Environmental monitoring program area: Wetlands.
The aim of the program area Wetlands is to monitor the long-term development of wetlands, including hydrological status and biological diversity.
The program area is mainly focused on the environmental quality objective Thriving Wetlands, but it also relates to other environmental quality objectives.
The term wetlands can be defined in many ways. The Swedish EPA’s definition includes, bogs, marches, fens and mires, among others.
Wetlands are considered one of the most biologically diverse types of ecosystems. They are also important for species tied to surrounding ecosystems as well as migrating birds. Sweden is one of the most wetland-rich countries in the world.
Large areas have been drained
In the past century a large number of wetlands have been converted into other land types, in particular for the purpose of forestry and agriculture. In forested areas, extensive draining has been carried out to increase and ensure continued productivity. Large areas have also been lost through the harvesting of peat and through the covering of wetland beaches situated in proximity to lakes and rivers that are being used to produce hydropower.
Since the 1980s, wetlands have progressively gained stronger legal protections, for example through the creation of a stricter regulatory framework that frequently prohibits draining. There is a strong political will to preserve, restore and construct new wetlands. It is therefore essential to develop cost efficient tools to monitor the state of wetlands across the country.
Inventory/monitoring of wetlands
Since the early 1980s the Swedish EPA has performed a country wide inventory of wetlands collaboration with the local county administrative boards (länsstyrelsen). The inventory functions as a planning tool for national authorities as well as county administrative boards and municipalities.
Methods and subprograms for the Wetland program were developed in the 1990s, but the program was not financed within the budget for national environmental monitoring until 1999. Some monitoring of wetlands has occurred for a longer time period as part of the forest monitoring program.
Program strategy
The program strategy is to follow the state of Swedish wetlands in a cost-efficient manner and with a focus on biodiversity and pristine water. The goal of the environmental monitoring of wetlands is to give a comprehensive assessment of the ecological state of wetlands in Sweden in relation to the effects of land use on wetlands.
Reference group
Reference groups are used to cooperate and exchange information with other stakeholders in the monitoring area, often relevant governmental agencies, municipalities and County Administrative Boards.
The framework for the wetlands program area was designed together with a reference group consisting of the County Administrative Boards, the Swedish Forest Agency and the Swedish EPA.
The County Administrative Boards is the primary target group for this program area. Several of them are active in a reference group for wetland monitoring together with other governmental agencies and relevant organizations.
Revisions
A revision of the wetlands monitoring was carried out between 2016 and 2017. The reference group described above took an active part in this revision together with invited governmental agencies.