Laos is a mountainous areas and a kind of hill station in south East Asia. My father who is the member of the Royale Premium Club is very fond of travelling and loves adventure to which he said yes without thinking when trip to Laos was offered to him by the club. Moreover the club offered great offers and discounts because of which trip was in accordance to the budget. I and brother were very excited about the trip as well because of the mountains and the adventure related to them.
All the flight bookings, hotel bookings and all other planning were done by the club only and my father had to take no tension. We boarded our flight to Laos from the Delhi airport and reached there by taxi organised by the club only. We were very warmly welcomed by the club officials at the Laos airport. From the airport in the capital of Laos we were taken to our hotel where all the bookings were already done. During our drive I experienced and realized a lot of French image in the architecture of Laos which added to my excitement level to know more about the place. The next morning we visited Wat Si Saket and viewed a lot of Buddha images and after that headed to Pha That Luang which is very famous in Laos. Laos is commonly known as Lao in common language there. At every destination we were accompanied by the club officials so that our trip goes comfortably. The next day we went to the traditional Luang Prabang and various places there. We visited to the Royal Palace museum and I was amazed by the architecture of that palace and the views it provide of the Laos. We went to see the glittering golden stupa as well. We went for the boat trip along the river Mekong to the Pak Ou caves and fare for the place was free for the members of the Royale Premium Club. We visited the silk weaving village of Ban Phanom and saw the weaving of silk there and spent the whole day there. All our meals on that day were arranged at the villa santi hotel which was in association with the club only. The next day we went to watch the lines of saffron robbed Buddhist monks. I really enjoyed visiting Wat Xieng Thong which is the most famous temple in Laos and which is a huge complex too. I was really amazed by the way it was maintained. Last day the club organised a party for all the members of the club in a very cultural way and we were presented gift hampers by the club which was very surprising and we really liked this gesture of the club. I noticed the services of the club which were great and the club treat their members as kings which is really great. We really enjoyed at the party and we were served traditional dishes of that area and some traditional dances were also presented there. All our 4 days at Laos were really happening and enjoyable and it was great to be in that mood and all the credit for it goes to the Royale Premium Club.
About the Author
Royale Premium Club (RPC) is an exiting vacation membership club and one of the unique in the field which offer thousands of hotels and resorts worldwide to choose from. You can choose the holidays according to your taste.
It was early morning when we left the village of Huay Xai in Northern Laos for the Mekong River, planning to get to Luang Prabang the same day. The 150 km journey along the river by speedboat would take half a day, breaks included.
Contrary to the advice given by our Lonely Planet guidebook we had decided to take a speedboat, because our hostess at Chiang Mai had recommended this alternative. Traveling on a big, slow river boat would have taken two days and required an overnight stay at the village of Pak Peng.
There were a lot of people at the pier when we arrived and the small speedboats set out one by one as soon as they were full. We were among the last to board and when stepping on the boat we saw right away that we had made the wrong choice. There was no turning back however; the low, narrow boat was packed full of people and off we went.
The boat flew on the surface of the water at high speed, at times reaching 80 km/h, and we sat on the hard benches with our chins on our knees, space for each passenger being about 40 x 50 centimetres. After only half an hour's travel our muscles were cramped and we felt miserable. We watched the passing scenery with our earplugs on, because the noise from the motor was deafening. The Lao passengers also wore helmets and life jackets provided by the boat driver.
When the river is low, as it was then, accidents happen when speedboats bump into sandbars or sunken logs. Those who have not survived have been mostly local people who cannot swim.
Water splashed on our clothes and soon we were soaked to the skin. The sun was shining and the air was warm but I felt cold. Andy had a pained expression on his face; there was definitely too little room for a big man, particularly for one with occasional but severe lower back problems. I got a cramp on my left leg, but there was nothing I could do about it.
We had been promised that there would be a break every sixty minutes or so and after what felt like an eternity, the boat stopped. We discovered that our feet had gone to sleep and Andy's right foot was totally numb for at least ten minutes.
Luckily there was an additional stop when the boat motor suddenly started to act up. After landing on a sandbank our driver began to repair it and we hoped that he would not get it fixed too soon.
Stepping onto the golden sand dune and warming our sore muscles, we enjoyed our freedom. But then we came to think that we were in the middle of nowhere, only forest on both sides of the river. If the driver were not able to repair the motor, when would there be other boats coming to our rescue? We had not brought any food with us. And how long would our drinking water last?
We then saw two hunters walking on a ridge with guns on their shoulders. One was also carrying what to us looked like a wild boar. He came to the shore with his dog, threw down the boar and, unconcerned about our presence took off his clothes and plunged into the water. The dog remained watching over the boar but could not resist the temptation, started to bite into it greedily. When the man got out of the water, he raised hell, and the dog moved aside with his tail between his legs, waiting for his master to calm down. Finally the hunter left with the boar, the dog walking close behind him.
Our trip continued. One more hour of speeding down the Mekong and we would reach the next stop, the village of Pak Peng. Our minds were made up; we would get off there and rest our limbs.
When and how we would continue our journey would remain to be seen. A traveler's tomorrow is always a new adventure!
Liz is an independent and adventurous traveler from Finland. She spends all available time travelling to exotic places, often with a very limited budget. Please visit her website for more true travel stories and quite a few nice pictures as well ;)
A system is a group of parts that interact through one or more processes (Odum 1983). The term ecosystem was introduced and defined by Tansley (1935), who as “a fundamental organizational unit of the natural world that includes both organisms and their spatial environment.” Ecosystems have since been defined in various ways, and at different spatial and temporal scales (Golley 1993; O'Neill et al. 1986; Evans 1956). Some ecologists define ecosystems on the basis of biotic organisms, populations, or communities. For example, Hutchinson (1978) considered the ecosystem to be the environmental context in which population or community dynamics occur. Others define ecosystems in terms of their abiotic characteristics and processes (Rowe and Barnes 1994). For example, Lindeman (1942) defined ecosystems as “...the system composed of physical, chemical, and biological processes active within a space/time unit.” Regardless of whether the emphasis is on biotic components or abiotic characteristics and processes of ecosystems, both remain integral to the concept of ecosystem. Rowe (1961) emphasized this when he defined ecosystems as “...a three dimensional segment of the earth where life forms and the environment interact.”
Wetland ecosystems have been defined in a variety of ways by researchers, resource managers, and regulatory authorities, depending on their specific needs and objectives (Mitsch and Gosselink 1993). In the applied world of regulation, planning, and management, wetlands are usually defined in terms of their physical, chemical, and biological characteristics such as hydrologic regime, soil type, and plant species composition. For example, in classifying wetlands for mapping, inventory, and other purposes, Cowardin et al. (1979) defined wetlands as “...lands transitional between terrestrial and aquatic systems where the water table is usually at or near the surface or the land is covered by shallow water...” that are characterized by the presence of hydrophytic vegetation, hydric soils, and surface water during the growing season.
Wetlands are often biodiversity ‘hotspots’ (Reid et al., 2005), as well as functioning as filters for pollutants from both point and non-point sources, and being important for carbon sequestration and emissions (Finlayson et al., 2005). The value of the world’s wetlands are increasingly receiving due attention as they contribute to a healthy environment in many ways. Wetland functions are defined as the normal or characteristic activities that take place in wetland ecosystems or simply the things that wetlands do. Wetlands perform a wide variety of functions in a hierarchy from simple to complex as a result of their physical, chemical, and biological attributes. For example, the reduction of nitrate to gaseous nitrogen is a relatively simple function performed by wetlands when aerobic and anaerobic conditions exist in the presence of denitrifying bacteria. Nitrogen cycling and nutrient cycling represent increasingly more complex wetland functions that involve a greater number of structural components and processes. At the highest level of this hierarchy is the maintenance of ecological integrity, the function that encompasses all of the structural components and processes in a wetland ecosystem. Wetlands are one of the most productive of all ecosystems, and carry out critical regulatory functions of hydrological processes within watersheds (Banner et al. 1988). Regulating water quality, water levels, flooding regimes, and nutrient and sedimentation levels are a few of these processes (Gregory et al. 1991). As with any natural habitat, wetlands are important in supporting species diversity and have a complex of wetland values. Moreover, the pattern of seasonal variation of the wetland affects the bird population fluctuation (Imran. A. D and Mithas. A. D 2009). Even small wetlands are extremely important to the conservation of biodiversity because they provide critical breeding habitat where dispersed populations can exchange genetic material, reducing the risks of extinction (Semlitsch and Brodie 1998).
The present review is aimed at providing in a nutshell, the distribution of wetlands, the value of Wetlands, the causes and consequences of the loss of wetlands and their conservation status with special reference to India.
2. Distribution of wetlands in India
In India a total area of 40494 km2 is classified as wetlands. This consists only 1.21 per cent of the total land surface. Most of the wetlands in India are directly or indirectly linked with major river systems such as the Ganga, the Cauvery, the Krishan, the Godavari and the Tapti. A Directory of Wetlands in India (1988) gives information on the location, area and ecological categorization of wetlands of our country. Wetlands in India are distributed in different geographical regions ranging from Himalayas to Deccan plateau. The variability in climatic conditions and changing topography is responsible for significant diversity. They are classified into different types based on their origin, vegetation, nutrient status, thermal characteristics, like 1. Glaciatic Wetlands (e.g., Tsomoriri in Jammu and Kashmir, Chandertal in Himachal Pradesh).
2. Tectonic Wetlands (e.g., Nilnag in Jammu and Kashmir, Khajjiar in Himachal Pradesh, and Nainital and Bhimtal in Uttaranchal).
3. Oxbow Wetlands (e.g., Dal Lake, Wular Lake in Jammu and Kashmir and Loktak Lake in Manipur and some of the wetlands in the river plains of Brahmaputra and Indo-Gangetic region. Deepor Beel in Assam, Kabar in Bihar, Surahtal in Uttar Pradesh).
4. Lagoons (e.g., Chilika in Orissa).
5. Crater Wetlands (Lonar lake in Maharashtra).
6. Salt water Wetlands (e.g., Pangong Tso in Jammu and Kashmir and Sambhar in Rajasthan)
7. Urban Wetlands (e.g., Dal Lake in Jammu and Kashmir, Nainital in Uttaranchal and Bhoj in Madhya Pradesh).
8. Ponds/Tanks, man-made Wetlands (e.g., Harike in Punjab and Pong Dam in Himachal Pradesh).
12. Creeks (Thane Creek in Maharashtra), seagrasses, estuaries, thermal springs are some kinds of wetlands in the country.
The Indo-Gangetic flood plain is the largest wetland system in India, extending from the river Indus in the west to Brahmaputra in the east. This includes the wetlands of the Himalayan terai and the Indo-Gangetic plains. The vast intertidal areas, mangroves and lagoons along the 7500 kilometer long coastline in West Bengal, Orissa, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Karnataka, Goa, Maharashtra and Gujarat. Mangrove forests of the Sunderbans of West Bengal and the Andaman and Nicobar Islands. Offshore coral reefs of the Gulf of Kutch, Gulf of Mannar, Lakshadweep and Andaman and Nicobar Islands.
Ninety-four wetlands have been identified for conservation and management under the National Programme for Conservation and Management of Wetlands.
These wetlands are eligible for financial assistance on 100% grant basis to the concerned State Governments for undertaking activities like survey and demarcation, weed control, catchment area treatment, desiltation, conservation of biodiversity, pollution abatement, livelihood support creation of minor infrastructure, educational awareness, capacity building of various stakeholders, and community development. So far 24 States have been covered; the remaining States are expected to the covered in the Eleventh Five-Year Plan.
Wetlands play a vital role in maintaining the overall cultural, economic and ecological health of the ecosystem, their fast pace of disappearance from the landscape is of great concern. The Wildlife Protection Act protects few of the ecologically sensitive regions whereas several wetlands are becoming an easy target for anthropogenic exploitation. Survey of 147 major sites across various agro climatic zones identified the anthropogenic interference as the main cause of wetland degradation (The Directory of Indian Wetlands 1993). Current spatial spread of wetlands under various categories is shown.
3. Wetland losses – a threat to ecological balance
Threats to wetland ecosystems comprise the increasing biotic and abiotic pressures and perils.
Biotic
(1) Uncontrolled siltation and weed infestation.
(2) Uncontrolled discharge of waste water, industrial effluents, surface run-off, etc. resulting
in proliferation of aquatic weeds, which adversely affect the flora and fauna.
(3) Tree felling for fuel wood and wood products causes soil loss affecting rainfall pattern,
loss of various aquatic species due to water-level fluctuation.
(4) Habitat destruction leading to loss of fish and decrease in number of migratory birds.
Abiotic
(1) Encroachment resulting in shrinkage of area.
(2) Anthropogenic pressures resulting in habitat destruction and loss of biodiversity.
(3) Uncontrolled dredging resulting in successional changes.
(4) Hydrological intervention resulting in loss of aquifers.
(5) Pollution from point and non-point sources resulting in deterioration of water quality.
(6) Ill-effects of fertilizers and insecticides used in adjoining agricultural fields.
Coastal ecosystems are among the most productive yet highly threatened systems in the world. These ecosystems produce disproportionately more services relating to human well-being than most other systems, even those covering larger total areas, but are experiencing some of the most rapid degradation and loss:
(1). About 35% of mangroves have been lost over the last two decades, driven primarily by aquaculture development, deforestation, and freshwater diversion.
(2). Some 20% of coral reefs were lost and more than a further 20% degraded in the last several decades of the twentieth century through overexploitation, destructive fishing practices, pollution and siltation and changes in storm frequency and intensity.
(3). There is established but incompleteevidence that the changes being made are increasing the likelihood of nonlinear and potentially abrupt changes in ecosystems, with important consequences for human well-being. These nonlinear changes can be large in magnitude and difficult, expensive, or impossible to reverse. For example, once a threshold of nutrient loading is crossed, changes in freshwater and coastal ecosystems can be abrupt and extensive, creating harmful algal blooms (including blooms of toxic species) and sometimes leading to the formation of oxygen-depleted zones, killing all animal life. Capabilities for predicting some nonlinear changes are improving, but on the whole scientists cannot predict the thresholds at which change will be encountered. The increased likelihood of these nonlinear changes stems from the loss of biodiversity and growing pressures from multiple direct drivers of ecosystem change. The loss of species and genetic diversity decreases the resilience of ecosystems —their ability to maintain particular ecosystem services as conditions change. In addition, growing pressures from drivers such as overharvesting, climate change, invasive species, and nutrient loading push ecosystems toward thresholds that they might otherwise not encounter.
(4). Many wetland-dependent species in many parts of the world are in decline; the status of species dependent on inland waters and of waterbirds dependent on coastal wetlands is of particular concern. Although the evidence has geographical limitations and is chiefly from species already globally threatened with extinction.
The primary indirect drivers of degradation and loss of rivers, lakes, freshwater marshes, and other inland wetlands (including loss of species or reductions of populations in these systems) have been population growth and increasing economic development. The primary direct drivers of degradation and loss include infrastructure development, land conversion, water withdrawal, pollution, overharvesting and overexploitation, and the introduction of invasive alien species.
The current loss rates in India can lead to serious consequences, where 74% of the human population is rural (Anon. 1994) and many of these people are resource dependent. Healthy wetlands are essential in India for sustainable food production and potable water availability for humans and livestock. They are also necessary for the continued existence of India’s diverse populations of wildlife and plant species; a large number of endemic species are wetland dependent. Most problems pertaining to India’s wetlands are related to human population. India contains 16% of the world’s population, and yet constitutes only 2.42% of the earth’s surface. Indian landscape has contained fewer and fewer natural wetlands over time. Restoration of these converted wetlands is quite difficult once these sites are occupied for non-wetland uses. Hence, the demand for wetland products (e.g., water, fish, wood, fiber, medicinal plants etc.) will increase with increase in population. Wetland loss refers to physical loss in the spatial extent or loss in the wetland function. The loss of one km2 of wetlands in India will have much greater impacts than the loss of one km2 of wetlands in low population areas of abundant wetlands (Foote Lee et al. 1996). The wetland loss in India can be divided into two broad groups namely acute and chronic losses. The filling up of wet areas with soil constitutes acute loss whereas the gradual elimination of forest cover with subsequent erosion and sedimentation of the wetlands over many decades is termed as chronic loss.
Acute wetland losses
(1). Direct deforestation in wetlands:Mangrove vegetation are flood and salt tolerantand grow along the coasts and are valued forfish and shellfish, livestock fodder, fuel wood,building materials, local medicine, honey, beeswax and for extracting chemicals for tanningleather (Ahmad 1980). Alternative farming methodsand fisheries production has replaced manymangrove areas and continues to pose threats.Eighty percent of India’s 4240 km2 of mangroveforests occur in the Sunderbans and the Andamanand Nicobar Islands (Anon. 1991). But most of thecoastal mangroves are under severe pressure due to the economic demand on shrimps. Important ecosystem functions such as buffer zones against storm surges, nursery grounds and escape cover for commercially important fishery are lost. The shrimp farms also caused excessive withdrawal of freshwater and increased pollution load on water like increased lime, organic wastes, pesticides, chemicals and disease causing organisms. The greatest impacts were on the people directly dependent on the mangroves for natural materials, fish proteins and revenue. The ability of wetlands to trap sediments and slow water is reduced.
(2). Hydrologic alteration:Alteration in the hydrology can change thecharacter, functions, values and the appearance ofwetlands. The changes in hydrology include eitherthe removal of water from wetlands or raising theland-surface elevation, such that it no longerfloods. Canal dredging operations have been conductedin India from 1800s due to which 3044 km2of irrigated land has increased to 4550 km2 in1990 (Anon. 1994). Initial increase in the crop productivityhas given way for reduced fertility andsalt accumulations in soil due to irrigated farmingof arid soils. India has 32,000 ha of peat-land remainingand drainage of these lands will lead torapid subsidence of soil surface.
(3). Agricultural conversion:The primary direct driver of the loss and degradation of coastal wetlands, including saltwater marshes, mangroves, seagrass meadows, and coral reefs, has been conversion to other land uses. In the Indian subcontinent due to rice culture,there has been a loss in the spatial extent of wetlands.Rice farming is a wetland dependent activityand is developed in riparian zones, river deltasand savannah areas. Due to captured precipitationfor fishpond aquaculture in the catchment areasand rice-farms occupying areas that are not wetlands, water is deprived to the downstream natural wetlands. Around 1.6 million hectares of freshwater are covered by freshwater fishponds in India. Rice-fields and fishponds come under wetlands, but they rarely function like natural wetlands. Of the estimated 58.2 million hectares of wetlands in India, 40.9 million hectares are under rice cultivation (Anon. 1993).
Chronic wetland losses
(1). Degradation of water quality:Water quality is directly proportional to humanpopulation and its various activities. Morethan 50,000 small and large lakes are polluted tothe point of being considered ‘dead’ (Chopra 1985).The major polluting factors are sewage, industrialpollution and agricultural runoff, which may containpesticides, fertilizers and herbicides.
(2). Introduced species and extinction of native biota:Wetlands in India support around 2400 speciesand subspecies of birds. But losses in habitat have threatened the diversity of these ecosystems(Mitchell & Gopal 1990). Introduction of exotic species like water hyacinth (Eichornia crassipes) and salvinia (Salvinia molesta) have threatened the wetlands and clogged the waterways competing with the native vegetation. In a recent attempt at prioritization of wetlandsfor conservation, Samant (1999) noted that as many as 700 potential wetlands do not have anydata to prioritize. Many of these wetlands are threatened.
(3). Ground water depletion:Draining of wetlands has depleted the groundwater recharge. Recent estimate indicates that inrural India, about 6000 villages are without asource for drinking water due to the rapid depletionof ground water.
4. Condition and Trends in Wetland-dependent Species
There is increasing evidence of a rapid and continuing widespread decline in many populations of wetland-dependent species. Data on the status and population trends of species in some inland wetland-dependent groups, including mollusks, amphibians, fish, waterbirds, and some water-dependent mammals, have been compiled and show clear declines. An overall index of the trend in vertebrate species populations has also been developed and shows a continuous and rapid decline in freshwater vertebrate populations since 1970—a markedly more drastic decline than for terrestrial or marine species.
Even in the case of more poorly known wetland fauna, such as invertebrates, existing assessments show that species in these groups are significantly threatened with extinction. For example, the IUCN Red List reports that some 275 species of freshwater crustacea and 420 freshwater mollusks are globally threatened, although no comprehensive global assessment has been made of all the species in these groups. In the United States, one of the few countries to comprehensively assess freshwater mollusks and crustaceans, 50% of known crayfish species and two thirds of freshwater mollusks are at risk of extinction, and at least one in 10 freshwater mollusks are likely to have already gone extinct. Nearly one third (1,856 species) of the world’s amphibian species are threatened with extinction, a large portion of which (964 species) are freshwater-dependent. (By comparison, just 12% of all bird species and 23% of all mammal species are threatened.) In addition, at least 43% of all amphibian species are declining in population, indicating that the number of threatened species can be expected to rise in the future. In contrast, less than 1% of species show population increases. Species dependent on flowing water have a much higher likelihood of being threatened than those in still water. (Figure 5) Basins with the highest number of threatened freshwater species— between 13 and 98 species—include the Amazon, Yangtze, Niger, Paraná, Mekong, Red and Pearl (China), Krishna (India), and Balsas and Usumacinta (Central America). The rate of decline in the conservation status of freshwater amphibians is far greater than that of terrestrial species. As amphibians are excellent indicators of the quality of the overall environment, this underpins the notion of the current declining condition of freshwater habitats around the world.
Key vulnerabilities
Gitay et al. (2001) have described some inland aquatic ecosystems (Arctic, sub-Arctic ombrotrophic bog communities on permafrost, depressional wetlands with small catchments, drained or otherwise converted peatlands) as most vulnerable to climate change, and have indicated the limits to adaptations due to the dependence on water availability controlled by outside factors. More recent results show vulnerability varying by geographical region (Stern, 2007). This includes significant negative impacts across 25% of Africa by 2100 (SRES B1 emissions scenario, de Wit and Stankiewicz, 2006) with both water quality and ecosystem goods and services deteriorating. Since it is generally difficult and costly to control hydrological regimes, the interdependence between catchments across national borders often leaves little scope for adaptation.
Impacts
Climate change impacts on inland aquatic ecosystems will range from the direct effects of the rise in temperature and CO2 concentration to indirect effects through alterations in the hydrology resulting from the changes in the regional or global precipitation regimes and the melting of glaciers and ice cover (e.g., Chapters 1 and 3; Cubasch et al., 2001; Lemke et al., 2007; Meehl et al., 2007). Studies since the TAR (Third assessment report of IPCC) have confirmed and strengthened the earlier conclusions that rising temperature will lower water quality in lakes through a fall in hypolimnetic oxygen concentrations, release of phosphorus (P) from sediments, increased thermal stability, and altered mixing patterns (Jankowski et al., 2006). In northern latitudes, ice cover on lakes and rivers will continue to break up earlier and the ice-free periods to increase (Duguay et al., 2006). Higher temperatures will negatively affect micro-organisms and benthic invertebrates (Kling et al., 2003) and the distribution of many species of fish (Kling et al., 2003); invertebrates, waterfowl and tropical invasive biota are likely to shift polewards (Zalakevicius and Svazas, 2005) with some potential extinctions. Major changes will be likely to occur in the species composition, seasonality and production of planktonic communities (e.g., increases in toxic blue-green algal blooms) and their food web interactions (Winder and Schindler, 2004) with consequent changes in water quality. Enhanced UV-B radiation and increased summer precipitation will significantly increase dissolved organic carbon concentrations, altering major biogeochemical cycles (Frey and Smith, 2005). Studies along an altitudinal gradient in Sweden show that NPP can increase by an order of magnitude for a 6°C air temperature increase (Karlsson et al., 2005). However, tropical lakes may respond with a decrease in NPP and a decline in fish yields (e.g., 20% NPP and 30% fish yield reduction in Lake Tanganyika due to warming over the last century O’Reilly et al., 2003). Higher CO2 levels will generally increase NPP in many wetlands, although in bogs and paddy fields it may also stimulate methane flux, thereby negating positive effects (Zheng et al., 2006). Boreal peatlands will be affected most by warming and increased winter precipitation as the species composition of both plant and animal communities will change significantly (Weltzin et al., 2000, 2001, 2003; Berendse et al., 2001; Keller et al., 2004;). Numerous arctic lakes will dry out with a 2-3°C temperature rise (Smith et al., 2005 ;). The seasonal migration patterns and routes of many wetland species will need to change and some may be threatened with extinction. Small increases in the variability of precipitation regimes will significantly impact wetland plants and animals at different stages of their life cycle. In monsoonal regions, increased variability risks diminishing wetland biodiversity and prolonged dry periods promote terrestrialisation of wetlands as witnessed in Keoladeo National Park, India (Chauhan and Gopal, 2001).
5. Wetland management - current status
Wetlands are not delineated under any specific administrative jurisdiction. The primary responsibility for the management of these ecosystems is in the hands of the Ministry of Environment and Forests. Although some wetlands are protected after the formulation of the Wildlife Protection Act, the others are in grave danger of extinction. Effective coordination between the different ministries, energy, industry, fisheries revenue, agriculture, transport and water resources, is essential for the protection of these ecosystems.
Cardinal Constituents of Comprehensive Strategy for Wetland Conservation:
The conservation and management of wetlands calls for a comprehensive strategy, ranging from legal framework and policy support to inventorization, institutional mechanism, capacity building, and community participation. The position with regard to these aspects is as follows:
Legal framework
Though there is no separate provision for specific legal instrument for wetland conservation, the legal framework for conservation and management is provided by the following legal instruments:
1. Several legislations have been enacted which have relevance to wetland conservation. These include Forest Act, 1927, Forest (Conservation) Act, 1980, the Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972, the Air (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1974, the Water Cess Act, 1977 and the umbrella provision of Environment (Protection) Act, 1986.
2. India has set up 505 Wildlife Sanctuaries and 100 National Parks, 14 Biosphere Reserves, 6 Heritage Sites, Projects on Tiger conservation and Elephant conservation and Marine Turtles conservation with the objective of effective conservation of wetlands, and floral and faunal wealth in forest areas.
3. Notification declaring the coastal stretches of seas, bays, estuaries, creeks, rivers and backwaters, which are influenced by tidal action (in the landward side) up to 500 metres from the high tide line, and the land between the low tide line and the high tide line as the Coastal Regulation Zone Notification, 1991 under the provision of Environment (Protection) Act, 1986. This proposes graded restriction on setting up and expansion of industries, including pressures from human activities.
4. Portions of the listed sites have been declared as Wildlife Sanctuaries and National Parks.
5. Guidelines for sustainable development and management of brackish water aquaculture have been drawn up. State Governments like Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu have aquaculture guidelines also at the local level.
6. The Biodiversity Act, 2002, and the Biodiversity Rules, 2004, are aimed at safeguarding the floral and faunal biodiversity, and regulating their flow from the country to other countries for research and commercial use. Thus, their provisions also contribute towards conserving, maintaining, and augmenting the floral, faunal and avifaunal biodiversity of the country’s aquatic bodies.
Policy Support: National Environment Policy (NEP), 2006
Our National Environment Policy (NEP), approved by the Cabinet on 19 May 2006, recognizes the numerous ecological services rendered by wetlands. The NEP states:
‘Wetlands are under threat from drainage and conversion for agriculture and human settlements, besides pollution. This happens because public authorities or individuals having jurisdiction over wetlands derive little revenues from them, while the alternative use may result in windfall financial gains to them. However, in many cases, the economic values of wetlands’ environmental services may significantly exceed the value from alternative use. On the otherhand, the reduction in economic value of their environmental services due to pollution, as well as the health costs of the pollution itself are not taken into account while using them as a waste dump. There also does not yet exist a formal system of wetland regulation outside the international commitments made in respect of Ramsar sites. A holistic view of wetlands is necessary, which looks at each identified wetland in terms of its causal linkages with other natural entities, human needs, and its own attributes.’
The Environmental Policy identifies the following six-fold Action Plan:
1. Set up a legally enforceable regulatory mechanism for identified valuable wetlands to prevent their degradation and enhance their conservation. Develop a national inventory of such wetlands.
2. Formulate conservation and prudent use strategies for each significant catalogued wetland, with participation of local communities, and other relevant stakeholders.
3. Formulate and implement eco-tourism strategies for identified wetlands through multi stakeholder partnerships involving public agencies, local communities and investors.
4. Take explicit amount of impacts on wetlands of significant development projects during the environmental appraisal of such projects; in particular, the reduction in economic value of wetland environmental services should be explicitly factored into cost-benefit analysis.
5. Consider particular unique wetlands as entities with ‘Incomparable Values’, in developing strategies for their protection.
6. Integrate wetland conservation, including conservation of village ponds and tanks, into sectoral development plans for poverty alleviation and livelihood improvement, and the link efforts for conservation and sustainable use of wetlands with the ongoing rural infrastructure development and employment generation programmes. Promote traditional techniques and practices for conserving village ponds.
Inventorization
Survey and inventorization should take into consideration identification of different human activities, effect of both industrial and domestic effluents, and information obtained through remote sensing to be verified with the ground truth data for getting proper results. This component includes mapping of catchment areas through revenue records, survey and assessment, and land-use pattern using GIS techniques, with emphasis on drainage pattern, vegetation cover, siltation cover, encroachment, conversion of wetlands, human settlements, total area encroached, human activities at the primary, secondary, and tertiary levels, and their impact on catchment and water body. The following surveys of wetlands have been undertaken so far:
1. Asian Wetland Directory, 1989 – identified 93 Wetlands of International Importance.
2. Wetland Directory published in 1990 by the Ministry of Environment and Forests using questionnaire survey.
3. Identification of 2167 natural freshwater wetlands covering 1.5 million ha area.
4. Identification of 65,253 man-made freshwater wetlands covering 2.6 million ha area.
5. WWF-India and the Ministry of Environment and Forests in 1993 identified 54 additional wetlands of international importance with more details.
6. Space Application Centre using remote sensing techniques identified 27,403 inland and coastal wetlands covering 7.6 million ha
7. Salim Ali Centre for Ornithology under UNDP project has undertaken survey of 72 districts.
8. A project on ‘National Wetland Information System and Updation of Wetland Inventory’ has been sanctioned by the Ministry of Environment and Forests. The objectives of this project are (1) to map and inventorize wetlands on 1:50,000 scale by on-screen interpretation of digital IRS LISS III data of post and pre-monsoon seasons, (2) to prepare State-wise wetland Atlases, and (3) to create a digital database in GIS environment in respect of all wetlands in the country.
9. The Centre for Advanced Studies in Marine Biology at Annamalai University, Parangipettai, has been assisted in project mode for updating all wetlands in the country.
Institutional mechanism
(a) It is imperative to have multi-disciplinary, holistic and integrated approach for achieving long-term sustainable wetland conservation and management measures. At present, various models exist in States and different nodal agencies are responsible for implementing the Wetland Conservation Programme. In some States, the programme is executed by the Department of Forests and/or Environment or Urban Development; in some others, it is the Department of Irrigation or Science and Technology or Fisheries. However, the Wetland Conservation and Management is a specialized technical and scientific field where multi-disciplinary approach is needed, involving a number of components like water management, sustainable fisheries development, hydrological aspects, socio-economic issues, community participation, weed control, biodiversity conservation and use of aquatic macrophytes for nutrient recycling process, hydrological aspects providing information about inflow/outflow pattern in the system, nutrient fluxes and nutritional dynamics. These aspects need to be dealt with in a coordinated manner by managers having expertise in the relevant fields.
(b) Taking into consideration the complexity of the issue, the State Steering Committees have been constituted under the chairmanship of Chief Secretaries of the States having members from all Departments concerned. The Committee is also expected to have representatives from communities, NGOs and academicians. The officer from the nodal department acts as a member-secretary of the Committee. The success of the programme depends upon its strong institutional mechanism where conservation efforts are undertaken through integrated and multi-disciplinary approach. However, due to inadequacy of infrastructure and staff, conservation activities are yet to acquire comprehensiveness and sustainability in some States.
State Governments have been advised to consider constitution of Wetland Conservation Authorities so that experts from various Departments undertake conservation activities in a more scientific, cohesive and sustainable manner.
(c) Some States have already constituted Authorities for execution of wetland conservation programmes in their respective States. Notable among them are Chilika Development Authority in Orissa (mandated to manage all identified lakes in the State); Loktak Development Authority in Manipur; Shore Area Development Authority in Andhra Pradesh; Lakes and Waterways Development Authority in Jammu and Kashmir; Lake Development Authority in Karnataka and Lake Conservation Authority in Madhya Pradesh.
Capacity building
Capacity building is a major tool without which no conservation activity is possible. We need to have good infrastructure, trained people, and case studies to teach values and functions of wetlands in an integrated and multi-disciplinary manner. The Ministry has taken several initiatives in this regard as per details given below.
(a) It has published several reports/documents on conservation and wise use of wetlands which include six monographs on Ramsar sites in collaboration with WWF India and eco-tourism guidelines for Chilika Lake.
(b) During the Tenth Five Year Plan, several training programmes have been conducted in collaboration with different academic organizations/research institutes/State Governments/international NGOs to impart training on various components of wetland conservation which include wise use, catchment area treatment, weed control, hydrological aspects, research methodology, preparation of management action plans and community participation. Training is imparted to policy makers, senior/ middle level managers, organizations, stakeholders and others. A National Training Programme for Integrated Water Resource Management and Wetland Conservation was organized during 7-11 August 2006 by Chilika Development Authority with the financial support from Ministry of Environment and Forests. More training programmes are proposed to be organized at different regions of the
Country.
A series of regional workshops were organized in various parts of the country to make people aware of the importance of wetlands and integrate their traditional knowledge in the planning process. The following regional and international workshops were organized during the Tenth Plan:
1 Western Region, Gujarat
2 Southern Region, Kerala
3 Eastern Region, Orissa
4 North-Eastern Region, Manipur
5 Central Region, Madhya Pradesh
6 Northern region, Uttar Pradesh
7 Northern region, Jammu and Kashmir
8 Southern region, Lakshadweep
9 International Workshop on High Altitude Wetlands, Sikkim
10 Meeting of Board of Directors of Wetland International, Rajasthan
Holding regional workshops along with research organizations and wetland managers is an ongoing feature.
Community Participation
(a) No decision-making is complete without participation of local people whose livelihoods depend on wetland resources. People have been using wetlands since time immemorial. We have to blend both traditional and latest scientific technologies to achieve long-term conservation goals. Participatory Rural Appraisal exercise involving local communities should be the main ingredient of community participation. It should also take into consideration issues of women and gender sensitization and involve women in the management process.
(b) The component of community participation comprises the following constituents.
1. Assessment of resource availability by surveys and participatory rural appraisal of the site.
2. Stakeholder analysis
3. Contact with external institutions for resource and technical advice
4. Utilization of wastes and aquatic weeds for energy regeneration, for example through installation of community- based biogas plants.
5. Additional alternate income generation programmes like handloom, handicrafts, integrated farm management techniques and other measures to reduce pressure on wetlands.
6. Highlighting of gender-related cross-cultural, governance-related practices and other special concerns for assessment by community.
(c) The Joint Forest Management Committees (JFMCs), also referred to as Village Protection Committees (VPCs) or Eco-Development Committees (EDCs), are expected to play an active role in conservation and management of wetlands located in forest fringe areas, i.e. normally within a radius of 5 km of forest boundary. The JFMC/ VPC/EDC shall be instrumental in mobilization of communities and for implementing equitable access to information rights.
Use of Geo-spatial technology in wetland management
Remote sensing data in combination with Geographic Information System (GIS) are effective tools for wetland conservation and management. The application encompasses water resource assessment, hydrologic modeling, flood management, reservoir capacity surveys, assessment and monitoring of the environmental impacts of water resources project and water quality mapping and monitoring (Jonna 1999).
Flood zonation mapping
Satellite data are used for interpretation and delineation of flood-inundated regions, flood-risk zones. Temporal data helps us to obtain correct ground information about the status of ongoing conservation projects. IRS 1C/D WIFS data having 180 km spatial resolution and high temporal repetitiveness has helped in delineating the zonation of flooding areas of large river bodies, thus helping in the preparation of state-wise and basin wise flood inventories.
Water quality analysis and modeling
Remote sensing data is used for the analysis of water quality parameters and modeling. Water quality studies have been done carried out using the relationship between reflectance, suspended solid concentration, and chlorophyll-a concentration. In the near infrared wavelength range, the amount of suspended solids content is directly proportional to the reflectance. Due to spatial and temporal resolution of satellite data information of the source of pollution and the point of discharge, inflow of sewage can be regularly monitored. Using IRS LISS II data (Sasmal & Raju 1996) monitored the suspended load in estuarine waters of Hoogly, West Bengal in a GIS environment. In this study band 4 of the data set was found to show a wider range of digital classes indicating a better response with depth than rest of the bands. Landsat TM and IRS –1A data were used to estimate sediment load in Upper lake, Bhopal (Raju et al. 1993). This study showed high relationship between the satellite as well as ground truth radiometric data and total suspended solids. Different image processing algorithms are also used on Landsat MSS dataset to delineate sediment concentration in reservoirs (Jonna et al. 1989). Qualitative remote sensing methods have been used for real time monitoring of Inland Water quality (Gitelson et al. 1993) Airborne sensor has also been used to study the primary productivity and related parameters of coastal waters and large water bodies (Seshmani et al. 1994).
Water resource management
With the development of highly precise remote sensing techniques in spatial resolution and GIS, the modeling of watershed has become more physically based and distributed to enumerate interactive hydrological processes considering spatial heterogeneity. A distributed model with SCS curve number method called as Land Use Change (LUC) model was developed (Mohan & Shresta 2000) to assess the hydrological changes due to land use modification. The model developed was applied to Bagmati river catchment in Kathmandu valley basin, Nepal. The study clearly demonstrated that integration of remote sensing, GIS and spatially distributed model provides a powerful tool for assessment of the hydrological changes due to landuse modifications.
Mapping of Wetland
The Space Application Center (SAC) has mapped the wetlands at 1:250000 scale in the mainland as well the islands using the visual interpretation of coarse resolution satellite data. The states of Sikkim, West Bengal, Goa Punjab, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Chandigarh, Delhi, Andaman, Nicobar, Lakshwadeep, Dadra and Nagerhaveli were mapped at 1:50000 scale. However, in the rest of the country, only wetlands of 56.25 ha and above in size could be mapped. It is known that a vast majority of wetlands-often in number, extent and conservation importance is below 50 ha in size (For example, those in the Indo-gangetic plains and in the Deccan peninsula). Thus, the inventory covered only a small number of wetlands: more over, the conservation values are not known for those wetlands even whose inventory has now been obtained. The data merely indicates location of wetlands, the classification of wetlands on 1:250,000 scale is moreover, only geomorphologic in nature (such as Oxbow lakes, Playas, Lakes and Ponds etc.) and has no other factual biological conservation value. By itself, the information will only be partly useful for conservation of wetlands. This estimate is likely to be twice if we include wetlands of size 50 ha or less (Das et al. 1994 for Etwah and Mainpuri districts of U.P.).
6. Conclusion
Threats to wetland ecosystems comprise the increasing biotic and abiotic pressures and perils. About 35% of mangroves have been lost over the last two decades, driven primarily by aquaculture development, deforestation, and freshwater diversion. Some 20% of coral reefs were lost and more than a further 20% degraded in the last several decades of the twentieth century through overexploitation, destructive fishing practices, pollution and siltation and changes in storm frequency and intensity. The primary direct driver of the loss and degradation of coastal wetlands, including saltwater marshes, mangroves, seagrass meadows, and coral reefs, has been conversion to other land uses. In the Indian subcontinent due to rice culture,there has been a loss in the spatial extent of wetlands. Wetlands in India support around 2400 speciesand subspecies of birds. But losses in habitat have threatened the diversity of these ecosystemsIntroduction of exotic species like water hyacinth (Eichornia crassipes) and salvinia (Salvinia molesta) have threatened the wetlands and clogged the waterways competing with the native vegetation. As many as 700 potential wetlands do not have anydata to prioritize. Many of these wetlands are threatened. In monsoonal regions, increased variability risks diminishing wetland biodiversity and prolonged dry periods promote terrestrialisation of wetlands as witnessed in Keoladeo National Park, India. So far as current status of wetland management in India is concerned, Wetlands are not delineated under any specific administrative jurisdiction. The primary responsibility for the management of these ecosystems is in the hands of the Ministry of Environment and Forests. Although some wetlands are protected after the formulation of the Wildlife Protection Act, the others are in grave danger of extinction. Effective coordination between the different ministries, energy, industry, fisheries revenue, agriculture, transport and water resources, is essential for the protection of these ecosystems. The dynamic nature of wetlands necessitates the widespread and consistent use of satellite based remote sensors and low cost, affordable GIS tools for effective management and monitoring.
References
1. Ahmad, N. 1980. Some aspects of economic resources of Sunderbans mangrove forests of Bangladesh. pp. 50- 51. In: P. Soepadmo (ed.) Mangrove Environment:Research and Management. Report on UNESCO Asian Symposium, held at University of Malaya, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, 25-29 August 1980.
2. Anonymous, 1991. India 1990. A Refrence Annual. Research and Reference Division, Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, Govt. of India, Delhi.
3. Anonymous, 1993. Directory of Indian Wetlands. World Wildlife Federation, New Delhi
4. Anonymous, 1994. World Development Report. World Bank Development Report.
5. Banner A, RJ Hebda, ET Oswald, J Pojar, and R Trowbridge 1988 Wetlands of Pacific Canada. In Wetlands of Canada, National Wetlands Working Group. Polyscience, Ottawa, ON., pp. 306–346.
6. Chauhan,M. and B. Gopal, 2001: Biodiversity andmanagement of Keoladeo National Park (India): a wetland of international importance. Biodiversity in Wetlands:Assessment, Function and Conservation: Volume 2, B. Gopal,W.J. Junk and J.A. Davies, Eds., Backhuys Publishers, Leiden, 217-256.
7. Chopra, R. 1985. The State of India’s Environment. Ambassador Press, New Delhi.
8. Cowardin, L. M., Carter, V., Golet, F. C., and LaRoe, E. T. (1979). “Classification of wetlands and deepwater habitats of the United States,” U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Office of Biological Services, FWS/OBS-79/31, Washington, DC.
9. Cubasch, U., G.A.Meehl, G.J. Boer, R.J. Stouffer,M. Dix,A. Noda, C.A. Senior, S. Raper and K.S. Yap, 2001: Projections of future climate change. ClimateChange 2001: The Scientific Basis. Contribution ofWorking Group I to the ThirdAssessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, J.T. Houghton, Y. Ding, D.J. Griggs, M. Noguer, P.J. van der Linden, X. Dai, K. Maskell and C.A. Johnson, Eds., Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, 525- 582.
10. de Wit, M. and J. Stankiewicz, 2006: Changes in surface water supply across Africa with predicted climate change. Science, 311, 1917-1921.
11. Duguay, C.R., T.D. Prowse, B.R. Bonsal, R.D. Brown, M.P. Lacroix and P. Menard, 2006: Recent trends in Canadian lake ice cover. Hydrol. Process., 20, 781-801.
12. Evans, F. C. (1956). “Ecosystem as the basic unit in ecology,” Science 123, 1127- 1128.
13. Finlayson, C.M., R. D’Cruz, N. Davidson, J. Alder, S. Cork, R. de Groot, C. Leveque, G.R. Milton, G. Peterson, D. Pritchard, B.D. Ratner, W.V. Reid, C. Revenga, M. Rivera, F. Schutyser, M. Siebentritt, M. Stuip, R. Tharme, S. Butchart, E. Dieme-Amting, H. Gitay, S. Raaymakers and D. Taylor, Eds., 2005: Ecosystems and HumanWell-being:Wetlands and Water Synthesis. Island Press, Washington, District of Columbia, 80 pp.
14. Foote Lee, S., Pandey & N.T. Krogman. 1996. Processes of wetland loss in India. Environmental Conservation 23: 45-54.
15. Frey, K.E. and L.C. Smith, 2005:Amplified carbon release from vastWest Siberian peatlands by 2100. Geophys. Res. Lett., 32, L09401, doi:10.1029/2004GL02202
16. Gitay, H., S. Brown, W. Easterling and B. Jallow, 2001: Ecosystems and their goods and services. Climate Change 2001: Impacts, Adaptation, and Vulnerability.Contribution of Working Group II to the Third Assessment Report of theIntergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, J.J.McCarthy, O.F. Canziani, N.A. Leary, D.J. Dokken and K.S. White, Eds., Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, 237-342.
17. Gitelson, A., G. Garbuzov., F. Szilagyi., K.H. Mittenzwey., A. Karnielli & A. Kaiser. 1993. Quantitative remote sensing methods for real-time monitoring of inland water quality. International Journal ofRemote Sensing 14: 1269-1295.
18. Golley, F. B. (1993). A history of the ecosystem concept in ecology. Yale University Press, New Haven, CT.
19. Goswami, A.K. Rai, N.D. Sharma, K.V. Ravindran & P.K. Sharma (eds.). Proceedings National Symposiumon Remote Sensing Applications for ResourceManagement with Special Emphasis on N. E. Region,Guwahati.
29. Gregory SV, FJ Swanson, WA McKee, and WC.Kenneth, 1991. An ecosystem perspective of riparian zones. Bioscience 41:540–550.
21. Hutchinson, G. E. (1978). An introduction to population ecology. Yale University Press, New Haven, CN.
22. Imran. A. Dar and Mithas. A. Dar; Seasonal variation of Bird Population in Shallabug Wetland Kashmir, India: Journal of Wetland Ecology, (2009) vol. 2, pp 19-33
23. Imran. A. Dar and Mithas. A. Dar; Evaluation of Bird Population Fluctuation in Haigam Wetland, Kashmir: ESAIJ (Environmental Science: An Indian Journal), 4(5), 2009 [260- 268]
24. Jankowski, T., D.M. Livingstone, H. Buhrer, R. Forster and P. Niederhaser, 2006: Consequences of the 2003 European heat wave for lake temperature profiles, thermal stability and hypolimnetic oxygen depletion: implications for a warmer world. Limnol. Oceanogr., 51, 815-819.
25. Jonna, S. 1999. Remote sensing applications to water resources: retrospective and Perspective. pp. 368- 377. In: S. Adiga (ed.). Proceedings of ISRS NationalSymposium on Remote Sensing Applications forNatural Resources. Dehradun.
26. Jonna, S., K.V.S. Badarinath & J. Saibaba. 1989. Digital image processing of remote sensing data for water quality studies. Journal of the Indian Society of RemoteSensing 17: 59-64.
28. Kling, J., K. Hayhoe, L.B. Johnsoin, J.J. Magnuson, S. Polasky, S.K. Robinson, B.J. Shuter,M.M.Wander, D.J.Wuebbles and D.R. Zak, 2003: Confronting ClimateChange in the Great Lakes Region: Impacts on our Communities andEcosystems. Union of Concerned Scientists and the Ecological Society of America, Cambridge, Massachusetts andWashington, District of Columbia, 92 pp.
29. Lemke, P., J. Ren, R.Alley, I.Allison, J. Carrasco, G. Flato, Y. Fujii, G. Kaser, P. Mote, R. Thomas and T. Zhang, 2007: Observations: changes in snow, ice and frozen ground. Climate Change 2007: The Physical Science Basis. Contributionof Working Group I to the Fourth Assessment Report of the IntergovernmentalPanel on Climate Change, S. Solomon, D. Qin, M. Manning, Z. Chen, M. Marquis, K.B.Averyt, M. Tignor and H.L. Miller, Eds., Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, 335-383.
30. Lindeman, R. L. (1942). “The trophic dynamics of ecology,” Ecology 23, 399- 418.
31. Meehl, G.A., T.F. Stocker, W. Collins, P. Friedlingstein, A. Gaye, J. Gregory, A. Kitoh, R. Knutti, J.Murphy,A. Noda, S. Raper, I.Watterson,A.Weaver and Z.- C. Zhao, 2007: Global climate projections. Climate Change 2007: The PhysicalScience Basis. Contribution of Working Group I to the Fourth Assessment Reportof the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, S. Solomon, D. Qin,M. Manning, Z. Chen, M. Marquis, K.B. Averyt, M. Tignor and H.L. Miller, Eds., Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, 747-845.
32. Mitchell, S. & B. Gopal. 1990. Invasion of tropical freshwater by alien species. pp. 139-154. In: P. S. Ramakrishnan (ed.) Ecology of Biological Invasionin the Tropics.
33. Mitsch, W. J., and Gosselink, J. G. (1993). Wetlands. 2nd ed., Van Nostrand Reinhold, New York.
34. Mohan, S. & M.N. Shrestha. 2000. A GIS based integrated model for assessment of hydrological changes due to land-use modifications. pp. 27-29. In: T.V. Ramchandra (ed.) Symposium on Restoration ofLakes and Wetlands, November 2000, Indian Institute of Sciences, Bangalore.
35. Odum, H. T. (1983). Systems ecology: An introduction. Wiley Interscience Publication, New York.
36. O'Neill, R. V., DeAngelis, D. L., Waide, J. B., and Allen, T. F. H. (1986). “A hierarchical concept of ecosystems,” Monographs in Population Biology 23, Princeton University Press, Princeton, NJ.
37. Parikh, J. & K. Parikh. 1999. Sustainable Wetland. Environmental Governance – 2, Indira Gandhi Institute of Development Research, Mumbai.
38. Raju, P.L.N., A.K. Chakraborti & C.V. Deshpande. 1993. Estimation of suspended sediment load upper lake, Bhopal using remote sensing techniques. pp. 25-27. In: B. Sahai, D.C.
39. Reid,W.V., H.A.Mooney,A. Cropper, D. Capistrano, S.R. Carpenter, K. Chopra, P. Dasgupta, T. Dietz,A.K. Duraiappah, R. Hassan, R. Kasperson, R. Leemans, R.M. May, A.J. McMichael, P. Pingali, C. Samper, R. Scholes, R.T. Watson, A.H. Zakri, Z. Shidong, N.J.Ash, E. Bennett, P. Kumar,M.J. Lee, C. Raudsepp- Hearne, H. Simons, J. Thonell and M.B. Zurek, Eds., 2005: Ecosystems andHuman Well-being: Synthesis. Island Press, Washington, District of Columbia, 155 pp.
40. Rowe, J. S. (1961). “The level-of-integration concept and ecology,” Ecology 42, 420-277.
41. Rowe, J. S., and Barnes, B. V. (1994). “Geo-ecosystems and bioecosystems,” Bulletin of the Ecological Society of America 75, 40-41.
40. Samant, S. 1999. Prioritization of biological conservation sites in India wetland. pp. 155-167. In: Shekhar Singh, A.R.K. Sastry, Raman Mehta & Vishaish Uppal (eds.). Setting Biodiversity ConservationPriorities for India. World Wide Fund for Nature, India.
42. Sasmal, S.K. & P.L.N. Raju. 1996. Monitoring suspended load in estuarine waters of Hooghly with satellite data using PC based GIS environment. In:Proceedings of National Symposium on Coastal ZoneManagement. Feb. 25-26 Behrampur University, Behrampur, Orissa.
44. Semlitsch RD and RD Brodie 1998. Are small, isolated wetlands expendable? Conservation Biology 12:1129–1133.
45. Seshamani, R., T.K. Alex & Y.K. Jain. 1994. An airborne sensor for primary productivity and related parameters of coastal waters and large water bodies. International Journal of Remote Sensing 15: 1101-1108.
46. Smith, L.C., Y. Sheng, G.M.MacDonald and L.D. Hinzman, 2005: Disappearing arctic lakes. Science, 308, 1429.
45. Stern, N., 2007: The Economics of Climate Change: The Stern Review. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, 692 pp.
48. Tansley, A. G. (1935). “The use and abuse of vegetational concepts and terms,” Ecology 16, 284-307.
47. Winder, M. and D.E. Schindler, 2004: Climatic effects on the phenology of lake processes. Global Change Biol., 10, 1844-1856.
50. Zalakevicius, M. and S. Svazas, 2005: Global climate change and its impact on wetlands and waterbird populations. Acta Zool. Lituanica, 15, 215-217.
51. Zheng, X., Z. Zhou, Y. Wang, J. Zhu, Y. Wang, J. Yue, Y. Shi, K. Kobayashi, K. Inubushi, Y. Huang, S.H. Han, Z.J. Xu, B.H. Xie, K. Butterbach-Bahl and L.X. Yang, 2006: Nitrogen-regulated effects of free-air CO2 enrichment on methane emissions from paddy rice fields. Global Change Biol., 12, 1717-1732.
About the Author
I am Imran Ahmad Dar. I have completed my M.Sc. in Environmental Sciences in Kashmir University, India and i am doing research (Ph.D) in the department of Industries and Earth Sciences, Tamil University, India.I am having seven(refreed and peer reviewed) international publications. In addition i have presented three papers in National Symposium/Conferences. Moreover, presently, i am the Editor of the journal- Journal of Wetland Ecology, besides being the reviewer of Journal of Coastal Research and Journal of Hydrology.
The Mekong Institute: A Human Resource Development Centre in the Greater Mekong Subregion
Get a closer look into the history and culture of Hue. We cruise to visit the Thien Mu Pagoda, one of the best know religious sites in the city. Then cycle to Phu Mong, take in a traditional garden house and craft houses, enjoy a serene life here.
We will cycle from your hotel to the Wharf and then take a short boat ride on the Perfume River to Thien Mu Pagoda, one of the best know Buddhist sites in the city. Afterwards we cycle to Hue's garden-houses, that are part of Hue's cultural legacy, present since the Nguyen Dynasty built its capital there over 200 years ago. Like other garden houses in Hue, the Phu Mong garden house typically has two main areas: the wooded house and the surrounding garden, designed according to geomancy, and their owners' spiritual life and skilfulness. On the way cycling back, we stop at Ngoc Son temple, visit more Hue garden house with introduction by the house's owner, then have tea, cakes and ginger jam. Visit to Hue's Dong Ba Market and lesser known Bao Vinh, the older commercial area of Hue. Have a Lunch at Vuon Y Thao garden house restaurant before coming back to the hotel.
CONTACT:
Saigon Head Office: 113C Bui Vien Str., Dist. 1. - Phone: +84-8 38 38 6678Hanoi
Tourist Information Center: 7 Dinh Tien Hoang Str. , Hoan Kiem Dist. - Phone: +84-4 39263370Hue
Tourist Information Center: 45 - 47 Le Loi Str., Hue City. - Phone: +84-54 3942 233
Saigon Tourist Information Center: 92-94-96 Nguyen Hue str,, Ho Chi Minh city - Phone: +84-838250615
Asiana Travel Mate, founded in 2006, provides customized inbound travel into Vietnam, extending to Cambodia and Laos. We believe in delivering services as promised, benefiting local communities and preserving the cultural and natural heritage of Vietnam
mekong river cruise laos="mekong river cruise laos"
The Mekong River; Weaving through and Forging the Southeast Asia we all Know and Love
The Mekong River is one of the most if not the most important river in all of Southeast Asia. Citizens of Myanmar, Thailand, Laos, Cambodia and Vietnam who live along the banks are quite dependent of the river, either for its fish, and of course its waters. It is the world's 10th longest river, spanning a length of about 4,900 kilometers, draining an area of 795,000 square kilometers of water and discharging 475 cubic kilometers of water annually.
Archeologists have estimated that there were settlements living in and around the Mekong dating as far back as 2100 BCE. Early civilizations included the Funan (1st century AD), who were then proceeded by the Chenla (5th century AD). The Angkor Empire then took over and influenced most of the area until the Kingdom of Siam and the North Vietnamese followed suit.
The Mekong has quite an interesting start point. Contrary to the warm tropical nature of Southeast Asia, the river actually originated from the cold and snowy Himalayas in the Tibetan Plateau. From here, it runs through the Yunan Province in China before making its way to Myanmar, then forming a border between it, Thailand and Laos before cutting through Cambodia and finally emptying out in the Mekong Delta and South China Sea in Southern Vietnam.
Along the way, the Mekong has her fair share of waterfalls and rapids. Now, that may be good for those looking for a scenic and relaxing sport, but it is quite the opposite for travelers. Those falls have earned the Mekong as one of the toughest rivers to navigate on.
The Mekong Basin may well be one of the world's richest areas in terms of biodiversity, perhaps even richer than the Amazon! Estimates have about 20,000 plant species, 430 different types of mammals, 1200 birds, 800 reptiles and amphibians and more than 1200 species of fish swimming in its waters, some of which are giants. The Giant River Carp, which can grow as long as 1.5 meters and weigh as much as 70 kilograms, makes its home here. Also included are the 4 meter wingspan 500 kilogram Mekong Freshwater Stingray and the renowned Mekong Giant Catfish, known to grow as long as 3 meters and weigh 300 kilograms! The rare Irrawaddy Dolphin and Siamese Crocodile also call the Mekong River home.
Perhaps you'd like to live some of that Mekong magic? You certainly can! In Cambodia, experience the famed countryside and rural atmosphere along its banks as you cruise along the Mekong. Spend the night on the Mekong Delta in luxury and discover amazing waterways hidden amongst vibrant tropical fruit gardens, bustling floating markets that offer a cornucopia of items and acres of emerald rice fields that make this region of Southern Vietnam so magical.
Established in 1993, Exotissimo Travel is a well known Tour Operator in Asia. We have the expertise and connections to create your perfect inspirational tours as well as customized programs in Vietnam, Thailand, Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, Indonesia and Japan at the best possible price. Your experience guarantees stops to the main sites as well as the hidden spots, giving you a true sense of the culture and rewarding you with unforgettable memories.
"Mekong river cruise" Lgeorge's photos around Luang Prabang, Lao Peoples Dem Rep (photography)
mekong river cruise laos mekong river cruise laos mekong river cruise laos
from laos="from laos" what language do people from laos speak?
beacause i've been tryin 2 translate something on google from english to LAOS but idk which language they speak
Lao or Laotian is a tonal language of the Kradai language family. It is the official language of Laos, and also spoken in the northeast of Thailand, where it is usually referred to as the Isan language. .
IDEA in Laos: NUOL Debate Training in Vang Vieng_May 2011
The Mekong River runs through China, Myanmmar, Thailand, Laos, Cambodia and Vietnam,is the longest river in the southeastern Asia region. Deep in history and rich in culture, it's one of the last travel frontiers with stunning natural beauty and incredible cultural diversity.
The Luxury Travel Company (www.luxurytravelvietnam.com ), Vietnam's leading bespoke travel experience company, is experienced in providing special services and unique tourism products to luxury global travelers over the years.
Embark on two days tour of the company, on traditional river barge cruise sampan upstream of the Mekong River allows you to explore Mekong Delta in style . Traditional sampans in Mekong delta are small Asian flat-bottomed boats, propelled by oars or a rear-mounted oar. The sampans used for the new Mekong tours are larger, luxury versions of the smaller traditional vessels. These 22m-long and 4m-wide wooden boats, with two bedrooms and a living room, offer a relaxing way to cruise the waters.
Sampans used to be the vehicle of choice for locals on the Mekong Delta, which is filled with wide waterways and meandering rivers and canals. Now the sampan has proved to be suitable for tourists, with many visitors from Europe taking the sampan tours.
Pham Ha, Founder and CEO director of Luxury Travel Company, says the tours let visitors see local life on the water and land. The tour lasts two days, and takes visitors through the provinces of Tien Giang, Dong Thap and to Can Tho City.
"Visitors can join locals on the banks of the river, feast on local cuisine in lush tropical gardens, visit handicraft villages and travel down the tributaries of the Mekong Delta," says Ha.
David Nguyen, a sales manager at Luxury Travel, says the company's sampan tours start at around 10am, setting off on the Tien River in Cai Be Town.
Each boat carries a maximum of four tourists along with the crew. The sampan also tows a smaller junk, which is used to penetrate deep into the delta's many narrow canals.
Coconut candy
After a bellyful of coconut treats, the boat heads for Cai Be floating market, cruising among local barges that are stocked with fruit and vegetables, before cruising upstream on the Tien River and heading to Vinh Long and Sa Dec.
"Sa Dec Town in Dong Thap Province has a long history. The village has changed a lot during the last decade," says David. "House with roofs made from coconut fronds now increasingly have roofs made from sheet metal. But the local people still keep their lifestyle and tradition of hospitality. People are so friendly here that visitors can feel free to stop at any house they like, where hosts often offer tiny cups of rice wine."
Dinner is served at an old house of Huynh Thuy Le dating from 1890 in Sa Dec, with the spread of food including dishes made from fresh vegetables and fish caught in the river by local fishermen.
With the sampan anchored nearby, tourists have two hours to walk around and explore the pagodas and houses in the area.
Sa Dec is like a small, Asian-style Venice, with numerous narrow canals criss-crossing the land. There's a local market, which is a lively centre of town. The town's narrow streets still have many beautiful French houses and Chinese temples, built in the 19th century.
After exploring the town on foot, dinner is served late in the evening at a local house. Then, it's time to get back on board the sampan to cruise down to Can Tho City.
At night, the crew anchors the vessel in a peaceful part of the river. A surprise for us is that we can watch the famous movie " l'Amant" or "the Lover", a wonderful and evocative story of love between a Chinese landlord and and a French teenage émigré during n the Indochina war. I steps from movie to the reality and touch to the past.
"As usual, the crew find a wharf where tourists can get an insight into the life of local people," says David Nguyen.
Most families in the Mekong Delta make their living by catching fish. "It's not unusual to see entire families living on small boats in the delta," says David.
But for those on the sampan tours, there's plenty of room to stretch your legs. The boat's bedrooms, with their timber furnishings, are cosy and romantic. Blankets are provided to keep travellers warm, as the Mekong's breezes can make the night-time quite cool. But with the boat gently rocking on the water, a good night's sleep is almost guaranteed.
The second day starts early in the morning. Breakfast is served on board while approaching Cai Rang floating market--the largest in the Mekong Delta.
The sampan will cruise through the large cluster of boats selling everything from sand and rice to fruits, vegetable, fish and flowers.
"Visitors can bargain with the locals, but they will not overcharge you as most trading here is wholesale," says Pham Ha, CEO of Luxury Travel Ltd.
The cruise ends around 10am in the morning, when the boat stops at Ninh Kieu Wharf. Tourists will hit the road to have lunch in Can Tho, before cycling around the large town.
With their journey almost complete, visitors can make a four-hour car trip to HCM City in the afternoon or stay for the night in Can Tho City.
RV La Marguerite Mekong River Cruise by Indochina Sails Saigon – Siem Reap Sets Cruise
Luxury Travel Vietnam promote an unique voyage on colonial vessel replica which traverses down the magnificent Mekong River, the longest river in the southeastern Asia region.
Travellers on the cruise will explore the mysterious of the Great Mekong River, which runs through Cambodia, Laos, Myanmmar, Thailand, Vietnam and Yunnan (China).
Deep in history and rich in culture, the Mekong boasts many fine attractions including ancient monuments, royal capitals and UNESCO-designated World Heritage sites such as Angkor Wat in Cambodia.
This histoire d'amour d'Indochine is a cruise of passion, innocence and affection, seen through the eyes of French novelist Marguerite Duras, who was born in Vietnam in 1914 during the French colonial period.
RV La Marguerite a contemporary colonial vessel replica consisting of 46 luxurious cabins, transports you through a inspiring journey from Saigon to the legendary Siem Reap on an 8 days - 7 nights unique voyage.
Tour prices start from USD $1050 net per-person double rates, this includes accommodation costs at deluxe rooms. The cruise can be booked at last minute, and can be customized to suit individual interests and schedules with pre and post cruise in Saigon and Sieam Reap.
The Luxury Travel Company is Asia's first luxury tour operator and full travel service agency. Luxury Travel is experienced in providing special services and unique tourism products to luxury global travelers.
The first cruise sets on 20 September 2009. Be the first passenger on this colonial vessel replica, guests can book this cruise at www.luxurytravelvietnam.com.
###
About the Author
Award Winning Travel Advisors in Asia
Vat Phou - Cruise on the Mekong river in south Laos
miss laos="miss laos" do you think Miss Universe pageant is a fair and square competition?
because why USA, Puerto Rico,Venezuela,India and South Africa are always on the top spot? what about Nicaragua,Laos,Cyprus etc. Do you think those countries which are always on top spot i mentioned above are really great every year? or maybe its because their countries are just popular when it comes to beauty contest?
no. the industry's idea of "beauty" changes every few years. in the 90's it was all blonde hair and blue eyes (USA, Switzerland, France, etc.), now it's more of an exotic look circa Brazilian and Indian women. once the new beauty trend comes around, some other countries will have the shot at the top spot.
