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This Community
Conservation
Plan for
the Cumberland
Marshes
was prepared
as part
of Saskatchewan's
Important
Bird Area
(IBA) Program.
In this
program,
special
areas are
awarded
an Important
Bird Area
designation
for conservation
purposes
if the areas
are used
by large
concentrations
of birds,
if birds
present
are at risk,
or if the
sites represent
intact biomes
and their
natural
bird inhabitants
with restricted
ranges.
The Cumberland
Marshes in east-central
Saskatchewan to
refer to a 4,600
km2
lowland infused
with many lakes
and marshes, south
of the Saskatchewan
River and Cumberland
Lake, east of
103 degrees longitude,
west of the Manitoba
boundary and north
of Carrot River
and Highway 55.
The Cumberland
Marshes
satisfy
IBA criteria
by virtue
of having
Tundra Swan,
Mallard,
Ring-necked
Duck, Common
Goldeneye,
Redhead,
and Canvasback
use the
area for
breeding
or on migration
in "globally
significant"
numbers
- at least
1% of global
population
size.
Promising
conservation
opportunities
include
the First
Nations'
culture
and interdependence
with the
environment
in the region,
the land
use plans
and other
conservation
initiatives
that are
in place,
Ecotourism
and outfitting
that relies
on an ecologically
intact landscape
and the
recognition
of the ecological
services
the region
provides.
Threats
include
the cumulative
impacts
of a series
of small-scale
developments,
mineral
development,
upstream
water pollution,
invasion
of exotic
species
and diseases,
accidents
and disturbance.
This conservation
plan draws
attention
to the importance
of these
marshes
for birds,
and discourages
disruptions
of the ecosystem.
The plan
recognizes
that the
marshes
are most
valuable
in their
ecological
intact state
and seeks
to further
encourage
partnerships
between
the diverse
stakeholders
to protect
this region
in perpetuity.
Specific
recommendations
involve:
- monitoring
of changes
in local
conditions
- co-operation
to further
encourage
ecotourism
and
other
non-invasive
uses
of the
region
for
the
benefit
of local
people
- education
to highlight
the
value
of birds
and
the
ecosystem
The
IBA Program was
launched initially
by BirdLife International
in the UK. Today
there are BirdLife
Partners in over
100 countries.
In Canada the
national partners
are the Canadian
Nature Federation
and Bird Studies
Canada. In Saskatchewan,
the conservation
component of this
program is being
delivered by Nature
Saskatchewan.
Funding partners
of the Community
Conservation Plan
for Chaplin, Old
Wives and Reed
lakes include
Canadian Adaptation
and Rural Development
Saskatchewan (CARDS),
the University
of Saskatchewan,
Saskatchewan Environment
and Resource Management
(SERM) and the
Canadian Millennium
Partnership Program.
VISION
Our
vision is for
stakeholders to
join together
in the protection
of ecological
integrity, and
biological and
cultural diversity
in the Cumberland
Marshes IBA
INTRODUCTION
Bird conservation
is not 'just
for the
birds'.
In a widely
acknowledged
and visionary
treatment
of the causes,
human uses
and the
state of
decline
of diverse
life forms
on Earth,
E.O. Wilson
(1992) suggests
that certain
species
will and
should receive
special
attention.
Wilson points
out that
individual
species
which may
be large
and colorful
or otherwise
charismatic,
often are
conservation
favorites
even though
they represent
a small
fraction
of living
things.
Such species,
Wilson claims,
can motivate
conservation
at many
levels,
from individual
to government.
Since no
species
exists in
isolation
from other
species
or its environment,
such conservation
efforts
already
in the first
instance
serve to
protect
elements
of a functioning
life support
system.
If human
economic,
cultural
and social
values are
adopted
in addition
to species
and systems
concerns,
the conservation
efforts
will come
'full circle'
and have
gone well
beyond the
birds.
It is hoped
that this
report may
provide
a significant
impetus
for further
conservation
by:
- explaining
why
the
Cumberland
Marshes
are
'important',
- describing
the
marshes'
ecosystems
of which
the
birds
are
a part,
- reviewing
literature,
considering
what
is known
but
also
speculating
on
what
is not
known,
- anticipating
opportunities
and
concerns
across
as many
elements
of the
natural
system
as possible,
and
- outlining
opportunities
and
challenges
for
conservation
and
listing
potential
stakeholders
and
contact
people.
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