11 Asian and South American countries on October 24 signed a landmark deal in Bogotá (Capital of Colombia) to save the world’s six surviving species of river dolphins from extinction by 2030.
Global Declaration for River Dolphins
- River dolphin range states that adopted the Global Declaration for River Dolphins include Bangladesh, Bolivia, Brazil, Cambodia, Colombia, Ecuador, India, Nepal, Pakistan, Peru and Venezuela.
- The Global Declaration for River Dolphins aims to halt the decline of all river dolphin species and increase the most vulnerable populations.
- It will scale up collective efforts to safeguard the remaining river dolphin species, by developing and funding measures to eradicate gillnets, reduce pollution, expand research, and increase protected areas.
- The eight pillars of the Global Declaration for River Dolphins are: Creating a network of protected areas; Enhancing management of river dolphin sites; Expanding research and monitoring; Engaging local communities and Indigenous Peoples; Eradicating unsustainable fishing practices; Improving water quality and quantity; Celebrating #WorldRiverDolphinDay to raise awareness; and, Increasing resource allocation and partnerships.
About river dolphin
- Surviving species of river dolphin: Amazon, Ganges, Indus, Irrawaddy, Tucuxi and Yangtze finless porpoise.
- The Yangtze finless porpoise is the world’s only freshwater porpoise but it is included with the other freshwater cetaceans under the umbrella name ‘river dolphins’.
- All species are either Critically Endangered (Irrawaddy dolphin and Yangtze finless porpoise) or Endangered (Amazon, Ganges, Indus and Tucuxi).
- A 7th species – the Chinese river dolphin – was declared ‘probably extinct’ in 2007.
- River dolphins live in some of the world’s most important rivers, including the Amazon and Orinoco in South America, and the Ayeyarwady, Ganges, Indus, Mekong, Mahakam and Yangtze in Asia.
- Since the 1980s, river dolphin populations have plummeted by 73% due to a barrage of threats, including unsustainable fishing practices, hydropower dams, pollution from agriculture, industry and mining, and habitat loss.
- The recent deaths of over 150 river dolphins in the Amazon’s drought-ravaged Lake Tefé shows that climate change is becoming an increasingly severe threat to their survival.
