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Getting to Know the Mekong Wetlands
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Wetlands are among the most productive ecosystems, comparable with rain forests and coral reefs. They vary enormously in size and character, from tiny village ponds to lakes, bogs, marshes, and rivers. Wetlands serve as habitats for fish and wildlife, protect shorelines against erosion, and provide opportunities for recreation and livelihood. They also help alleviate floods, recharge groundwater, improve water quality, maintain ecosystems, and conserve biodiversity. |
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With a population comparable to that of the United States but with only one quarter of the area and a small fraction of the wealth, the Greater Mekong Subregion (GMS) encompasses six culturally, ethnically and linguistically diverse areas.
About 250 million people, most of them in rural areas, occupy the five countries and one province of the GMS: Cambodia, Yunnan Province of the Peoples' Republic of China (PRC), Lao People's Democratic Republic (Lao PDR), Myanmar, Thailand and Viet Nam. Their common link is the mighty Mekong River, winding its way for 4,200 kilometers through their midst, endowing the region with a rich natural resource base.
For centuries, the subregion's wetlands have served as an important resource for the people who live alongside them-providing fish, waterfowl and other products, livelihood, and water for irrigation and consumption. The wetlands are mostly concentrated along the lowlands of the Mekong Basin, the deltas of the major rivers, and the coastal plain of Thailand.
One of the most important wetlands in the GMS is Cambodia's Tonle Sap Lake. Connected to the Mekong River system, it plays a crucial economic and environmental role in Cambodia and downstream; about 1 million people are said to depend on the lake's fisheries. However, the lake provides more than fish; it is a reservoir of biological diversity that includes-besides fish species-an array of birds and other animals.
Wetlands are being converted to agricultural land and are vulnerable to altered flood patterns and the impact of shrimp-and fish-based-aquaculture. Such changes are drastically reshaping large areas of natural wetlands, resulting in the disappearance of indigenous species of plants and animals. A number of the region's most endangered species are closely associated with wetlands. They include the Siamese crocodile, freshwater turtles, and large migratory water birds.
Seasonal and permanent wetlands make up more than 30% of Cambodia. They include the following:
Three sites in the country have been proposed for inclusion in the Convention on Wetlands of International Importance (commonly known as the Ramsar Convention), particularly as Areas of Importance for Waterfowl. These sites are
Koh Kapic is on the western part of the Cambodian coastline near the border with Thailand. It is about 15 km southeast of Koh Kong town, the administrative center of Koh Kong Province. Most of Koh Kapic is in the Peam Krosoap Wildlife Sanctuary, which was made a protected area Royal Decree on the Creation and Designa Protected Areas issued in November 1993. Kol has an area of around 12,000 ha.
Read more about the Tonle Sap.
The Lao PDR has various wetlands, the most significant of which are the following:
These areas have not yet been officially designated for protection.
Read more about the Siphandon Wetland in the Champassak Province.
Myanmar has extensive mangroves in the Ayeyarwady Delta and other coastal areas. Inle Lake is considered to have outstanding significance for biodiversity.
Read more about the Inle Lake.
Yunnan Province, PRC has six large natural lakes in the catchment of Lancang Jiang (Mekong River). Of these, two are protected as nature reserves:
Rapid industrialization has reduced Thailand's important wetland ecological systems. To protect its remaining wetlands, the country has signed the Ramsar Convention. The Thale-Noi nonhunting area, Khao Sam Roi Yod National Park and Bung Boraped, are considered wetland sites of international importance, and Thale-Noi has been placed under the protection of the Ramsar Convention.
Read more about the Sam Roi Yod National Park.
Viet Nam has a great diversity of wetland habitats: large estuarine and delta system with extensive mangrove swamps and tidal mudflats, immense seasonally flooded plains with rice paddies and Melaleuca forests, many small offshore islands, large coastal brackish and saline lagoons, salt pans, aquaculture ponds, many freshwater lakes and water storage reservoirs, and numerous rivers and streams.
By far the largest wetland area is the Mekong Delta in the south, with its elaborate network of river channels and vast areas of rice paddies, mangrove forests, Melaleuca forests, tidal mudflats, shrimp ponds, and fishponds.
In the central part of Viet Nam, most of the significant wetlands are coastal lagoons and water storage reservoirs. In the north, there are numerous lakes and reservoirs in the Red River Basin and extensive mudflats and mangrove swamps in its delta.
Read more about the
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