Nationally and Internationally Important Wetlands

A number of planning instruments are progressively identifying significant wetlands in Queensland. Other wetlands are deemed significant because they lie within the boundaries of protected areas (for example, national or marine parks), or have been protected under a conservation agreement. It is important to note, however, that significance does not necessarily mean that one wetland is protected to any greater degree than any other wetland. Nevertheless, such a designation may lead to greater care when determining management approaches. For example, a wetland may be listed on the Directory of Important Wetlands, but its values might not be protected adequately.

The Wetlands Planning and Legislation Support Tool provides general information on programs and policies that can be used to determine important and significant wetlands in Queensland. Further information on significant wetlands identified under Ramsar and the Queensland chapter in the Directory of Important Wetlands in Australia (DIWA) is available below.

Internationally important wetlands are nominated under the Ramsar Convention.

Queensland has five Ramsar sites: Moreton Bay, Bowling Green Bay, Currawinya Lakes, Shoalwater Bay and Corio Bay, and Great Sandy Strait.

Signatories to the Ramsar Convention cooperate on the conservation and wise use of wetlands and their resources. The convention was adopted in Ramsar, Iran, in 1971. Australia was one of the first signatories.

As a signatory, Australia must describe each site in an ecological character description, maintain the character and notify the Convention of any changes.

The ecological character description is a baseline description of the wetland at a given point in time. It can be used to:

• assess changes in the ecological character of the site
• design a monitoring program to detect changes in ecological character
• regular report to the Australian Government and the Ramsar Convention
• develop and implement a management plan to maintain the ecological character of the site
• assess the likely impact on ecological character of proposed actions as required under the Environmental Protection and Biological Conservation Act 1999.

Ecological character descriptions for the Queensland sites are in preparation.

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Information and fact sheets

• Enhanced management of Ramsar wetlands: Great Sandy Strait catchments
• Incorporating Ramsar principles and wetland tools into park management planning
• Ecological Character Description of Ramsar sites in Queensland

Wetlands of national importance

Nationally important wetlands are listed in A Directory of Important Wetlands in Australia (DIWA) which is an inventory of information about wetlands assessed as meeting criteria for national importance.

The Queensland chapter includes 210 sites within 19 bioregions.

Wetlands listed in DIWA are included in the definition of significant coastal wetlands in the State Coastal Management Plan, in the absence of a Regional Coastal Management Plan.

• A Directory of Important Wetlands in Australia, 3rd edition (2001)
• Australian Wetlands Database

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