term for the set of different activities meant for sensitizing the wide range of stakeholders. The Ramsar Convention’s vision of the CEPA Programme is to “prevent, stop, and reverse the degradation of wetlands and use them wisely” with the overarching goal as “People taking action for the wise‐use of wetlands.”
The first programme of actions for CEPA was adopted by the Conference of Contracting Parties under Resolution VII.9 during the seventh meeting. Each contracting party has to name governmental and nongovernmental focal points for CEPA who become a part of a global network of experts to share information, promote the dissemination of resource material, and support the development or expansion of programmes. The CEPA’s national focal person has to reach out to the relevant authorities and ensure practical implementation of CEPA at the national level. The activities under CEPA play a very vital role in the dissemination of information related to wetland wise‐use and conservation (Ramsar Convention Secretariat 2011, 2016).
2.9.2 World Wetlands Day
The World Wetlands Day, celebrated every year on 2 February, marks the date of the adoption of the Convention on 2 February 1971. For the first time, it was celebrated in the year 1997 and since then, it has come a long way in popularizing the wetlands and highlighting the need for their wise‐use and conservation. A host of governmental and nongovernmental organizations bring together a diverse group of stakeholders to celebrate the wetlands and appreciate the services provided by them. World Wetlands Day provides an excellent opportunity for conservationists to shift focus on wetlands and spread awareness about these immensely important ecosystems. Every year since 1997, the convention’s website has been posting the resource materials and yearly themes for the World Wetlands Day. The resource materials largely include decorative and instructional posters, stickers, brochures and leaflets, bookmarks, pocket calendars, screen savers, quotable background papers, flash animations, and videos, etc. These resource materials are also available in their design files so that they can be customized to local languages and priorities. The WWD page on the Ramsar website leads to a listing of what promotional materials are available at any point in time and reports on WWD activities around the world (Ramsar Convention Secretariat 2011, 2016).
2.10 Legal Status
In the international context, the term “soft law” is applied to declarations, recommendations, and resolutions, etc., which are not legally binding for the signatories but often considered as sources of moral as well as political forces to help the application of allied, country‐specific laws when the need arises. Such soft laws might be nonjusticiable but they certainly can help in invoking the applicable hard laws or the legal instruments available within the legal framework of the signatory nations against the actions that are in violation of the convention (Verschuuren 2008).
The Ramsar convention, despite being a soft law, is supported at the national and local levels, by the legal framework meant for the protection and conservation of the environment, wildlife, and water resources, etc. In India, the Ramsar Convention draws strength from a host of laws that can be invoked in case of violations of the Ramsar Convention. Although India lacks a comprehensive National Wetland Policy, it does have Wetlands (Conservation and Management) Rules, 2010 (amended in 2017) which empower the country’s legal system against wetland conversion and degradation. Some of the laws which strengthen the implementation of the Ramsar Convention in the India include Indian Forest Act, 1927; Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972; Environment (Protection) Act, 1986; Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1974; Forest (Conservation Act), 1980; Coastal Zone Regulation Notification, 1991; Wildlife (Protection) Amendment Act, 1991; Biodiversity Act, 2002; and National Environment Policy, 2006 (Pritchard 2009).
Similarly, various other countries have enacted laws the enable the conservation and wise‐use of wetlands as mandated under the Ramsar Convention. Although a soft law, the convention may, at times, act as a guiding light in making the right decisions with regard to large developmental projects. This may avoid unnecessary hassle and wastage of time and financial resources on such projects which might have severe implications for wetland ecosystems. There have also been instances where development projects challenged in the light of the Ramsar Convention were ultimately rejected. One such instance which has been widely written about is the construction of a resort on an island in the Netherlands. A private company, Crown Court Estate, planned to build a resort named “Mangrove Village” on the Island of Bonaire (one of the islands of the Netherlands Antilles). The project would be spread over an area of 44 150 m2 and some of its area falling within the boundary of a Ramsar site, the Lac/Sorobon wetland. The Governor of the island realized that the project was causing an infringement of Article 3 of the Ramsar Convention and the guidelines adopted in the Annex of Resolution VIII.9. The project was rejected by the Governor based on the argument that it breached the provisions of the Ramsar Convention (Verschuuren 2008).
2.11 Effectiveness of the Convention
Evaluating the effectiveness and success of an International Convention like Ramsar is a task not as easy and straightforward as it seems yet a fair level of the effectiveness of the convention can be gauged based on the indicators mentioned as below:
1 Number of signatories: In the year 1971, only a meagre number of 18 nations realized the significance of wetlands and attended the Ramsar Convention but by the year 2019, the total number of signatories have risen to 171 which could be considered a big success of the convention and the way it has been able to lobby for the conservation of wetlands (Ramsar Sites Information Service 2020).
2 Number/area of Ramsar sites: The number of Ramsar sites has been on a constant rise since the Ramsar Convention. Currently, the total number of Ramsar sites around the world is 2390 with their cumulative area of 2.5 million km2 (Ramsar Sites Information Service 2020).
3 Increase in protection: It has been observed that the Ramsar‐designated sites have experienced an increase in protection efforts over the years. The increase in protection has particularly been noticeable in the developing world (Castro et al. 2002).
4 Reduction in threat levels: It has been noticed that the Ramsar‐designated sites with greater levels of threats have witnessed a significant reduction in the levels of threats they experienced in the past. (Castro et al. 2002).
5 Decline in degradation: The degradation of wetlands is still going on but at a lesser rate. As per a case study, the Mangrove wetlands are still getting degraded but the rate of their loss has reduced around the world except in Asia (where it has increased) (Pritchard 2009).
While the above‐mentioned indicators point toward a healthy trend, there is a need to be wary of the fact that wetland degradation is still continuing. In some of the cases it has been realized that the wetlands which earlier had lower levels of threats are now facing greater levels of threats. As per some assessments, there has also been a decline of around 35% in the spatial extent of wetlands globally between the years 1970 and 2015 (Ramsar Convention on Wetlands 2018). This points to the fact that while the Ramsar Convention has successfully proved itself to be a great tool for wetland conservation across the globe, there still are some serious gaps that will take time to fill.
References
1 An, S., Li, H., Guan, B. et al. (2007). China’s Natural Wetlands: past problems, current status, and future challenges. Ambio 36 (4): 335–342.
2 Carp, E. (ed.). (1972). Proceedings of the International Conference on the Conservation of wetlands and Waterfowl, 30 January to 3 February 1971, Ramsar, Iran.
3 Castro, G., Chomitz, K., and Thomas, T.S. (2002). The Ramsar Convention: Measuring its Effectiveness for Conserving Wetlands of International Importance. Ramsar COP8 DOC.
4 Costanza,
