Biodiversity Management

Firstly remember that all areas have an optimum sustainable yield (extent to which they can be hunted/ logged/ exploited and make money for people) Past this the biome/ ecosystem will become degraded (lose quality). If exploitation goes past maximum sustainable yield Ecosystem will become unsustainable, i.e. it will not be as now in the future- e.g. the over fishing of the Southern Ocean. Also the degradation of the Savanna in Niger as it becomes desertified as it has been over grazed.

What is the spectrum of conservation strategies?

There is a spectrum of conservation strategies available, from complete protection through various types of ‘sustainable development’ to commercially exploited areas where limited parts are protected …often for publicity!

The total area of land and number of protected sites is increasing. Poland, Ecuador and New Zealand now have 25% of their land protected.

What sort of protection?

In the 1960’s total protection was the only method of conservation!

In the 1980’s biosphere reserves were established with buffer zones…for use by local people

21ST Century conservation now means species protection, scientific reserves, as well as incorporating economic development with biodiversity.

What are the problems with the ‘total protection strategy’?

In LEDCs conflict between conservation and cutting people off from biodiversity

Totally protected reserves can be focussed on for scientific purposes and fail to see that conservation is influence by social, economic, etc

Many schemes were based on political and economic boundaries where as ecosystems are defined by natural borders!!

Coordination from outside agencies which do not always know about needs of local people

What are biosphere reserves?

Reserves are a popular strategy. Many are in favour of ‘corridor’ like reserves running north-south. Global warming drives species from the poles will still be protected!

Many people feel that conservation should target ‘hotspots’.

WWF favours a broad approach to save larger areas and more species.

Some others feel we should concentrate in LEDCs where it would cost less and get better value for money.

What is restoration?

Restoration is the ultimate conservation challenge. Recreating wetlands or linking up smaller reserves e.g. Great Fen project in East Anglia

They are expensive and must have economic benefits to be justifiable e.g. nature reserve from a quarry.

What is conservation?

Most strategies are in situ but protection of endangered species can also be done ex situe.g. captive breeding, seed banks and botanic gardens. Species such as the Giant Panda have been saved like this.

Case study: Sustainable yield management in Southern Ocean

The Southern Ocean wraps around Antarctica and accounts for 10% of all oceans.

The oceans are fished sustainably thanks to 1961 Antarctic Treaty system. Before this they were exhausted and overfished. Several fin fish became extinct.

Southern ocean SYM – A 3 prong approach!

* Single species approach sets limits for harvesting individual species that are indefinitely sustainable.

* Ecosystem approach involves considering harvested species both on their own and in relation to dependant species and whole environment.

* Precautionary principle aims to model consequences of any planned expansion of catches before it is permitted.

Case study: CAMPFIRE management approach – Savanna

Under British colonial rule large sections of indigenous population in Zimbabwe were forced to live in communal areas - tribal trust lands.

Communal Areas Management Programme for indigenous resources (CAMPFIRE) project was set up in the late 1980’s. It was aimed at long-term development, management and sustainable use of natural resources in each communal area. The responsibility was placed with local people, whilst allowing them to benefit directly from the exploitation of resources. Allowed to take tourists to hunt sustainable number of elephants for Ivory. To balance economic needs

‘Bottom Up’ Approach – varies and advice is given by the Zimbabwe Department of National Parks and Wildlife Management.

Activate: Case study: CAMPFIRE approach

Many of the schemes made money from big-game hunting at sustainable yield levels…this money was then fed back into the community.

The economic collapse of Zimbabwe undermined the whole scheme. Loss of staff, lack of funding, poaching, hunger saw it collapse.

These players count as global scale management!!

Global players

There are now 150 treaties (wildlife). How does a treaty work?

The 5 most influential international treaties in effect today but agreed before the convention on Biological Diversity was established in 1992 are as follows:

Ramsar convention to conserve wetlands 1971 now adopted by 147 countries.

World Heritage convention designed to protect outstanding sites 1972 adopted by 180

Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES) 1973 adopted by 166 countries, controls trade in range of species

Problems with global scale strategies like these- hard to monitor and ensure that countries are adhering to them. Could say they are good on paper but hard to actually ensure they happen. There are more on these in the original lesson notes on management. Agreements like CITES tend to work for well known animals as people and TNC latch on to popularity but they don’t work for less well known ones.

Management of the Congo Basin

Locals, government, WWF all involved.Main management strategies involve locals being major part to ensure they do not rebel and feel gorillas are more important than them.. E.g, Ecotourism (sustainable tourism- using local housing, food and customs rather than TNCs and foreign companies so money gained stays in Congo and doesn’t leak out). Locals guide tourists around and watch and monitor gorillas and are paid to do so by the Congo government- this is successful as it manages the forest well. The locals are educated about the value of a live forest with animals in it and as they work their they can see it makes money and provides a livliood so they help protect it- if foreigners ran the tourism- locals would not appreciate the forest or protect it..

They have also established buffer zones in the Congo so that locals can use these as they see fit- whilst the rest is conserved this again is successful as locals feel they are also important and can use these zones to show they can use the forest in a sustainable way. Finally the Congo is also being managed by conserving endemic species in it like the gorillas (only 700 left) WWF key player in this management as was the iconic 80s film gorillas in the mist and the Diane Fossey foundation. This educated the world about great apes (many believe are similar to us) meaning people want to visit and protect them. Visitor numbers are controlled strictly so breeding is not affected. This is in situ management- done in the biome

An example of ex situ would be the captive breeding of giant pandas in Zoos around the globe, the captive pandas are moved from zoo to zoo to widen the gene pool, this along with increasing habitat reconstruction in their native bamboo forests in rapidly developing China have increased numbers. The Panda was highlighted by the IUCN red list which allowed its vulnerable status to be managed.

Hotspot approach –(e.g. of reserve type strategy, along with buffer zones)

Has ensured that the ‘best bits’- areas with the highest levels of biodiversity, substantial levels of endemism (unique/ rare species) are conserved and protected.

Areas under threat are commonly in the tropics and in developing countries where conservation costs are much lower (cheap labour) – idea of value f or money.

Hotspots now covers marine area under threats in addition to terrestrial ecosystems

Even with the additions of marine hotspots under 2% of the earthand 0.017% of oceans are protected by this approach

The distribution of areas protected is very uneven. Most hotspots lie in the tropics e.g. rainf orests. Many ecosystems such as Tundra, Taiga and Temperate Forest are not included.

Huge areas of the world are not covered including many areas under great threat e.g. Arctic Ocean, or many outstanding smaller regions such as Galapagos . These are not protected because they do notmeet all three criteria to be a hot spot. Polar bears subsequently f ace extinction.

Hotspots tend to f ollows protectionist approach. This entails removing people and their activities f rom areas under threat. This has occurred in tropical countries where indigenous people have been f orced off their land in f avour of creating big reserves.