First International Meeting on Wetlands

Participants

The National Water Commission in conjunction with UNAM’s Multidisciplinary Group UNAM for the development of Mexico’s National Wetlands Inventory will hold the First International Meeting on Wetlands, to be carried out on November 4 and 5, 2010 at the premises of the Engineering Tower, UNAM´s Mexico City Campus.

Wetlands are transitional ecosystems between land and water areas with high biological productivity and biodiversity; they provide important environmental services and constitute a source of income for the communities. In Mexico, like in some other regions of the world, these ecosystems face different pressures and threats to their conservation and management.

Presently, the National Institute of Geography and Statistics (INEGI) has identified 1,642 potential wetland sites in Mexico. The RAMSAR Convention recognizes 114 sites in Mexico covering over eight million hectares, placing the country in second place in terms of the number of sites. Various Mexican public and private institutions have conducted wetland inventories for specific purposes. Such is the case, among others, of the mangroves inventory (CONABIO) and DUMAC’s (Ducks Unlimited Mexico) inventory. There are also a number of studies on specific wetland sites throughout the country.

In 2004, the Federal Government of Mexico established the development of a National Inventory of Wetlands as a top priority, together with the development and validation of methodologies for wetland evaluation, monitoring, and the formulation of management plans. Consistent with this priority, the National Water Commission and the UNAM are conducting a multidisciplinary project to develop the National Wetland Inventory, INH. It is part of this project that the First International Meeting on Wetlands will be organized in order to bring together national and international expertise, as well as practical experiences on wetlands inventory, assessment, monitoring and management.