Wetlands

Wetlands are vital and valuable resources, both as rich and unique wildlife habitats, and for the functions they fulfil - providing flood and sediment control and coastal protection, as carbon sinks and pollution buffers, for their role in storing and recycling nutrients, as well as for their recreational value. Too often, however, their true value has been overlooked or underestimated and they have been mismanaged or destroyed as a result. This volume, commissioned by the OECD, presents four case studies of the management policies of wetland environments in the UK, the USA, France and Spain. They show how both markets and direct intervention have resulted in failure, severely reducing the amount of wetland and jeopardizing the remainder, and they set out measures that will mitigate damage in the future.