Today’s Biodiversity Loss
If scientists were asked what is one of the most pressing environmental issues today, the topic of biodiversity loss and the 6th mass extinction would without doubt be mentioned. As a 22 year old, just a few of the species I will see go extinct in my lifetime include Giraffes, Black and White Rhinoceros, Pygmy Three-Toed Sloths, Gulf Porpoises, and Sumatran Elephants. The extinction rate is at an all time high and mankind is to blame.
An awakening reminder of the rampant species loss was the death of Sudan, the last male northern white rhino. His death in March, at the age of 45, disheartened conservationists around the world. Sudan lived in Ol Pejeta conservancy in Kenya. The remaining population of white rhinos consists of Sudan’s daughter and granddaughter, which conservationists are hoping will be enough to save the species from completely dying out. Colin Butfield, a campaign director for the World Wildlife Fund, says this highlights a wider crisis and Sudan’s death is just a small part of a much larger issue. According to Butfield, since 1970, vertebrate species have seen more than a 50 percent decline. This rhinoceros species demise can be contributed to severe poaching and habitat loss since the 1900s. Biodiversity’s biggest threat is human overpopulation. Butfield states, “Through the current economic system and globalization we are taking up more of the earth’s resources and living space than it can accommodate. This is not just a threat to other species this is a threat directly to our survival as humans too.” Sudan’s death is a symbol to the world, that a more sustainable way of life is essential if we hope to stop this rapid biodiversity loss.
While the entire globe is facing extinctions, Australia has the worst record on mammal conservation. This extreme biodiversity loss is due to habitat loss from urbanization, agriculture, and mining industries. Euan Ritchie, a Deakin University researcher, just published a paper this year in Nature Ecology and Evolution with his recommendations on slowing biodiversity loss. Ritchie calls into account the connection between corruption and biodiversity loss. Ritchie states, “Both major political parties receive large donations from fossil fuel companies and extractive industries. And if they’re making decisions about biodiversity at the same time as development, then obviously there’s a potential conflict of interest there.” He also calls out the corrupt policies of industries that are allowed to eliminate precious habitat as long as they offset it somehow. He calls for industries being held to a higher standards and the overall goal of no more extinctions.
Pollution from agriculture has also played a role in the increasing species loss. The Gulf of Mexico’s “dead zone” has resulted from extensive agriculture runoff near the Mississippi that leeches into the river and ultimately runs into the Gulf. A recent study has found that even if the flow of chemicals were to halt in the Gulf, the damage will continue for up to 30 more years. The chemicals result in depletion of oxygen in the water, which further results in the loss of life for marine species. These “dead zones” affect all fish, shellfish, marine mammals, and bird species in the area. Realizing the severity of these zones a US taskforce set a goal of shrinking the dead zone to less than 5,000 sq km by 2015. When checked this year, the zone was three times the target size, thus pushing the goal date to 2035. Scientists suggest that pollution can be curbed with better application of fertilizers, planting more grasses, trees, and shrubs along waterways, and reduce tilling soil, to prevent soil erosion. While, these techniques should slow runoff, no results have been shown yet.
Another human caused risk to ocean species is plastic. The Great Pacific garbage patch is 16 times larger than originally estimated containing 79,000 tons of plastic. The amount of plastic being added is increasing exponentially and is mostly made up of micro plastics, plastics less than .2 inches. An organization known as The Ocean Cleanup has pledged to clean up at least half of the patch within the next five years and clean the rest by 2040. More and more marine life is being found with plastics ingested, harming populations. 200 countries signed onto a UN resolution last year to slow the amount of plastics entering the ocean each year. Though the agreement is not legally binding, hopefully strides will be made to minimize this growing issue.
An analysis by the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES) just finished a three-year study that included the help of more than 550 experts. The results have staggering statistics that sum up the severity of the current biodiversity loss rate. Every region on the planet is suffering from biodiversity loss. There most notable finding was the complete depletion of fish stocks in the Asia-Pacific by 2048 and the loss of over half the bird and mammal populations in Africa by 2100. The authors warn that by 2050 climate change will replace land conversion as the leading cause of biodiversity loss. Robert Watson, a member of IPBES, explains, “Biodiversity and nature’s contributions to people sound, to many people, academic and far removed from our daily lives. Nothing could be further from the truth — they are the bedrock of our food, clean water and energy. They are at the heart not only of our survival, but of our cultures, identities and enjoyment of life.”
Whether its habitat destruction, climate change, spreading of chemicals, or throwing away of plastics, human’s unsustainable lifestyle is drastically affecting biodiversity. While, there are steps being taking in conservation fields, there are still great obstacles to overcome.
Works Cited
Kilvert, Nick. “We Need to Focus on Corruption, Population to Halt Biodiversity Loss.” ABC News, Australian Broadcasting Corporation, 26 Mar. 2018, www.abc.net.au/news/science/2018-03-27/corruption-population-impact-biodiversity-loss/9586556.
Milman, Oliver. “‘Dead Zone’ in Gulf of Mexico Will Take Decades to Recover from Farm Pollution.” The Guardian, Guardian News and Media, 22 Mar. 2018, www.theguardian.com/environment/2018/mar/22/dead-zone-gulf-of-mexico-decades-recover-study.
Milman, Oliver. “‘Great Pacific Garbage Patch’ Sprawling with Far More Debris than Thought.” The Guardian, Guardian News and Media, 22 Mar. 2018, www.theguardian.com/environment/2018/mar/22/great-pacific-garbage-patch-sprawling-with-far-more-debris-than-thought.
Taylor, Matthew, and Hannah Ellis-Petersen. “Last Male Northern White Rhino’s Death Highlights ‘Huge Extinction Crisis’.” The Guardian, Guardian News and Media, 20 Mar. 2018, www.theguardian.com/environment/2018/mar/20/last-male-northern-white-rhinos-death-highlights-huge-extinction-crisis.
Wasserstein, Felipe. “Biodiversity Declining in Every Region of the World, Finds Four Major Reports.” Green News Ireland, 31 Mar. 2018, greennews.ie/biodiversity-declining-every-region-world-reports-find/.
