Conservationists push for international recognition of Gulf of Mottama

Conservationists push for international recognition of Gulf of Mottama

By Aye Sapay Phyu   |   Thursday, 29 May 2014

The Biodiversity and Nature Conservation Association is pushing for an area of wetlands in the Gulf of Mottama in Mon State to be internationally recognised as a unique natural habitat.

The group recently held public awareness workshops in Kyaikto and Bilin townships in collaboration with the Ministry of Environmental Conservation and Forestry and the World Wildlife Fund to allay local fears that conservation work equates to a land grab.

"I believe if the area becomes a Ramsar site, the region will see more development through ecotourism," Dr Saw Mon Theint, BANCA's executive director, said.

Ramsar sites are named in honour of the Ramsar Convention on Wetlands, an inter-governmental treaty signed in 1971 in the city of Ramsar, Pakistan.

To be designated as such, an area must contain a representative, rare, or unique example of a natural or near-natural wetland type.

BANCA wants a significant part of the Gulf of Mottama to be designated but for now is pushing for a smaller section that it says is crucial to the survival of an endangered bird species.

"It is not possible to designate all 400,000 acres [of wetlands] as a Ramsar site because it is a large area. So we will propose 80,000 acres in Kyaikto and Bilin townships where the endangered spoon-billed sandpiper hibernates," she said.

At least half of the world's spoon-billed sandpiper population spends its winters in the area.

"For the next step we will organise a workshop with all stakeholders from government departments and public representatives this year. After we have approval from the state government to regard that area for conservation, we will submit that proposal to the MOECAF," Dr Saw Mon Theint said.

Myanmar's only existing Ramsar site is the Moeyingyi wetlands, situated in Bago Division, about two hours north of Yangon.

The site covers 100 square kilometres (40 square miles) of wetlands, making it a safe haven for vulnerable, endangered, or critically endangered species.

Source: http://www.news.myanmaronlinecentre.com/2014/05/29/conservationists-push-for-international-recognition-of-gulf-of-mottama/