Head of Department of Environment:

We base the Development Map of the Country's Ecosystem for Development Plans

Head of the Department of Environment stated that this year, for the first time, the Land Use Planning was the basis of the country's budget. “From now on, we will base the development map of the country's ecosystem for development plans,” he said.

Ali Selajgeh - Vice President and head of Department of Environment (DoE) at the World Wetlands Day ceremony in Fars province and next to Bakhtegan Wetland said that the world's first environmental convention originated in Iran on February 2, 1971. This presents our cultural and civilizational background, religious teachings, and indigenous knowledge of the environment therefore, you and I are responsible and supposed to improve the condition of the wetlands. "If we were to discuss food security, we would have distanced ourselves from the issue of vital security. Vital security means conserving the environment everywhere in the world.” Selajgeh said.

"Most of the threats to the environment is due to our policies, decisions, and regulations, and the executive, legislative and judicial branches must enter this field on behalf of the people." The head of the Department of Environment stated. Referring to the president's emphasis on conservation of the environment, he said: "The government will take basic and infrastructural steps to protect and preserve the country's environment."

Selajgeh added, out of 42 types of wetlands in the world, 41 types exists in Iran. “If the basin is threatened, the health of the wetland as the main drainage of

the basin will be endangered. Wetlands around the world have created jobs for more than one billion people and provide food for 2 billion people.” He added. Emphasizing on the position of biodiversity in wetlands, Selajgeh said: "Wherever we want to interfere in a wetland, we must calculate its economic value of activity and compare it with the economic loss of the damage to the wetland. This does not mean hindering development, but we must seek appropriate and sustainable development" He called on all agencies to carry out their duties in the field of basin management and help save the country's wetlands.