Himalayan Wetlands
The wetlands in the Hindu Kush-Himalayas include lakes, marshes, peatlands, wet grasslands, streams, lakes, and rivers. They store water, feed groundwater aquifers, trap sediments, and recycle nutrients and support high biological and cultural diversity. They provide many important ecological functions and services to sustain livelihoods in the mountains as well as in the more heavily populated, economically and agriculturally valuable areas downstream. The Millennium Ecosystem Assessment summarises these services in four groups: provisioning (products), regulating (ecological functions), cultural, and supporting services.
High altitude wetlands
High altitude wetlands (HAWs), defined as lying above 3000 masl, are an important, often overlooked, component of mountain ecosystems. They are an integral component of the river system they feed into. Degradation of these critical HAW ecosystems can impact the entire river system from high mountains down to the coast. They contribute to water storage and the hydrological cycle in nations that are water towers for the downstream areas. HAWs contain high biological and cultural diversity, are important staging points for migratory birds, and are a major component in livelihood support in mountains, especially in rainshadow areas where they provide water for pastoralists and farmers. However, especially in the Hindu-Kush Himalayan region, these ecosystems remain poorly documented.
ICIMOD’s involvement with wetlands
ICIMOD has a long history of working with the Himalayan wetlands that began in 1985 with the study of Dig Tsho glacial lake outburst flood, followed by research on glacial lakes in 1987 and glacial deposits in 1989 respectively and later the setting up of a database on glaciers, glacial lakes, GLOFs and the Himalayan wetlands. Recently, ICIMOD established a Wetlands Unit under the Integrated Water and Hazard Management programme in order to focus its wetland activities in the Himalayas. Currently, the Unit is supporting implementation of the Convention on Wetlands (the Ramsar Convention) among others, in securing the endorsement of the contracting countries for the Himalayan Wetlands Initiative. Other activities include promoting the Himalayan Wetlands Initiative Strategy, action research, regional workshops, seminars, and a special study on transboundary wetlands including riverine wetlands.
The Greater Himalayan Wetlands Information System (GHWIS)
Most recently, ICIMOD developed and implemented a computer-based database, as a first step for developing an inventory of wetlands in the region in partnership with others. The database provides information through three sub-systems; the inventory database, a metadatabase, and an interactive web-system. It is intended to help decision-makers and others to prioritise conservation activities, in the context of sustainable management of natural resources, in particular, water, fisheries, forestry, and national development initiatives.
