Summary

Description

The Convention on Wetlands of International Importance was the first modern inter-governmental treaty between nations aiming to conserve natural resources. The signing of the Convention took place in 1971 in the small Iranian town of Ramsar (since then, it has taken the common name of the Ramsar Convention). Australia was the first nation to become a Contracting Party to the Convention.The Convention's broad aims are to halt the worldwide loss of wetlands and to conserve, through wise use and management, those that remain. This requires international cooperation, policy making, capacity building and technology transfer.There are 5 Ramsar sites within Queensland (Administrator is shown in brackets): Moreton Bay (Queensland), Bowling Green Bay (Queensland), Currawinya Lakes (Queensland), Shoalwater and Corio Bays (Queensland/ Commonwealth), Great Sandy (Queensland).