The Ramsar List was established in response to Article 2.1 of the Convention on Wetlands (Ramsar, Iran, 1971), which reads: "Each Contracting Party shall designate suitable wetlands within its territory for inclusion in a List of Wetlands of International Importance, hereinafter referred to as 'the List' which is maintained by the bureau [secretariat of the Convention] established under Article 8."Wetlands included in the List acquire a new status at the national level and are recognized by the international community as being of significant value not only for the country, or the countries, in which they are located, but for humanity as a whole.The Convention establishes that "wetlands should be selected for the List on account of their international significance in terms of ecology, botany, zoology, limnology or hydrology." Over the years, the Conference of the Contracting Parties has adopted more specific criteria interpreting the Convention text, as well as an Information Sheet on Ramsar Wetlands and a Classification system of wetland type.All issues pertaining to the Ramsar List were encapsulated in Resolution VII.11 adopted by the Conference of the Parties in May 1999 and entitled Strategic Framework and guidelines for the future development of the List of Wetlands of International Importance 1 , which has been frequently updated.Everything in the Strategic Framework is founded upon this "Vision for the Ramsar List": "To develop and maintain an international network of wetlands which are important for the conservation of global biological diversity and for sustaining human life through the ecological and hydrological functions they perform."Full data submitted by the Parties for each of their Ramsar Sites, with one-paragraph descriptions of each site, are entered in the Ramsar Sites Information Service (rsis.ramsar.org).
CoordinatesGeographical coordinates provided in this List are merely notional "centre points" for quick reference and are not intended to be legal specifications; for Sites with complex shapes or multiple parts, the centre points may not even lie within the Sites' boundaries. For detailed information on Ramsar Site boundaries, consult the Ramsar Information Sheets submitted by the Parties (Ramsar Sites Information Service).
AbbreviationsMR: Sites included in the Montreux Record, "a record of Ramsar Sites where changes in ecological character have occurred, are occurring or are likely to occur" maintained by the Secretariat in consultation with the Contracting Party concerned (Recommendation 4.8).TRS: Transboundary Ramsar Site, where "an ecologically coherent wetland extends across national borders and the Ramsar Site authorities on both or all sides of the border have formally agreed to collaborate in its management, and have notified the Secretariat of this intent". Site Date of designation Region, province, state Area Coordinates Site Date de désignation Région, province, état Superficie Coordonnées Sitios Fecha de designación Región, provincia, estado Area Coordenadas Albania / Albanie /...
