World Wetlands Day 2018
World Wetlands Day is celebrated internationally on 2nd February each year, the anniversary date of the signing of the Ramsar Convention in Iraq in 1971. The theme for 2018 is “urban wetlands making cities liveable.”
A day of wetland celebrations will be held in Lauderdale on Sunday 4th February 2018, and all activities are fun, free and family-friendly! A series of educational and inspirational walksled by scientists will investigate theplants, animals, birds and other critters living in and around local saltmarsh and wetlands. Lauderdale School will be a hub for plenty of fun activities for kids and everyone throughout the day. There will be art and crafts, stalls and displays, face painting, live musicand a free BBQ run by the School Parents and Friends Association. The event runs from 9:30am-3:30pm and the official opening will be at 12pm at the School Sports Centre.
The event is being organised by a consortium comprising representatives of BirdLife Tasmania, Clarence and Sorell Councils, DPIPWE, NRM South, Derwent Estuary Program andUniversity of Tasmania. Previous years’ events have proven to be very successful with high community interest and attendance.
BirdLife Tasmania will be providing telescopes on the Lauderdale foreshore to spot resident and migratory shorebirds. The foreshore supports significant numbers of resident, breeding shorebirds, and migratory shorebirds from New Zealand and Siberia. Vishnu Prahalad from UTas will be exploring the Dorans Road saltmarshes, and helping identify the extensive saltmarsh vegetation on site. Phil Watson from Clarence City Council will guide people around the Roscommon Constructed Wetlands – a thriving wetland ecosystem which mitigates flooding and also treats stormwater to significantly improve water quality before it flows into Ralphs Bay. Stallholders in the Lauderdale School Sports Centreinclude NRM South, DPIPWE, Derwent Estuary Program, The Waterbug Company, local landcare groups and many more.
For further information on the Lauderdale event, visit:
and for information about wetlands and World Wetlands Day, visit: and