A Focus on Coastal Wetlands
Human prosperity depends on healthy coastal wetlands
Life's Support System
Rainforests are often described as the lungs of the planet. If that's the case, wetlands are the kidneys—purifying water by filtering pollutants. Wetlands are found all over the world, ranging from huge river deltas, mighty estuaries, coastal mud flats, and floodplains to the Great Lakes and even peat bogs. These biologically diverse ecosystems have supported life for millennia and are essential for human health and prosperity. If we look at the first civilizations, from the Nile to Mesopotamia, they sprang up around wetlands. All over the world, wetlands continue to provide food, water, transport, leisure, and more.
Wetlands hold most of the planet’s available freshwater but are also one of the world's most biodiverse habitats, providing homes for many vital and endangered species. They provide nurseries for fish and other aquatic life. And, of course, they are service stations for millions of migratory birds to rest and refuel on their epic pan-hemispherical journeys. Many endemic species are found only in specific wetland areas, and 40 percent of plants and animals depend on these areas. There is still much to learn about wetlands—in fact, every year, around 200 new species are discovered in freshwater wetlands around the world.
Coastal wetlands—where land meets the sea and economic vibrancy intertwines with ecological vulnerability—now stand at the forefront of combating our shared challenges: safeguarding livelihoods, building climate resilience, and securing a viable future for our natural world. These wetlands are not only invaluable natural assets we must preserve but also fertile ground for bold ideas, innovative solutions, and determined action, empowering us to better tackle the twin crises of biodiversity loss and climate change.
A Focus on Wetlands in China
China’s continental coastlines extend for 18,000 km. The coastal areas are home to about 40 percent of China’s population and more than 50 percent of its large cities, accounting for about 60 percent of its GDP. Coastal wetlands of mudflats, saltmarshes, mangrove forests, and seagrass beds are critical habitats for millions of migratory waterbirds and aquatic life. They also protect cities and communities from sea-level rise and storm surges, provide sustainable local livelihoods, and store carbon, among various valuable ecosystem services.
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