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Wetlands Day

Why do we celebrate Wetlands Day?

World Wetlands Day was celebrated on 2nd  February as it is every year since 1997. This marks the signing of the only intergovernmental treaty that deals with a particular ecosystem – the Convention on Wetlands on 2nd February 1971. The signing of the treaty took place in the Iranian city of Ramsar on the shores of the Caspian Sea. This provided for national action and international cooperation to stop the loss of wetlands and to conserve what we have left through careful management. These listed wetlands are known as Ramsar wetlands. Locally we have no Ramsar Wetlands but we do have wetlands of national significance such as Lake Chittering and Lake Chandala.

Why are they so important?

Wetlands are habitats for a wide range of plant and animal species, they clean the water by removing pollutants, store carbon, provide water supply and attract people for recreation. Even the farm dam provides habitat as well as providing water storage.

Unfortunately, wetlands are disappearing three times faster than forests so it is important for us all to protect wetlands and rehabilitate them. A farm dam can be converted to a functioning wetland while still providing a water source for livestock and orchards.

Wetlands can be created for a number of reasons. Habitat for water birds, nutrient removal and erosion control.

In Chittering we have Spoonbill Lake that has been created from a series of farm dams following sub division. A more recently created wetland can be found in Chittering Springs that was designed to slow the movement of water down the roadside preventing erosion.

Spoonbill Lake
Chittering Springs

The Chittering Landcare Centre has a constructed wetland designed to capture the water draining from the pastured paddocks. The excess nutrients and manures washed into the wetland are removed from the water by plants and other aquatic organisms before it enters the Ellen Brook. This prevents excess phosphorus and nitrogen entering the waterway which causes algal blooms and fish kills in the Swan River and Guildford waters.

Chittering Landcare Centre

Wetlands are full of life. Let us all work towards protecting them.