Bring Back Our Wetlands
Twenty percent of the drained wetlands in NSW that are being used for agriculture are below 1/2 metre above sea level, and are causing eighty percent of the acid and blackwater pollution problems in coastal rivers.
Already, rising seas and an increase in extreme flooding means these areas are becoming unsuitable for agriculture.
These low lying vulnerable areas that are at and below 1/2 metre AHD (above sea level) should be returned to functioning wetland as soon as possible.
Benefits:
- Wetlands draw down carbon 40 times faster than rainforests and hold 40% of the world's organic carbon.
- Mangroves absorb up to 71% of the energy of waves, protecting the coast from erosion and inundation from storm surges
- Will reduce water pollution in impacted coastal rivers by up to 80%
- More oysters and prawns!
The NSW government should provide landholders of these low lying floodplain areas a way to either sell the land to the government so it can be returned to functioning wetland, or benefit from receiving blue carbon payments.
We call on the government to:
- Work with the community to restore low lying, marginalised floodplain that is vulnerable to sea level rise back to functioning wetlands.
- Create a pathway for buying back drained wetland used for agriculture that is less than 1/2 metre above sea level from willing sellers, and restoring it to functioning wetlands.
- Set blue carbon wetland restoration targets.
Find more information here.