Impact of Wetland Development and Degradation on the Livelihoods of Wetland-dependent Communities: a Case Study from the Lower Gangetic Floodplains

Abstract

‘Wise use’ of wetland ecosystem services has implications for achieving sustainable development goals. Globally, almost 87% of wetlands have been lost since 1700’s with losses projected to be much higher by 2050 in developing economies due to urbanisation. Little is known about how this loss might impact people’s wetland dependency at local scales in the peri-urban landscapes. To understand people’s perception about ecosystem services from the peri-urban Dankuni wetland in Eastern India and associated ecosystem changes, we conducted thirty-seven semi-structured interviews in a single village. Wetland-dependent people identified 18 ecosystem services of Dankuni wetland. The ecosystem services included 12 provisioning services and two each of regulatory, cultural and supporting services. Farming and use of wetland products including molluscs, fuelwood, fodder, fibre and fish was found to subsidize living costs and provide diverse livelihood options to local residents. However, encroachment of wetlands by factories and blockage of its riverine connection were reported as the main factors degrading the wetland.. As a result, life and livelihood of people, especially of landless widows and older residents were severely impacted. Respondents believed that it was possible to rejuvenate the wetland by restoring its riverine connections but stressed on vested interests in supporting its degradation. Their perceptions strongly impress upon the need for greater government accountability in wetland protection and integration of local knowledge along with locally suited political action in wetland restoration programmes. In this context, we strongly advocate for the implementation of laws that allow for wetland protection under a socio-ecological framework.

Full text

Vol.:(0123456789)
1 3
Wetlands (2022) 42:65
https://doi.org/10.1007/s13157-022-01588-w
WETLANDS INTHEDEVELOPING WORLD
Impact ofWetland Development andDegradation ontheLivelihoods
ofWetland‑dependent Communities: aCase Study fromtheLower
Gangetic Floodplains
TiasaAdhya1· SayanBanerjee2,3
Received: 29 December 2021 / Accepted: 29 July 2022
© The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Society of Wetland Scientists 2022
Abstract
‘Wise use’ of wetland ecosystem services has implications for achieving sustainable development goals. Globally, almost
87% of wetlands have been lost since 1700’s with losses projected to be much higher by 2050 in developing economies
due to urbanisation. Little is known about how this loss might impact people’s wetland dependency at local scales in the
peri-urban landscapes. To understand people’s perception about ecosystem services from the peri-urban Dankuni wetland
in Eastern India and associated ecosystem changes, we conducted thirty-seven semi-structured interviews in a single vil-
lage. Wetland-dependent people identified 18 ecosystem services of Dankuni wetland. The ecosystem services included 12
provisioning services and two each of regulatory, cultural and supporting services. Farming and use of wetland products
including molluscs, fuelwood, fodder, fibre and fish was found to subsidize living costs and provide diverse livelihood options
to local residents. However, encroachment of wetlands by factories and blockage of its riverine connection were reported
as the main factors degrading the wetland.. As a result, life and livelihood of people, especially of landless widows and
older residents were severely impacted. Respondents believed that it was possible to rejuvenate the wetland by restoring its
riverine connections but stressed on vested interests in supporting its degradation. Their perceptions strongly impress upon
the need for greater government accountability in wetland protection and integration of local knowledge along with locally
suited political action in wetland restoration programmes. In this context, we strongly advocate for the implementation of
laws that allow for wetland protection under a socio-ecological framework.
Keywords Ecosystem services· Livelihoods· Lower Gangetic Floodplain· Oral testimonies· Sustainable resource use·
Wetland loss and degradation
Abstracta
El “uso racional” de los servicios ecosistémicos de los humedales tiene implicaciones para el logro de los objetivos de
desarrollo sostenible. A nivel mundial, casi el 87% de los humedales se han perdido desde 1700 y se prevé que las pérdidas
sean mucho mayores para 2050 en las economías en desarrollo debido a la urbanización. Poco se sabe acerca de cómo esta
pérdida podría afectar la dependencia de los humedales de las personas a escala local en los paisajes periurbanos. Para
* Sayan Banerjee
sayan.workspace@gmail.com
Tiasa Adhya
adhyatiasa@yahoo.com
1 Conservation ofNatural Resources, MRes, The University
ofTrans-Disciplinary Health Sciences andTechnology,
Bengaluru, Karnataka, India
2 School ofNatural Sciences andEngineering, National
Institute ofAdvanced Studies, Bengaluru, Karnataka, India
3 Manipal Academy ofHigher Education, Manipal, Karnataka,
India

Wetlands (2022) 42:65
1 3
65 Page 2 of 12
comprender la percepción de las personas sobre los servicios ecosistémicos del humedal periurbano Dankuni en el este de
la India y los cambios ecosistémicos asociados, realizamos treinta y siete entrevistas semiestructuradas en una sola aldea.
Las personas dependientes de los humedales identificaron 18 servicios ecosistémicos del humedal Dankuni. Los servicios
ecosistémicos incluyeron 12 servicios de aprovisionamiento y dos de cada uno de los servicios regulatorios, culturales y
de apoyo. Se descubrió que la agricultura y el uso de productos de los humedales, incluidos moluscos, leña, forraje, fibra y
pescado, subvencionan los costos de vida y brindan diversas opciones de medios de subsistencia a los residentes locales. Sin
embargo, se informó que la invasión de los humedales por parte de las fábricas y el bloqueo de su conexión fluvial son los
principales factores que degradan el humedal.. Como resultado, la vida y el sustento de las personas, especialmente de las
viudas sin tierra y los residentes mayores, se vieron gravemente afectados. Los encuestados creían que era posible rejuvenecer
el humedal mediante la restauración de sus conexiones fluviales, pero hicieron hincapié en los intereses creados para apoyar
su degradación. Sus percepciones recalcan fuertemente la necesidad de una mayor rendición de cuentas del gobierno en la
protección de los humedales y la integración del conocimiento local junto con una acción política localmente adecuada en
los programas de restauración de humedales. En este contexto, abogamos fuertemente por la implementación de leyes que
permitan la protección de los humedales bajo un marco socioecológico.
Introduction
Ecologically productive wetlands provide a range of eco-
logical functions, or, ecosystem services that far outweigh
those provided by terrestrial ecosystems (Gardner and Fin-
layson 2018). Wetland ecosystem services can be analyzed
using the framework detailed in Millennium Ecosystem
Assessment (MEA) (2005). For instance, they can be cat-
egorized under provisioning services such as food security
(McCartney etal. 2010), supporting services such as regu-
lating water and sediment quality, pollutants and nutrients
(Chalov etal. 2017), regulating services such as mitigating
climate change (Mitsch etal. 2013; Fennessy etal. 2018),
and, cultural services such as providing cultural and spir-
itual inspiration (Pedersen etal. 2019). From an economic
perspective, the global value of these wetland-based ecosys-
tem services is worth USD 47.4 trillion per year (Davidson
etal. 2019). Moreover, by maintaining the most fundamental
nexus between water, food and energy (Russi etal. 2013),
wetland functions critically link human livelihoods with
sustainable development (McCartney etal. 2010; Gardner
and Finlayson 2018). It is globally acknowledged that these
ecosystems provide ecological infrastructure to meet a range
of international policy objectives which advocate for sustain-
able use of natural resources. Hence, the need to integrate
their ‘wise-use’ into national policies in order to achieve
the transition to resource efficient, sustainable economies is
imperative (Ramsar Convention Secretariat 2016). In fact,
wetlands are central to achieving Sustainable Development
Goals (SDGs), with ‘improving water quality’, ‘sustainable
management of resources’ and ‘efficient resource consump-
tion’ being identified as universal priority targets (Jaramillo
etal. 2019) and thus directly catering to SDG 2 (zero hun-
ger), 4 (quality education), 6 (clean water and sanitation),
8 (decent work and economic growth), 11 (sustainable cit-
ies and communities), 12 (responsible consumption and
production) and 13 (climate action). This is why balancing
between wetland conversion, sustainable utilization within
the context of maintaining both human well-being and eco-
system services, and, conservation with approaches has been
emphasized, particularly in developing countries, in which
wetlands are being rapidly degraded (Mahmood etal. 2013;
Darwall and Freyhof 2016; Mao etal. 2018; Finlayson etal.
2019; Kumar etal. 2020).
Wetlands are model socio-ecological systems, i.e., sys-
tems with social and ecological subsystems, characterised
by sustained human–environment interactions (Berkes 2017;
Langan etal. 2018). The high dependence of local communi-
ties on wetland ecosystems has been documented throughout
the world and especially in developing economies (Wondie
2018; Owethu and Buschke 2019; Camacho-Valdez etal.
2020; Aryal etal. 2021). Moreover, local ecological knowl-
edge could be indispensable in addressing knowledge gaps
on status of wetlands in countries where detailed wetland
inventories are missing. This might create spaces for the
choice of developing integrative and inclusive conservation
strategies by taking informed decisions on wetland resource
allocation when faced with competing uses such as diver-
sion for development purposes (Baird and Flaherty 2005; De
Groot etal. 2012; Camacho-Valdez etal. 2013; Adusumilli
2015; Chaikumbung etal. 2016). There is growing advo-
cacy in current literature to overcome human-nature dualism
to create management regimes in which the voices of local
resource users are prominently represented, especially where
inefficient administration, non-transparency, weak systems
of regulation and corruption exists (Baird and Flaherty 2005;
Sithirith 2015; Holl 2020; Kumar etal. 2020).
In this respect, recent estimates suggesting an 87%
decline in global wetland area since pre-industrial times
(Walpole and Davidson 2018), is both ecologically and
socially alarming. Infrastructure construction-led wetland
conversion and industrial waste disposal in the wetlands
were identified as important proximate causes of global
wetland degradation (Van Asselen etal. 2013; Gardner and

Wetlands (2022) 42:65
1 3
Page 3 of 12 65
Finlayson 2018), particularly in developing countries. Over
80% of untreated wastewater is released into wetlands glob-
ally (WWAP 2012; UN-Water 2015) with lower middle-class
countries treating 28% and low-income countries treating 8%
of their wetlands (Sato etal. 2013). Although wetland loss in
developing countries was historically lower than developed
countries, the future rates of loss is projected to be much
higher in the former, particularly in Asia, with a predicted
increase of urban population by 1.4 billion by 2050 (United
Nations 2008; Hettiarachchi etal. 2015), thereby leading
to increased risk of environmental disasters and livelihood
loss (Ghosh and Sen 1987; Azarath etal. 1988; Smardon
2009). Water pollution is also increasingly worsening the
conditions of all Asian rivers and wetlands (Davidson 2014;
WWAP 2017).
The Ramsar Convention on Wetlands of International
Importance especially as Waterfowl Habitat has fore-
grounded wetland governance in the global environmental
policy domain, but the Asian scenario highlights the con-
vention’s inadequacy in dealing with threats that originate
from urban development policies shaped largely by broader
political-economic forces of developmentalism (Hetti-
arachchi etal. 2015). In India, wetlands are protected as
per a national wetland law—Wetlands (Conservation and
Management) Rules 2017 (Ministry of Environment, Forest
and Climate Change 2017) under the overarching Environ-
ment Protection Act, 1986, yet various types of wetlands,
for example, marshlands are categorized as ‘wastelands’
under national development policies (National Remote Sens-
ing Centre 2010). Even though a law supersedes a policy,
rapid urbanization at the cost of wetlands continues, and has
become the leading cause of the loss of ecosystem services
in the Gangetic Plains1 (Das and Das 2019). For example,
the East Kolkata Wetland (EKW), a Ramsar site, located
within the Lower Gangetic Floodplains, has contracted sig-
nificantly due to encroachment of built up area in the metro-
politan city of Kolkata resulting in reduced productivity and
wild fish stocks (Kundu and Chakraborty 2017).
The social costs of urban development for communities
dependent on wetland ecosystem services in this floodplain
remain less studied, other than in EKW. Damodar-Hugli
interfluves2 in the Lower Gangetic Floodplains has a wet-
land complex called Dankuni (Sinha etal. 2013) with domi-
nant marshland vegetation in which one of the authors (TA)
conducted population surveys of Fishing Cat (Prionailurus
viverrinus), a wetland-dependent wild cat species (Adhya
etal. 2011). The Fishing Cat is a high-rated ‘Evolutionarily
Distinct and Globally Endangered’ (EDGE) species, i.e., a
priority species for research and conservation, as well as a
‘Vulnerable’ species according to the IUCN Red List assess-
ment (Mukherjee etal. 2016; Tensen 2018). It also deserves
the highest protection measures in India as per the Indian
Wildlife Protection Act, 1972. The study emphasized the
deleterious impact of industries and roads on the Fishing
Cat habitat. Later, in 2012, a Public Interest Litigation (PIL)3
was filed at the regional high court by non-government
organisations as much of the wetland encroachment was
happening without adequate land and environmental clear-
ances (Adhya 2015). Further, marshlands are recognized as
‘wetlands’ under Wetlands (Conservation and Management)
Rules 2017 (Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate
Change 2017), which prohibits alteration of its ecological
character for development purposes. Local residents like
farmers, fishermen and inhabitants of villages surrounding
the wetland complex, who were both directly and indirectly
dependent on the wetlands for its provisioning and regulat-
ing services (e.g.—flood prevention), had also registered
protests against the degradation with one prominent activ-
ist being murdered (Adhya 2015). However, irrespective of
litigations, protests and existence of environmental laws,
the degradation of the Dankuni wetland complex continues.
This is partly facilitated by the non-transparent practice of
declaring tracts of wetlands as agricultural land and thereaf-
ter converting them for industrial or real-estate construction
purposes as has been acknowledged in the draft West Ben-
gal Wetlands and Waterbodies Conservation Policy, 2012.
Moreover, an inventory of the state’s wetlands is yet to be
prepared, as is mandated as per the Wetlands (Conservation
and Management) Rules, 2017. This indicates the prevalence
of serious apathy towards non-charismatic, non-protected,
peri-urban wetlands, and the absence of the will to enforce
regulations. Such wetlands are rather considered as easy land
banks that can be converted for development purposes.
Thus, we wanted to understand the importance of this
wetland to the people and environment, which is being
threatened due to development, through a study on direct
and indirect dependencies of local residents on its ecosys-
tem services. Some of the interviewees were also directly
involved in protests and campaigns against the wetland deg-
radation occurring throughout the marshes encompassing a
number of villages with similar demography. We considered
this study critical to understanding implications for the sus-
tainable use of this wetland, the maintenance of its ecologi-
cal character and persistence of threatened species like the
Fishing Cat. With this background, the specific objectives of
the study were to investigate—a) local resident’s dependency
on the Dankuni wetland complex, b) their perceptions of
1 Gangetic Plains constitute part of the Ganges Brahmaputra Basin.
2 Interfluves are elevated terrains between two rivers flowing in the
same direction in the same drainage system.
3 PIL type litigations can be filed by any citizen in the court of law if
the issue in hand affects public interest.

Wetlands (2022) 42:65
1 3
65 Page 4 of 12
changes in the condition of the wetland, c) their perceptions
of changes in their livelihoods and living due to wetland
changes, d) their perceptions of political-economic forces as
drivers of change, and, e) how according to them the threats
to the ecosystem could be addressed.
Methodology
Study Site
We chose to conduct the study in a single village, Jhakari
(22.75N, 88.29E to 22.75N, 88.30E), located on the fringes
of the Dankuni wetland complex (see Fig.1).
The Dankuni wetland complex is approximately 30 km2
in area and is perhaps one of the last contiguous marshy
stretches in the Damodar-Hugli interfluves of the Lower
Gangetic Floodplains. It is traversed by one of the busiest
railway tracks of the region and is bounded with a national
highway in the east.
The wetland complex is dominated by both tall and short
emergent vegetation4 which are visual cues of marshlands.
It experiences seasonal inundation and flooding during mon-
soon (June–September) especially due to its connection with
the river Ganges and starts drying up post-monsoon (Octo-
ber onwards). By summer (March–May), surface water is
retained only in some depressions. The wetland is a popular
birding site as it provides refuge to both resident and migra-
tory birds throughout the year (Hazra etal. 2012). Apart
from this, freshwater fishes, snakes, turtles, amphibians and
various kinds of insects especially damselflies have been
reported by nature enthusiasts, the exact numbers of which
remain to be ascertained. Mammals like Small Indian mon-
goose, Palm Civet, Small Indian Civet, Golden Jackal, Jun-
gle Cat and Fishing Cat are also present. During the dry
season (December to May), cultivation takes place in some
Fig. 1 (a) Location of Dankuni wetland in West Bengal, India, (b) Land use/land cover map of Jhakari at Dankuni wetland, (c) Photo of marsh-
land in Dankuni wetland
4 These plants are found in shore areas near waterbodies. Some
plants are completely submerged, while some are rooted in the wet-
land soil, with their stems, leaves and flowers rising above the water.

Wetlands (2022) 42:65
1 3
Page 5 of 12 65
portions (Hazra etal. 2012). Some areas of the wetland were
converted for small-scale aquaculture farms in the last two
decades. Local residents also collect grasses, wild flow-
ers and stalks, plant parts, molluscs and wild fish from the
wetlands.
Jhakari is a typical peri-urban village located in the fringe
of the Dankuni wetland complex which is neither completely
rural nor fully urban. It is well-connected by road and rail
infrastructure and is located 35km from the metropolitan
city of Kolkata. The human population of the village con-
sists of approximately 1000 families and the structure of
the village society is heterogeneous with people belonging
to both Scheduled and General Castes.5 Most people are
Hindus and a small section of Muslims are also present who
are economically poor and landless.
Methods
Fieldwork was carried out in 2019–2020 and thirty seven
semi-structured interviews, consisting of 7 female and 30
male interviewees were conducted through snowball sam-
pling. The interviews were conducted in the local Bengali
language. A villager was first approached and asked whether
he/she was native to the village and could devote some time
for the interview after which the motivation of the study was
explained. It was also stated that their names would remain
anonymous. Upon gaining consent, semi-structured inter-
views were conducted with the questions structured around
the objectives described above (See Supplementary Mate-
rial). No guideline or reference questionnaire was used to
design the study questionnaire as it was formed based on the
knowledge gained during one of the author’s (TA) informal
interactions with the local community when she conducted
her survey on the Fishing Cat here. With the respondent’s
consent, the oral testimonies were recorded using a voice-
recorder. Information was collected on their dependency
on wetlands starting with leading questions such as do they
farm, fish, collect anything from the wetland that helps them
in their daily lives and provides them livelihood. Secondly,
they were asked whether they perceived any change to the
wetlands since their childhood as well as recently. During
the course of the conversation, we tried to understand how
the change might have affected their livelihood and living.
Thirdly, we examined their perceptions of threats to the wet-
land. Lastly, we asked ‘if anything can be done to address the
threats’, ‘if so, what’ and ‘if any interventions were taken by
local residents or the government’.
Most women declined to participate in the interviews as
either they were extremely busy with their daily household
chores or they felt that the male member of the household
was more knowledgeable to appear for an interview.
Later, the audio-recorded interviews were transcribed and
translated. The transcripts were divided into broader themes
like ‘ecosystem services’ which was further subdivided into
‘provisioning’, ‘regulating’, ‘cultural’ and ‘supporting’. The
transcripts were divided into broader themes such as ‘eco-
system services’ which was further subdivided into ‘provi-
sioning’, ‘regulating’, ‘cultural’ and ‘supporting’. Under the
theme of ‘provisioning’ we noted all the statements where
people described usage of different materials obtained from
the wetland. Under the ‘regulating’ and ‘cultural’ themes,
we noted all the statements where people described the
wetland’s role as a regulator of other environmental fac-
tors, especially water, and as a site for developing affective
social ties, respectively. Under the ‘supporting’ theme, we
documented the statements describing the wetland’s produc-
tion of conducive environment for growth of the materials
that are derived by people. The other themes were ‘impacts’,
‘reasons for degradation’, and ‘addressing threats’ with the
latter containing information on efforts to address threats
to the wetland. Other relevant information was noted in the
‘comments’ section. In the results section we have exten-
sively used people’s testimonies but instead of using actual
names, we have used the initials of their full name as an
anonymised marker.
Results
Wetland Dependency oftheStudy Village
We identified 18 ecosystem services from the oral testimo-
nies (see Table1) out of which 4 ecosystem services pro-
vided important sources of livelihood.
Twelve products including plants and animals, edible and
non-edible, were identified by the respondents which they
obtain from the wetland. Interviewees commonly cultivated
edible crops such as paddy, onion, ladies finger, spinach,
coriander, beans, cow pea, Indian pea. Among these, paddy
was the most important resource for local consumption
as well as livelihood. The harvested rice is generally kept
for consumption and the excess rice is sold at 1000–1300
Indian Rupees ( INR6)/bag with each bag containing 60kg
rice. 50year old GB said “The paddy we harvest is good in
quality, much more healthy and tasty than the rice provided
at government ration shops which is often mixed with dirt
and small stones,” indicating that he felt a certain pride in
5 Caste is a category of social hierarchical difference, especially
within Hindu religious identity, based on ritual purity. Castes which
have been exploited throughout history, have been constitutionally
provided social protection and affirmative action under the category
of Scheduled Caste. 6 1 INR = 0.013 USD.

Wetlands (2022) 42:65
1 3
65 Page 6 of 12
harvesting his own rice. Another farmer, 43year-old NT,
further added that the rice from fair price shops costs around
32–33 INR/kg but his children refuses to eat it because of its
poor quality. On the other hand, premium quality rice was
reportedly too costly to afford. Other crops are also sold:
onion @ 30 INR /kg, coriander @ 70 INR /kg, spinach @
70 INR /kg, beans @ 40 INR /kg, okra @ 53 INR /kg and
Indian pea @ 60 INR/kg. KK, a 30year old farmer, seemed
happy with the significant profit returns from his piece of
land after harvesting these crop types, “I spent 20,000 INR
for harvesting onion and okra but earned 80,000 INR. After
harvesting the paddy, I planted jute in the same land. I spent
20,000 INR in labour again but earned 50,000 INR. For
paddy, if I spend 10,000 INR in labour, I get back 26,000
INR.”
Bamboo (Bambusa balcooa) and mud were frequently
used wetland products for constructing houses. Bamboo was
also used for making fish catching traps, broomsticks and
baskets. These products provided additional sources of live-
lihood and were particularly useful when cultivation failed.
29year old DD’s crops failed in 2019 but he survived by
selling fish catching traps for 250 INR and baskets for 50
INR.
For widows from Jhakari, who were landless, collecting
and selling molluscs from the wetland provided the major
source of livelihood, through which they could provide for
their children. AK, a 63-old widow, reminisced the physi-
cally challenging, yet economically rewarding work of
searching for molluscs in waist-deep water in the wetland
during the day with a company of other women. They then
sold them for 80 INR/kg via middlemen who gave back
30–50 INR/kg. 60year old SK rather preferred selling them
door-to-door or by herself in the market and reportedly
earned 200 INR/kg. Even after their children grew up and
started earning, these widows did not stop this work. They
reported that earnings from selling molluscs helped them
remain economically independent as well as provided means
to support their family when needed. As AK explained with
a tone of clear confidence, “My sons look after me but I
choose not to ask for money from them to cater to my needs
and cravings.” She also added that molluscs are packed with
nutrition and are good for eyesight as was told to her by
doctors.”
Almost all respondents fished in the recent past (till
5years ago). Many of them are still involved in fishing. Fish
is caught by various methods. SK caught fishes with her bare
hands rather than with fish traps or nets and reported that
Singee (Heteropneustes fossilis) and Magur (Clarius batra-
chus) are difficult to get, but if caught, they fetch upto INR
1000/kg. Smaller fish like Koi (Cyprinus rubrofuscus) can
be sold for 200–300 INR/kg at the nearby market.
Fuelwood (Kath-shola / Aeschynmene indica, jute-sticks
and bamboo), fodder, edible plants and plant fibre are useful
wetland resources in the village. BT, a 50year old widow,
was especially dependent on fuelwood collected from the
swamp to run her small eatery which catered to farmers in
the field and to factory workers. Villagers also depended on
swamp grass to feed their cows. Leafy vegetables and stalks
of aquatic plants were widely collected for local consump-
tion. Poorer people such as widowed women and older resi-
dents sold them too. Kath-shola (Aeschynmene aspera) was
also used for making marriage gear for brides and grooms
and for decorating religious deities. KK (30) reported the
selling price to be 300 INR/bundle while SD (49) said that
people earn 400–500 INR/bundle to even 1000 INR/bundle
during summer. Water from the swamp was reportedly used
Table 1 Types of ecosystem
services provided by Dankuni
wetlands
Types of ecosystem services Ecosystem services recorded % of
respondents
reported
Provisioning (12) Seasonal farming
Fish
Edible wild flowers
Leafy vegetables
Mollusc
Fibre
Water
Mud
Bamboo
Jute-stick
Fuelwood
Fodder
54
27
5
16
35
22
5
35
43
3
27
30
Regulating (2) Water purification Flood regulation 30
Cultural (2) Capacity to reflect
Recreation 10
41
Supporting (2) Fish nursery
Nutrient retention 70
53

Wetlands (2022) 42:65
1 3
Page 7 of 12 65
for irrigating farm plots. “If there is no swamp, then, water
for agriculture will not be available anymore. The surround-
ings are drying up day by day,” said said 32year old PM.
Older residents also benefited from the wetlands as they
could undertake less laborious tasks and were still able to
support their families. “I cultivate a little bit of onion and
take the cattle out to graze. I also collect edible plants from
the swamp. At my age, that’s as hard as I can work to support
myself and the family. But I will not be able to do this if the
swamp is lost and will have to depend on others for food.”
Regulating Services
From the oral testimonies, we identified two regulatory ser-
vices of the wetlands – flood control and water purification.
PM (32) explained “If the wetlands degrade, the waters in
monsoon will flood our houses.” HT (70) said “People who
went to work in the swamp did not need to carry water with
them because the swamp water was available. It was like
filtered water.”
Cultural Services
Residents shared that the wetlands provided them with the
opportunity to reflect on life while younger children enjoyed
recreational activities. 49year old SD shared how children
in the village created doll houses and dolls made out of mud
taken from the wetland whereas young adults used the wet-
land space as social bonding sites. On the other hand, the
wetlands inspired reflection among interviewees evident
in their words. 32year old ST for instance stated how the
swamp brings prosperity to them and gives them a chance
to cultivate “food of self-respect”.
Supporting Services
We identified two supporting services which are nutrient
retention and sustenance of fish stocks from the oral testi-
monies. 35year old PS, for example, stated how the water-
logged lands became fertile after recession of the floods
thus facilitating farming. 30year old KK on the other hand
explained how the wetland created a conducive environment
for fish to breed in.
Change intheWetland Quality andits Human Cost
Respondents perceived a steady degradation in the wetland’s
quality in the last 20years with the trend worsening rapidly
during the last three to four years. From their testimonies,
it is apparent that this change has affected their livelihoods
and living in significant ways.
58year old ST stated that the swamp was four times
bigger two decades back compared to the present extent.
Majority of the respondents reported a reduction in the quan-
tity of products obtained from the wetland. “Tides used to
come into the swamp through the canal which connected
it with Ganges bringing in a variety of fish like Bele, Koi,
Singhi, Punti and their eggs,” said 50year old GB while
describing how the wetland functioned in the past. Large
sized prawns also used to be available which fetched signifi-
cant monetary returns. Post-monsoon, the flood waters in the
swamp would slowly recede through the canal into Ganges
exposing nutrient-rich soil fit for harvesting. “Paddy like
amon, neramon and beta, pulses, okra, potato, cauliflower,
onion, leafy vegetables, gourds and water melons could be
cultivated in the past. Bags full of food used to be harvested
during April,” reminisced 50year old GB. Availability of
molluscs and edible wetland plants as well as Aeschynmene
which provides fibre reportedly decreased substantially over
the years.
According to the respondents, the swamp water seemed to
have degraded in quality as well due to loss of its connection
with Ganges over the last 15–20years. This had increased
the duration of waterlogging and created an unhygienic con-
dition. “The swamp water is rotting. People get skin diseases
now,” says senior citizen DB while teenager P remembered
how clean the water used to be in the canal during his child-
hood when it was connected to Ganges “The water was so
clear that if one dropped a coin, it would be visible right till
it hit the bottom. I used to dive into the canal from the bridge
to take a bath. The water has now become blackish espe-
cially since the last three to four years.” The respondent’s
testimonies suggest that fish diversity and abundance had
decreased substantially over the years, especially Nandus
nandus, Ophisternon bengalense, Glossogobius giuris and
Mystys vittatus as 65year old DB shared. “I still remember
how my grandmother used to come back with baskets full
of crabs in the past which she used to sell for 2–3 INR/
kg whereas now we sell them for 100 INR/kg,” reminisced
49year old SD implying that crabs had become scarce. Fish
spawns were reported to be dying in the wetland as the out-
flow of the swamp water got blocked. Aquatic weeds and
leaches had instead proliferated in recent times and the water
had become unsuitable for irrigation. 52year old U shared,
“We don’t drink water from the swamp anymore.”
The degradation in the quality of the wetland had
changed the way of life in the village. GB, who is 50years
old now, shared that he did not have to go outside for work
as a younger person as they could get expensive fish like
Heteropneustes fossilis for free from the swamp as well as
pulses and a variety of vegetables. “Those days are gone
now. If I go for fishing now, I will catch fish worth less
than 250 INR whereas if I work as a hired labourer I will
earn atleast 250–300 INR/day. Fish from the swamp was
so integral to our diet. The fish catch used to be huge. Even
after feeding the whole family, the remaining could be sold

Wetlands (2022) 42:65
1 3
65 Page 8 of 12
for 300–500 INR/day during monsoon.” Similar sentiments
were echoed by other respondents and many reported leav-
ing agriculture and fishing due to lower economic returns
and thus, being forced to work as hired labourers. Due to
lower productivity, many had sold off their land to overcome
financial shocks. “Businessmen buy these lands at lesser
prices (8,00,000–10,00,000 INR/bigha) taking advantage
of unemployed people who are in need of cash and thus
sell them at a huge cost (2,00,000 – 3,00,000 INR/katha),”
shared PS (35).7 Some land-owners also decided to convert
parts of their water-logged land to small-scale aquaculture.
During 2019–2020, the region received excessive rain-
fall due to cyclonic depressions over Bay of Bengal which
further aggravated the situation. Due to the blockage of the
channel connecting the wetland to the river, excess rain
water could not flow out, prolonging the water logged situa-
tion. The standing water from the land usually starts reced-
ing by end of October yet GB’s land remained water-logged
till mid-January, “In October the land must remain muddy
but it has to lose its moisture after that if the onion yield is
to be good. It is too late now.” The calamity even disrupted
age-old cultural practices as reported by 38year old RB, “By
this time okra plants become upright and even starts flower-
ing. It takes at least 15–20days for the seeds to germinate.
As soon as they do, we celebrate Makar Sankranti, a festival
that marks the onset of the new harvest, a 250year old tradi-
tion. But where is the harvest to celebrate this year?”.
Drivers ofChange
Respondents unanimously identified presence of factories
as the main factor causing degradation of the Dankuni wet-
land. According to most respondents, the emergence of
garment and fertilizer factories and warehouses, in the last
15–20years, coincided with the beginning of degradation
and wetland shrinkage as they were constructed by filling
up parts of the wetland. The factories HT, a senior citizen,
explained, “The swamp has shrunk to a fourth of what it
used to be due to the construction of factories. 25years back,
this was all swamp,” he said pointing to the horizon and
beyond on both sides. 34year old KT detailed, “The first
factory was constructed in the wetland 15years back. Gradu-
ally, other factories also emerged.” ST added, “They dump
sand, soil, ash and debris into the wetland everyday and this
blocks the passage of water out of the swamp.” PM fur-
ther explained, “The discharged solid waste materials have
accumulated in the canal connecting the wetland to Ganges,
making it significantly shallow and the waters stagnant.”
The respondents mentioned that the sluice gate of the main
canal was not functioning due to which wastewater released
by the factories stayed locked inside the wetland. Large buf-
falo shelters constructed along the canal also added to the
problems. “The cattle waste is discharged into the swamp.
One can find syringes and broken pieces of glasses in the
swamp nowadays,” said 50year old TB.
Perceptions onThreat Mitigation
Almost all respondents said that the only way to restore the
health of the wetlands is by dredging the canal that connects
the wetland to the river. They also reported that at various
times they had informed local politicians and administrative
officials of the dire situation of the wetlands but to almost
no avail. “They created a small outlet after we agitated but
that is not enough. The sluice gate of the main canal has to
be repaired. It is broken and clogged with debris. Some of us
went there to clean it up but did not succeed,” said KK, him-
self a senior citizen. Respondents felt that the weed clean-
ing drives conducted by the panchayat did not yield desired
results. Lamenting on failed mitigation actions, 70year old
HT said “There are so many factors due to which the swamp
is dying. Just cleaning water hyacinth is not enough. We
are unable to farm but our MLAs and MP8s do not bother.
Nowadays factories run the government so the government
will work to benefit them.” The respondents also thought
that the onus of protecting the swamp lay with the local
community as well. In this respect 32year old ST stressed,
“If the owners protest in unison, the government will have to
respond. But if they sell off their land instead, how will the
situation be rectified?” However, the views of 38year old
RB differed in this matter, “People do not raise their voices
as this kind of destruction is being done by very powerful
people at helm who have a lot of money. They will squash
us like insects.” In addition, lands belonging to community
members were often sold off without their knowledge. Simi-
lar processes were at work in other villages surrounding the
wetland, which led to its degradation on the one hand and
impacted the livelihoods and living of dependent communi-
ties on the other.
Discussion
Our study showed that villagers residing beside a peri-urban
wetland, Dankuni, in the rapidly urbanising Lower Gangetic
Floodplains, perceived that the wetlands enhanced the qual-
ity of their lives, subsidized their living and provided liveli-
hoods. However, establishment of factories and pollution
8 MLAs (Member of Legislative Assembly) and MPs (Member of
Parliament) are the political representatives at the state and central
government, respectively.
7 1 katha = ~ 67 sq metres, 1 bigha = ~ .0013 sq km.

Wetlands (2022) 42:65
1 3
Page 9 of 12 65
discharged from them into the wetland along with politi-
cal apathy to rectify the same reportedly led to diminishing
returns/services and had serious negative social implica-
tions including loss of livelihood, increased disaster risk
and exposure to financial vulnerabilities.
We recorded eighteen ecosystem services of the Dankuni
wetlands with twelve provisioning services such as edible
crop farming (for example, paddy and vegetables), non-
edible crop farming (jute), collection of wetland products
such as fish, molluscs, edible wild plants, fibre, water, mud,
bamboo, fuelwood and fodder. The wetland was found to
subsidize the living costs of respondents. For instance, they
could procure cattle fodder, fuelwood, fibre, edible plants,
house-building materials and molluscs, without any invest-
ment. Apart from this, the wetland also provided regulatory
services (like flood control and water purification), support-
ing services (like nutrient retention and providing refuge
for fish stocks) which sustained the provisioning services,
and, cultural services that enhanced the quality of their lives.
Landless widows and older residents seemed to be solely
dependent on the wetlands for subsistence and livelihood.
This dependence of women and older residents on common
natural resources (such as wetlands) has in fact been well
documented elsewhere (Ahmed etal. 2008; Mundoli etal.
2017; Sinthumule 2021).
However, the oral testimonies clearly suggested that there
has been significant erosion in all ecosystem services of the
wetland over the last 15–20years and especially in the last
three to four years. This degradation coincided with the
emergence of factories during the same time span which
according to locals were constructed by filling up the wet-
lands, thereby blocking the flow of water between the wet-
land and the river. Moreover, wastewater generated from the
factories and debris from buffalo shelters had contributed
to blocking the canal connecting the wetland to the Gan-
ges. A similar process was observed by one of the authors
(TA) in Chilika, a Ramsar site on the Indian eastern coast,
where buffalo shelters were first constructed on embank-
ments leading to the lagoon, presumably to create block-
ages. Thereafter portions of the lagoon were cut off to cre-
ate illegal aquaculture farms. Constructing buffalo shelters
could therefore be a ploy to obstruct vigilance and facilitate
wetland conversion. Shrinking and subsequent degradation
of the wetland’s water quality rendered it unfit for drinking
and irrigation purposes. Fish abundance and diversity was
especially affected due to the same reasons and the progres-
sive clogging of the wetlands has decreased its capacity to
regulate floods in the face of erratic and excessive rainfall,
which affected farming, as was experienced by respondents
during 2019–2020. In the era of accelerated climatic shifts,
rainfall patterns are poised to be erratic and could therefore
cause more urban floods (O’Donnell and Thorne 2020). This
has implications for disaster risk management in the sur-
rounding urban and peri-urban areas of Dankuni wetlands.
Unsustainable use of wetlands has been known to impair
wetland functions and permanently damage socio-ecolog-
ical systems elsewhere in the world (Vilardy etal. 2011;
Jaramillo etal. 2018). Similar storylines are evolving out of
most South Asian countries in which water sources and river
health has been severely compromised due to unplanned
development (Pal and Talukdar 2018; Reis etal. 2017;
Sarkar etal. 2021) decreasing their ecosystem values. In
fact, degradation of the wetland was perceived by villagers
at Jhakari as an attack on a self-sustaining ecosystem which
is giving or had given them prosperity, autonomy and pres-
tige, with the lands of many being simply snatched away
without their consent or knowledge. People felt that they
were increasingly being pushed towards relying on exter-
nal actors such as urban markets and unpredictable climate.
From being self-dependent, they were being pushed to work
as urban labourers for financial security. Urbanisation has
been known to cause the loss of these affective dimensions
and silence the voices of the marginalized sections of the
society (Unnikrishnan etal. 2016; Mundoli etal. 2017). As
a result, like other parts of India (Mahanta and Das, 2012),
increasing rural-to-urban dependency may be witnessed
because of the vicious cycle of wetland health deterioration
and consequently of people’s care for and ownership towards
it. Some villagers had sold off their land due to diminishing
ecosystem services of the degraded wetlands.
Even though we did not directly explore the relevance
of SDGs to wetland dependence for the local community at
our study site, the testimonies foreground vernacular forms
of people’s understanding of sustainability. Through their
description of various ecosystem services, people referred
to various conceptualisations of SDGs, such as, SDG 1, no
poverty (living cost subsidy), SDG 2, zero hunger (food
material provisions), SDG 3, good health and wellbeing and
6, clean water and sanitation (emotional wellbeing and good
water quality), SDG 8, decent work and economic growth
(decent work of collecting materials with self-respect) and
SDG 14, life under water (fish nursery). Thus, maintaining
ecological health of wetlands could lead to sustainable cities
and communities (SDG 11). Jaramillo etal. (2019) identified
the improvement of water quality and adoption of ‘wise-use’
of wetlands as central to achieving a range of SDGs covering
environmental health, equity, human well-being and justice.
Respondents at Jhakari believed that the water quality could
be improved if the canal connecting it to river Ganges was
dredged which would allow the polluted water of the swamp
to flow out and tidal waters to flow in. Globally, wetland res-
toration with inputs from local communities has been encour-
aged because of their better understanding of the ecosystem
given their closer association with it (Finlayson etal. 2019).

Wetlands (2022) 42:65
1 3
65 Page 10 of 12
Although local knowledge can facilitate successful
community-based conservation and restoration of ecosys-
tems including wetlands (Amano etal. 2018; Kongkeaw
etal. 2019; Walle and Nayak 2020), it is hardly encouraged
because of the absence of cross-sectoral policy integration
for environmental protection along with the prevalence of
rampant corruption, the subsequent suppression of local
voices and the negligence of environmental laws enhanc-
ing socio-ecological vulnerability as a common practice in
developing countries (Hettiarachchi etal. 2015; Sen and
Nagendra 2020). People’s testimonies identified probable
political actions which can be useful to centre-stage socio-
ecological concerns and improve ecological health as has
been shown in Apipalakul etal. (2015) and Roose and Panez
(2020). The testimonies also suggested technical interven-
tions for rejuvenating the wetland. However, the decade-long
litigation battle at Dankuni wetlands to prevent the illegal
filling up of wetlands coupled with the presence of a syn-
dicate between local politicians, administrators and factory
owners to rapidly develop the wetland, as is perceived by the
interviewees, foregrounds the need to increase government
accountability and uphold the core tenets of sustainability
to counter (mal)development– ‘precautionary’ and ‘polluters
pay’. It is pertinent to stress here that existing Indian laws
allow for the involvement of local communities in conserv-
ing socio-ecological spaces. For instance, the Indian Bio-
logical Diversity Act, 2020, has provisions to declare areas
as Biodiversity Heritage Sites, the criteria being that tradi-
tional practices will sustain threatened species and maintain
the ecological functions of an ecosystem. Globally there is
consensus that wetlands should be conserved within a socio-
ecological framework (Kumar etal., 2020). In this regard,
remaining wetlands outside protected areas in India can be
conserved by developing management plans in collaboration
with local residents, researchers, administrators and politi-
cians as per provisions in the above act.
Conclusion
The Lower Gangetic floodplains, which includes Dankuni
wetland, is replete with a variety of wetlands that sustain
the livelihoods and culture of many communities both in
India and Bangladesh. However, our case study from Jhakari
shows that such peri-urban wetlands are being developed
rapidly and thus compromising sustainable and resilient
futures. Popular opinion often point towards rising popula-
tion as the sole cause for ecosystem changes. However, tak-
ing cue from the people of Jhakari, we need to hold (mal)
development models accountable for such negative changes.
People’s prescription of increasing governmental account-
ability point towards vernacular conceptualisations of
‘precautionary’ and ‘ polluter-pays’ principle, which are core
issues of sustainability principles. The social and ecological
costs of such pursuit of development reinstates that sustain-
ability remains as a rhetoric. Wetland ecosystems are crucial
for achieving many SDGs but continue to be sacrificed at the
altar of development. Even though our study is situated in a
single peri-urban village Jhakari, the learning we generated
from people’s lives there resonates with different communi-
ties whose lives and livelihoods have been threatened due
to ecosystem degradation across Asia. So, people’s accounts
of ecosystem degradation, subsequent repercussions and
necessary actions needed to restore the ecosystem func-
tions need to be taken seriously as evidences in academic
research, institutional mechanisms and on-ground actions.
Such integration of local knowledge and locally suited action
will help in building place-based sustainability models. The
need to enforce Indian wetland protection laws cannot be
stressed enough. More importantly, we strongly suggest that
Indian laws that allow for building socio-ecologically sensi-
tive, collaborative and constructive conservation models by
encompassing local residents, scientists, policy makers and
administrators, be explored with immediate effect for protec-
tion of wetlands in rapidly developing landscapes.
Supplementary Information The online version contains supplemen-
tary material available at https:// doi. org/ 10. 1007/ s13157- 022- 01588-w .
Acknowledgements We are indebted to the local community mem-
bers at Jhakari for graciously agreeing to participate in the study and
enriching our knowledge. We acknowledge Pushan Chakraborty and
Divyajyoti Ganguly contributions to the study. A special thanks to artist
Sridipta Manna for his illustration of the study area. We express our
utmost gratitude to Wildlife Conservation Trust for generously support-
ing our project which helped us conduct this study. We are indebted
to the two reviewers and the associate editor of Wetlands journal for
their constructive recommendations that have significantly improved
the quality of the manuscript.
Author Contribution All authors contributed equally to the study con-
ception and design. Material preparation, data collection and analysis
were performed by Tiasa Adhya and Sayan Banerjee. The first draft
of the manuscript was written by Tiasa Adhya and all authors com-
mented on the previous versions of the manuscript. All authors read
and approved the final manuscript.
Funding The authors declare that no formal grant was received dur-
ing preparation of this manuscript. The non-profit conservation NGO
Wildlife Conservation Trust donated generously to The Fishing Cat
Project for research and conservation, a part of which was utilized for
this study.
Data Availability The data collected were in the form of qualitative
interviews and these testimonies contain sensitive information about
our respondents’ social profile and life. So, these dataset cannot be
uploaded to external repositories due to ethical concerns. However, the
testimonies are available to the corresponding author and if requested,
can be shared upon reasonable request.

Wetlands (2022) 42:65
1 3
Page 11 of 12 65
Declarations
Competing Interests The authors have no relevant financial or non-
financial interests to disclose.
References
Adhya T, Dey P, Das U, Hazra P (2011) Status survey of Fishing Cat
(Prionailurus viverrinus) in Howrah and Hooghly, West Bengal.
Intermediate report submitted to the small grants programme,
WWF, India.WWF India
Adhya T (2015) Martyr and a court ruling: wetlands in Howrah still
ravaged by real estate. Down To Earth. https:// www. downt oearth.
org. in/ blog/ martyr- and-a- court- ruling- 41796. Accessed 28 June
2020
Adusumilli N (2015) Valuation of ecosystem services from wetlands
mitigation in the United States. Land 4(1):182–196
Ahmed I, Deaton BJ, Sarker R, Virani T (2008) Wetland ownership
and management in a common property resource setting: a case
study of Hakaluki Haor in Bangladesh. Ecological Economics
68(1–2):429–436
Amano T, Székely T, Sandel B, Nagy S, Mundkur T, Langendoen T,
Blanco D, Soykan CU, Sutherland WJ (2018) Successful con-
servation of global waterbird populations depends on effective
governance. Nature 553(7687):199–202
Apipalakul C, Wirojangud W, Ngang TK (2015) Development of com-
munity participation on water resource conflict management. Pro-
cedia Soc Behav Sci 186:325–330
Aryal K, Ojha BR, Maraseni T (2021) Perceived importance and eco-
nomic valuation of ecosystem services in Ghodaghodi wetland of
Nepal. Land Use Policy 106:105450
Azarath J, Banth P, Azarath H, Selvan V (1988) Impact of urbaniza-
tion on the status of mangrove swamps in Madras. In: Hook DD
etal (Eds) The ecology and management of wetlands, Volume 2:
Management Use and Value of Wetlands. Timber Press, Portland
Oregon, pp 225–233
Baird IG, Flaherty MS (2005) Mekong River fish conservation zones
in southern Laos: assessing effectiveness using local ecological
knowledge. Environmental Manage 36(3):439–454
Berkes F (2017) Environmental governance for the Anthropocene?
social-ecological systems, resilience, and collaborative learning.
Sustainability 9:1232
Camacho-Valdez V, Ruiz-Luna A, Ghermandi A, Nunes PA (2013)
Valuation of ecosystem services provided by coastal wetlands in
northwest Mexico. Ocean & Coastal Management 78:1–11
Camacho-Valdez V, Saenz-Arroyo A, Ghermandi A, Navarrete-Gutié-
rrez DA, Rodiles-Hernández R (2020) Spatial analysis, local peo-
ple’s perception and economic valuation of wetland ecosystem
services in the Usumacinta floodplain, Southern Mexico. Peerj
8:e8395
Chaikumbung M, Doucouliagos H, Scarborough H (2016) The eco-
nomic value of wetlands in developing countries: a meta-regres-
sion analysis. Ecological Economics 124:164–174
Chalov S, Thorslund J, Kasimov N, Aybullatov D, Ilyicheva E, Karthe
D etal (2017) The Selenga river delta: a geochemical barrier
protecting Lake Baikal waters. Regional Environmental Change
17(7):2039–2053
Darwall WR, Freyhof JÖRG (2016) Lost fishes, who is counting? the
extent of the threat to freshwater fish biodiversity. Conservation
of Freshwater Fishes, 1–36
Das M, Das A (2019) Estimation of ecosystem services (EESs) loss
due to transformation of Local Climatic Zones (LCZs) in Srini-
ketan-Santiniketan Planning Area (SSPA) West Bengal, India.
Sustainable Cities and Society 47. https:// doi. org/ 10. 1016/j. scs.
2019. 101474
Davidson NC (2014) How much wetland has the world lost? long-term
and recent trends in global wetland area. Marine and Freshwater
Research 65(10):934–941
Davidson NC, Van Dam AA, Finlayson CM, McInnes RJ (2019) Worth
of wetlands: revised global monetary values of coastal and inland
wetland ecosystem services. Marine and Freshwater Research
70(8):1189–1194
De Groot R, Brander L, Van Der Ploeg S, Costanza R, Bernard F, Braat
L etal (2012) Global estimates of the value of ecosystems and
their services in monetary units. Ecosystem Services 1(1):50–61
Fennessy MS, Wardrop DH, Moon JB, Wilson S, Craft C (2018) Soil
carbon sequestration in freshwater wetlands varies across a gra-
dient of ecological condition and by ecoregion. Ecological Engi-
neering 114:129–136
Finlayson CM, Davies GT, Moomaw WR, Chmura GL, Natali SM,
Perry JE, Roulet N, Sutton-Grier AE (2019) The second warning
to humanity–providing a context for wetland management and
policy. Wetlands 39(1):1–5
Gardner RC, Finlayson C (2018) Global wetland outlook: state of the
world’s wetlands and their services to people. Ramsar Convention
Secretariat, Gland, Switzerland
Ghosh D, Sen S (1987) Ecological history of Calcutta wetland conver-
sion. Environmental Conservation 14(3):219–226
Hazra P, Sinha A, Mondal P, Khan TN (2012) Calendar-effects and
temperature-impacts in migratory waterbirds at three tropical
Indian wetlands. Acta Oecologica 43:60–71
Hettiarachchi M, Morrison TH, McAlpine C (2015) Forty-three years
of Ramsar and urban wetlands. Global Environmental Change
32:57–66
Holl K (2020) Asian Mangroves: community Involvement in Mangrove
Restoration Provides Coastal Hazard Reduction and Enhances
Human Livelihoods, Indonesia and Sri Lanka
Jaramillo F, Licero L, Åhlen I, Manzoni S, Rodríguez-Rodríguez
JA, Guittard A, Hylin A, Bolaños J, Jawitz J, Wdowinski S etal
(2018) Effects of hydroclimatic change and rehabilitation activi-
ties on salinity and mangroves in the Ciénaga Grande de Santa
Marta, Colombia. Wetlands 38:755–767
Jaramillo F, Desormeaux A, Hedlund J, Jawitz JW, Clerici N, Pie-
montese L etal (2019) Priorities and interactions of sustainable
development goals (SDGs) with focus on wetlands. Water 11:619.
https:// doi. org/ 10. 3390/ w1103 0619
Kongkeaw C, Kittitornkool J, Vadergeest P, Kittiwatanawong K (2019)
Explaining success in community based mangrove management:
Four coastal communities along the Andaman Sea, Thailand.
Ocean Coast Manag 178. https:// doi. org/ 10. 1016/j. oceco aman.
2019. 104822
Kumar R, McInnes R, Finlayson CM, Davidson N, Rissik D, Paul S
etal (2020) Wetland ecological character and wise use: towards
a new framing. Marine and Freshwater Research 72(5):633–637
Kundu N, Chakraborty A (2017) Dependence on ecosystem goods
and services: a case study on East Kolkata Wetlands, West Ben-
gal, India. In: Prusty AK, Chandra R, Azeez PA (eds) Wetland
science: perspectives from South Asia. Springer, New Delhi, pp
381–405
Langan C, Farmer J, Rivington M, Smith JU (2018) Tropical wet-
land ecosystem service assessments in East Africa; a review of
approaches and challenges. Environmental Modelling & Software
102:260–273
Mahmood Q, Pervez A, Zeb BS, Zaffar H, Yaqoob H, Waseem M,
Afsheen S (2013) Natural treatment systems as sustainable
ecotechnologies for the developing countries.BioMed Research
International

Wetlands (2022) 42:65
1 3
65 Page 12 of 12
Mao D, Wang Z, Wu J, Wu B, Zeng Y, Song K etal (2018) China’s
wetlands loss to urban expansion. Land Degradation & Develop-
ment 29(8):2644–2657
McCartney M, Rebelo LM, Senaratna Sellamuttu S, De Silva S
(2010)Wetlands, agriculture and poverty reduction(Vol. 137).
IWMI
Millennium Ecosystem Assessment (2005) Ecosystems and human
well-being: synthesis. Island Press, Washington, DC, pp 155–2005
Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (2017) Wetlands
(Conservation and Management) Rules, 2017. MoEFCC. http://
envfor. nic. in/ conte nt/ gsr- 1203e- wetla nds- conse rvati on- and-
manag ement- rules- 2017. Accessed 5 July 2020
Mitsch WJ, Bernal B, Nahlik AM, Mander Ü, Zhang L, Anderson CJ
etal (2013) Wetlands, carbon, and climate change. Landscape
Ecology 28(4):583–597
Mukherjee S, Appel A, Duckworth JW, Sanderson J, Dahal S, Will-
cox DHA, Herranz Muñoz V, Malla G, Ratnayaka A, Kantima-
hanti M, Thudugala A, Thaung R, Rahman H (2016) Prionailu-
rus viverrinus. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2016:
e.T18150A50662615
Mundoli S, Unnikrishnan H, Nagendra H (2017) The “Sustainable” in
smart cities: ignoring the importance of urban ecosystems. Deci-
sion 44(2):103–120
National Remote Sensing Centre (2010) Wastelands Atlas of India
2010. Department of Land Resources, Ministry of Rural Devel-
opment, Delhi
O’Donnell EC, Thorne CR (2020) Drivers of future urban flood risk.
Phil Trans R Soc A 378(2168):20190216. https:// doi. org/ 10. 1098/
rsta. 2019. 0216
Owethu Pantshwa A, Buschke FT (2019) Ecosystem services and eco-
logical degradation of communal wetlands in a South African
biodiversity hotspot. Royal Society Open Science 6(6):181770
Pal S, Talukdar S (2018) Application of frequency ratio and logistic
regression models for assessing physical wetland vulnerability
in Punarbhaba river basin of Indo-Bangladesh. Hum Ecol Risk
Assess Int J 24(5):1291–1311
Pedersen E, Weisner SE, Johansson M (2019) Wetland areas’ direct
contributions to residents’ well-being entitle them to high cul-
tural ecosystem values. Science of the Total Environment
646:1315–1326
Ramsar Convention Secretariat (2016) The fourth Ramsar strategic
plan 2016–2024. Ramsar handbooks for the wise use of wet-
lands, 5th edition, vol. 2. Ramsar Convention Secretariat, Gland,
Switzerland
Reis V, Hermoso V, Hamilton SK, Ward D, Fluet-Chouinard E, Lehner
B, Linke S (2017) A global assessment of inland wetland conser-
vation status. Bioscience 67(6):523–533
Roose I, Panez A (2020) Social innovations as a response to disposses-
sion: Community water management in view of socio-metabolic
rift in Chile. Water 12(2):566
Russi D, Ten Brink P, Farmer A, Badura T, Coates D, Förster J, Kumar
R, Davidson N (2013) The Economics of Ecosystems and Bio-
diversity for Water and Wetlands. IEEP, London and Brussels;
Ramsar Secretariat, Gland
Sarkar B, Keya KN, Mahir FI, Nahiun KM, Shahida S, Khan RA
(2021) Surface and ground water pollution: causes and effects
of urbanization and industrialization in South Asia. Scientific
Review 7(3):32–41
Sato T, Qadir M, Yamamoto S, Endo T, Zahoor A (2013) Global,
regional, and country level need for data on wastewater gen-
eration, treatment, and use. Agricultural Water Management
130:1–13
Sen A, Nagendra H (2020) Local community engagement, environmen-
tal placemaking and stewardship by migrants: A case study of lake
conservation in Bengaluru,India. Landsc Urban Plan 204:103933.
https:// doi. org/ 10. 1016/j. landu rbplan. 2020. 103933
Sinha S, Basu LK, Halder A, Chakraborty T (2013) A case study on
the changing pattern of wetlands in West Bengal and its possi-
ble impacts on groundwater resources. Workshop on Sustainable
development and management of ground water in West Bengal
and future of irrigation vis-a-vis arsenic contamination in ground
water. Central Ground Water Authority & Central Ground Water
Board Eastern Region, Kolkata. 19 February 2013
Sinthumule NI (2021) An analysis of communities’ attitudes towards
wetlands and implications for sustainability.Global Ecology and
Conservation27. https:// doi. org/ 10. 1016/j. gecco. 2021. e01604
Sithirith M (2015) The governance of wetlands in the Tonle Sap Lake,
Cambodia. Journal of Environmental Sciences and Engineering
1(4):331–346
Smardon RC (2009) Sustaining the worlds wetlands. Springer, London
Tensen L (2018) Biases in wildlife and conservation research, using
felids and canids as a case study. Global Ecology and Conserva-
tion 15:e00423
UN (United Nations) (2008) World urbanization prospects: the 2007
revision. United Nations, Department of Economic and Social
Affairs, Population Division, New York
Unnikrishnan H, Mundoli S, Nagendra H (2016) Down the drain: the
tragedy of the disappearing urban commons of Bengaluru. South
Asian Water Studies 5(3):7–11
UN-Water (2015) Wastewater management: a UN-water analytical
brief. UN-Water
Van Asselen S, Verburg PH, Vermaat JE, Janse JH (2013) Driv-
ers of wetland conversion: a global meta-analysis. PLoS ONE
8(11):e81292
Vilardy SP, González JA, Martín-López B, Montes C (2011) Relation-
ships between hydrological regime and ecosystem services sup-
ply in a Caribbean coastal wetland: a social-ecological approach.
Hydrological Sciences Journal 56(8):1423–1435
Walle Y, Nayak D (2020) How can participatory forest management
cooperatives be successful in forest resources conservation? An
evidence from Ethiopia. J Sustain For 39(7):655–673
Walpole M, Davidson N (2018) Stop draining the swamp: it’s time to
tackle wetland loss. Oryx 52(4):595–596
Wondie A (2018) Ecological conditions and ecosystem services of
wetlands in the Lake Tana Area. Ethiopia Ecohydrology & Hyd-
robiology 18(2):231–244
WWAP (United Nations World Water Assessment Programme) (2012)
The United Nations World Water Development Report 2012: man-
aging water under uncertainty and risk. UNESCO, Paris
WWAP (2017) The United Nations World Water Development Report
2017. Wastewater: the untapped resource. UNESCO, Paris
Publisher's Note Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to
jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.
Springer Nature or its licensor holds exclusive rights to this article under
a publishing agreement with the author(s) or other rightsholder(s);
author self-archiving of the accepted manuscript version of this article
is solely governed by the terms of such publishing agreement and
applicable law.