NOTE FROM THE EDITOR

Dear Wetland Friends:

The year 2002 starts off with a joint December & January Issue. In December
many of our colleagues from the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service were unable to
use e-mail or access the web. I held off on sending out the December issue
for this reason ---- but the situation persists so it is time to carry on.

With hopes that 2002 is starting out well for all those of you who can
receive this!

Best wishes,

Heidi

Heidi Luquer
Wetlands NewsLink Editor

NEWS FROM WETLAND FRIENDS

Ducks Unlimited

Ducks Unlimited released its analysis of the implications of a major Supreme
Court decision that removed Clean Water Act protection of isolated wetlands
in the United States. The approach was guided by DU's mission to address
habitat conservation issues that are important to North American waterfowl.
A summary of the report "The SWANCC Decision: Implications for Wetlands and
Waterfowl" and links to download an adobe acrobat version can be found at:
http://www.ducks.org/conservation/404_report.asp

>From Friends of the Earth: Dam Campaign Victory

Campaigners responded with delight to the news that Balfour Beatty have
pulled out of involvement in the environmentally, politically and socially
disastrous Ilisu Dam. The Dam was planned for the Kurdish region of Turkey.
It would make more than 30,000 local people homeless, often without proper
compensation. It would drown dozens of towns and villages including the
world historic site of Hasankeyf. And it would help control water flows on
the Tigris river, threatening water conflicts with downstream states Syria
and Iraq. The League of Arab States has condemned the project.

Bhoj Wetland Project Wins Achievement Award

This project, based in Madhya Pradesh, India has received the 2001
Achievement award for “technical merit” from the North America Lake
Management Society based in Madison, USA. This project was recognized for
its cost-effectiveness. The project started in 1995. [this announcement is
provided thanks to the Ramsar Listserv.]

First Complete Wetland Inventory Completed in Guatemala

Para mayor información puede contactar a Rocío Códoba, Coordinadora del
Programa Mesoamericano de Humedales y Zonas Costeras de la UICN. Tel. (506)
241 01 01, Fax (506) 240 99 34 o al correo electrónico:
rocio.cordoba@orma.iucn.org . Para información adicional sobre las
actividades de UICN en Mesoamérica, favor visitar el sitio en internet:
http://iucn.org/places/orma

News From Ramsar, The Convention on Wetlands

Preparations for World Wetlands Day 2002 are underway. The Ramsar Bureau
offers World Wetlands Day materials to assist government authorities, NGOs,
and concerned citizens raise awareness of wetland values. These materials
can be requested from Ramsar. For a peek go to:
http://www.ramsar.org/wwd2002_index.htm

Uzbekistan joins the Ramsar Convention!

The Bureau is delighted to announce that the Republic of Uzbekistan joins as
the Convention’s 130th Contracting Party. The new Party has named Lake
Dengizkul as its first Wetland of International Importance.

The Latest Wetlands Listed:

– Argentina Designated "Jaaukanigás," [people of the water],a large Site on
the Paraná River near the city of Reconquista in Santa Fe province.
– The Islamic Republic of Iran has designated the Gomishan Lagoon (Golestan
Province, 17,700 hectares, 37°11’N 053°57’E) as its 21st Wetland of
International Importance.
– The Republic of South Africa has designated its 17th Wetland Verloren
Valei Nature Reserve (5,891 hectares, he Republic of South Africa has
designated its 17th Wetland in Mpumalanga Province in the northeast.
– The United Kingdom designated “the Firth of Forth” in Scotland

For more details go to: http://www.ramsar.org/

WWF Launches Five-point Plan to Save the World's Water

Gland, Switzerland - WWF, the conservation organization proposes a five
point plan of concerted global action to ensure that the world can avoid a
global freshwater catastrophe and provide a water-secure future for all.
For the full article go to: http://www.panda.org/news/press/news.cfm?id=2609

WETLAND NEWS – IN THE NEWS – FROM AROUND THE GLOBE (by most recent date)

Mazambique Protects Vast Marine Nature Reserve

December 17, 2001, Environment News Service, Maputo, Mozambique –-
Translucent waters, unique coral reefs and rare marine species off the East
African nation of Mozambique now have a new level of protection. The entire
Bazaruto Archipelago was declared a national marine nature reserve by the
government of Mozambique. For the full article go to:
http://www.ens-news.com/ens/dec2001/2001L-12-17-03.html

United Nations: Fish Farming Could Reduce Famine

December 10, 2001, Environment News Service, Rome, Italy – Aquaculture, or
fish farming, is expected to boost food fish supplies worldwide over the
next 20 years, helping to reduce poverty and food insecurity, the United
Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) says. An FAO report
concludes that aquaculture's contribution towards global fisheries landings
continues to grow, dominating all other animal food producing sectors. The
percentage of seafood from wild fisheries is decreasing and fish farming is
the source of an increasing percentage of seafood in the United States and
worldwide. For the full article go to:
http://www.ens-news.com/ens/dec2001/2001L-12-10-10.html

1,700 Dams Under Construction Around the World

November 13, 2001, by Environmental News Network - Today there are 1,700
dams under construction around the world: nearly 500 in Brazil and more than
700 in India. To ensure that these and future dams are planned, constructed,
and operated in consultation with all stakeholders and that environmental
damage is avoided, the World Conservation Union (IUCN) has approved a new
strategy direction based on last November's comprehensive report of the
World Commission on Dams. For the full story go to:
http://www.enn.com/news/enn-stories/2001/11/11132001/s_45538.asp

Buried Water Wins World Prize

November 12, 2001, Environmental News Network – Water banking Australian
style has been honored internationally with the awarding of the inaugural
UNESCO International Water Prize for Innovation in Water Resources
Management in Arid and Semi-Arid Areas. "While aquifer storage and recovery
is not a new concept, what is unique about our work is the quality of the
water recovered. We've been injecting water that is undrinkable into
brackish and saline aquifers and from that, producing water that is suitable
for irrigation." The group has already run training courses in several
countries and next year will host an international symposium on the
management of aquifer recharge for sustainability. For more of this story go
to: http://www.enn.com/news/enn-stories/2001/11/11122001/water_45548.asp

NEWS SPECIFIC TO THE UNITED STATES

Update on The Florida Everglades

December 29, 2001, CNN.com, Washington – Environmental groups say the Bush
Administration's draft of rules for the restoration of the Florida
Everglades will endanger the shrinking wetlands because it contains no
deadlines. The blueprint specifies elimination of canals, construction of
pumps, conservation of water and the tracking of wildlife over the next
three decades. No dates are given for completing specific goals, and
Florida officials are given latitude to determine how the project should be
completed. For the full article go to:
http://www.cnn.com/2001/TECH/science/12/29/endangered.everglades.ap/index.ht
ml

The EPA Will Proceed with Major Cleanup of the Hudson River

December 6, 2001, Capitol Reports – U.S. EPA Administrator Christie Whitman
announced the Administration is proceeding with a major cleanup of the
Hudson River. For the full article go to: http://www.caprep.com/1201017.htm

WETLAND MIGRATORY BIRD NEWS

Ducks Unlimited Announces Major Initiative To Restore Delaware Bay Wetlands
in USA

January 3 – Ducks Unlimited signed a major agreement with the states of New
Jersey and Delaware to restore wetland habitats in the Delaware Bay estuary.
The identification of numerous threatened and endangered shorebirds has
added momentum to the plan to restore 15,000 acres of wetlands and
associated uplands. For the full article go to:
http://www.ramsar.org/forum_ducks_delaware.htm

>From China

Kingdom of Birds Inhabit Estuary of the Yangtse River

>From Nanjing, Zinhuanet, China. Situated in Qidong City of east China's
Jiangsu Province, the Xinglong Wild Animal Nature Reserve was the site of a
recent field investigation that revealed over 50 red-crowned cranes, about 5
percent of the world's total, and 32 hooded cranes about one sixth of the
country's total, have inhabited the reserve. Another 255 species of birds
also live there representing 56 percent of the province's total.

>From Pakistan

December 29, 2001 - Jill McGivering, BBC South Asia Correspondent –
Ornithologists in Pakistan fear that populations of birds whose migration
route takes them over Afghanistan may have been devastated by the weeks of
bombing there. On the shores of Rawal Lake, a key conservation area only
about 10 minutes drive from the centre of Islamabad, there is a sound that
cannot be heard this year: a whole bird population which has suddenly gone
missing. Dr. Masoud Anwar, a biodiversity specialist who monitors wildlife,
says he usually sees several thousand ducks and other wildfowl migrating
here from Central Asia via Afghanistan. So far this year, not one has
arrived. It is a conservation disaster. "We are trying to conserve
biodiversity here, and we need the birds for that. If there're no birds, we
cannot go for the conservation," he says. For the full article go to:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/hi/english/world/south_asia/newsid_1719000/1719867.stm

>From South America

BirdLife International is developing its Important Bird Areas Program in the
Caribbean, Jamaica and Cuba. In the Mesoamerican region, Panama is only a
step away from publishing the IBA's national directory; and in South
America, countries like Argentina, Paraguay and Brazil are presenting
showing significant advances. For further information contact: Angelica
Estrada, CIPAMEX-BirdLife International, Apartado Postal 22-012, Mexico,
D.F. C.P. 14091, Mexico, Email: ehma@servidor.unam.mx

>From the United States

Some 70 U.S. sites joined a global effort to identify and protect areas seen
as crucial to sustaining the world's endangered bird populations. The
National Audubon Society, in conjunction with the British group BirdLife
International, said identification of the new "important bird areas'' could
spur local groups to begin lobbying for their protection. "The easy part is
identifying them. The hard part is protecting them,'' said Audubon President
John Flicker. For the full story go to:
http://www.enn.com/news/wire-stories/2001/11/11302001/reu_45720.asp

White Ibis, Herons & Egrets Return to Restored Kissimmee River

November, 19, 2001, Associated Press – Now, for the first time in 40 years,
boats navigate 15 miles of twisting river that steamboats plied a century
ago. Water spills out over the banks, nourishing a mile-wide flood plain
that had been drained cow pastures. Wading birds and wintering waterfowl
have returned. "Seeing the birds come back is an important signpost to
demonstrate that we're being good stewards," said Norman Moss, president of
the Kissimmee Valley Audubon Society. The project is considered the
nation's most ambitious river restoration. In all, 22 miles of canal will be
backfilled, 43 miles of river will be restored and 27,000 acres of the
original 40,000-acre flood plain will recover. For the full article go to:
http://www.enn.com/news/wire-stories/2001/11/11192001/ap_kissimmee_45615.asp

WETLAND & MIGRATORY BIRD PUBLICATIONS

Important Bird Areas and Potential Ramsar Sites in Europe

BirdLife International offers a new report with up-to-date data on European
wetlands – the 4,000 of them that have been selected as Important Bird Areas
under Birdlife’s IBA criteria – to Ramsar’s “Criteria for Identifying
Wetlands of International Importance” A downloadable PDF version will soon
be available on the BirdLife Web site, http://www.birdlife.org.uk and the
Ramsar Bureau has printed copies free of charge to interested readers.
Contact ramsar@ramsar.org and specify that you are requesting the new
BirdLife report.

Recently Out: Travels With Cranes
By Peter Matthiessen. Illustrated by Robert Bateman. 349 pp. New York:
North Point Press. $27.50.

NEW WETLAND & MIGRATORY BIRD WEB SITES

International Mire Conservation Group Offers New Global Peatland Web site

A new web-page has been created on the Global Peatland Initiative in
partnership with nature conservation NGOs, science agencies and the private
sector. It’s been launched by the International Mire Conservation Group,
International Peat Society, Wetlands International, IUCN-Netherlands
Committee and Alterra. Go to:
http://www.wetlands.org/projects/GPI/default.htm

Asian Waterbird Census Has New Web Site & Asia Pacific Migratory Waterbird
Listserver is launched!

For the web site go to: http://www.wetlands.org/IWC/awc/awcmain.html To
subscribe to the listserver send an e-mail to: Majordomo@erin.gov.au. Leave
the subject line empty. In the message say: subscribe apmw.

New List Serve For River-Basin Initiative

This is part of a global initiative on integrating biodiversity, wetland and
river basin management. To join, send a blank message to:
River-Basin-Initiative-subscribe@yahoogroups.com. To view
River-Basin-Initiative page:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/River-Basin-Initiative/

WETLAND GRANT OPPORTUNITY [USA, certain states only]

USA Small Scale Community-Based Restoration Grants Available

The Five-Star Restoration Challenge Grant program offers modest financial
assistance on a competitive basis to support community-based wetland,
riparian, and coastal habitat restoration projects that build diverse
partnerships and foster local natural resource stewardship through
education, outreach, and training activities. In 2001, 60 projects received
grants of on average $10,000 out of approximately 230 applications received.
The closing date is March 1, 2002. This grant program is funded in part by
the NOAA Community-Based Restoration Program. For more details go to:
www.nmfs.noaa.gov/habitat/restoration or from the NFWF website
http://www.nfwf.org/programs/grant_apply.htm

Funding For Coral Reef Conservation Projects

In partnership with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
(NOAA) and others, the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation (NFWF) is
accepting proposals for projects that build public-private partnerships to
reduce and prevent degradation of coral reefs and associated reef habitats
(e.g. seagrass beds, mangroves etc.) Projects may address causes of coral
reef degradation wherever they occur, from inland areas to coastal
watersheds to the reefs and surrounding marine environment. Proposals are
due April 3, 2002 (no exceptions). Additional information provided below.
For application instructions or other information see
http://www.nfwf.org/programs/coralreef.htm or contact Michelle Pico:
pico@nfwf.org

Small Grant Program for US Female Scientists to Travel

The American Association for the Advancement of Science, Directorate for
International Programs announces the Women's International Science
Collaboration Program for 2001-2003. Supported by the U.S. National Science
Foundation (NSF), this program aims to increase the participation of women
in international scientific research by helping establish new research
partnerships with colleagues in Central/Eastern Europe, Newly Independent
States of the former Soviet Union, Near East, Middle East, Pacific, Africa,
the Americas, and Asia. Small grants ($4,000-5,000) will provide travel and
living support for a U.S. scientist and, when appropriate, a co-PI to visit
a partner country to develop a research program. Funds can also be used to
support a second visit to the partner country or for a foreign partner to
travel to the U.S. For further information please visit the NSF website:
http://www.nsf.gov

THE END
December 8, 2001 & January 12, 2002