WWT Secures £200k Funding for Nepal Conservation Project
The Wildfowl & Wetlands Trust (WWT) has secured a £198,000 grant from the Government’s UK Darwin Initiative to fund a community wetland conservation project in Koshi Tappu, Nepal.
The Koshi Tappu Wildlife Reserve in the lowlands of eastern Nepal was declared a Ramsar Site in 1987, and is the most important wetland for migratory waterbirds in Nepal, and one of the most important in Asia. It is also home to the last remaining wild Asiatic water buffalo in Nepal, as well as Gangetic dolphins and Gharial crocodiles. The site is surrounded by a buffer zone in which 80,000 people live, most of whom are dependent on the natural resource base for their livelihoods. The project will work with local community groups to identify barriers to making a sustainable livelihood from buffer zone wetlands, and train staff from local organizations to enable them to pass on best-practice wetland management advice to local people. A small wetland centre will be established by enhancing existing facilities, which will provide a focus for education and information exchange.
Seb Buckton, Principal Project Officer for Habitats & Ecosystems at WWT, explains: 'This project is really about helping local communities to obtain a sustainable livelihood without damaging their surrounding environment. We are thrilled that this grant from the UK Darwin Initiative will enable us to achieve this.'
The Koshi Tappu Wildlife Reserve in the lowlands of eastern Nepal was declared a Ramsar Site in 1987, and is the most important wetland for migratory waterbirds in Nepal, and one of the most important in Asia. It is also home to the last remaining wild Asiatic water buffalo in Nepal, as well as Gangetic dolphins and Gharial crocodiles. The site is surrounded by a buffer zone in which 80,000 people live, most of whom are dependent on the natural resource base for their livelihoods. The project will work with local community groups to identify barriers to making a sustainable livelihood from buffer zone wetlands, and train staff from local organizations to enable them to pass on best-practice wetland management advice to local people. A small wetland centre will be established by enhancing existing facilities, which will provide a focus for education and information exchange.
Seb Buckton, Principal Project Officer for Habitats & Ecosystems at WWT, explains: 'This project is really about helping local communities to obtain a sustainable livelihood without damaging their surrounding environment. We are thrilled that this grant from the UK Darwin Initiative will enable us to achieve this.'
