UNESCO enlists Hamoun among global wetlands

Recently UNESCO has registered Hamoun among the global wetlands.

Iran’s plain covers 80% of the country’s territory and is home to a diverse range of mountainous regions, foothills, and deserts. This, in turn has led to the diversity of climate in Iran, despite the location of this country on the dry and semi-dry belt.

The climatic diversity, presence of the Caspian Sea in the north, and the Persian Gulf in the south of Iran has in turn resulted in the formation of wetlands in the country. Ramsar Convention is an international treaty which was signed in the year 1971 AD for protection and maintenance of wetlands. In the beginning, this convention was signed by the representatives of 18 participating countries. However, currently, 169 countries have joined this convention.

This convention has also enlisted the important wetlands worldwide, which is popularly known as Ramsar List. This convention is headquartered in Switzerland.

Among the 42 different types of wetlands specified by Ramsar Convention, forty-one types of wetlands are found in Iran, which clearly shows the diversity of wetlands across the country.

Wetlands refer to regions, which have mainly constituted of water. Wetlands usually shape when water exists on the ground or in the vicinity of ground. In other words, wetlands usually form when a shallow pool of water covers the ground.

Wetlands are regions covered with lagoons, swamps, or natural and artificial pools of water, in which stagnated or currents of fresh or saline water can be found.

Based on this definition; different types of habitats; such as rivers, lakes, coastal regions, mangrove forests, lagoons and even coral reefs fall into the category of wetlands. Moreover, different types of man-made wetlands, such as pisciculture ponds, irrigated farmlands, ponds for extraction of salt, water reservoirs behind dams, rivers’ beddings, and water channels are also included in the general definition of wetlands.

Wetlands are among the most productive environments in the world. For instance, rice, which is the main food of half of the world’s population, is cultivated in wetlands. These ecosystems also materialize bio-diversity, highly contributing to survival of many animal and plant species. In fact, wetlands support countless bird, mammal, reptile, amphibian, fish, and invertebrate species. Among 20,000 different fish species across the world, nearly 40% of them live in fresh waters and wetlands.

The reciprocal impacts of the physical, biological, and chemical components of a wetland; such as soil, water, plants and animals, give rise to countless vital roles played by wetlands. Some of these performances include storage of water; reduction of the destructive impact of floods; containment of soil erosion; and purification of water.

Iran’s wetlands in Southwest Asia and south of Northern Hemisphere are the habitats of more than 140 migrant and indigenous bird species, which constitute 30% of Iran’s birds. These habitats provide appropriate shelter and climatic conditions, leading to residence of 63 different bird species in Iran’s wetlands, while 77 bird species also reside in these wetlands in fall and winter seasons. Currently, nearly one to two million water birds live in Iran’s wetlands in the winter season. Moreover, out of the 20 bird species on the verge of extinction which live in Iran; six of them are water birds, who reside in Iran’s wetlands.

The International Hamoun Lake and Wetland is the third largest lake in Iran, which has been registered by UNESCO. Upon the registration of this wetland in the global list, the number of Iran’s bio-habitats rose to twelve in numbers.

The international Hamoun wetland is one of the world’s important wetlands and the biggest fresh water lake in Iran’s plain with a depth of one to five meters. It is situated in the dry region of Sistan. Fourteen bird species live in this wetland.

Hamoun Lake and wetland is situated in Sistan-Baluchestan Province, in southeast Iran. It is comprised of three small lakes which blend with each other at the time of abundance of water, shaping Hamoun Lake.

Hamoun Lake covers 5660 square kilometers, out of which 3820 square kilometers belong to Iran, with the rest belonging to Afghanistan. Hamoun Lake is dependent on River Hirmand. Hence, any change in the volume of water of this river causes several problems for the entire system.

River Hirmand is the main river in the Basin of Hamoun Lake, originating from Afghanistan, and pouring into Hamoun Lake after covering a distance of 1100 kilometers.

Ancient Iran’s literature has attached significant importance to Hamoun Lake. This lake has been mentioned on a number of occasions in the religious book of Zoroastrians, Avesta.

Hamoun Lake has faced shortage of water for a while. The dryness of parts of this lake has induced countless environmental, social, and economic problems across the region. As of the 1990s, concurrent with a drop in rainfall, and emergence of drought in Sistan, River Hirmand’s water input to Hamoun Lake declined. Meanwhile, absence of a powerful government in Afghanistan, construction of a dam over River Hirmand and installation and usage of different pumps along River Hirmand by Afghan farmers for agricultural activities, have dealt a heavy blow to Hamoun Lake and Wetland. This in turn has severed the livelihood of thousands of residents of Sistan, and has stirred poverty and insecurity. Now, with the registration of Hamoun Wetland in UNESCO’s global list, hopes have been set on UNESCO to find a solution for this crisis.

MR/MG