ASHGABAT, Turkmenistan, Feb. 4
By Huseyn Hasanov - Trend:
Turkmenistan will begin work on the nomination for inclusion of the South Cheleken Gulf with Ogurjaly island, Kelif lakes, including the Kelif ornithological reserve to the List of Wetlands of International Importance (the Ramsar List), Trend reports referring to the Neutral Turkmenistan newspaper.
It is also planned to submit for nomination the lands of Turkmen Lake, a reservoir named after the 15th anniversary of independence (formerly Zeyd), lakes of Gurtly, Sultandag and Sarykamysh.
These wetlands of the country have conditions for wintering, migration and nesting of at least 20,000 wetland birds during one or more of their life cycles, which is one of the important criteria for inclusion in the Ramsar List of protected areas.
A meeting of the working group of the Ramsar Convention was held recently in Ashgabat. It is expected that Turkmen specialists will participate in a rapid assessment of environmental characteristics and ecosystem services, mapping and creating a database of wetlands in Central Asia.
Convention on Wetlands of International Importance as a habitat for waterfowl was signed on February 2, 1971 in Iran’s Ramsar city (Mazandaran Province).
In 2009, the Turmenbashi Gulf was included in the Ramsar List.