Did you know that 2nd February was World Wetlands Day? It celebrates the anniversary of the signing of the Ramsar Convention and the global push to preserve wetlands. They are one of the most crucial environments in the world, but face increasing pressure because of development, climate change, pollution, and other factors. It’s important to take steps to preserve them, especially when designing infrastructure, commercial architecture, housing, and other developments.

The Wetlands Convention

Significantly, we have been aware of the risk of losing wetlands for decades. The Ramsar Convention was signed in 1971, taking its name from the city in Iran where this took place. Since then there has been adoption in the majority of UN states all around the world. The UK became a member in 1976 and has 176 wetlands sites today.

While there has been lots of progress to preserve wetlands around the world, they are still under threat. In fact, reports say they are declining more rapidly than forests. This risks massive harm to the environment and economies around the world. Crucially, wetland sites are key for biodiversity, including plant and animal life. They are also essential for flood prevention, carbon storage, and more. Plus, they support over a billion jobs, including food production.

How to preserve them?

They are a number of different recommendations for the preservation of wetlands. Most importantly is the need for co-existence. Developments are necessary, including commercial architecture, housing, and infrastructure. So, we should be working to minimise the impact on wetland. In fact, the goal should be to conserve, restore, and ensure ongoing stewardship and management.

At interesting thing here is we have a wealth of traditional knowledge to call on. People have been living sympathetically alongside wetlands for generations in different countries. We can learn from them, exploring what works effectively to maintain the landscapes, waterways, flora and fauna.

As well as calling on traditions, we can apply new research and modern planning strategies to protect wetlands. Crucially, we can look closely at what we need to build and how to design in harmony with the environments. There are even clever ways to approach developments to reclaim wetland sites, allowing development by integrating into the landscapes.

There are also some fantastic opportunities to preserve wetlands and improve our carbon footprint. For example, creating sponge cities with wetland elements can increase the amount of carbon dioxide removed from the air. At the same time, they can manage water more effectively. This can reduce flood risks and increase filtration and purification so we can use resources more effectively.

Discuss your plans for commercial architecture and other developments with us

Coffey Architects has a lot of experience with designing buildings to fit into the environments. This helps to retain the character and heritage, and also ensures conservation of the ecosystems. We can look at all kinds of crucial elements, including water management, biodiversity, noise, pollution, and sustainability.

So, it you have a project in mind, whether it is commercial architecture, housing, or anything else, speak to us. We’re passionate architects and want to create designs that can ensure resilience and benefits for all stakeholders.