It’s World Biodiversity Day!
Want to know more about biodiversity?
By Alice Creasy
The Importance of Biodiversity
Biodiversity refers to the variety of life on Earth. Unsurprisingly, this is hugely complex and comprises of several levels layers from genes, to individual species, to communities, and finally, to entire ecosystems such as tundra, coral reefs and forests, where life interplays with the physical environment.
Life Support Systems Under Threat
Biodiversity is vital to all life on earth however, at the moment it is facing unprecedented levels of collapse and crisis. A landmark report published in May 2019 by the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES) highlights the extent of global biodiversity loss. The report, compiled by 145 expert authors from 50 countries over three years, with inputs from another 310 contributing authors, assesses the changes over the past five decades, providing a picture of the relationship between economic development pathways and their impacts on nature. It found that globally around 1 million animal and plant species are now threatened with imminent extinction, this is more than ever before in human history. In fact, the extinction rate of species is now thought to be about 1,000 times higher than before humans dominated the planet. The IPBES report has found that on average populations of native species in the majority of land-based habitats have fallen by at least 20%, mostly since 1900 and over 40% of amphibian species with almost 33% of reef-forming corals and more than a third of all marine mammals are threatened. Some further key findings include:
Three-quarters of the land-based environment and about 66% of the marine environment have been significantly altered by human actions. On average these trends have been less severe or avoided in areas held or managed by Indigenous Peoples and Local Communities.
More than a third of the world’s land surface and nearly 75% of freshwater resources are now devoted to crop or livestock production.
Land degradation has reduced the productivity of 23% of the global land surface, up to US$577 billion in annual global crops are at risk from pollinator loss and 100-300 million people are at increased risk of floods and hurricanes because of loss of coastal habitats and protection.
In 2015, 33% of marine fish stocks were being harvested at unsustainable levels; 60% were maximally sustainably fished, with just 7% harvested at levels lower than what can be sustainably fished.
Plastic pollution has increased tenfold since 1980, 300-400 million tons of heavy metals, solvents, toxic sludge and other wastes from industrial facilities are dumped annually into the world’s waters, and fertilizers entering coastal ecosystems have produced more than 400 ocean ‘dead zones’, totalling more than 245,000 km2 (591-595) – a combined area greater than that of the United Kingdom.
This report ranks the five most harmful drivers of this change which are: (1) changes in land and sea use (such as intensive agriculture); (2) the direct exploitation of organisms; (3) climate change; (4) pollution and (5), invasive alien species. With greenhouse gases doubling since the 1980s, the authors also predict that the impact of climate change will grow in significance over the coming decades.
State of Nature; biodiversity in the UK
the UK the State of Nature reports are published every four years. This large-scale collaboration between conservation and research organisations provides a well-rounded overview of how UK wildlife is faring. The work looks back over the past 50 years to see how nature has changed and provides an assessment as to whether things are getting better or worse for biodiversity. It also identifies the pressures that contribute to the trends and the responses that need to be made to counter them.
The most recent State of Nature report was published in 2019 and, much like the IPBES’s global assessment, it paints a stark picture of biodiversity loss in the UK. Key findings from this report include:
15% of species from across the country are threatened with extinction and 133 out of the 8431 assessed have already become extinct from Great Britain.
Since 1970 more populations have seen their numbers decrease rather than increase.
Some bird populations such as the Kittiwake have declined by 70% since 1986 as a result of climate change disrupting food availability.
72% of land in the UK is managed for agriculture with only 13% of land covered by woodland, 44% of which is managed sustainably.
The report acknowledges that the UK’s biodiversity was already massively depleted before the State of Nature’s 1970 baseline due to centuries of habitat loss, management changes, development and persecution. The results of the report indicate that levels of biodiversity i.e. the abundance and distribution of species in the UK, continues to decline. The core reasons for this include; agricultural management, climate change, hydrological change, urbanisation, pollution, woodland management and invasive non-native species. Furthermore, it is predicted that the UK Government will fail to meet most of the global 2020 targets that it has committed to through the Convention on Biological Diversity.
Implications
For the many of us that live in the swelling urban centres of our planet, wildlife is something that you see on television. Yet, from the water and food we consume, to the air we breathe and the safety of our homes, biodiversity is fundamental to our lives. Without insects for example, pollination would not occur, and food would not grow. Bee numbers are in decline globally due to unsustainable, intensive agricultural and land use practices. In the UK a third of wild bees and hoverflies are in decline. Hardwood forests are hugely important for removing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere but rely on animals such as tropical tortoises and spider monkeys to disperse the tree’s seeds. Coral reef and mangrove swamps protect homes from flooding, an increasingly important service given rising sea levels and more unstable weather patterns. The diversity of plant and animal species are a source of important medicines, many of which may not be developed if species die out.
In short, a huge variety of rich and complex ecosystems act as the life support system for the planet. Due to human practices these ecosystems are collapsing leading to the loss not only of diverse and amazing species but posing a huge threat to human life on earth. As Professor David Macdonald, Director of the Wildlife Conservation Research Unit at the University of Oxford, has said “Without biodiversity, there is no future for humanity”.
Looking back at the IPBES report, the authors predict that these negative trends will continue to 2050 and beyond in the vast majority of policy scenarios explored. The only thing that will slow and start to halt this drastic decline in biodiversity are policy interventions e.g. ‘transformative change’. In other words, authors suggest that to maintain the earth’s life support systems, and by extension our own, radical new ways of living are needed, and fast.
What can you do to help?
Help slow climate change
From pollution and coral bleaching to agriculture and deforestation, activities associated with anthropogenic climate change is the leading cause of biodiversity loss worldwide.
Helping to prevent climate change through actions such as reducing the number of flights you take, embracing active travel, changing your diet, campaigning for a local organisation and donating to environmental causes will all help to start a conversation with those around you and collectively slow climate change.
Become a Conscious Consumer
The food we eat has a massive impact on land use and biodiversity. Pesticides and fertilizers are a leading cause of biodiversity loss, impacting ecosystems on both a short term (through direct exposure to organisms and pollution to the surrounding environment) and long term basis (through changes to habitats and the food chain).
Large-scale, intensive livestock agriculture has also been detrimental to ecosystems across the globe. The WWF has found that an area 1.5 times the size of the European Union would be saved from agricultural production if the amount of animal products eaten globally was reduced to meet nutritional requirements.
With this in mind, buying organic and Soil Association certified where possible can help to minimise the volume of chemicals that are sprayed onto fields and moving towards a sustainably sourced, plant-based diet has been shown to help protect areas of natural vegetation.
Be a conscious consumer, from sea food to household cleaning products, the goods we buy have a huge impact on the global environment. There are plenty of guides out there to help you find the most ethical products.
Local action
Get involved with a local environmental protection group. From litter picks and river cleans to tree planting and wildlife surveys, your help will make all the difference to local biodiversity.
In your own green space
Here are some key ways you can help to develop a safe and diverse home for wildlife in your garden or window box:
Stop using pesticides and fertilizers and ask your local authority to do the same!
Invest and grow wildlife friendly gardens/patios or balconies and choose wildlife-friendly fencing to allow some access.
Grow insect friendly plants in your garden or window box
Build a bug hotel. This can be a fun activity that gives insects a safe place to shelter and encourages birds into your green space.
VOTE!
Find out about policies affecting biodiversity, make contact with your local political representatives, tell them how you feel and ask them what they will do to help.
Signing petitions and donating to environmental movements are also key ways to have your voice heard.