Banko Janakari, Special Issue Wise use of Wetlands in Nepal

Wetland was a nascent term for common peopleuntil recently. The same holds true for Nepal too. It is said that only in the 1970’s it appeared in the Oxford Dictionary. Before that wetlands were known by different names such as lake, pond, marsh, swamp, bog, fen etc. Wetlands were named according to the landscape in which they were found. Therefore, even today, the term “wetland ” does not have even a universally accepted definition because of the plurality of users, regional variations, biological diversities and richness in cultural values. The meaning vary from place to place and person to person. It has many forms but the common content, i.e. water, which is the bloodstream of wetland. Some of the common meanings that are in use around the world are briefly presented below. 1. A wetland is simply an area that is covered with water for a part of the day or year. 2. Wetland is a place where people can get their feet wet without being able to swim. 3. Wetland is neither a firm “land ” nor a body of open water; hence they occupy terrestrial position between land and water. The ecosystems that develop on such lands are dominated by the persistent presence of excess water, or saturated, or has the water table at, near or above the land surface. 4. The important feature is that a wetland has to be wet. However, they do not have to be wet all the time. They become biologically the most productive when they dry out periodically