World Wetlands Day, celebrated every February 2, encourages citizens around the world to turn their thoughts to wetlands and their importance in our lives. Wetlands provide a reliable food supply and help purify freshwater for billions of global citizens. Like giant sponges, they absorb and replenish water to buffer flood and drought risks. Wetlands are also vital nesting, breeding and staging grounds for waterfowl and many other species and continue to be among the most diverse ecosystems of all. And that’s barely skimming the surface of wetlands’ wonders.
In spite of their important roles, our worlds’ wetlands are facing serious woes.
Troubling statistics estimates that 64 percent of world’s wetlands have disappeared since the 1900s (Ramsar Fact Sheet, 2015). Canada, home to a quarter of the world’s wetlands, is not immune to these trends. Southern Ontario for example has lost an estimated three-quarters of its wetlands through agricultural conversion.
Luckily in Saskatchewan – Quill Lakes, located 250 kilometres north of Regina, is ideal for shorebird and waterfowl watching. An Important Bird Area and Heritage Marsh, the property is home to endangered species like piping plover.
Dan Kraus, conservation scientist with the Nature Conservancy of Canada, says wetlands are under various kinds of human-induced environmental stresses. For example, “road construction through a wetland can drastically alter their natural flow cycle, which is why there is a lot of interest in finding ways to mitigate and offset the negative impacts of infrastructure development on wetlands.”
Conservation organizations like the Nature Conservancy of Canada (NCC) have long been working to protect and restore these precious ecosystems for the benefit of wildlife and human alike.
For more information about Nature Conservancy of Canada’s conservation work across the country and how you can help, visitwww.natureconservancy.ca.
