mora from Valencia, host city of the last World wetland Convention Conference of the parties.

1.00 Light lunch

_______________________________________________

Acknowledgements:
This event and lunch are hosted by ENFO, the Department of the Environment Environmental Information Centre. Speakers, musician, chairs, selectors and organisers are giving time and craft gratis. All photos and displays are given gratis and many will form base of a growing wetland exhibition.
Those from the Wexford wetlands project can avail of a bus organised by Wexford County Council to travel by environmentally sound means to Dublin. Please contact Environment. Section Wexford County Council to book a place.
Wetlands are worth it! Our deepest finest wetland thanks to all.

Wetland Type Classification Glossary

The Ramsar Classification System for Wetland Types is a world wide system developed by the Ramsar World Wetland Convention signatories as 'common language'. The majority of types are found in Ireland and are listed below. You can use the code letter(s) or full type name. Your wetland might fall under a number of wetland types, in which case write all appropriate codes. (e.g. if you have a piece of coast with sea cliffs and intertidal sandflat beach with dunes, it would be A, D, G, E).
Marine/Coastal Wetlands
A -- Permanent shallow marine waters in most cases less than six metres deep at low tide; includes sea bays and straits.
B -- Marine subtidal aquatic beds; includes kelp beds, sea-grass beds, marine meadows.
C -- Coral reefs.
D -- Rocky marine shores; includes rocky offshore islands, sea cliffs.
E -- Sand, shingle or pebble shores; includes sand bars, spits and sandy islets; includes dune systems and humid dune slacks.
F -- Estuarine waters; permanent water of estuaries and estuarine systems of deltas.
G -- Intertidal mud, sand or salt flats.
H -- Intertidal marshes; includes salt marshes, salt meadows, saltings, raised salt marshes; includes tidal brackish and freshwater marshes.
J -- Coastal brackish/saline lagoons; brackish to saline lagoons with at least one interim or continuous connection to the sea.
K -- Coastal freshwater lagoons; includes freshwater delta lagoons.
Zk(a) - Karst and other subterranean hydrological systems, marine/coastal
Inland Wetlands
M -- Permanent rivers/streams/creeks; includes waterfalls.
N -- Seasonal/intermittent/irregular rivers/streams/creeks.
O -- Permanent freshwater lakes (over 8 ha); includes large oxbow lakes.
P -- Seasonal/intermittent freshwater lakes (over 8 ha); includes floodplain lakes.
Q -- Permanent saline/brackish/alkaline lakes.
R -- Seasonal/intermittent saline/brackish/alkaline lakes and flats.
Sp -- Permanent saline/brackish/alkaline marshes/pools.
Ss -- Seasonal/intermittent saline/brackish/alkaline marshes/pools.
Tp -- Permanent freshwater marshes/pools; ponds (below 8 ha), marshes and swamps on inorganic soils; with emergent vegetation water-logged for at least most of the growing season.
Ts -- Seasonal/intermittent freshwater marshes includes sloughs, seasonally flooded meadows, sedge marshes
U -- Non-forested peatlands; includes shrub or open bogs, swamps, fens.
W -- Shrub-dominated wetlands; shrub swamps, shrub-dominated freshwater marshes, shrub carr, alder thicket on inorganic soils.
Xf -- Freshwater, tree-dominated wetlands; includes freshwater swamp forests, seasonally flooded forests, wooded swamps on inorganic soils.
Xp -- Forested peatlands; peatswamp forests.
Y -- Freshwater springs;
Zk(b) - Karst and other subterranean hydrological systems, inland
Note: Floodplain wetlands are not listed as a specific wetland type here. "Floodplain" is a broad term and will include one or more wetland types - e.g. one river floodplain may have natural wet meadows, seasonal pools and seasonally flooded woodlands. Please note 'floodplain' followed by type(s) of wetland found in the floodplain.
Man-made wetlands
1 -- Aquaculture (e.g., fish/shrimp) ponds
2 -- Ponds; includes farm ponds, stock ponds, small tanks; (generally below 8 ha).
3 -- Irrigated land; includes irrigation channels and rice fields.
4 -- Seasonally flooded agricultural land (including intensively managed or grazed wet meadow or pasture).
6 -- Water storage areas; reservoirs/barrages/dams/impoundments (generally over 8 ha).
7 -- Excavations; gravel/brick/clay pits; borrow pits, mining pools.
8 -- Wastewater treatment areas; sewage farms, settling ponds, oxidation basins, etc.
9 -- Canals and drainage channels, ditches.

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 5 March 2003, Dwight Peck, Ramsar.