Wetlands are very important and productive ecosystems that support a wide range of plants and animals and provide livelihood opportunities to local communities in India. However, they are increasingly being threatened by rapid urbanisation, pollution, developmental interventions, unsustainable management practices and encroachment.
The Himalayas, with its unique topography and climatic regimes, support diverse wetland habitats across a range of altitudes. Himalayan High Altitude Wetlands (HAWs) include lakes, ponds and rivers located at altitudes higher than 3,000 metres above mean sea level and are often fed by glaciers or snow from the surrounding mountains. These wetlands play an important role as wildlife habitats for many rare and endemic species and support livelihoods of a number of local communities residing in the region. However, like other wetlands, the Himalayan wetlands also face various threats.
A Policy Consultation on Himalayan Wetlands was held in Leh on August 29, 2018 organised by the Ashoka Trust for Research in Ecology and the Environment (ATREE), Bengaluru, in partnership with WWF-India. This was the first in a series of site-specific policy consultations planned across the country on critical wetland and grassland habitats. The consultation aimed at reviewing the current status and management of wetlands, prioritise issues for conservation and management and identify policy gaps and blocks facing the conservation and sustainable use of these landscapes.
The key points that emerged from the discussion were:
A copy of the report is available below: