The Putrajaya wetlands are believed to be the largest man-made freshwater wetlands in the tropics. These wetlands encompass a total area of 200 hectares and include the Wetlands Park (Taman Wetland) and the twenty-four cells which make up the surrounding wetland areas. The entire wetlands area is an aquatic wildlife sanctuary which attracts various marshland, water and migratory birds such as egrets, cinnamon bitterns, green herons and many more.
The Putrajaya wetlands project was part of the plan to build a garden city around a network of man-made lakes. To aid this effort an old palm oil site was transformed into a wetland ecosystem with the help of modern technology and stringent environment management controls. The Putrajaya Lake itself was created by inundating the valleys of the Sungai Chuau and Sungai Bisa rivers, though it was also realized that the lake had to be served by an efficient filtering system to prevent it from becoming polluted and stagnant. Thus the designers and city planners conceived of a natural filtration system in the form of a large wetlands area surrounding the lake. The planners then planted various aquatic plants within this wetlands area to aid this natural filtration process, as it was believed that the plants would help absorb pollutants and sediment, flowing out from the catchment area of the lake.
Work on creating this network of wetlands was begun in March 1997 and completed by August 1998.
The wetlands in fact perform three vital functions:-
Flood water mitigation
The wetlands help to disperse rainwater over a large area and thus they help to prevent flooding in the city.
Natural filtration of waste water
The 24 cells that constitute the wetlands area create a natural filtration process for water as the many aquatic plants like rushes, cattails and water lilies planted here absorb the organic and inorganic pollutants, and provide a natural filtration process for waste water which is purified as it flows into wetlands.
Creation of a natural habitat
The filtered water of the wetlands creates an ideal habitat for much local fauna like water birds, reptiles, amphibians, fish and invertebrates.
The Putrajaya wetlands area is a prominent eco-tourism attraction in this planned city.
Prominent attractions of the area include:-
The Nature Interpretation Centre
The Nature Interpretation Centre is a mini-discovery centre , which provides much information about the functioning of the wetlands and the flora and fauna of the wetlands park area.
Information Centre
The main information centre of the Taman Wetlands Park offers bikes and binoculars for hire, so that visitors can enjoy a spot of bird watching during their visit or then even cycle along the bike path of the park.
Look-out tower
The Taman Wetlands is equipped with an 18 meter tall look-out tower. Visitors can climb the tower to get a panoramic view of the wetlands area.
Flamingo pond and Bamboo Forest
The flamingo pond is a popular spot for picnics while the bamboo forest is known to be home to a group of naughty monkeys.
The Water Recreation Centre
The Water Recreation Centre offers kayaks, canoes, paddle boats and rowing boats for hire, which visitors can use to tour the Putrajaya Lake.
For more information do visit - http://www.ppj.gov.my/
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