Conservation of the Yala swamp wetland for sustainable development

Yala Swamp

Yala, Kenya: The World Wetlands day being marked today has been set aside by the Ramsar Convention on Wetlands as a day dedicated to raising public awareness about the importance and values of wetlands. Despite conservation initiatives by government agencies, non-governmental organizations, conservation organizations, and individuals, loss of wetlands in Kenya is still occurring at alarming rates fuelled partly by increasing demand for land. Wetlands are complex ecosystems with multiple values, including ecological, socio-esthetical, intrinsic and economic. Wetlands perform ecological and environmental functions including hydrological (water) cycle and flood control, pollution and eutrophication (excessive nutrient enrichment to water) abatement through sediment trapping as well as carbon sequestration (removing carbon from the atmosphere and depositing it in a reservoir) thereby mitigating global warming.  Economically, wetlands are important sources of livelihood to resident communities for example through supporting agriculture, livestock and fisheries.

Despite their recognized environmental and economic functions, tropical wetlands are still among the least understood and appreciated ecosystems and are often viewed as wastelands and are increasingly being modified and degraded, partly due to failure to account for the economic value (i.e. assign a ‘Dollar equivalent’) of benefits derived by local communities dependent on such wetlands.  Sustainable management and utilization of wetlands is therefore critical to their long term survival.