From: Martin on 10/10/2001 10:55 AM
To:
cc:
Subject: New Australian Ramsar site
Thought the following item of interest to Victorian birdos. It is from the
Ramsar Bureau in Gland Switzerland.
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Greetings. The Bureau is pleased to announce that the Commonwealth of
Australia has designated its 57th Ramsar site, as of 29 August 2001: the
Edithvale-Seaford Wetlands (261 hectares, 38
°04?S 145°07?E) in Victoria
comprises two separate wetlands near Melbourne, including both freshwater
and brackish lakes (types P, Q, R), both with similar morphology and
ecological characteristics and both under an extensive rehabilitation and
management regime by Melbourne Water. They are of exceptional significance
as examples of cost-effective management of wetlands in an urban setting to
provide conservation benefits, manage storm water, and encourage
environmental research and education. The site meets Criteria 1 on
uniqueness and 2 on support for vulnerable species, and surpasses the 1%
threshold for Sharp-tailed Sandpipers (Calidris acuminata). Both wetlands
remained after the draining of the once extensive Carrum Carrum Swamp in the
1860s, but additional local draining and encroachments by farming and
grazing have continued into this century. In recent decades active flooding
has been pursued through management intervention; in the 1980s ingress of
saline groundwater resulted in brackish rather than fresh water in the
artificial components of the site, but pumping from nearby creeks is
returning the site to a freshwater system. A management plan and
birdwatching facilities are in place, and education programmes are run by a
local NGO.
There are presently 1095 Ramsar sites worldwide.
Best regards, Dwight Peck, Ramsar.
Dwight Peck, Executive Assistant for Communications
The Convention on Wetlands (Ramsar, Iran, 1971)
Rue Mauverney 28, CH-1196 Gland, Switzerland
fax: +41 22 999 0169; http://ramsar.org
**********
Further information available from:
East Melbourne (Victora)
Martin O'Brien
Executive Scientific Officer & Secretary
Scientific Advisory Committee
Parks Flora and Fauna Division
Department of Natural Resources and Environment
4/250 Victoria Pde.,
East Melbourne 3002
AUSTRALIA
Tel: 9412 4567
Fax: 9412 4586
(prefixes: Interstate 03 International 613)
email:
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Visit the Flora and Fauna Guarantee section of the
Department of Natural Resources and Environment at:
http://www.nre.vic.gov.au/plntanml/native/ffg.htm
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