People need water to survive and have built communities around wetlands for thousands of years.
People use wetlands in a number of ways including fishing, farming, transport, tourism, recreation and sport.
Reeds from marshes are used by many communities to make boats and houses or for thatching. Peat bogs are used for garden soil and also provide a source of fuel.
River systems and canals have been used for centuries to transport goods and people from place to place and in many countries river transport is still the principal means of getting around. Many people rely on rivers and lakes for their water supply - most of the world’s usable freshwater is stored in wetlands which clean and filter water as well as protecting against the worst effects of floods.
Rice is the staple food of over half the world’s human population. It grows in paddy fields, man-made wetlands where the water level is always above the soil surface. There are about 7,000 types of rice in the world. In many areas, rice fields are still ploughed using Water Buffalo. This method has been used in China for 6-7,000 years and there are about 150 million domestic Water Buffalo in the world.
The energy from flowing water can also be used as an environmentally friendly way of producing electricity and hydroelectric power is generated in many countries all over the world.
Discover more about wetlands and their links to people by clicking here.