The prawn farms are at the expense of costal mangroves, which are an integral part of the wetland eco-system. The Ramsar Convention is one vehicle for mangrove protection that may conflict with shrimp farming operations. Although eleven Asian nations are members, several with extensive wetlands such as Malaysia, the Philippines, and Thailand, are not. According to the Ramsar Convention Bureau, threats facing Asia's diverse wetlands include drainage and reclamation for industrial and urban expansion, conversion to salt ponds, pollution, river diversion, and logging. In order to become a party to the convention, a state must designate at least one wetland of significance to be included on Ramsar's List of Wetlands of International Importance.
Parties are to follow three vague guidelines, none of which are legally binding.
Formulate and implement their planning so as to promote the conservation of the wetlands included in the List. Inform the Convention Bureau as to changes in the ecological character of wetlands within their territory. Promote conservation by establishing nature reserves on wetlands and providing for their care. Timoshenko thus provides a model for the enhancement of the Convention to strengthen and clarify the application of its policies. Cheryl Jamieson compares the recent expansion by the United States of the concept of Ramsar as an exclusive treaty for migratory waterfowl protection to that of a habitat protection treaty.