Wetlands NewsLink

A Compilation of Wetland News from Around the World

[Home] [Current Issue] [Archives] [Calendar]

July 2001

Links Have Been Removed
The information provided is time sensitive and links are routinely broken.
To save you from the frustration of broken encounters they have been removed.
Please refer to the source from which the information came if you want to know more.

WETLANDS NEWSLINK – A Compilation of Wetland News from Around the World

Wetlands NewsLink is a monthly news service supported by the Association of

State Wetland Managers, Inc, The U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service,

(International Affairs office), and the U.S. Geological Survey.

Submissions are encouraged – any international news is welcome that might be

of interest to others. Your input helps make this e-mail resource a useful,

collaborative venture. Submissions should be sent to: Luquer@aswm.org.

Subscribership to Wetlands NewsLink is available to anyone who asks. Let me

know of any colleagues that might like to receive this monthly e-mail and I

will gladly include them.

Contents of the July 2001 Issue

– Note from the Editor

– News from Wetland Friends

– Wetlands News – in the News – from Around the Globe

– Wetland Publications

– Wetland Web Resources

– Wetland Job Opportunities

For U.S. Wetlands News go to: http://www.aswm.org/wbn

For the past two issues of Wetlands NewsLink on the web go to: Go to:

http://www.aswm.org/wetlandsnewslink .

NOTE FROM THE EDITOR

Dear Wetland Friends:

Keep the wetland news coming !!! Your feedback is always appreciated.

Thanks.

Heidi

Heidi Luquer

Wetlands NewsLink Editor

NEWS FROM WETLAND FRIENDS

News Sent From Wild Bird Society of Japan

The Red Data Book of Asian Birds is Now Available. To find it on the web go

to: http://www.rdb.or.id/home.html It is also available in hard copy.

News from the Royal Society of Bird Protection (RSBP)

Since April, the presence of a pair of nesting Ospreys in England has been

kept a closely guarded secret, with a round-the-clock guard mounted on the

nest. Now with the arrival of the chicks, it is possible to reveal (as of

June 22) that the nest is in the Forestry Commission’s Thornthwaite Forest,

near Keswick, Cumbria. Forestry Minister, Elliot Morley, is to see the nest

of the first osprey chicks to hatch in northern England for more than 150

years. To learn more go to: http://www.rspb.org.uk/

>From the Sierra Club

A Request For Action: Stop Wetland Destruction! Forwarded from Sierra Club

Currents

The Bush Administration will soon finalize revisions to guidelines for

permits for building on wetlands. These "nationwide permits," used by the

U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, make it much easier for developers to build

projects that threaten or destroy wetlands. Preliminary indications are

that the revised permit rules would open the door to even more wetland

destruction. Find out more and take action:

http://whistler.sierraclub.org:8080/takeaction/cleanwater/index5.jsp

News from Spain Offered by Ramsar:

Andy Green of the Donana Biological Station in Sevilla reports that the

Royal Decree banning lead shot in protected Spanish wetlands was published

in the Boletin Oficial del Estado on June 15, 2001. A copy of the decree

(in Spanish) is available at:

http://www.boe.es/boe/dias/2001-06-15/seccion1.html#00002 The ban comes

into force on October 1, 2001. It applies both to Ramsar sites and to other

wetlands protected under regional or national legislation. This includes

the great majority of key sites for marbled teal, white-headed duck and

wintering waterbirds in general.

News from the WWF Global Network: Dams Accused of Role in Flooding

Gland, Switzerland – New research commissioned by WWF has warned that dams

built with the promise of reducing flooding can often exacerbate the problem

with catastrophic consequences, as some recent floods have shown. The

research paper called "Dams and Floods" shows that dams are often designed

with a very poor knowledge of the potential for extreme flood events. Where

data does exist it may fail to consider current risks such as increased

rainfall due to climate change or increased run-off of water from land due

to deforestation or the drainage of wetlands. The loss of these natural

sponges for floodwaters within the river basin increases the risk of extreme

floods. WWF argues that many of these problems could be avoided if the

recommendations of the first ever World Commission on Dams (WCD) were

applied to future dam projects. For the full article go to:

http://www.panda.org/news/press/storyindex.cfm

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

Efforts to Save Wetlands Are Inadequate, Study Says

June 27, 2001 New York Times, By Andrew C. Revkin – A decade-old government

program allowing landowners to destroy some wetlands if they create or

restore others is failing, a panel of top scientists said yesterday. The

findings call into question a key component of federal wetlands- protection

efforts, which President George Bush developed in 1989 after a pledge that

there would be "no net loss" of wetlands. The panel, convened by the

National Academy of Sciences, found that in many cases the construction of

substitute wetlands was often delayed or never finished. It also found that

when finished, projects often failed to meet standards set for them and that

even when the final result satisfied regulations, the artificial wetlands

did not duplicate the ecological functions of the natural wetlands that were

buried. For the full story go to:

http://www.nytimes.com/2001/06/27/science/27WETL.html?searchpv=day01

New Wave of Flamingo Deaths Worries Scientists

June 13, WWF Global Network, Nairobi, Kenya – The spectacular lesser

flamingos in Kenya's Lake Bogoria and Lake Nakuru are dying yet again as

scientists battle to establish the enigmatic cause of death. A WWF team

visiting Lake Bogoria, where most of the deaths are occurring, earlier this

week found scores of dead birds strewn along the lake shores. Stray dogs

and marabou storks were predating upon them. Preliminary results of WWF’s

surveillance at the two lakes over the past two months have revealed that

flamingo deaths peaked towards the end of May, and now seem to be subsiding.

A large number of sick birds can still be seen at both lakes. During this

week’s visit, WWF found several sick birds making weak and uncoordinated

efforts to support themselves. A number of them were uncharacteristically

“seated” in the water, and could hardly swim away when approached. For the

full article go to: http://www.panda.org/news/press/news.cfm?id=2379

Wetlands Show Strength in Diversity

June 7, 2001, Environmental News Service, Logan, Utah, – The more diverse a

wetland, the better it can serve as a natural water purifier, new research

suggests. Wetlands are both an important source of food for humans and

natural water purifiers. Researchers have discovered that the more species

of rooted, submerged aquatic plants - also known as macrophytes - a wetland

ecosystem contains, the better able it is to perform these functions.

Katharina Engelhardt and Mark Ritchie of Utah State University in Logan,

manipulated the diversity of four different aquatic plant species in

experimental ponds. As species richness increased, so did the total

combined biomass of macrophytes and algae - and therefore the ponds' ability

to support animal life, they found. For more of the article go to:

http://www.ens-news.com/ens/jun2001/2001L-06-07-09.html

President Bush Visits Everglades

June, 4, 2001, Associated Press Washington – President Bush is renewing his

pledge to help restore the Florida Everglades, with a tour later Monday of

the celebrated but scarred wetlands. The trip will be Bush's third journey

to Florida since becoming president, hiking the Anhinga Trail, named for a

fishing bird that inhabits the Everglades. He also was expected to announce

he has signed a bill that will enhance cooperation between federal agencies

as they work to reduce wildfire risks. Everglades National Park is

undergoing a 40-year, $7.8 billion restoration project aimed at improving

water quality, storage and flow into the region. Bush's proposed 2002 budget

includes $219 million spread over five federal agencies for Everglades

restoration. That is $58 million more than this year, aides said.

http://www.cnn.com/2001/ALLPOLITICS/06/04/bush.florida.ap/index.html

WETLAND WEB RESOURCES

Known as the "South American Wetland Assessment," this extensive report

catalogues the biological, social and economic importance of wetlands in

South America and is now redesigned for the web:

http://www.wetlands.org/SAA/ The South America Wetland Assessment began in

March 1994 - an ambitious undertaking spearheaded by the Manomet Center for

Conservation Sciences and Wetlands International (formerly Wetlands for the

Americas). Over a five-year period, a massive amount of information was

gathered and analyzed by a diverse team of more than 20 wetland experts from

across South America. While vast areas remain relatively intact, the

Assessment confirmed that South America's wetlands were under increasing

threat. The Assessment presented a broad series of recommendations for

promoting the conservation and wise use of these increasingly threatened

areas. The full 1000+ page, limited edition, Assessment report was ready in

1999.

WETLAND PUBLICATIONS

NeoCons: A Free Electronic Bulletin From the Society for Conservation

Biology

The Society for Conservation Biology (SCB) is an international professional

organization dedicated to promoting the scientific study of the phenomena

that affect the maintenance, loss, and restoration of biological diversity.

It now offers an electronic bulletin free to anyone interested. It covers

news in Central America, Mexico and the Carribean and is available in

English, French, Portuguese and Spanish. To find out more about it go to:

http://www.conservationbiology.org/

WETLANDS JOB OPPORTUNITIES

BirdLife International Seeks Director of Science & Policy

BirdLife International is searching for a highly motivated, experienced and

enthusiastic individual to join the office of the BirdLife International

Secretariat in Cambridge, UK, to take up the post of Director of Science &

Policy. A full job description and details about BirdLife are available on

the BirdLife web site www.birdlife.net or can be obtained from Rosina

Abudulai, Personnel Officer. Closing date for applications: 31st July 2001.

Ecoscope Seeks Technical Director for South-East Asia and Wetland Habitat

Creation Specialist in Hong Kong.

Technical Director for South-east Asia: This position calls for high-level

ecological expertise on existing projects in Hong Kong and oversight of the

strategic development of Ecoscope’s work programme in Hong Kong and

elsewhere in south-east Asia. This is a senior post Principal areas of work

in the region involve Environmental Impact Assessments and wetland

conservation, management and creation/restoration for the private sector,

non-governmental organisations and government departments.

Wetland Habitat Creation Specialist: This position begins in October and is

a 2½ year position to oversee a 64 ha wetland habitat restoration project

in Hong Kong. This is a joint post with the Wetlands Advisory Service

(WAS), which is the consultancy branch of the Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust.

Primary responsibility will be for carrying out the project on a day-to-day

basis and will be based on site for the majority of the time.

Further information about Ecoscope and these posts is available on their web

site:

http://www.ecoscope.co.uk or e-mail: ecoscopecambs@ecoscope.co.uk

THE END

June 30, 2001