Biodiversity: the natural environment saves lives and livelihoods
Biodiversity is in full swing these days. 2010 was the International Year of Biodiversity. The commitment to substantially reduce rates of biodiversity loss by 2010 was incorporated into the United Nations (UN) Millennium Development Goals in 2005.
Biodiversity refers to the variety of genes, species, and ecosystems that make up life on Earth. It provides a wide variety of essential goods and services to the world, including everything from basic material needs (food, timber, fiber, and underlying ecosystem services such as medicine, flood and pest control, pollination, and climate regulation).
Loss of Biodiversity and Environmental Impact
Biodiversity is lost as animal and plant species disappear from certain areas or from the planet altogether. The World Conservation Union’s annual “Red List,” the most comprehensive scientific assessment of the world’s animals and plants, put the number of species threatened with extinction at 16,306 in 2007. Much of it man-made forces , including habitat destruction, overharvesting, and invasive competitors push 52 species per category closer to extinction each year.
Up to half of all logging in the top five timber producing countries in 2009 was illegal and unsustainable logging. Strong global demand for seafood in the form of top-tier ocean predators like tuna and salmon threatens the biodiversity of the world’s oceans. In Zimbabwe, wildlife poaching in national parks and private game conservatories by supporters of President Robert Mugabe is believed to have cost the country more than half of its wildlife.
The adverse effects of many natural disasters are exacerbated by the failure to protect biodiversity and ecosystem services. This can be seen regularly in the results of disasters around the world, from Haiti to Indonesia. For example, deforestation makes many areas more vulnerable to mudslides that wipe out homes, crops, and lives.
Framing the problem
The Group of 8 major industrialized nations initiated the Economics of Ecosystems and Biodiversity (TEEB) project to study the economic impact of ecosystem services and changes in biodiversity. The 2010 TEEB study puts the annual value contributed by global wetlands at $3.4 billion and the annual loss of natural capital from ecosystems such as forests at $2 to $4.5 trillion. Other recent estimates place the economic value of the benefits of maintaining the biodiversity of natural ecosystems at 10 to 100 times their costs.
In most cases, those who bear the brunt of the impact of biodiversity loss and ecosystem deterioration are the people who live off the land in less developed countries. These people depend directly on nature for their food, shelter and income. They often do not have the resources or training to use the modern, man-made tools available to wealthier populations to help offset the loss of nature’s services.
Success stories in biodiversity conservation
Fortunately, we have the ability to restore and protect biodiversity and natural ecosystem services. There have already been a number of noteworthy success stories.
An innovative Indonesian conservation law enacted in 2007 has enabled sustainable logging management and ecosystem restoration.
In Costa Rica, a study found that coffee plantations near forest areas had a 20 percent higher yield due to the economic services of wild pollinators, translating into an additional $60,000 in income per farmer.
The extinction of at least 16 bird species was prevented between 1994 and 2004 thanks to a variety of ecological conservation programs, including habitat management, removal of invasive species, captive breeding, and reintroduction of endangered species. .
The benefits of maintaining biodiversity and healthy ecosystems are prevalent in both developed areas and remote locations. New York City restored the quality of its drinking water by restoring the local natural ecosystem. In the process, he avoided paying $8 billion for a water treatment plant that would otherwise have been required by the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
International development and foreign aid
Rich donor countries, such as the Group of 8, have an important role to play in maintaining biodiversity and ecosystem services in developing countries. Donor nations have tended to view aid too narrowly in terms of humanitarian relief efforts and physical infrastructure projects. While both are hugely important and valuable, they often fail to address biodiversity as a key driver of economic sustenance and survival in much of the developing world. Effective aid packages should empower developing country institutions and include incentives for local stakeholders to actively participate in conserving their own natural ecosystems.
Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR)
The global supply chains of multinational companies can have a tremendous impact on local biodiversity and ecosystems. Companies must make the adoption and implementation of sustainability practices a central component of their corporate social responsibility policies. Local countries could promote environmentally responsible business behavior by linking incentives with the adoption of sustainable business practices, with the aim of obtaining positive economic returns from their investments in these incentives.