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Peatlands – Wise Use and Management San José, Costa Rica
Workshop Summary Presentation : 9th May 1999 R A Lindsay, IMCG |
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Peatlands – Wise Use and Management San José, Costa Rica
Workshop Summary Presentation : 9th May 1999 R A Lindsay, IMCG |
The Peatland Workshop had a quite specific focus which was geared very much to the Ramsar COP7 and a document tabled for that meeting as Annex 15.18 by the Canadian Delegation – namely a draft Global Peatland Action Plan. That is not to say that other Conventions and Protocols were not ignored. On the contrary, a number of important issues were identified, particularly in relation to the Kyoto Protocol and the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD). Nevertheless, throughout the two days, the clear objective of all participants was the identification of the means and mechanisms necessary to ensure that a workable and effective Global Action Plan for peatlands be adopted by as wide a constituency as possible.
This in itself was remarkable, because members of the workshop represented a wide spectrum of interests, including members of the peat industry, NGOs, scientists and government policy-makers. The most remarkable thing about the workshop was the unanimous enthusiasm for, and determination to see, such a Global Action Plan put into place.
Although the Ramsar COP7 was the primary focus, the Workshop first considered peatlands and the global carbon balance as a key issue because peatlands represent both the largest single store of global soil carbon and have a greater density of stored carbon than any other ecosystem. Despite this, the Workshop learned that the present wording of the Kyoto Protocol, and its emphasis on forestry, leaves the enormous carbon store contained within the world'’ peatlands as a marginalised issue.
It is ironic that last year’s fires in Indonesia, which are estimated to have cost the SE Asian Region more than $10 billion, were widely described as "forest fires". In fact the greater part of the smoke and biodiversity loss related to peat fires, but this went largely un-recognised by the rest of the world. The same oversight appears to have afflicted Kyoto.
The current approach of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UN FCCC) fails to provide adequate mechanisms whereby nations can be encouraged to maintain and enhance their peatland carbon store. The Workshop was strongly of the opinion that this is an issue which needs to be addressed, while at the same time maximising the limited opportunities which exist within the current wording [for example, through the Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) of Article 12].
The Workshop next considered peatland biodiversity and highlighted several important issues. Firstly, biodiversity of peatland systems is a relatively recent concept because until recently, such areas were considered to be of low biodiversity value (but see "Peatlands & Biodiversity : an observation" in this Workshop web-page), or were simply not known at all. Now, increasingly, surveys have begun to reveal the quite extraordinary diversity of peatland areas, particularly but by no means exclusively in tropical regions. Such work has, however, barely scratched the surface. Less than 0.2% of SE Asian peatlands have been surveyed.
Another key point is that such biodiversity is important for local and indigenous people for a wide variety of products and services. Unfortunately, all too often the economic incentive structure is so designed as to drive these same people to destroy the very resource on which they depend, for what is often short-term gain and long-term disaster.
This theme was elaborated upon in the next topic which considered the need for, and use of, regional management guidelines for peatlands. Inappropriate management leads almost invariably to a range of on-site and off-site impacts which have important implications for biodiversity, ecosystem functioning, and social and cultural infrastructure. Three key messages come from consideration of regional guidelines. Firstly, that these should be regional; it is important not to try to impose the same approach everywhere in the world. Secondly, such guidelines should be based on a whole-ecosystem approach which includes, on-site, off-site and socio-cultural aspects. Finally, there is an urgent need for development of ways in which practical implementation of such guidelines can be evaluated. We need to know to what extent they are being adopted on the ground, and if they are not being adopted, why they are failing to gain acceptance.
The Workshop then moved on to consider restoration of peatlands, and highlighted the fact that the largest losses of peatlands, and therefore the greatest opportunities for restoration, are the result of agricultural activities. Indeed there are some programmes now, for example in the Netherlands and the UK, where restoration from agriculture to peatland habitat is being carried out with widespread support. However, it is worth noting some exciting possibilities being explored by the peat industry in relation to sustainable growth and harvesting of peat.
The theme of sustainability and wise-use was then developed further, and linked to the need for partnership, as exemplified by the joint activities of the International Peat Society (IPS) and the IMCG in seeking to define wise-use for peatlands.
An intervention from Japan brought home the reality of several issues, with a description of developments on a specific peatland site, Nakaikemi Marsh, in central coastal Japan. The proposed destruction of a site which contained such a significant range of endemic and near-endemic species, plus possessing a peat archive extending back more than 45,000 years, was an issue that the Workshop participants felt required immediate action. It was thus agreed that letters be sent from the Workshop to those involved in the future fate of the site. For further details, see "Nakaikemi Marsh", on this Workshop web-page.
The Workshop then brought all the various aspects of the presentations and discussions to bear on its consideration of the primary Workshop focus – the Global Peatland Action Plan. The draft Plan has an immediate link to COP7, but by its very nature it will have key linkages to the CBD, UNFCCC, and a range of other key international treaties.
It consists of 8 opportunities:
The Workshop recognised that the draft Plan would go through a period of refinement over the next 12 months, but unanimously endorsed the content. The Workshop did, however, note two requirements which will need to be met if this Plan is to succeed:
Firstly, this Plan cannot be the product of actions by one or two organisations only. It can only work if all relevant players across the full spectrum of interest groups – local to international – take an active part in the Plan.
Secondly, and more fundamentally, the Plan must achieve real progress on the ground. Without this, it will be just one more piece of paper.