Promoting the rights or 'personhood' of wetlands and highlighting their economic value should be considered as alternative ways to ensure they exist into the future, says an ecologist.
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This week marked 50 years since the formal start of international efforts to protect wetlands and included World Wetlands Day on Tuesday.
Albury-based adjunct professor Max Finlayson said in the 50 years since Ramsar Convention's inception, 171 governments had signed up and more than 254 million hectares of wetland had been deemed internationally important.
"Despite these efforts, wetlands, their species and ecosystem services - the benefits they provide to people - continue to be lost," he said.
Professor Finlayson said in light of the shortcoming and success of the conservation effort attention had turned to alternative ways of considering wetlands.
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He said these included increasing attention to the economic value of their ecosystem services, reconsidering how wetlands are managed under climate change and promoting the rights of wetlands to exists.
"The last point takes us into the legal field of granting 'personhood' to wetlands and respecting this and taking responsibility to ensure that they exist in the future," he said.
"As we celebrate 50 years of activity through the convention, the proponents of the rights of wetlands are keen to extend the paradigm, to challenge our land and water users and decision-makers to build on the visionary efforts of those who met in Ramsar city in 1971."
Freshwater fish researcher John Conallin said human-made wetlands played an important role in stopping the decline of species and educating residents.
He said Riverina dams, irrigation channels and rice fields were considered important habitats for an array of species, and town lakes were used as a refuge for threatened fish species.
Digital journalists with The Border Mail.
Digital journalists with The Border Mail.
