Management effectiveness of wetland-protected areas

The effective management of wetlands requires a sound policy foundation that recognises the full range of states through which a wetland may pass, the drivers of change and their periodicity, and the trajectory of present change relative to past conditions. A management plan should suit the local requirements, and be as large or complex as is required for any specific site. While the format and presentation of a management plan can vary, the process comprises six steps to implement actions to achieve the management goals, namely: Why are we here? What have we got? What are the important features? What are the important influences? What do we want? What must we do? Based on general requirements for effectiveness tracking in protected areas, a specific Ramsar Site Management Effectiveness Tracking Tool (R-METT) has been formally adopted by the Ramsar Convention. This is designed to be simple and rapid to assist site managers and to facilitate wide uptake of the approach. The evaluation questions in R-METT were designed to be easily answered by the management authority without any additional research or intense and costly data collection.