Orinoquia Colombian
The first thing to clarify, is that the Ramsar Convention, relative to the wetlands of international importance, was ratified for Colombia by Act 357 of 1997 and came into force on June 18, 1998, as an intergovernmental Treaty signed in 1971 in Iran which serves as a framework for international cooperation for the conservation and wise use of wetlands and their resourcesHe hoped that the countries registered as Contracting Parties include truthful way wetlands in the list of the Convention; In this regard, and in accordance with the concept of wetland can be said that in Colombia, the approximate area of these systems is 20 million 252 thousand 500 hectares, represented by lakes, swamps and peat bogs, marshes, plains and flooded forests. Here comes the interesting part: flooded forests represent approximately 5 million 351 thousand 325 hectares and are located mainly in the Orinoquia, followed by Amazon, lower Magdalena and to less extent in the Pacific area. Now let’s spin fine and figures. Wetlands so far Colombia has entered to the list Ramsar are: Laguna de La Cocha, system that integrates 39,000 hectares (ha), in the Department of Narino as a wetland of international importance; being the second in Colombia after the Cienaga Grande of Santa Marta, which integrates 400,000 ha, designated in 1998; the complex of wetlands Laguna del Otun, which lies between 3300 and 4850 m elevation, within the Parque Nacional Natural Los Nevados in the cordillera central of Colombia (Department of Risaralda, Pereira and Santa Rosa de Cabal municipalities), 6579 hectares that correspond to moorlands and forests high Andean, characterized by a variety of microhabitats, flora and fauna; the delta of the high Baudo in the Choco with 8,888 ha; and the Lake system of Chingaza, with an approximate area of four thousand and fifty-eight (4058) hectares. So far, in addition to the Sierra De la Macarena, considered nationally as a protected area, the national Government has not included in the Ramsar agreement any portion of the vast territory of the Orinoquia, as wetlands internationally protected.
