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What the report says
The document, presented in Brazil during COP15, notes the collapse of freshwater migrations caused by dams, river fragmentation, pollution, overfishing and climate change. It also points out that 325 species of migratory freshwater fish require coordinated international action to prevent their disappearance.
Why is this important?
The central message is that conservation cannot be carried out river by river, or country by country, as many of these species cross several borders and depend on connected rivers. The report therefore stresses the need to restore the ecological continuity of rivers, and to better coordinate protection policies between states.
Concrete challenges
The consequences are not only ecological: the report links this decline to risks for food security, local economies and cultures that depend on inland fishing. It also identifies priority basins such as the Amazon, Paraná-La Plata, Danube, Mekong, Nile and Ganges-Brahmaputra, where human pressures are particularly strong.
What COP15 can change
COP15 in Brazil provides a framework for strengthening the protection of migratory species, proposing cooperative measures and, in some cases, adding new species to the Convention's appendices. Brazil, for example, is pushing ahead with actions targeting certain Amazonian migratory fish and species in the Paraná-La Plata basin.
