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Biodiversity

What is the problem?

Human actions are fundamentally, and to a signicant extent irreversibly, changing the

diversity of life on Earth, and most of these changes represent a loss of biodiversity.

Changes in important components of biological diversity were more rapid in the past 50

years than at any time in human history. ro!ections and scenarios indicate that these rates

will continue, or accelerate, in the future.

"irtually all of Earth#s ecosystems have now been dramatically transformed through human

actions. $ver the past few hundred years, humans have increased species extinction rates

by as much as %,000 times bac&ground rates that were typical over Earth#s history '(ee

below).

Why is biodiversity loss a concern?

*iodiversity contributes directly 'through provisioning, regulating, and cultural ecosystem

services)and indirectly 'through supporting ecosystem services) to many constituents of

human well+being, including security, basic material for a good life, health, good social

relations, and freedom of choice and action. any people have beneted over the last

century from the conversion of natural ecosystems to human+dominated ecosystems and

the exploitation of biodiversity. -t the same time, however, these losses in biodiversity and

changes in ecosystem services have caused some people to experience declining well+

being, with poverty in some social groups being exacerbated.


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Summary

%. Climate, biodiversity and human wellbeing are inextricably lin&ed. (ignicant political

commitments and policy ob!ectives for each now exist at national and international levels.

$ur understanding of these issues, the relevant processes and their inter+relationships is far

from complete. *ut we &now enough to identify some critically important matters for

immediate attention and priority areas for research and policy development. ew

mechanisms will be needed to galvanise wor& in this area, especially at theintergovernmental level.

/. (ignicant climate change impacts on biodiversity have already been identied with up

to 50 of the species studied world+wide observed to be a1ected. 2he 3nter+governmental

anel on Climate Change '3CC /004b) concludes that if temperature increases exceed %.5+

/.5C, /0+60 of plant and animal species assessed are li&ely to be at ris& of extinction.

6. 2he continuing, accelerating loss of biodiversity could compromise the long+term ability

of ecosystems to regulate the climate, may accelerate or amplify climate warming and

could lead to additional, unforeseen, and potentially irreversible shifts in the earth system.

7rgent action now to halt further loss or degradation of biodiversity could help to maintainfuture options for tac&ling climate change and managing its impacts.

8. *oth mitigation and adaptation are urgently re9uired if we are to reduce climate change

and its impacts over coming decades. any of the people most vulnerable to climate

change are those who depend most on biodiversity. Climate change policy must maximise

the opportunities for implementation of mutually supportive strategies.

5. ew policies are needed to integrate options for meeting biodiversity, climate and

sustainable development ob!ectives at the international, national, and local levels. :i;cult

policy choices lie ahead, re9uiring scientic and technical expertise and understanding of

socio+economic and ethical considerations.


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Climate, biodiversity and human wellbeing are inextricably lin&ed '


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services provided by ecosystems to society 'see ig et al /004).

2he transformation of ecosystems and exploitation of natural resources have resulted insubstantial gains in human wellbeing and economic development. However, the benets

have not been e9uitably distributed, and the costs of biodiversity changes either not

recognised or 9uantied. 2his is because ecosystems tend to be valued by people in terms

of the direct benets provided by provisioning and cultural services 'eg food, bre,

recreation and aesthetics respectively) which represent a relatively small component of

biodiversity. However, the supply of these services is underpinned by supporting and

regulating services, 'for example pollination, climate regulation and primary productivity

respectively), for which the value of biodiversity is less visible but no less important

'(choles ? idgley /004, Gin>ig et al /004).

*iodiversity loss, ecosystem degradation, and conse9uent changes in ecosystem services

have also led to a decline in human wellbeing in some groups by exacerbating poverty and

increasing ine9uities and disparities '- /005b).


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illennium Ecosystem -ssessment typology of the relationships between *iodiversity,

Ecosystem functioning, and Ecosystem services. *iodiversity is both a response variable

a1ected by global change drivers, and a factor modifying ecosystem processes and

services and human well+being '- /005b).

2he material for biodiversity and human wellbeing was sourced from

2he Boyal (ociety, 'Iune /004) *iodiversity+climate interactions adaptation, mitigation and

human livelihoods, www.royalsoc.org.

illennium Ecosystem -ssessment, /005. Ecosystems and Human Jell+being *iodiversity

(ynthesis. Jorld Besources 3nstitute, Jashington, :C.


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*iodiversity loss state and scenarios /00= and /050. 2hese pro!ections of biodiversity loss

from /000 to /050 were produced by the FD$*3$ consortium for 7EKs Flobal

Environment $utloo& 8. -cross the FE$ scenarios and regions, global biodiversity continues

to be threatened, with strong implications for ecosystem services and human well+being. -ll

regions continue to experience declines in terrestrial biodiversity in each of the scenarios.

2he greatest losses are seen in ar&ets


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biofuel production. 2he overall changes in terrestrial biodiversity though, are inAuenced by

a number of other factors, including infrastructure development, pollution and climate

change, as well as public policy and conAict.

Biodiversity !oss

Jorldwide there are an estimated 5 to 60 million species of animals and plants, each

genetically uni9ue. ost remain unidentied. (ome %.8 million animal species alive today

have been named and described. amed plant species are far fewer, numbering around

800,000. *iodiversity is not uniformly distributed over the earth#s surface. 2he tropics cover8/ of all land but contain two+thirds of all animal species. Bain+forests cover = of all

land but contain two+fths of all plant and animal species. Comprehensive measurement of

biodiversity is di;cult. However, we can compare numbers of species between sites as a

simple index of relative biodiversity.

"alues of biodiversity

Je all depend on the natural world to sustain us with food, clothing and other necessities,

establishing a set of use values. *ut there are many less obvious values of biodiversity, of

e9ual importance, to be considered 'see box).

"alues from human use

- total of about 6,000 plant species, /00 of which have been domesticated, are used

worldwide as a food source. However, !ust /0 of these plants provide more than L0 of our

food at the present time. 3n order to maintain the high level of production such consumption

demands, plant breeders fre9uently turn to the wild relatives of domestic crops in search of

desirable genetic traits such as resistance to disease or drought wild plants are a valuable

reservoir of genetic diversity. - smaller number of animal species provide human food but

the scale is often enormous.


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3n addition to these long established patterns of consumptive utilisation, there is now a

rapidly growing leisure industry, which involves the non+consumptive MuseM of the living

world.


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yet wise men nowadays thin& otherwise Nthe creatures are made to en!oy themselves as

well as to serve us# M

Iohn Bay, 2he Jisdom of Fod..., %=%

Threats to biodiversity

3n our eagerness to improve living conditions for the six billion members of our species, we

humans are imposing serious threats to the survival of much biodiversity, including many

species whose direct value is clearly established. -lmost all ecosystems are greatly

modied by humans, who transform habitats and exterminate rivals and competitors.

Habitat degradation

2he greatest threat is the loss and fragmentation of natural habitats. 2his includes clearing

forests for timber or plantations, overgra>ing, draining wetlands and the destruction of

heathlands and coral reefs.

ollution also degrades habitats. esticides, sewage, oil, combustion emissions and acid

rain contaminate soils, freshwater, oceans and air.

$ne alarming e1ect of atmospheric pollution is accelerating changes in climatic patterns towhich ecosystems are adapted by long+term evolutionary processes. -nticipated results

include dramatic changes in the geographical distribution of some species leading to

ecosystem imbalance, and the extermination of others due to Aooding and other climate+

related phenomena.

$ver+exploitation

Excessive exploitation has pushed some species to the verge of extinction. 3ncluded are the

tiger, Fiant anda, *lac& Bhinoceros, cod and several whale species. *etween %4 and

%L the -frican eleph+ant population was halved by ivory poaching. $ther species have

been relentlessly persecuted as vermin, often based on wrong assumptions about the

supposed harm they caused.


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included a composite trend of %6 species in the list of indicators of sustainable

development upon which the government reports annually.

The search for solutions

&olitical level

2he international Convention on *iological :iversity at Bio in %/ focused attention on the

need for sustainable use 'rather than non+use) of the components of biodiversity, and the

fair and e9uitable sharing of benets + such as prots from new drugs based on tropical

plants. ations are re9uired to develop their own strategies that integrate biodiversity

conservation and sustainable use into the entire range of national decision+ma&ing. 2he 7G

action plan '%8), in addition to the conservation of species and habitats, emphasised a

need for the involvement of individuals and communities, as well as government.

Conservation legislation is costly to enforce and only wor&s well if it reAects widelyaccepted values in the community. -ttempts to tac&le biodiversity loss politically are

unli&ely to succeed unless they fully ta&e into account the underlying causes of the crisis,

vi>. the social organi>ation and growth of the human population@ patterns of natural

resource consumption@ global trade@ economic systems and policies that fail to value the

environment@ and ine9uity in ownership, management and the Aow of benets from the use

and conservation of biological resources.

&olicy level

any governments rely on technical xes to combat the problem. Conservation+conscious

nations set up par&s and reserves to protect and rehabilitate wildlife and examples ofnatural vegetation. However, ichael (oulQ, a respected 7( biologist, points out that a 0

habitat loss can result in a 50 loss of species. 2his means that a country protecting

%0 of its area 'an ambitious target@ many aim at only 5 ) may lose 50 percent of its

species.

3n *ritain, schemes o1ering incentives to farmers to preserve traditional landscape features

between them encompass only about %/.5 of agricultural land. - preferred approach

would be to temper all of agricultural production with conservation measures, as well as

encouraging organic farming, which promotes habitat diversity of benet to many forms of

wildlife.

Beduction of industrial and domestic pollution is a worldwide priority, particularly in the rich

nations. 3n many cases the technology for pollution reduction is available but industrialists

are reluctant to pay for it.


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$ver+exploitation has been restrained by bodies such as the 3nternational Jhaling

Commission and the Convention on 3nternational 2rade in Endangered (pecies 'C32E(). *oth

organi>ations aim to ensure that use of wild species is sustainable, rather than to attempt

absolute bans. However, continual vigilance is re9uired and trade in thousands of less

conspicuous species such as orchids or tropical butterAies is often di;cult to assess and

regulate.

'ur response as individuals

Jhere do 3 stand as an individual or member of my community on the acceleratingdegradation of our planet#s biodiversityR How acute is my appreciation of nature,

aesthetically and as an indispensable resource for the continued well+being of human&indR

Has the urbanisation of modern society removed me from vital contact with the living

worldR

How often do 3 than& Fod for the natural world and + together with my fellow creatures +

worship HimR How aware am 3 of my Fod+given responsibility as a custodian of His

creationR

ost of us need to address 9uestions such as these and ta&e deliberate steps to remedy

any short+comings they expose. 3t may be that we need to be better informed byappropriate reading or by attending a seminar on biodiversity. Je will then be better

e9uipped to discuss these matters with colleagues, address a luncheon club or church

group, or even lobby our local .

Christians are exhorted to be MsaltM and MlightM in the world around them 'att.5.%6+%8).

(urely this should include campaigning for greater care for the environment so that its

living resources will continue to support human&ind and serve as a reminder of the Fod

who made them 'Bom.%./0 ? /5). 2here may be a need to re9uest more biblical teaching

on creation care in your church through sermons, home groups or literature. Jhat Fod isredeeming ought to be of serious concern to his followers 'Bom.L.%+//).

!ifestyle

3n addition to being well informed and spreading the message, we need to chec& our

lifestyle. 3s our wood from sustainable forestry and our news+paper recycledR :o we use

chemicals in our home or garden which are toxic to wildlifeR :o we design parts of our

gardens for the benet of wildlifeR

-bove all, our pattern of expenditure will reAect the seriousness of our commitment to

caring for the living world around us. -re we helping protect nature and its sustainable useR2his could be done by supporting a conservation organi>ation such as B(*, JJ


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Jorld Conservation onitoring Centre, Flobal *iodiversity (tatus of the Earth#s Diving

Besources. 'Dondon, Chapman and Hall, %/)

)redits

2his brieng was prepared for the Iohn Bay 3nitiative by :r Iohn (ale, 3nternational

*iodiversity Consultant. 2han&s are due to :r :avid oyer and the IB3 2rustees for their

helpful comments.

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