TEHRAN – The Department of Environment (DOE) has registered five wetlands in Qom province in the list of national natural heritage sites.

The wetlands are Salt Lake, Hoz-e Sultan, Morreh, Ghadir Asb, and Behesht-e Masoumeh. These wetlands have contributed to the survival of numerous plants and wildlife species, IRIB quoted Mohammad-Hossein Bazgir, an official with DOE, as saying.

Located between Qom, Semnan, and Isfahan provinces,  the large Salt Lake wetland, stretches to more than 200,000 hectares.

“Contrary to the opinion of some who consider the deserts to be lifeless and barren, they are precious ecosystems. In Qom province, the large Salt Lake has led to the creation of suitable vegetation and wildlife habitats in the desert plain,” Bazgir said.

Hoz-e Sultan wetland resembles a beautiful huge mirror. Situated some 40 kilometers northward of Qom, the lake is adjacent to the Qom – Tehran highway.

Morreh Wetland, which is located in the central desert of Iran and about 65 km from the city of Qom on the Qom-Garmsar highway, has an area of more than 33,000 hectares.

Currently, the wetland is the habitat of some 170 species of migratory birds.

Ghadir Asb and Behesht-e Masoumeh wetlands are the two other wetlands in Qom province, which play a crucial role in mitigating sand and dust storms.

Preservation of wetlands with an ecosystem approach

The ecosystem approach for the protection and management of 46 wetlands across the country is being used.

The approach is based on the application of appropriate scientific methodologies focused on levels of biological organization, which encompass the essential structure, processes, functions, and interactions among organisms and their environment.

It was launched in the Iranian calendar year 1384 (March 2005-March 2006) in Parishan and Shadegan wetlands as well as Lake Urmia, ISNA reported.

The Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) defines the ecosystem approach as “a strategy for the integrated management of land, water, and living resources that promotes conservation and sustainable use in an equitable way".

It goes beyond examining single issues, species, or ecosystem functions in isolation. Instead, it recognizes ecological systems for what they are: rich mixes of elements that interact with each other continuously. This understanding is particularly important for coasts and seas, where the nature of water keeps systems and functions connected.

The Approach is also a way of making decisions in order to manage human activities sustainably. It recognizes that human activities both affect the ecosystem and depend on it. Thus, it aims to improve the way human activities are managed for the protection of the marine environment.

In 2015, the DOE initiated an effort with the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) aiming to preserve and revive the country's wetlands.

In the next phase in 2017, the government of Japan supported the project focusing on the sustainable management of water and soil resources around Urmia Lake as well as Shadegan and Bakhtegan wetlands.

It is a five-year plan, voluntarily supported by Japan, to take advantage of both their financial and technical assistance, ISNA quoted Mojtaba Zoljoodi, an official with the Department of Environment, as saying. Three years have passed since the implementation of the project, he added.

“To implement the program in the remaining two years, we are consulting with the government of Japan and other governments that are willing to cooperate with Iran to be able to implement the project properly.

The plan to conserve Iran's wetlands is one of the good practical projects that, if continues, can help not only the wetlands of Iran but also the wetlands of other countries.”

The results of the implementation of the project in 200 villages concerning water consumption have shown that a good amount of water in the agriculture sector has been saved. In addition, productivity, quality of the products, and the economic income of the family have increased.

MT/MG