Proposing an Appropriate Legal Mechanism to Implement the Ecosystem Approach in Wetlands Case study: Anzali Wetland

Although it seems that the existence of wetland protection laws should prevent their irreparable damage and pollution, but the lack of an effective enforcement mechanism has made this not necessarily the case in practice. The Biodiversity Convention approach in this area is an ecosystem approach. Despite repeated emphasis on this approach in domestic laws, we are not witnessing its’ successful implementation. The purpose of this study is to investigate the compliance of the relevant laws with the principles of the ecosystem approach and to find an appropriate mechanism for the practical realization of this approach in wetlands management particularly in Anzali wetland. In this study, the history and background of laws and regulations on the ecosystem approach and its implementation process were firstly analyzed. Then, by exploring the results of previous studies and successful global experiences, an appropriate legal mechanism for the realization of this approach was identified. The research method is content-analysis. The results were discussed and surveyed using a Delphi method within a dominant group of 24 people who were selected by purposive sampling method. The results showed that the laws and regulations governing the management of the country's wetlands not only do not guarantee the implementation of the ecosystem approach, but are in sharp conflict with its’ principles. Also, the results obtained from previous studies in aggregation with the results of consultation with experts showed that the "Ecosystem Service Payment Mechanism" can be the most appropriate mechanism for implementing the ecosystem approach if supported by required regulations.