Dear Wetland Friends:

US wetlands need your help – TODAY – March 20. This is national call-in day
to tell the United States government NOT too bury our streams and wetlands
with mining wastes and other solid waste materials. Each person’s call is
critically important. The Bush administration is on the verge of making a
devastating environmental change to regulations which, if pass, will soon
allow waste from mountaintop removal coal mining to bury streams. A change
to Clean Water Act rules would modify the Army Corps of Engineers'
definition of "fill" material thereby allowing the Corps to permit wastes
from mountaintop removal coal mining to bury streams. In mountaintop removal
coal mining, coal companies literally blast off the tops of mountains to
reach the seams of coal, then dump the millions of tons of waste generated
into nearby streams and wetlands. Between 9 am and 4 p.m. EST, please call
Christine Whitman, Administrator of the U.S. Environmental Protection
Agency: (202) 546-4700.

Best wishes,

Heidi

Heidi Luquer
Wetlands NewsLink Editor

NEWS FROM WETLAND FRIENDS

Friends of the Earth (FOE)

Friends of the Earth brings to our attention a deal between the Government
and US corporation Scotts which will save three of the UK’s top wildlife
sites from being destroyed and virtually end commercial peat-cutting in the
UK. FOE has campaigned to save these bogs for 12 years.
http://www.foe.co.uk/pubsinfo/infoteam/pressrel/2002/20020227103730.html

News from IUCN

A Workshop on the Wetlands of Mauritania entitled “Water, Nature and
Humanity” was held March 15. IUCN Mauritania and the Ministry of
Environment examined ways to improve the management of multifunctional zones
and encourage their sustainable use. In Mauritania, the droughts in the
past three decades have had dramatic consequences, including desertification
and deforestation. The unsustainable use of their resources has worsened the
situation, giving reason for this workshop. For the full story go to:
http://iucn.org/

News from RAMSAR

The Montreux List: New Site On, Former Site Off

The Government of Mauritania has completed the procedure for placing the
Parc National du Diawling Ramsar site onto the Montreux Record, with the
intention of drawing attention to changes in the ecological character of the
site. Plagued in recent years by infestations of alien invasive species,
particuarly Salvinia molesta and Typha australis, this extremely important
site has seen a loss of biodiversity and diminution of open water. There is
hope that, with the added attention to be brought to bear upon the Diawling
site as a result of its Montreux Record listing, the Typha australis and
related problems can be solved and the site removed from the Record in not
too long a time.

Nariva Swamp in Trinidad and Tobago was removed from the “Montreux Record.”
(The Montreux Record was established in 1990 where "changes in ecological
character have occurred, are occurring, or are likely to occur as a result
of technological developments, pollution or other human interference.)

New Ramsar Sites Listed:

Guinea named six large Ramsar sites in the upper Niger Basin. Each of these
wetlands is located in the headwaters of the Niger River. Totaling over 4.5
million hectares in area, these new sites are of extraordinarily great
significance because they represent Guinea's recognition of the vital
importance of sustainable management of the entire vast catchment of the
Niger Basin and help to ensure adequate water supply downstream. For more
details go to: http://www.ramsar.org/w.n.chad_lakechad.htm

News from UNEP

Well Managed Fisheries Vital For Environmentally Friendly Development In
Poor Parts Of The Globe

Geneva/Nairobi, 15 March 2002 – Catches of some key fish stocks have been
falling sharply off the west coast of Africa with the decline being linked
to over-fishing by foreign fleets. A preliminary study of Mauritania, where
European Union, Japanese and Chinese boats have been given access to fishing
grounds, has found that catches of octopus have halved in the past four
years and that some species, such as sawfish, have completely disappeared.
For the full article go to:
http://www.unep.org/Documents/Default.asp?DocumentID=241&ArticleID=3026

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

US Website Highlights Safe Seafood Selections

March 13, 2002, Environmental News Service, Washington, DC – A new web site
offers information about what seafood choices are safest for the environment
and human health. A team of scientists, programmers and editors worked for
more than a year to build the data base tool, which covers more than 150
species of fish. By shopping for seafood caught or farmed in an
environmentally sustainable manner, consumers can make a big difference.
Seafood Selector is a part of the redesigned Environmental Defense web site
at: http://www.environmentaldefense.org/ For the full article go to:
http://www.ens-news.com/ens/mar2002/2002L-03-13-09.html

Lizards, Salamanders Use Lungs to Hear

March 5, 2002, Environmental News Service, Columbus, Ohio, – Certain species
of salamanders and lizards can hear through their lungs, according to a new
study at Ohio State University. The research extends previous studies
showing that some types of earless frogs and toads use their lungs to pick
up sound vibrations, said Thomas Hetherington, an associate professor of
Evolution, Ecology and Organism Biology at Ohio State. For the full article
go to: http://www.ens-news.com/ens/mar2002/2002L-03-05-09.html

China’s Yellow River to Become a Vast Ditch?

March 4, 2002, Chronicle Foreign Service, Erling Hoh, San Francisco
Chronicle, Yinchuan, China – The Yellow River, once the cradle of Chinese
civilization and the inspiration of poetry, is on the verge of becoming a
vast ditch, experts say. All along the Yellow River's 3,400-mile course
through nine provinces, its tributaries lie dry. In many places, it has been
reduced to a sluggish stream. For the full story go to:
http://www.worldlakes.org/News/red_alert_for_yellow_river_03042002.htm

Global Warming Effects on Sea Level Underestimated

February 19, 2002, Environmental News Service, By Cat Lazaroff, Boston,
Massachusetts, – Global sea levels could rise eight inches by the end of
this century, more than the rise predicted last year by the
Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. For the full article go to:
http://www.ens-news.com/ens/feb2002/2002L-02-19-07.html

High Tech Methods Decimating Fish Populations

February 18, 2002, Environmental News Service, By Cat Lazaroff, Boston,
Massachusetts, – New fishing methods based on military technology are
accelerating the decline of commercial fish populations, a new study
suggests. Despite increased fishing efforts, catches continue to decline in
the North Atlantic and other prime U.S. fishing grounds, shows research
detailed this week at a scientific conference in Boston. For the full
article go to: http://www.ens-news.com/ens/feb2002/2002L-02-18-06.html

WETLAND MIGRATORY BIRD NEWS

Ducks Unlimited

Wetlands in a Warmer World, By Mike Anderson, Ph.D. How Will Climate
Changes Affect Waterfowl? For the article go to:
http://www.ducks.org/media/Magazine/stories/wetlands_warm_world_march_april_
2002.asp

News from the Wader Study Group

For the last few years, the Wader Study Group has undertaken a major project
to review and update population size estimates for all migratory wader
species in the African-Eurasian region. This huge exercise commenced with
workshops associated with WSG Conferences in 1996 and 1998 and has involved
the compilation of a huge amount of data - principally January counts, but
also breeding estimates where counts are unavailable. The first draft is
available at: http://www.uct.ac.za/depts/stats/adu/wsg - under “What is
new?”

MIGRATORY BIRD WEB SITES

Announcing New Site: Shorebirds: Prairies to Patagonia
http://www.manomet.org/WHSRN/Prairies/

The Western Hemisphere Shorebird Reserve Network (WHSRN) and the Prairie
Pothole Joint Venture are happy to announce the launch of their new web
site: “ Shorebirds: Prairies to Patagonia” for educators, students,
outreach specialists and anyone interested in the amazing migration of
shorebirds. This site will be continually improved and updated with new
information. If you have photographs, links, maps, or any other kind of
shorebird information write Luquer@manomet.org Feel free to pass along this
announcement to others who might be interested.

>From North America: Effects of Management Practices on Wetland Birds is On
Line

"Effects of Management Practices on Wetland Birds" offers information on the
habitat needs and management response of many species of North American
wetland birds. Accounts are currently available for the Eared Grebe, Yellow
Rail, American Avocet, Marsh Wren, and several species of grassland birds
that occur in wetlands. The need for these reports was identified by the
Prairie Pothole Joint Venture (PPJV). The PPJV recently adopted a new goal,
to stabilize or increase populations of declining grassland and wetland
associated wildlife species in the Prairie Pothole Region. To further that
objective, it is essential to understand the habitat needs of birds other
than waterfowl, and how management practices affect their habitats. The
focus of these reports is on management of breeding habitat, particularly in
the northern Great Plains. The reports are indexed and located at:
http://www.npwrc.usgs.gov/resource/literatr/wetbird/wetbird.htm

WETLANDS BROCHURE

"Discover European Wetlands" Brochure

“Discover European Wetlands: a Guide to 12 Wetland Areas in the North Sea
Region” is available for free (36 pages). In this brochure, the reader
finds information on how to get to the wetlands, what to see, how they are
managed and plans for further development, accessibility and where to find
more information. For a PDF file or to learn more information about this
brochure go to: http://www.ramsar.org/w.n.wisp_discover1.htm

VOLUNTEER BANDING OPPORTUNITY IN THE CARIBBEAN

There is an immediate opening for a Primary Bander at a bird monitoring
station at a coastal Caribbean town beginning mid-April through the end of
May 2002. The candidate should have extensive experience operating a
capture station. Airfare is provided to and from San José, Costa Rica and a
stipend of $US 10 per day is offered if needed. All volunteers receive
their room and board while staying at the well-appointed station of the
Caribbean Conservation Corporation, Estacion Biologica, in the lovely
coastal Caribbean town of Tortuguero. We and our collaborators in Costa
Rica have been operating five monitoring stations near the village for eight
years. We operate mist nets for resident and migrant species and conduct
migration censuses of the millions of diurnal migrants moving along the
coast. Please send an indication of your interest and any questions to Dr.
C. John Ralph (cjr2@humboldt.edu or cralph@fs.fed.us), (707) 825-2992 (fax:
(707) 825-2991; U.S. Forest Service, Redwood Sciences Laboratory, 1700
Bayview Drive, Arcata, California 95521).

THE END
March 15, 2002