Biodiversity
Nearing the point of no return
the bee ALL and end all
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George Wigmore asks what governements are doing to help safeguard the world’s biodiversity THE IMPORTANCE OF BIODIVERSITY Biodiversity refers to the variety of species, genes and ecosystems that exist in a given area, and is a key indicator of the health of any ecosystem. A biologically diverse environment provides a wide range of social benefits and ecosystem services, and it is time for us to realise that a decline in biodiversity will adversely affect environmental stability worldwide.
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t is estimated that as many as 140,000 species become extinct every year. However, the vast majority of extinctions remain undocumented – the rate of loss is simply too rapid for scientists to have a hope of keeping track. To help combat this staggering extinction rate, the UN declared 2010 ‘The International Year of Biodiversity’, raising awareness of the importance of biodiversity through activities and events staged all over the globe. As we approach the end of this year, it is time to take stock and look back at just how successful the UN programme has actually been. According to Professor Bob Watson, chief scientific adviser to DEFRA and former chairman of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), we are approaching a “point of no return”. Extinctions due to pollution, habitat loss, climate change and deforestation, have played a huge role in the recent dramatic loss of biodiversity. Rainforest habitats contain a phenomenal amount of biodiversity; the Amazon alone accommodates an estimated 2.5 million species of insect, and one in five of all bird species. Quite simply, it is imperative for us to protect this richness.
Copenhagen all over again? Despite this year’s grandiose title of ‘The International year of Biodiversity’, the COP10 biodiversity conference in Japan this October was blighted by poor publicity and general apathy. As a result, little has entered the public consciousness with regards to the pressing concerns surrounding rapidly decreasing global biodiversity.
“the Amazon alone accommodates an estimated 2.5 million species of insect, and one in five of all bird species. Quite simply, it is imperative for us to protect this richness.” The major outcome from the conference was the agreement of a 20-point strategy to be implemented by governments worldwide over the next 10 years. This aims to help tackle the mass extinction of spe-
the five major extinctions: Are we heading for a human-caused sixth?
BIODIVERSITY
2. Late Devonian ~365 mya 1. End Ordivician ~450 mya
5. End Cretaceous ~65 mya
3. Permian ~250 mya
NOW? TIME
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Economic Impact Another biodiversity-related initiative which culminated in Japan was The Economics of Ecosystems and Biodiversity (TEEB) study. This study began in 2007 in response to a proposal by the G8+5 Environment Ministers and aimed to highlight the major global economic benefits of biodiversity, as well as the growing costs of biodiversity loss and ecosystem degradation. TEEB study leader, Pavan Sukhdev, has highlighted the “multi-trillion dollar importance to the global economy of the natural world”, noting that “many communities and countries are already seeing the potential of incorporating the value of nature into decision-making.” The study calls for the protection of economically valuable ecosystem services through an array of policy instruments and mechanisms.
BY Elly Reynolds
Hope
4. End Triassic ~205 mya
6. Anthropocene Extinction
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cies and the loss of vital habitats. As part of the plan, governments have agreed to boost the worldwide area of protected land to 17%, and strive for marine protected areas covering 10% of our oceans by 2020. These measures have been applauded by several NGOs, with WWF Director General, Jim Leape stating “Governments have sent a strong message that protecting the health of the planet has a place in international politics and countries are ready to join forces to save life on Earth”. He says that the agreements reached “reaffirm the fundamental need to conserve nature as the very foundation of our economy and our society”.
nyone who has been stung by a bee may not be overly concerned at the thought of bees becoming extinct, but the loss of bees could cost the UK £440m every year. With UK bee populations having decreased by over 18% just last year, farmers and conservationists alike are becoming extremely concerned. Bees are pollinators; as they move from flower to flower collecting nectar they also distribute pollen. In this way plants are cross-fertilised and produce fruit. In the absence of bees, flowers become increasingly dependent on wind to disperse their pollen. This results in a small group of plants continually sharing the same genes over several generations. Over time, this ‘in-breeding’ will lead to a decrease in the fruit yield that these plants can produce, and an increase in the likelihood of them becoming diseased. As more and more land in the UK is being used for agriculture, the natural habitats where bees thrive are disappearing. Now bee-colonies occupy smaller areas, further away from their neighbours. In a similar manner to the wind-pollinated flowers, these small colonies of bees quickly become in-bred and so less capable of fighting off disease. In addition, the increased use of pesticides, to ward off plant-parasites and other insects that eat the fruit, is also having a detrimental effect on the population of bees. For this reason, many bee-conservationists are targeting cities, which, although more polluted than the countryside, are at least free from pesticides. Without bees pollinating plants, we will see a decrease in the yield of the fruit and vegetables we take for granted here in the UK. As a knock-on effect, we will also see a decrease in meatproduce because of the reduced amount of food available to feed livestock. This decline in bee populations is not restricted to the UK; the problem is being seen worldwide. Thus, not only are our food crops at risk, but so is our cotton supply. Who would have thought that the loss of one furry little insect could have such catastrophic global consequences?
iscienceonline.co.uk
So, whilst it is clear that the issue of declining biodiversity has not made it into the public consciousness in the way that climate change or other more ‘sexy’ environmental matters have, this does not mean governments are not taking note. While much remains to be done, the first small steps to protecting the array of species populating our planet have been taken this year in Japan. Let us not, in just over a century of industrialised life, put asunder the products of millions of years of evolution.
iscienceonline.co.uk
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