Ramsar wetland in Han River cleaned up for endangered birds

There is a tiny island on the Han River in the middle of Seoul where human entry is restricted almost all the time. Only those contracted to monitor the site twice daily and those with clearance for research purposes are allowed to visit. The island, 1.3 kilometers long and 300 meters wide, is internationally recognized for its significance in providing a natural habitat for migratory birds and other wildlife species.

Bam Island has been under the city’s protection since 1999 when the city government recognized its ecological value. It earned additional recognition from the United Nations Convention on Wetlands in 2012, being designated as a Ramsar Wetland — an ecological site of international importance under the Ramsar Convention of 1971.

On Monday, the island received a rare visit from humans aboard a fleet of multipurpose operation vessels equipped with a high-pressure water hose and a hydraulic crane. Dispatched by the Han River Affairs Bureau under the Seoul Metropolitan Government, the boats arrived at the island on a mission to clean up the site. Korean willows that extensively populate the island were covered with droppings from thousands of great cormorants that stop by the island every winter.

“They usually perch high up on the trees along the island’s shoreline,” said Joo Yong-tae, the chief of the river affairs bureau. “If we don’t spray those droppings off the trees and just let them remain there, they prevent the branches from budding in spring.”

The importance of this job has risen in recent years with the number of migratory birds visiting the area spiking every winter. They numbered over 1,800 in November 2020 and the figure jumped to over 2,200 in 2021 and almost 4,700 in 2022, according to the city government.

The cleanup fleet on Monday also picked up trash and other hazardous substances around the island.

“We keep the crew to a minimum and get the work done as fast as we can so that our presence won’t affect the island,” Joo said.

As of 2022, the island hosted almost 10,000 birds of 60 species as well as 37 types of macroinvertebrates, five different amphibians and reptiles, four mammals, 18 fish and 250 flora. Twelve different types of species under national protection — including first-class endangered species such as the whitetailed sea eagle and peregrine falcon, as well as second-class endangered species such as the sparrow hawk — were among the island’s inhabitants.

We keep the crew to a minimum and get the work done as fast as we can

so that our presence won’t affect the island.

“Bam Island is an ecological diamond in the city and it must be cleaned each year when the spring season kicks off to allow the preservation of our local flora and fauna,” Joo said.