Topic: 2025-Conserving Wetlands
Country: Canada
Delegate Name: Keegan Troccko
Committee: IUCN (International Union for Conservation of Nature)
Topic: Conserving Wetlands
State: Canada
School: Grand Haven High School
Author: Keegan Troccko
In Canada, the concern with wetlands is that they’re becoming scarce yearly which is becoming a problem. In financial terms alone, Canada’s wetlands are valued in the billions of dollars. This includes the financial value of annual production directly related to wetlands, including both consumptive activities such as hunting, fishing and trapping, and non-consumptive activities such as tourism and recreation. So if the protection of the wetlands ended then it could cost Canada billions of dollars. The greatest single threat to wetlands historically has been drainage for agricultural purposes, accounting for 85% of total known conversions. Since the settlement era in each region of the nation, wetland use and conversion have contributed significantly to socio-economic development and to the ecological vitality of Canada.
In 1986 and early 1987 Environment Canada developed a national statement and fact sheet on wetland issues in Canada summarizing management problems and identifying the major obstacles to wetland conservation. In early 1987, the Federal Interdepartmental Committee on Land identified the need to develop a wetlands policy statement to supplement the “wise land use” provisions of the Federal Policy on Land Use. For over 10 years Canada has been a signatory nation to the Ramsar Convention, an international treaty focusing on the conservation of wetlands of international importance. A commitment to wetlands conservation and the need for wetland policy has not only been recognized at the international level by Canada but also nationally. In April 1990, the Federal Government and numerous non-government and industry groups (including Ducks Unlimited Canada, Wildlife Habitat Canada, and the National Round Table on the Environment and the Economy) co-hosted a national policy conference entitled the “Sustaining Wetlands Forum”.
Wetlands are critical to federal responsibilities for maintaining the quality of the environment, migratory bird populations, inland and ocean fisheries, and international or transboundary resources such as water and wildlife. The Federal Government is also responsible for managing the impacts of over 900 of its policies and programs in Canada. Many of these directly or indirectly affect wetlands. To protect the wetlands Canada is participating in environmental stewardship initiatives in your area, such as removing invasive species or participating in a wildlife count like the annual bird survey discovering locally protected wetlands with friends and family raising awareness about the role and importance of wetlands to help reverse their rapid loss supporting wetland-conservation initiatives by donating time or money to protecting wetlands.
Protecting wetlands is very important to Canada because if the wetlands keep getting destroyed then Canada will lose money and as well, Canada is the custodian of a major portion of the world’s wetland resource base. With more than 127 million hectares of wetlands, the country is estimated to incorporate up to one-quarter of the world’s wetland area. Despite the importance of wetlands to Canada’s ecological and economic health and vitality, the last two centuries have witnessed their continued loss and degradation. Since 1800, an estimated 20 million hectares – one-seventh of Canada’s total wetland base – have been drained or lost to other functions. Millions more hectares have been seriously degraded or are at imminent risk. The objective of the Federal Government with respect to wetland conservation is to: promote the conservation of Canada’s wetlands to sustain their ecological and socio-economic functions, now and in the future. We need to have a water recharge, providing natural purification and storage of freshwater for humans and wildlife to protect the wetlands that are left and that have not been destroyed.
Works Cited
“The Federal Policy on Wetland Conservation.” canada.ca, 25 09 2024, https://www.canada.ca/en/environment-climate-change/services/wildlife-habitat/federal-policy-on-wetland-conservation.html. Accessed 13 2 2025.
“Protect our Wetlands – Protect Nature Challenge.” Canada.ca, 30 July 2021, https://www.canada.ca/en/environment-climate-change/services/nature-legacy/activities/protect-wetlands.html. Accessed 13 February 2025.
“Wetlands.” Canada.ca, 7 June 2024, https://www.canada.ca/en/services/environment/our-environment/nature-based-climate-solutions/wetlands.html. Accessed 13 February 2025.
“Wetlands — Ducks Unlimited Canada.” Ducks Unlimited Canada, https://www.ducks.ca/our-work/wetlands/. Accessed 13 February 2025.
