THE IMPORTANCE OF WETLANDS IN SUSTAINABLE WATER MANAGEMENTGUSLIA LAHASING1, JANE JOIMIN1 and ANN ANTON2
1

Sabah Wetlands Conservation Society
c/o Kota Kinabalu Wetlands, Off Jalan Bukit Bendera Upper, 88400 Likas, Kota Kinabalu,
Sabah Malaysia.
2
Borneo Marine Research Institute, Universiti Malaysia Sabah, Jln UMS, 88400 Kota Kinabalu,
Sabah, Malaysia
guslia@sabahwetlands.org1

ABSTRACT
Wetlands are extremely valuable ecosystems to society in ways that it can decrease
flooding, filter and clean polluted water, recharge ground water, protect shore lines,
provide habitats for wildlife, and serve important recreation and cultural functions. The
Sabah Wetlands Conservation Society (SWCS) is a non-governmental organization
responsible for the management of 24 hectares Kota Kinabalu Wetlands (KK Wetlands),
a mangrove swamp conservation area located 2km north-east of Kota Kinabalu city in
Likas.

Surrounded by heavy industrialization and subjected to urban development

pressures, the accessibility and location of the KK Wetlands poses threats on the
management of the conservation area. This paper presents the water quality data of thewetlands and discusses the importance of a water quality monitoring programme toensure sustainable water management of wetlands.

INTRODUCTION

Water
Water is a molecule consisting of hydrogen and oxygen atoms. It is extremely valuable
to every living thing on this planet earth. The capability of water in dissolving a variety
of different substances is better than other liquid, ranging from nutrients to industrial anddomestic waste makes it a universal solvent. All living organisms are composed of cells
that contain 60% of water since it is the main element needed in our life, both for theenvironment and for human development (Somaskanthan, 2012). However, in the world
only 3% of the world water is fresh water and most of that is frozen (Ramsar, 2015).
Yet, it is estimated that every human requires almost 20 to 50 litres of water a day forbasic needs such as drinking, cooking and cleaning (Ramsar, 2015). All water is locked
into a constant recycling process called the hydrological cycle. Wetlands have become
important elements in water management as they have significant influence on thehydrological cycle.

Wetlands and Their ImportanceAccording to the Ramsar Convention, wetlands are defined by type as areas of marsh,fen, peat land or water, whether natural or artificial, permanent or temporary, with waterthat is static or flowing, fresh, brackish or salt, including areas of marine water, thedepth of which at low tide does not exceed six meters. Often misunderstood as a waste
land, wetlands are ecosystems that have many benefits towards all organisms in theworld.
Wetlands have many important hydrological functions. The hydrological cycle (alsoknown as hydrological processes) that occur in wetlands consist of precipitation, surface
water flow, ground water flow and evapotranspiration (Virginia, 2011). Thus, all thesecomponents make wetlands an important ecosystem in assisting and ensuring thecontinuity of sustainable water management. Wetland systems are directly linked to
groundwater thus make it a crucial regulator of both quantity and quality of water foundbelow the ground. Consequently, it plays a vital role in providing drinking water to 1/3 ofthe world population (Virginia, 2011). Wetlands help in reducing the effects of bothflood and drought conditions in a watershed. It acts like a sponge that helps in storing
and releasing water relative to the amount of water around them. It also can slowdown
rain runoff thus preventing the occurrence of flash floods. Some wetlands such as
coastal wetlands act as a physical barrier to storm and tidal surges by reducing theirintensity. Mangroves’ roots also bind the shoreline together thus reducing tidal erosion.
Wetlands are also bursting with biodiversity. Many of the animals depend on wetlands
as these ecosystems are sources of food and habitats for wildlife. Wetlands also act as
nutrient sinks and settling ponds. Water that enter the stream through this process ismuch cleaner than when it entered the wetlands due to the settling out of sediments byslowing down the flowing water. Vegetation, such as water hyacinths, are effective inabsorbing and storing excessive nutrients such as nitrates and phosphate, harmful
fertilizers and pesticides as well as heavy metal and toxic release from the industrial
development (Bullock and Acreman, 2003). Wetland animals such as oysters are able
in removing chemical contaminants when filtering water for foods. The mangrove roots
are also able to trap solid waste like plastic bottle thus obstructing in polluting adjacentstreams. Not only important in water management, humans depend on wetlands fortheir varied products. More than 2/3 of all fish consumed are dependent on coastal
wetlands for spawning, nursery or feeding ground. Padi or rice, consumed as staple
food by large part of the world’s population, especially in Asia, is grown in managed
wetlands. Statistically, scientists have discovered more than 100,000 known freshwater
species alone and the number will grow every year (Ramsar, 2015). Supporting anabundance of unique flora and fauna, wetlands are ideal “natural laboratories” forresearch and an attraction for recreational activities.
There are direct and indirect impacts to wetlands caused by human activities. Direct
impacts include dredging, filling and draining wetlands purposely including through thestate and federal wetlands permitting process. Indirect impacts are those caused by anactivities that alter the hydrology system, increase in pollutant loadings and buffer
encroachment caused by development and urbanization. These impacts can be
minimized and monitored with a rigorous water quality monitoring programme.

Water Quality
Poor water quality can critically impact wetlands. The information compiled from water
quality analyses can be used to understand how human activities affect wetlands. The
pH, mineral and nutrient content influence the abundance and diversity of the flora andfauna. All nutrients have different functions in wetlands ecosystem and promotepollution via eutrophication if the concentration is not monitored regularly. Some wetland
plants have the ability to remove small quantity of nutrients, trace metals and othercompounds from the soil water and incorporate them into plant tissue, which may later
be recycled in the wetland through decomposition. There are 8 parameters measured inorder to determine the water quality using Water Quality Index (WQI) (DOE, 1985).
These parameters are pH, temperature, Dissolve Oxygen (DO), Biochemical Oxygen
Demand (BOD), Turbidity, Total phosphorus, Nitrates and E.coli.

CASE STUDY - KOTA KINABALU WETLANDS, SABAH

Kota Kinabalu Wetlands (KK Wetlands) is a 24ha – mangrove forest managed by the
Sabah Wetlands Conservation Society (SWCS).

SWCS, a non-governmentalorganization, was founded by a group of environmentalists in 1980s. There were 200
houses built illegally in the area of the mangroves which led to the loss of mangrove
habitats, waste disposal problems and low water quality caused by pollution. In
September 1996, it was designated as a Bird Sanctuary and named as Kota Kinabalu
City Bird Sanctuary for mangrove protection. In 1999, it received another layer ofprotection when it was gazetted as a Cultural Heritage Site for Conservation. In order toreflect its importance as a wetlands ecosystem, it changed its name from Kota Kinabalu
City Bird Sanctuary to Kota Kinabalu Wetlands. In September 2013, KK Wetlands was
nominated as the second Ramsar Site in Sabah.
Acting as a green lung and a buffer zone for the city, it is strategically located in theheart of Kota Kinabalu City which makes it highly accessible and affordable for both
local and international tourists thus becoming one of the tourist destinations in Sabah.

KKWs unique natural landscapes give tourists a pleasant experience, to enjoy fresh air
and tranquillity. Since its official opening in March 2000 up to December 2014, KK
Wetlands has received more than 150,000 local and international visitors. KK Wetlands
support abundant aquatic life and other wildlife, including more than 90 species ofresidential and migratory birds and more than 10 species of mangroves trees.

Emerging Issues & Challenges
Flora and fauna are highly dependent on water source. Situated in an urban setting, KK
Wetlands is subjected to heavy industrialization and urbanization pressures, input ofindustry waste and pollutants from drains and rivers before flowing out to the sea. The
river channel that is located within KK Wetlands connects the drains from housing
estates and commercial areas leading to the sea. The water which contain pollutants
such as oil spills, untreated sewage and physical rubbish causes devastating effects onlife in the mangroves. As wetlands serve as sediment sinks, the amount of nutrients
stored will increase until eutrophication occurs. Eutrophication of wetlands is usuallycaused by massive inflow of nutrients such as domestic sewage, fertilizers andherbicides. The high concentration of nutrients will spark a bloom of microscope algae.
This algae bloom will use up most of dissolved oxygen and cause mortality to otheraquatic organisms that depend on oxygen. Therefore, it is imperative to conduct water
quality monitoring to identify the presence of parameters which degrade water quality.
A water quality monitoring programme allows SWCS to strategize appropriate mitigation
measures to reduce water pollution in KK Wetlands for the conservation andsustainable management of the mangroves.

Water Quality Monitoring
Water quality monitoring in KK Wetlands is carried out by KK Wetlands officers,
researchers, and groups of students who participated in the water quality monitoringworkshops sponsored by Shell Malaysia Limited. The objective of conducting waterquality monitoring is to assess the current status of water quality in KK Wetlands. The
results of the water quality analysis in 3 years (2012 – 2014) are shown in Figure 1.

Figure 1.0: Mean values of water quality parameters over 3 years (2012-2015).

Based on the water quality analyses, the Water Quality Index (WQI) of 70.7 in 2012
decreased to 55.4 in 2014 indicating that the water quality has deteriorated. Based on
the WQI, the water quality of KK Wetlands is Class III of the Environmental Water
Quality Index Classification (DOE, 1985) suggesting that the water falls in the categoryof “slightly polluted”. An intensive treatment is required for human water supply and it is
liveable by common, economic value and tolerant species and also can be used forlivestock drinking water.
pH is an indicator for existence of aquatic life. The pH values in 2012, 2013 and 2014
are 7.3, 7.1 and 7.6 respectively, which are near to neutral and within the optimum
range for organisms, indicating that the water is in good condition and is suitable formarine wildlife.

Temperature can exert great control over aquatic communities. The temperaturerecorded ranged between 29.3°C in 2012, 28.5°C in 2013 and 31.2°C in 2014.
Temperature above 30°C, is not suitable for benthic organisms such as clams, lobsters,
crabs and other tiny organisms that live in the bottom sediments. High temperature may
cause suppression of the organisms. Open space and direct sunlight towards the water
may have contributed to the heat which increased the temperature of water. The
amount of sunlight absorbed by the water are controlled by shading of trees, water
surface area, water volume, turbidity, streambed colour and orientation to sun.
Dissolve Oxygen (DO) is a measure of the amount of oxygen dissolved in aqueous
solution. The DO level was lowest in 2013 compared to the year 2012 and 2014, whichis less than 2.0mg/L (1.64mg/L). This indicates poor water quality thus would havedifficulty in sustaining many sensitive aquatic lives (Gary, 2013). This low oxygen may
be the result of pollution discharged from industries, urban runoff, waste water andsewage treatment plants which often contain organic compounds that are decomposedby microorganisms using oxygen in the process.
Turbidity is the amount of particular matter that is suspended in water which can becaused by finely organic or inorganic nature. Throughout the monitoring programme of
KKW, turbidity is seen to increase while the DO measurement decreased. This might
be caused by organic particles, where excess nutrients available will encourage
microbial breakdown, as this process requires dissolve oxygen. Besides that,suspended matter affects the amount of sunlight penetrating into the water to reach theaquatic plants and which then also affects the production of oxygen. Urban runoff,
human activities such as fishing, active wildlife interactions also can cause high turbidity
as it increase the possibility of mixing up the particles in water.
Phosphate and nitrate both are essential plant nutrients needed for growth anddevelopment. Excess of phosphates and nitrates in a water body can cause accelerated
plant growth and algae blooms which then cause rapid oxygen depletion or
eutrophication in the water. From the water quality analyses, phosphate concentrations
is inversely proportional to the amount of nitrate. The nitrates might come from nearby

waterways sources such as runoff from animal feedlots and animal manure storage
areas and fertilized lawns and farmland. It also can be caused by failing septic system.
The slightly polluted water in KK Wetlands may be due to the chemical reactions fromthe plastic debris stranded within the wetlands. Mangrove trees have complex aerial
root system which allows the mangrove to trap sediments and solid objects effectively.
The floating debris such as water bottles, plastic containers, polystyrene containers,
rubber slippers and tubes brought in from water sources due to changes in tide.
Average amount of floating debris found in KK Wetlands is 6 unit/10m2 (Low, 2014).
Even though the data obtained shows no detection of heavy metals content and oil andgrease (less than 10mg/L) were found in KK Wetlands, but the concentration of E.coli(Escherichia coli) content was high. The highest in 2013, 70CFC/100ml. E.coli is a typeof faecal coliform indicator bacteria commonly found in human and animal’s intestine.
The presence of E.coli in water is not harmful in itself but higher concentration is anindicator of other harmful pathogens and presence of human and faecal contamination.

SUGGESTION & RECOMMENDATION:
The local community play an important role in protecting wetlands. Decline in wetlands
number will alter the water supply as wetlands are essential for sustainable water
management. In order to arrest the decline of the sustainability of wetlands such as the
KK Wetlands, continuous campaigns should be held to educate the public, in particular
the stakeholders, of the consequences of letting untreated waste water into theenvironment.

Such irresponsible actions will push the mangroves to its limit inproviding their services. Awareness also can be encouraged by participating in wetlands
programmes such as World Wetlands Day and Mangrove Clean-Up. It is more costeffective to save wetlands every individual makes everyday decisions with theenvironment in mind. For example, use of recycle bags at the grocery store, recycle
household trash, and ensure that batteries and other harmful wastes do not end up in
landfills or in wetlands, take shorter showers, buy sustainably raised or caught seafood,organic produce and meat. Gardener also can select native plants and use organic
fertilizer where possible. These will indirectly help to conserve wetlands for the future.
Communities and authorities can either revise existing ordinances or adopt new
wetlands protection ordinance especially regarding zoning, erosion and sedimentcontrol and stormwater management. Managements plans must be developed as a
guideline for planning and development of wetlands, such as KK Wetlands. This is also
important to prepare KK Wetlands as a Ramsar Site. It is also recommended to have asustainable development to control the discharge of waste and pollutants. Water quality
monitoring should be done regularly, as water quality issues not only to the wetlands
environment but also influences human health through the consumption of wetland
products. A rigorous monitoring programme will enable us to recognize and prevent
further degradation of KK Wetlands. Research and intensifying actions on theremediation of pollution that affects the life of KK Wetlands should also be done. If noaction is taken immediately, the chance for eutrophication occurring is high thus
resulting in major pollution consequences.

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