Third action plan for French wetlands

On 15 June 2014 Ségolène Royal, French Minister of Ecology, Sustainable Development and Energy, launched the Third National Action Plan for Wetlands (in French).

The objective of the action plan for 2014-2018 is to understand the status of wetlands in France, including overseas departments and territories, and to develop a strategy for their preservation and restoration.

The plan encourages actors from different sectors, including water, biodiversity, agriculture, urban planning and natural hazards, to work together from the protection and wise, or sustainable, use of wetlands.

The plan includes actions aimed at strengthening the implementation of the Ramsar Convention:

• the designation of three new Ramsar Sites per year;

• increased investment in Ramsar’s Standing Committee; 

• continued support to MedWet, Ramsar’s regional initiative for the Mediterranean, now based in France;

• increased engagement in the African-Eurasian Waterbird Agreement, an international framework for the conservation of migratory birds and of the wetlands supporting them during their migration.