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Rescue Our Wetlands campaign will address Canadians’ concerns about water, wildlife, environment

Wood_Duck_(Aix_sponsa),_Parc_du_Rouge-Cloître,_Brussels

If Canada’s wetlands were a political party, they should get a majority government in the upcoming federal election, according to Ducks Unlimited Canada.

Wetlands clean the water supply, are critical habitat for wildlife, help mitigate climate change, provide flood and drought protection for our communities, and are perfect natural spaces for recreation and learning opportunities.

The problem is, most Canadians aren’t aware about the host of valuable benefits wetlands provide to society.

Ducks Unlimited Canada (DUC) expects that the Rescue Our Wetlands campaign that was recently launched will garner Canadians’ support for wetlands, since they are widely seen to be underappreciated natural resources that are being lost at an alarming rate across the country.

Every day across Canada, more than 80 acres (32 hectares) of wetlands are drained and filled in to make way for agriculture, urban sprawl, and industrial development. The loss of this habitat has a devastating impact on biodiversity, our economy, and on the health and safety of our communities.

DUCConserving

Rescue Our Wetlands is a campaign that captures the essence of what it means to be a conservationist,” said DUC president Jim Couch at the official Rescue Our Wetlands launch event in Calgary. “It’s something completely personal. What it means to a birdwatcher on the B.C. coast will be different than what it means for an Alberta rancher. Vacationers who can no longer swim in their favourite lake or families whose homes have been engulfed by flood waters will all see the value in a campaign like Rescue Our Wetlands.”

According to national campaign chair Bob Kozminski, “what makes this campaign unique, and what will make it a continental success like nothing we’ve seen before, is the fact that it will mean something to everyone. It gives us the opportunity to help people realize this – and to take action. There’s no time to wait.”

Rescue Our Wetlands is a $2 billion, North American-wide campaign led by DUC in Canada together with Ducks Unlimited in the U.S. and Mexico. The campaign fundraising goal in Canada is $500 million, which will be used to fund wetland habitat conservation and restoration, effective public policy initiatives, national education programs and world-leading wetland and waterfowl research.

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