Together with the Ramsar Convention on Wetlands, UNEP monitors Sustainable Development Goal target 6.6 to protect and restore freshwater ecosystems. UNEP supports countries to promote the monitoring, management, protection and restoration of freshwater ecosystems and resources in integrated ways, while working to increase resilience to natural disasters and conflict.
Healthy and productive inland vegetated wetlands and other water ecosystems help mitigate climate change due to their ability to store carbon, methane, nitrous oxide and other greenhouse gases. They can also improve water quality by removing pollutants from surface water, in particular through sediment trapping and nutrient removal. Healthy wetlands also serve as giant sponges, soaking up excess water and releasing it slowly, and thus help prevent or mitigate severe flooding.
In recognition of the fact that lakes are a vital source of surface fresh water (they contain around 90 per cent of unfrozen surface fresh water on the planet), the United Nations Environment Assembly passed a resolution on Sustainable Lake Management in March 2022. It calls on Member States to do more to protect and restore these vital, yet sensitive ecosystems. UNEP has launched a Sustainable Lakes Management Portal, as well as a free online course, to promote implementation of the resolution.
Stemming the flow of pollution into freshwater bodies is vital for ecosystem health. Agriculture - and intensive farming in particular - can lead to run-off from fertilizer-doused land that flows into rivers and lakes, causing degraded water bodies and destructive algal blooms.
UNEP builds on its assessment work to determine freshwater status and issues, identify and prioritize actions, and develop and disseminate decision support tools that promote progress. Examples include:
- working with countries to develop action plans that aim to address identified barriers;
- capacity development initiatives, such as workshops, mass open online courses and webinars, together with consortia and platforms developed with the aim of providing a match-making service to institutions and individuals; and
- sensitization and knowledge products, such as data/information platforms, targeted publications and videos.
UNEP supports action on climate, ecosystems and pollution issues through a combination of larger regional and global initiatives and programmes, as well as by working with countries and other partners.
One example is the Rotary International and UNEP partnership Community Action for Fresh Water, developed from a pilot called Adopt a River for Sustainable Development. It is a locally-focused,global initiative that aims to protect, restore and sustain freshwater ecosystems, including through nature-based solutions such as river clean-ups and tree planting.
The Freshwater Challenge, the largest ever initiative to restore degraded rivers, lakes and wetlands – which are central to tackling the world’s worsening water, climate and nature crises – was launched at the World Water Conference in March 2023. It is led by Colombia, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Ecuador, Gabon, Mexico and Zambia and aims to restore 300,000km of rivers and 350 million hectares of wetlands by 2030. The Challenge will contribute to the UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration, a drive to revive our planet, co-led by UNEP and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. Read more in this UNEP press release.
The Freshwater Challenge was part of efforts at COP28 in December 2023 to drive water up the climate agenda. The Freshwater Challenge website went live in October 2023. A two-pager distributed at the Subsidiary Body on Scientific, Technical and Technological Advice in October 2023 provides advice on the implementation of the Convention on Biological Diversity. As of March 2024, 40 countries, in addition to the six sponsor countries, had formally joined the challenge.
Learn about UNEP's work on wastewater.
