ABOVE World Wetlands Day, observed this Thursday, the United Nations is calling for urgent action to revive and restore these ecosystems, which are disappearing three times faster than forests.
Wetlands cover about 6% of the earth’s surface and are vital to human health, food supplies, tourism and jobs.
Fighting climate change
More one billion people worldwide depend on them for their livelihood, while their shallow waters and rich plant life support everything from insects to ducks to elk.
Wetlands also play an important role in both achieving sustainable development and in the fight against climate change.
They provide essential ecosystem services such as water regulation, flood mitigation, for example.
Peatlands, a type of wetland with special vegetation, store twice as much carbon as forests.
loss of acceleration
However, over the past 200 years, wetlands have been depleted to make way for agricultural land or infrastructure development, according to the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP).UNEP).
generally 35 percent of all wetlands globally disappeared from 1970 to 2015 and the rate of loss has increased rapidly since 2000.
UNEP warns that, depending on the extent of climate-related sea-level rise, between 20 and 90 percent of present-day coastal wetlands could disappear by the end of the century.
Wetlands have also suffered more biodiversity loss than other terrestrial and marine ecosystems.
An aerial view of wetlands in China.
Investment recovery
Leticia Carvalho, head of the agency’s Marine and Freshwater Branch, called on governments to end policies and subsidies that encourage deforestation and wetland degradation, and urgently focus on getting things done. recover.
“At the same time, we must guide and promote investment in Protect priority ecosystemssuch as peatlands, and encourage the private sector to commit to deforestation and undrained supply chains on peatlands,” she added.
Landmark protection agreement
Recently, governments have been stepping up efforts to protect wetlands.
At the United Nations Biodiversity Conference in December, the countries agreed a landmark agreement to protect a third of the planet’s land, coastal areas and inland waters by 2030.
The act of restoring wetlands is gaining momentum around the world. For example, China is developing “Sponge City” conceptagainst the backdrop of rapid urbanization and increasing climate hazards, including flooding.
Initiatives include “green” roofs, built wetlands, and sidewalks that capture, slow down and filter stormwater.
Donate to nature
in one report Published last year, UNEP highlights the need to increase investment in nature-based solutions to meet global climate, biodiversity and land degradation goals.
Currently, $154 billion is spent each year but this will more than double to $384 billion by 2025.
“We are running out of opportunities to protect the services provided by wetlands on which society depends for a sustainable future,” Ms. Carvalho said.
“We must strengthen international solidarity, capacity building and funding without further delay.”
The red-crowned crane, the rarest crane in the world, breeds in the Daxing’anling area in spring and summer and nests in wetlands and rivers. Loss of wetlands due to climate change and human activities threatens their existence.
