6) Wetland farming
Wetlands have been used for agriculture for millennia,
especially riverine wetlands in fl oodplains where soils
are fertile and water is plentiful. Indeed, wetlands
have nurtured the development of many important
cultures around the world – but the downside is that
drainage and reclamation of wetlands for agriculture
has become ever more widespread and effective.
In some regions of the world more than 50%
of peatlands, marshes, riparian zones, lake littoral
zones and fl oodplains have been lost, with conversion
for agricultural uses being one of the primary reasons
for these ongoing wetland losses. Today, roughly
2.5 billion rural people depend directly on agriculture,
forestry, fi shing and hunting or some combination
of these for their livelihoods. Thus agriculture is often
a primary driver of economic growth in developing
countries and provides critical economic support
for poor rural households.