Loss of Biodiversity

Images courtesy of Apolonio Mai, wildbze.com/

Plant and animal biodiversity is being destroyed at unprecedented rates as a result of human activities.  The loss we have already caused is well-documented and overwhelming.  Large-scale global extinction of species occurred in the 20^th century at a rate a thousand times higher than the average rate during the preceding 65 million years and, by most estimates, a thousand times the natural rate.[1]  Populations for vertebrate species declined by approximately one-third in the 33 years from 1970 to 2003.  The International Union for Conservation of Nature’s Red List of Threatened Species—the most comprehensive international scientific database on the current status of globally threatened biodiversity—estimates that 40% of the plant and animal species they surveyed are currently threatened with extinction.  According to the most comprehensive study on biodiversity loss, unless we do something to stop it, over a million species will be lost in the coming 50 yearsdue largely to climate change.[2] 

Biodiversity refers to species diversity, genetic diversity within those species, and the diversity of ecological complexes (such as coastlines and coral reefs, rainforests, deserts, and wetlands) in which these species naturally occur.  High genetic diversity increases species persistence, including their resistance to disease, habitat destruction and fragmentation.[5]  The richer the diversity of life, the greater the opportunity for medical discoveries, economic development, crop variety, and adaptive responses to genetic defects and climate change.[3]  While many people think about animals only in terms of their personal enjoyment, animals perform many vital services that benefit humans free of charge.  For example, honeybees pollinate at least one third of the earth’s fruits and vegetables.[4]  These valuable insects are currently in grave decline, with some recent reports estimating that 50-75% of the hives in the United States and Europe have been wiped out. 

The damage we have caused to our available edible crops is staggering.  We have lost thousands of hardy, locally-adapted seed crops which have been forced to extinction through plant variety rights legislation, plant patenting, and multinational seed resource ownership.[6]  In Europe, around 85% of these seeds have been made “illegal” and can no longer be purchased.[7]  In Africa, there were once some 2,000 native grains, fruits, roots and other food crops, that have been lost as a result of interference in the environment.[8]  Among these crops were 100 native grasses with edible seeds. 

The rate at which extinctions are occurring must also be addressed.  When extinction occurs slowly, the environment can adapt, and balancing mechanisms are allowed to develop. Rapid extinction is likely to precipitate global species and ecosystem collapse, which in turn threatens food supplies for hundreds of millions of people.[9] For example, 90% of the world’s larges fishes (sharks, tuna, swordfish, marlin) have become extinct from industrial fishing and destruction of coral reefs.[10]  Some research warns that if the current rate of marine species loss continues, the entire global fishing industry could reach a point in less than 50 years where they will be unable to regenerate themselves.[12]

Studies of long-term trends in the earth’s fossil record indicate that if unaided, it may take the earth millions of years to rebound from the dramatic effects of loss of biodiversity[13].  Cooperation, symbiosis, and balance are necessary components for ecologic health, and if we continue to tear down our forests, destroy all photosynthetic plant life and native animal species, and cover everything in concrete, we will be forced to find alternative inputs to the world’s environment at a tremendous cost to society.  The abundance of research is clear—in human history, there has never been more need for people to take action to help the earth rejuvenate to a more thriving, balanced, beautiful state as nature intended.