Siberian Crane Wetland Project SCWP

SCWP receives extension for key project activities through 2009

The Siberian Crane Wetland Project started up in April 2003 and has been under implementation for the planned six year duration ending on 31 March 2009. Anticipating that some GEF funds would remain unspent, we prepared a project extension proposal during the last year in order to:

Maximize the sustainability of key project outcomes through measures such as mainstreaming budgets for protected area management, developing partnerships, disseminating information, promoting replication of best practices, etc.
Complete and continue implementation of a small number of key outputs, where the extra work will significantly enhance project impacts
Make full use of available GEF funds and related co-financing towards conservation goals
Leverage additional co-financing to promote the sustainability of key outcomes

The proposal was approved by UNEP on 8th July after some delay due to final modifications to the proposal and budgets which were largely related to the Russian component of the project.

The main directions of the project’s work during the extension period, ending on 31 December 2009, will be:

China will publish and disseminate results of research and monitoring for all sites, as well as along the flyway, and also the plans guiding wetland restoration at the northeast sites – with an emphasis on influencing policy decisions related to water management and on sustaining these initiatives through regular budgets. For the two most successful community pilot projects, as well as related education programming, the extension emphasizes enhancing local capacity for implementation, and securing on-going financial support from local and national sources. China will host the project closing workshop and related international events that will involve key agencies and the media, as another means to secure on-going support and sustain project outcomes.

Aerial waterbird survey participants at Zhalong National Nature Reserve, China

Iran will focus on completing an integrated programme of activities concerning awareness-raising, site management and community participation at Fereydoon Kenar, with the overall goal of putting in place a sustainable system of community co-management for this site. This will be supported by national awareness measures focusing on hunters, capacity building for provincial and site staff and stakeholders, and GIS map enhancement. Iran will also host the Seventh Meeting of the CMS Memorandum of Understanding on Conservation Measures Concerning the Siberian Crane.

Local stakeholder meeting, Fereydoon Kenar, Iran

In Kazakhstan, the extension will support the continuation of the successful regional education programme through translation of materials into Kazakh language in line with national policy, enable implementation of the management plan for Urkash-Zharsor, support stakeholder meetings to provide input on conservation issues at sites, and expand on awareness and information work including targeted efforts on hunter education. A synthesis of several years’ efforts on migratory waterbird monitoring will be compiled, and a methodological handbook will be developed to support systematic monitoring at the project sites and other wetlands. Local stakeholder activities involving water management and ecotourism will also be implemented, linked to other projects.

Student performance of "Legend of the White Crane" at the Karamendy Crane Festival, Kazakhstan

The Russian programme has now ended, and the final outputs from the Russian programme are currently being collated and will be made available through ICF. A number of co-financed activities and activities supported by other project components will continue in support of project goals including regional support for management plan implementation in Yakutia, hosting of a Chinese delegation from the State Forestry Administration in Yakutia, and representation at the regional project completion workshop.

Chabda Republic Resource Reserve, part of the Middle Aldan SCWP site in Yakutia, Russia

The Regional Programme aims to increase the project’s impact at flyway level, through extended implementation of communications activities and dissemination of project outputs. This effort will enable greater sharing of national outcomes at the international level (see the fact sheets in the Documents section of this website). A well-illustrated, non-technical “final report” on project activities will be developed, and the main outcomes of the project will be presented at a Project Completion Workshop and related events scheduled for mid October in Harbin, China. The papers from this workshop will be published in the proceedings.

The regional programme will also follow up on measures for transition of flyway activities to ICF and CMS, including input to the Seventh Meeting of the CMS Memorandum of Understanding on Conservation Measures Concerning the Siberian Crane, which is tentatively planned for late 2009, as well as support for the development of the Western/Central Asian Site Network for the Siberian Crane and Other Waterbirds under CMS. Technical support for critical research at key sites in China will be continued, as well as continued satellite tracking of marked Siberian Cranes (see the link on this page).

Presentation of WCASN certificates at the CMS CoP in December 2008.