Arguments for protection: biodiversity
Biological diversity - or biodiversity - is the term given to the variety of life on Earth and the patterns it forms.
Biodiversity comprises all the millions of different species that live on our planet - plants, animals, and microorganisms - as well as genetic differences within each species - for example, between varieties of crops and breeds of livestock. It also includes the multitude of different ecosystems on Earth, in which particular species form a unique community, interacting with one another and with the air, water, and soil around them.
© WWF-Canon / Martin Harvey
Life is what sets our planet apart - but the wondrous variety of species that share our home is rapidly disappearing. The intrinsic value of species and ecosystems in their own right makes biodiversity worthy of protection.
Thanks to destructive human activities, the current rate of species extinction is at least 100-1,000 times higher than the expected natural rate. These activities include large-sale clearing and pollution of natural habitats, over-exploitation of wild plants and animals, the introduction of invasive alien species, and climate change.
One in four of the world’s mammals are now threatened with extinction in the near future. So are one in eight birds, one in five sharks, one in four coniferous trees, and one in three amphibians.
Overall, WWF’s Living Planet Index - derived from trends in populations of hundreds of animal species - has declined by about 35% over the past 30 years. This quantitative measure indicates that the current rate of biodiversity loss is comparable with the great mass extinction events that have previously occurred only five or six times in the Earth’s history.
Protected areas are essential tools to halt this biodiversity loss.
They act as refuges for species, genetic diversity, and ecological processes that cannot survive in intensely managed landscapes and seascapes. They also provide space for natural evolution and future ecological restoration.
Protected areas can also help buy time for habitats and species threatened by global warming and climate change, while the world works out the only long-term solution: reducing CO2 emissions.
