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¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡¡ Definition of Wetland
¡¡¡¡¡¡The term "wetland" means different things to different people - indeed, there are about fifty definitions of wetlands in current usage. The definitions can be divided into two main groups - those, which are broad and those which are narrow. The definition made in Ramsar Convention on Wetlands is a broad one. There is a certain advantage to using it, which is described below. The Ramsar definition is internationally accepted and is used in China. Wetlands are: " Areas of marsh, fen, peatland or water, whether natural or artificial, permanent or temporary, with water that is static, flowing, fresh, brackish or salt, including areas of marine water, the depth of which at low tide does not exceed six metres." This definition encompasses reef flats and seagrass beds in coastal areas, through mudflats, mangroves, estuaries, rivers, freshwater marshes, swamp forests and lakes, as well as saline marshes and lakes. The narrow definitions generally look at wetlands as ecotones areas, which are transitional between terrestrial and aquatic environments and where the waterlogging of the soil causes the development of a characteristic vegetation. The definition applied in USA is a narrow one. According to the US Clean Water Act, the term wetlands means "those areas that are inundated or saturated by surface or ground water at a frequency and duration sufficient to support, and that under normal circumstances do support, a prevalence of vegetation typically adapted for life in saturated soil conditions. Wetlands generally include swamps, marshes, bogs and similar areas."
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