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Supervising Scientist produces a range of publications - please see the publications page for listings.
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Supervising Scientist Report 144
Finlayson CM & Spiers AG (eds)
Supervising Scientist, 1999
ISSN 1325-1554
ISBN 0 642 24347 6
This is a large file - we recommend you save the PDF on your computer/network before attempting to open it or print it.
The following abstract, executive summary or foreword/preface is reproduced here from the full report. The full report is available online in PDF or can be ordered in hard copy or CD from Publications, Supervising Scientist Division. See our publication ordering page for further instructions.
This review was undertaken by four small teams on four continents. Through the adoption of common procedures and reporting formats we have been able to assemble an international overview of the extent of wetland inventory information in each of the seven Ramsar administrative regions plus a further continental-scale review. A workshop was used to draw out the truly global lessons and recommendations and these are presented separately from the regional reports.
An inventory database and bibliography accompanied each of the regional reviews and the continental review. These are presented on the CD-ROM and Internet versions of this report along with the various reviews, an introductory and a summary paper. The hardcopy version of the report does not contain the databases or bibliography.
In conducting this review, the four teams worked towards a common goal, but with different approaches and resource levels relative to the real costs. Thus, whilst similar sums of money were assigned to each team it was acknowledged from the outset that the financial terms did not necessarily reflect the costs that would be incurred by each. This was reflected in terms of labour and communication costs which, in turn, were influenced by the extent of existing support services. Further, the overall budget for the project was considered to be a minimum required for addressing the ambitious terms of reference.
Staff from Wetlands International-Africa, Europe, Middle East in the Netherlands and those from the Environmental Research Institute of the Supervising Scientist in Australia were fortuitously able to link their reviews with other related projects, thereby extending the effort and output from each. The reports received from the various teams contracted to undertake these reviews reflect this difference.
Nevertheless, we believe the outputs and recommendations from this review provide an exciting opportunity for the global community to address the problems and inadequacies of the current global inventory resource, and take up the challenge of improving wetland inventory and management into the 21st Century.
