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19th January 2010
Support your Local Wetland
“To think is easy.
To act is difficult.
To act as one thinks is the most difficult of all.”
Johann Wolfgang von Goethe.
 Volunteers wanted to clear part of the reed bed at Lakeside Nature Reserve located in Ash, as part of World Wetlands Day on Tuesday February 2nd. The work is being carried out by the Blackwater Valley Conservation Volunteers, who welcome new recruits to join them, so by coming out for the day you will be taking part in a worldwide initiative.
Looking after our wetlands and keeping them healthy is essential for our survival, we cannot live without them, yet evidence suggests that globally we have probably already lost 50% and are still losing more. Wetlands are under threat from numerous sources, including lack of management, agriculture and urban and industrial development; excessive fresh water withdrawals; siltation; pollution; over exploitation; nutrient loading; invasive species and climate change. As a result wetland ecosystems across the world are at risk and that includes those in the Blackwater Valley area.
Created as a result of gravel extraction in the 1950s, Lakeside is a Local Nature Reserve owned by Guildford Borough Council covering 16 hectares (39 acres). It contains a mosaic of wildlife habitats including open lakes with reed beds, meadow areas, woodland and a small area of heathland, making it one of the richest ecological sites to be found in the Blackwater Valley.
This year the Ramsar Convention, who co-ordinate World Wetlands Day, has chosen the slogan “Caring for wetlands – an answer to climate change”, so by coming out to help maintain Lakeside Nature Reserve, one of your local wetland areas, you will not only be part of a global initiative, but also be doing your bit to protect your local environment.
If you would like to find out more about the conservation work on Tuesday 2nd February or would like to come along please ring Stuart at Blackwater Valley Countryside Partnership on 01252 331353 for more details. If required transport to the site is provided from Farnborough Gate. The Blackwater Valley Countryside Partnership helps maintain part of Lakeside Nature Reserve which is owned by Guildford Borough Council.
To find out more about World Wetland Days visit www.ramsar.org.
More about Lakeside Nature Reserve >>>
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For further information contact:
Christine Reeves, Visitor Promotions Officer on 01252 331353.
Blackwater Valley Countryside Partnership,
Ash Lock Cottage, Government Road, Aldershot GU11 2PS.
EDITOR NOTES
- 2nd February each year is World Wetlands Day. It marks the date of the adoption of the Convention on Wetlands on 2nd February 1971, in the Iranian city of Ramsar on the shores of the Caspian Sea. Each year since 1997, government agencies, non-governmental organizations, and groups of citizens at all levels of the community have taken advantage of the opportunity to undertake actions aimed at raising public awareness of wetland values and benefits in general and the Ramsar Convention in particular. More details can be found at the Ramsar website www.ramsar.org
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