[Nethra K Putti]

RAMSAR CONVENTION ON WETLANDS

- The ramsar convention is an international treaty for the conservation & sustainable utilization of wetlands, i.e. to stem the progressive encroachment on & loss of wetlands now & in the future, recognizing the fundamental ecological functions of wetlands & their economic, cultural, scientific, & recreational value. the convention was develope & adopted by participating nations at a meeting in Ramsar, Iran on February 2,1971 & came into force on Dec 21,1975. The headquaters is located in Gland, Switzerland.

- presently there are 153 contracting parties, up from 119 in 2000 & from 18 initial signatory nations in 1971.Signatories meet every 3 years as the conference of the contracting parties (COP), the first held in Cagliari, Italy in 1980. Amendments to the original convention have been agreed to in Paris in 1982 & Regina in 1987.

- The ramsar lists of wetlands of international importance now includes over 1616 sites (Ramsar sites) covering around 1,455,000 km2, up from 1021 sites in 2000. the nation with the highest number of sites is the United Kingdom at 164; the nation with the greatest area of listed wetlands is Canada with over 1,30,000 km2, including the Queen Maud Gulf site at 62,000 km2.

[ramprasad]

thanks.....