Integrated Management Plan is not enough to conserve wetlands

The eleventh coordination and planning gathering of Wetlands Integrated Management Secretariats was held on Sunday, January 23 in the conference hall of the Department of Environment in the presence of 24 of the secretariats experts.

“Merely developing and approving a management plan will not help to resolve the problems that the wetlands are struggling with. Rather, it is necessary for the officials of the wetland secretariats and their stakeholders to consider their role and responsibility for the implementation of the priority actions specified in each of the management plans and take steps to make them operational.” Mehri Asnaashari, the National Project Manager of CIWP said.

Asnaashari added: “Preparation of 35 integrated management plans for wetlands in the country is very valuable, but it is also very important to change the approaches and policies of related sectors to consider sustainable use of wetlands in their long-term plans .”

Arezoo Ashrafizadeh, Director General of the Wetlands Conservation and Restoration Office of DoE , also emphasized on the importance of Ecosystem Approach in this regard.

“According to the approach of Resistance Economy in which the Ecological Approach and implementation of wetlands integrated management plans is highlighted, efforts have been made to allocate more national budget for the conservation of the wetlands. We are also seeking to legally sustain the status of wetland conservation and development through Integrated Management Plans in the Seventh Socio-Economic Development Plan of the country.” Ashrafizadeh added.

In the continuation of this program, the secretariats experts presented their reports on the actions taken for implementation of the management plands and discussed ways to promote an inter-sectoral cooperation to fully establish the ecosystem approach.