Abstract
Worldwide, wetlands are faced with ongoing degradation and loss due to human activities. Nevertheless, there is insufficient knowledge of the area, current conditions, and changes in wetlands because most nations lack wetland inventories. This study established a wetland inventory for Hokkaido, which contains a large proportion of the wetland area in Japan. We determined their current status and distribution, the potential risk of degradation based on the Hokkaido Land Use Master Plan, and the conservation status of wetland legally. We identified 119 lowland and 61 highland wetlands in Hokkaido. Based on the Hokkaido Land Use Master Plan, 90.2% of the area of highland wetlands had environmentally friendly plans, whereas 27.5% of the area of lowland wetlands was planned for urbanisation or agricultural use. Of the highland wetlands, 96.2% were included in conservation areas under legal regulations versus 63.5% of the lowland wetlands. Accordingly, it was apparent that the main risk of wetland degradation in Hokkaido was in lowland areas. In order to conserve wetland in Hokkaido, it is necessary to consider legislating their protection, especially in lowlands, which are exposed to higher potential degradation risk.
