Cluster Site Designation of The Southwest National Wildlife Refuge Complex as Wetlands of International Importance under the Criteria of The Convention on Wetlands of International Importance Especially as Waterfowl Habitat-Convention on Wetlands (Ramsar, Iran, 1971).

Abstract
Introduction
Wetlands as a part of global ecosystem
Propose International designation of Louisiana wetlands
Situational discussion of wetland global and local status
Management programs addressing wetland habitat issues
International expansion of wetland protection programs through Ramsar
Literature Review
Wetlands
World View
The concept of wetlands is often difficult to comprehend, much less define. “This is a term of no great precision, either in popular or scientific parlance, and indeed in certain languages there is no single word which adequately reflects the concept.[22--J. Sommer, 'Legal Protection of Wetlands in Poland', in Legal Aspects of the Conservation of Wetlands, IUCN Environmental Policy & Law Paper No. 25 (1991) p. 107.] Certainly the rendering in the French language text - ‘zones humides’ - conjures up a rather different image from its English counterpart. Since, however, the primary aim of those who drafted the Convention was to establish a conservation regime for all those habitats which were of importance to waterfowl, the definition adopted was one wide enough to embrace virtually every practical possibility, without particular regard to scientific nicety. Article 1(1) accordingly states: ‘For the purpose of this Convention wetlands are areas of marsh, fen, peatland or water, whether natural or artificial, permanent or temporary, with water that is static or flowing, fresh, brackish or salt, including areas of marine water the depth of which at low tide does not exceed six metres.’ It has been suggested [23--P.J. Dugan, ed., Wetland Conservation: a Review of Current Issues and Required Action (1990) p. 5.] that of over fifty separate definitions of wetlands currently in use, this is the broadest:
encompassing ‘habitats as diverse as mangrove swamps, peat bogs, water meadows, coastal beaches, coastal waters, tidal flats, mountain lakes and tropical river systems’.[24--S. Lyster, International Wildlife Law (1985).]
The definition is, moreover, in effect extended yet further by Article 2(1), which provides in part:
‘The boundaries of each wetland shall be precisely described and also delimited on a map and they may incorporate riparian and coastal zones adjacent to the wetlands, and islands and bodies of marine water deeper than six metres at low tide lying within the wetlands, especially where these have importance as waterfowl habitat.’
The Director-General of IUCN, delivering the keynote address at the Fourth Meeting of the Conference of the Parties in Montreux, Switzerland, [25--M.W. Holdgate, 'Wetlands in a Changing World', the Keynote Address at the Fourth Meeting of the Conference, INF. C.4.7.] joked that this very broad definition: ‘suggests to me that only two Conventions are really needed to cover the conservation of all the habitats in the world - the Ramsar Convention dealing with any land that can be generally termed "wet", and a Drylands Convention dealing with everything else, with some useful working agreement between the Bureaux and Standing Committees on how to handle the interface.’”[1]

U.S.
“Wetlands are lands where saturation with water is the dominant factor determining the nature of soil development and the types of plant and animal communities living in the soil and on its surface[2] (Cowardin, December 1979). Wetlands vary widely because of regional and local differences in soils, topography, climate, hydrology, water chemistry, vegetation, and other factors, including human disturbance. Indeed, wetlands are found from the tundra to the tropics and on every continent except Antarctica. For regulatory purposes under the Clean Water Act, the term wetlands means "those areas that are inundated or saturated by surface or ground water at a frequency and duration sufficient to support, and that under normal circumstances do support, a prevalence of vegetation typically adapted for life in saturated soil conditions. Wetlands generally include swamps, marshes, bogs and similar areas." [taken from the EPA Regulations listed at 40 CFR 230.3(t)]”
Louisiana
def
Value of Wetlands
“Wetland functions can achieve lower flood peaks, fewer drought periods, more wildlife and habitat, and better surface water quality than comparable watersheds with fewer wetlands. Wetlands also provide recreational opportunities for boating, hiking and bird watching, and aesthetic value in the landscape. Tidal wetlands are valued for marine food production; wildlife habitat; flood, hurricane, and storm control; recreation; cleansing of ecosystems; absorption of silt and organic material; education and research opportunities; and aesthetic values. Areas adjacent to tidal wetlands often carry many of the same or similar valuable attributes and, in addition, provide a valuable buffer for the wetlands.”[3]
“The mere existence of wetlands may be of great significance to some people. Those who have grown up in wetlands, but have moved away to a town, may have placed a high value on the wetland because it is part of their cultural heritage, even though they may never visit the wetland.”[4]
Management of Wetlands
U.S.
“On the federal level wetland the US ACOE (COE) administers laws and regulations, with oversight by the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).The US ACOE also coordinates its regulatory processes with the US Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) and the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS). The COE regulates waters and wetlands under two laws. The first law, which is quite old (1800’s), is the Section 10 Rivers and Harbors Act. Under this regulation, a permit is required from the COE for any project that involves work or structures in, over or under navigable (truly navigable) waters of the United States. Examples of activities regulated under this law are docks in the Hudson River, underground utility crossings of the Mohawk River, or installation of riprap along the shoreline of Long Island. The second, more recent law is Section 404 of the Clean Water Act. Under this law, a permit is needed from the COE for the discharges of dredged or fill material into any water of the United States, including wetlands, which are a type of water of the United States. Wetlands are identified in the field using the COE delineation manual. [Please note: A recent Supreme Court ruling, SWANCC v USACOE, has impacted regulations of “isolated wetlands.” [5]
“EPA has a number of programs for wetland conservation, restoration, and monitoring. EPA, along with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (Corps), establishes environmental standards for reviewing permits for discharges that affect wetlands, such as residential development, roads, and levees. Under Section 404 of the Clean Water Act, the Corps issues permits that meet environmental standards (after allowing the public to comment). In addition to providing regulatory protection for wetlands, EPA works in partnership with states, tribes, and local governments, the private sector, and citizen organizations to monitor, protect, and restore these valuable habitats. EPA is helping states and tribes incorporate wetland monitoring, protection, and restoration into their watershed plans. EPA is also developing national guidance on wetland restoration, as well as constructed wetlands used to treat storm water and sewage. Nationally, EPA’s Five-Star Restoration Program provides grants and promotes information exchange through community-based education and restoration projects. EPA works with a variety of other federal agencies to protect and restore wetlands, including the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the U.S. Department of Agriculture, and the National Marine Fisheries Service. EPA is working with these agencies and others to achieve an overall increase of wetlands over the next five years. EPA also partners with private interests and public organizations like the Association of State Wetland Managers, the National Association of Counties, local watershed associations, schools, and universities to advance conservation and restoration programs.”[6]
International Management of Wetlands

Louisiana Management of Wetlands
CWPPRA

Louisiana Wetland Discussion
Wetlands Physical Situation
More than 1900 Square miles of Louisiana’s coastal wetlands have disappeared into the sea.[7] “According to Greg Stone of the Department of Oceanography and Coastal Sciences, Louisiana is experiencing the highest rate of coastal erosion in America, losing about 100 yards of land every 30 minutes. That is a football field every half-hour.”[8]
Wetland Values to the State, U.S.
Almost one-third of the nation's oil and gas production and the largest seafood harvest in the lower 48 states originates in the Louisiana wetlands. The marsh protects one of the largest shipping and fuel production corridors in the U.S. from hurricanes and open water conditions. Just one of Louisiana's major ports receives about a million barrels of oil every day - roughly 13 percent of the nation's foreign oil supply.The marsh's mixture of salt and fresh water is an essential nursery for shrimp, crabs, and a variety of fish species. Annually, the dockside value of Louisiana's commercial seafood harvest is more than $342.7 million and recreational fishing is a $944 million industry.”[9]
Management Plans
Ramsar Convention
History and Definition
Ramsar is the first of the modern global intergovernmental treaties on conservation and wise use of natural resources[10]
“Although examples of multilateral nature conservation agreements can be traced back to the turn of the century and beyond, it was not until the late 1960’s that the international community began to perceive the true seriousness of the threat posed by the continuing degradation of the natural environment and the urgent need for a concerted global response. The 1968 UNESCO Conference, which led to the inauguration of that Organization’s ‘Man and the Biosphere’ Program, constituted an important early step in this process, as did the more widely-renowned UN Conference on the Human Environment, held at Stockholm in 1972. A substantial number of international environmental treaties were adopted from that year onwards. The Ramsar Wetlands Convention, concluded the year before Stockholm, thus stood astride the very threshold of modern environmental law, its founding fathers unquestionably apprised of many of the key tenets of contemporary conservation philosophy, but at the same time lacking the benefit of accumulated wisdom as to the legal and institutional techniques and mechanisms which would need to be incorporated if the Convention were to survive and flourish.[11]

The Convention on Wetlands, signed in Ramsar, Iran, in 1971, is an intergovernmental treaty which provides the framework for national action and international cooperation for the conservation and wise use of wetlands and their resources. The Convention entered into force in 1975 and as of May 2005 has 145 Contracting Parties. More than 1429 wetlands exist on the List of Wetlands of International Importance, covering some 125,032,572 hectares, more than the surface area of France, Germany, and Switzerland combined.

“Judged by the standards of modern environmental treaties, the Ramsar Convention in its original form seems an extraordinarily simple, almost simplistic, legal instrument. It comprised a mere twelve articles, four of which were devoted to the articulation of substantive obligations, four to institutional arrangements and other mechanisms for implementation, and four to the final clauses governing participation and the exercise of depositary functions.”[12]

Mission and Procedures
“The Convention's mission is the conservation and wise use of all wetlands through local, regional and national actions and international cooperation, as a contribution towards achieving sustainable development throughout the world. UNESCO serves as Depositary for the Convention, but its administration has been entrusted to a secretariat known as the "Ramsar Bureau", which is housed in the headquarters of IUCN–The World Conservation Union in Gland, Switzerland, under the authority of the Conference of the Parties and the Standing Committee of the Convention.”[13]
Benefits of Ramsar
According to Ramsar when a country joins the Convention the commitment represents:
· an endorsement of the principles that the Convention represents, facilitating the development at national level of policies and actions, including legislation that helps nations to make the best possible use of their wetland resources in their quest for sustainable development;
· an opportunity for a country to make its voice heard in the principal intergovernmental forum on the conservation and wise use of wetlands;
· increased publicity and prestige for the wetlands designated for the List of Wetlands of International Importance, and hence increased possibility of support for conservation and wise use measures;
· access to the latest information and advice on application of the Convention’s internationally-accepted standards, such as criteria for identifying wetlands of international importance, guidelines on application of the wise use concept, and guidelines on management planning in wetlands;
· access to expert advice on national and site-related problems of wetland conservation and management through contacts with Ramsar Bureau personnel and consultants and through application of the Ramsar Advisory Mission mechanism when appropriate; and
· international cooperation on wetland issues and brings the possibility of support for wetland projects, either through the Convention’s own Small Grants Fund or through the Convention’s contacts with multilateral and bilateral external support agencies.
“Prudent investments in the protection of natural ecosystems and human welfare are in the economic interest of the United States. Making these investments now can yield dividends for our children's future; dividends in the form of more bountiful harvests, life-saving drugs, a stable climate, and a clean environment. The Ramsar Convention funding will be particularly critical to assure the global supply of seafood and the abundance of waterfowl and other bird species. Wetland conservation through the Convention provides other, crucial ecosystem services such as carbon sequestration, which counteracts global warming, water quality enhancement, and flood damage reduction.”[14]
Criteria for Qualification
Selection for the Ramsar List is based on the wetland’s significance in terms of ecology, botany, zoology, limnology, or hydrology. The Contracting Parties have adopted specific criteria and guidelines for identifying sites that qualify for inclusion in the List of Wetlands of International Importance.
Article 2(1) provides that each party is to designate suitable wetlands within its territory for inclusion in the List of Wetlands of International Importance and Article 2(2) establishes the broad criteria to be applied in this selection process. Article 2(1) states, “Wetlands should be selected for the List on account of their international significance in terms of ecology, botany, zoology, limnology or hydrology. In the first instance wetlands of international importance to waterfowl at any season should be included.”
A wetland could be considered of international importance under Criterion 1 if, because of its outstanding role in natural, hydrological, biological or ecological systems it is of substantial value in supporting human communities dependent on the wetland.

Waterfowl Population Estimates 2nd edition provides recommended 1% population thresholds for the application of Ramsar Criterion 6 for the identification and designation of Wetlands of International Importance. Criterion 6 says that , “A wetland should be considered internationally important if it regularly supports 1% of the individuals in a population of one species or subspecies of waterbird.”[15]
Cluster Sites and Coastal Zone Guidelines in Ramsar
The need for including the coastal zone in the national physical planning process was adopted by the Policy Conference on Integrated Coastal Zone Management at the Brisbane Australia 6th meeting of the Contracting Parties in 1996. The Conference agreed that an estimated 60% of the world’s population and many development activities are concentrated along the coastal strip that extends from shoreline to less than 60 km or 37.2 miles inland. The Conference announced the interest in adopting coastal zone guidelines because of increasing population and development, which the party says, “poses immense pressure on coastal wetlands in terms of depletion of living resources, pollution loads, reclamation, land fill, and other uncoordinated development, all of which impact on biological diversity.”[16]
Example Sites and Cluster Sites
Catahoula Lake Specifics
Connecticut River Estuary and Tidal River Wetlands Complex
Bundala National Park First Ramsar wetland system Sri Lanka
Benefits of Ramsar
Waterfowl Habitat Protection
Natural and Cultural Landscape Protection
Comprehensive BMP Approach
The Convention promotes the sustainable use of aquatic ecosystems, allowing communities to gain economic benefits from these areas while maintaining the ecosystem's viability. Ramsar designations have brought many environmental and economic benefits to sites in the United States, including improved water quality, enhanced wildlife habitat, and increased tourism. In many developing nations, the Ramsar Convention is the only policy tool available for protecting aquatic ecosystems.
Eco Tourism
Global $#’s
LA Economy $#’s
Recreational Fishing/Hunting/Birding
Criticism of Ramsar
Article 2.4 of the Convention established that “The inclusion of a wetland in the List does not prejudice the exclusive sovereign rights of the Contracting Party in whose territory the wetland is situated.”

Methodology Used for Recommending to Ramsar Wetlands of International Importance
RIS Procedure
Louisiana NWR Complex Proposal-what and why
General Overview of the Area and Sites

Public Land Where Management Framework Exists
Creole Trail and Eco Tourism Opportunities for Growth
Proximity to Each other and State Refuges, Contiguous Habitat
Current Movement in State Addresses Coastal Erosion
Criteria Met
Representative Example of Wetland Ecosystem
Endangered Species Wildlife Habitat
Birding Numbers—Migratory, Wading, Ducks
Management Guidelines of Ramsar
Threats
Erosion
Without the marsh and wetlands as a buffer, some experts predict a 20-foot storm surge that might swamp New Orleans.
Natural
“LSU researchers say that if a storm like Betsy, which hit New Orleans in 1965, hit today, the damage would be far worse than it was back then, primarily because of the extensive loss of the coast's wetlands and barrier islands to erosion and sinking. Losing those islands is like losing the state's "first line of defense" against hurricanes and tropical and winter storms, Stone said. The barrier islands protect the coastline by breaking down waves and storm surges before they hit the coast and move onshore toward the wetlands.”[17]
Water Quality—salt-fresh
Invasive species-plants/animals
Over Development
Man made source/non point Pollution
Findings
Satisfy Ramsar Criteria
Potential to Extend to Other LA Wetlands
Clusters are Beneficial
Conclusions
Wetlands Are Vital to Earth
Productive Ecosystems for Animals, Plants and Humans
Recommendations
Complete the RIS
Begin Lobbying at State and National Level
Actual RIS for Southwest NWR Complex Completed
References

[1] M. J. Bowman, The Ramsar Convention Comes of Age, Netherlands International Law Review, XLII: 1-52, (T.M.C. Asser Instituut, Netherlands, 1995).
[2] L. M. Cowardin, et al., Classification of wetlands and deepwater habitats of the United States, (U. S. Department of the Interior, Fish and Wildlife Service, Washington, D.C., 1979), 131.
[3] Association of State Wetland Managers, Wetland and Watershed Protection Toolkit, (February 2002), online http://www.aswm.org/lwp/nys/section3.htm.
[4] Barbier, E. B., Acreman, M. C. and Knowler, D. 1996, Economic valuation of wetlands: a guide for policy makers and planners, (Ramsar Convention Bureau, Gland, Switzerland, 1997).
[5] Association of State Wetland Managers, Wetland and Watershed Protection Toolkit, (February 2002), online http://www.aswm.org/lwp/nys/section3.htm.
[6] Environmental Protection Agency, What is a Wetland, EPA 843-F-04-011a, (Office of Water, Washington D.C.: December 2004), online http://www.epa.gov/owow/wetlands/pdf/overview.pdf.
[7] The Louisiana Coastal Wetlands Conservation and Restoration Task Force, Turning the Tide, The Fight to Keep Coastal Louisiana on the Map, Department of Natural Resources, LaCoast.gov
[8] LSU Highlights, Science and Technology, Barrier Island Breakdown, Ship to Shoal to the Rescue, (Baton Rouge LA, Spring 2005) online http://www.lsu.edu/highlights/051/barrier.html.
[9] Ibid, Turning the Tide.
[10] Ramsar Bureau, What is the Ramsar Convention on Wetlands, Ramsar Info Pack, Information Paper #2, (Gland, Switzerland, 2005), online http://ramsar.org/about_infopack_2e.htm#top.
[11] M. J. Bowman, The Ramsar Convention Comes of Age, Netherlands International Law Review, XLII: 1-52, (T.M.C. Asser Instituut, Netherlands, 1995).
[12] Ibid, Bowman, The Ramsar Convention Comes of Age.
[13] 8th Meeting of the Conference of the Contracting Parties to the Convention on Wetlands (Ramsar, Iran, 1971), Wetlands: water, life, and culture (Valencia, Spain, November 2002).
[14] Testimony about Ramsar before the U.S. Congress Statement of the U.S. National Ramsar Committee Submitted to the [United States] Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Foreign Operations
(Washington D.C., April 1997).
[15] Nick Davidson, Deputy Secretary Ramsar, The application of Ramsar Criterion 6 for the designation of Wetlands of International Importance, (Ramsar Bureau, Gland Switzerland, 2002).
[16] 6th Meeting of the Conference of the Contracting Parties, Recommendation 6.8: Strategic planning in coastal zones, (Brisbane, Australia, March 1996).
[17] LSU Highlights, Science and Technology, Barrier Island Breakdown, Ship to Shoal to the Rescue, (Baton Rouge LA, Spring 2005) online http://www.lsu.edu/highlights/051/barrier.html.