Ramsar Convention
The Convention on Wetlands of International Importance is the oldest international convention dealing with the conservation and sustainable use of natural resources.
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On 2 February 1971, the Convention on the Conservation of Wetlands of International Importance especially as Waterfowl Habitat (Ramsar Convention) was signed in the Iranian city of Ramsar. Germany ratified the Ramsar Convention in 1976.
In recent years, the Convention’s primary focus has shifted from protecting waterfowl to the overall conservation of habitats and species. As a result of this shift, the Convention’s objectives have been broadened to more closely align them with the Convention on Biological Diversity (conservation – sustainable use – fair and equitable sharing of benefits). In addition to developing management plans, monitoring the ecological character and cooperating with other regional and global treaties and institutions, the Convention also aims to involve local communities through outreach activities and measures designed to foster acceptance.
Responsibilities of the Contracting Parties
Every Contracting Party must commit to designating at least one wetland in its territory as a Wetland of International Importance and to maintain and develop these sites through preservation of their ecological character, biotope management and sustainable use. Furthermore, the Contracting Parties must ensure that all other wetlands within their territories are also used sustainably to the extent possible. The parties are required to cooperate internationally in the interest of wetland conservation.
They are also responsible for communicating the message of the Ramsar Convention and the importance of wetlands to the public. To this end, the BMUV commissioned and published a translation of the most recent edition of the Ramsar Handbook into German, also as working material for the Ramsar decision-makers in Germany. World Wetlands Day is also celebrated every year on 2 February. The Ramsar Secretariat provides materials for this event and calls on the member states to use this day to raise awareness of the special importance of wetlands. The motto for this year is, Wetlands for Human Wellbeing.
Currently, 172 countries are parties to the Convention (as at January 2024), having added a total of 2503 wetlands of international importance with a total area of around 257 million hectares. The Conference of the Parties takes place every three years with the last one, COP 14, held in November 2022 in Geneva, Switzerland with a virtual connection to Wuhan, China. The next Conference of the Parties will take place in July 2025 in Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe.
Situation in Germany
Germany has added 35 wetlands with a total area of around 869,000 hectares. The "Rosenheimer Stammbeckenmoore" of the Bavarian Alpine foothills is the youngest German wetland of international importance. It was added to the official Ramsar list at the beginning of 2021 and covers an area of around 1000 hectares.
Changes in the ecological character
If the ecological character of a wetland of international importance changes in such a way that the natural living conditions deteriorate significantly (for example, as a result of hypertrophication or intensification of farming), the wetland has to be placed on a special register known as the Montreux Record. This triggers a monitoring and advisory process whereby the Ramsar Secretariat sends a technical mission to analyse the situation on site. Together with the Contracting Party, the Ramsar Advisory Mission identifies the measures to be taken to elevate the sites to a higher status. The wetland remains on the Montreux Record until the ecological character has improved. The Montreux Record was established in 1990 and is maintained by the office of the Convention.