Wetland restoration was the theme of World Wetlands Day 2023, as nearly 90 percent of wetlands worldwide have been damaged by human activity. Photo by Emma Quirk ‘26.
By Yuyang Wang ’24
Staff Writer
On Feb. 2, people from all around the world joined to celebrate the twenty-seventh World Wetlands Day. According to the official World Wetlands Day website, the theme of this year’s festival was “wetlands restoration.” This site contains statements from officials representing various institutions, such as the Convention on Wetlands, The International Union for Conservation of Nature and The United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification.
World Wetlands Day was first celebrated in 1997, with the aim to increase people’s awareness of the importance of wetlands and encourage actions to protect them, notes the official website. Compared to other natural ecosystems such as forests and oceans, wetlands are often seen as less familiar and are unappreciated for their ecological value, an article from ClimateXChange said. As a result, World Wetlands Day plays an important role in making knowledge about wetlands more widespread as the ecosystems face extreme degradation, the official website said.
According to the EPA, wetlands can be categorized as either inland or coastal, as well as seasonal or permanent. Wetlands have many different forms including rivers, marshes, bogs, mangroves, mudflats, ponds, swamps, lagoons, lakes and floodplains. The Nature Conservancy explains that as an ecosystem, wetlands provide habitats for animals such as black-crowned night heron, Hine’s emerald dragonfly and American mink, as well as plants including purple pitcher plant and eastern skunk cabbage. Species living in wetlands play key roles in the world’s water, nitrogen and sulfur cycles. Moreover, current scientific research shows that because of its carbon storage function, wetlands can help ameliorate climate change.
Statistics from the World Wildlife Fund revealed that “[b]etween 300 million and 400 million people live close to and depend on wetlands.” For humans, wetlands can improve water quality, offer protection from floods and shoreline erosion and offer opportunities for recreation and aesthetic appreciation. However, human effects on wetlands have historically been destructive, the WWF article said. According to National Geographic, overfishing has caused the biodiversity of wetlands to drop dramatically. Additionally, with industry development, factories built near wetlands cause pollution and harm plant and animal species by dumping toxic wastewater into the wetland.
Wetland conservation programs provide hope for restoring the health of wetlands around the world. For example, mangrove restoration programs have been created in seven biospheres of Latin America and the Caribbean led by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization. These programs aim to recover mangrove forests by bringing together scientific experts with local communities while creating new economic and educational opportunities. This collaborative method is one of the most effective ways to restore mangrove forests, the UNESCO website reported.
In addition to direct conservation actions, scientific literature on wetlands also plays an important role in raising people’s awareness. For instance, the book “Sippewissett, or, life on a salt marsh” by Tim Traver recalls the author’s personal experience at Sippewissett, a wetland located in the Northeast. In the book, Traver offers a detailed description of his connections with the wetlands, including his experience of witnessing their deterioration and recovery.
Although there has been an increase in action surrounding wetlands, people’s awareness and sense of urgency remain insufficient. According to Dr. Musonda Mumba, Secretary General of the Convention on Wetlands, “to date, nearly 90 percent of the world’s wetlands have been degraded or lost. We are losing wetlands three times faster than forests.” Therefore, World Wetlands Day is an opportunity to encourage all relevant players to participate in the wetlands restoration process. “We are mobilizing an entire generation for wetland restoration,” Mumba said.