World Wetlands Day 2021 will take place on 2 February under the theme “Wetlands and Water”. The theme shines a spotlight on wetlands as a source of freshwater and encourages actions to restore them and stop their loss.
Wetlands and water are inseparable and vital for life. We are in a growing water crisis that threatens people and the planet. We use more water than nature can replenish and are destroying the ecosystem that water and all life depend on most - Wetlands.
Fresh and saltwater wetlands sustain humanity and nature. Wetlands support social and economic development through multiple services, namely:
Store and clean water
- Wetlands hold and provide most of the freshwater.
- They naturally filter pollutants, leaving safe water to drink.
Provides food
- Aquaculture is the fastest-growing food production sector, while inland fisheries alone provided 12 million tonnes of fish in 2018.
- Rice paddies feed 3.5 billion people annually.
Underpin the global economy
- Wetlands, the most valuable ecosystem, provide services worth US $47 trillion a year.
- More than one billion people rely on wetlands for income.
Provide nature a home
- 40% of the world’s species live and breed in wetlands. Annually, about 200 new fish species are discovered in freshwater wetlands.
- 25% of all species lives in coral reefs.
Keep us safe
- Wetlands provide protection from floods and storms with each acre of wetland absorbing up to 1.5 million gallons of floodwater.
- Wetlands help regulate the climate: peatlands store twice as much carbon as forests, with salt marshes, mangroves, and seagrass beds also holding vast amounts of carbon.
The value of wetlands and the services they provide are dangerously undervalued. Wetlands are nature’s gift to humanity, and we must realise its importance before it is too late.
World Wetlands Day - 2 February 2021 (4.4 MB)
