“Around 1 million animal and plant species, out of the 8.7 million estimated to exist on Earth, are now threatened with extinction, many within the coming decades, which is more than ever before in human history” warns a new landmark report from the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES). Deforestation, industrial farming and fishing, rampant urbanization, natural resource use and overexploitation of wildlife, pollution, invasive species and climate change are some of the ways in which the planet’s natural ecosystem is being disrupted – with devastating results on up to 75% of terrestrial and 66% of marine environment.
“The loss of biodiversity is a silent killer. It’s different from climate change, where people feel the impact in everyday life. With biodiversity, it is not so clear but by the time you feel what is happening, it may be too late.” warns Cristiana Paşca Palmer, executive secretary of the UN Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) – the world body responsible for maintaining the natural life support systems on which humanity depends.
Biodiversity is our life-supporting safety net
Biodiversity provides ecosystem goods and services that benefit humans and sustain our lives. Ecosystem services are essential for human well-being in providing food, fuel and fibre, for air and water purification, in the stabilization and moderation of the Earth’s climate, and the moderation of floods, droughts and temperature extremes, for soil generation and renewal, including nutrient cycling, crop pollination and cultural and aesthetic benefits e.g. education, eco-tourism and so on. For instance, insects pollinate our crops, an ecosystem service worth 22 billion euro for agriculture in Europe. But in reality biodiversity’s value is immeasurable, enabling every living creature to survive and adapt to a changing environment. Biodiversity is not just the abundance of life on Earth. Its loss doesn’t just mean that we are losing rare plants and animals. It means that entire ecosystems are producing less and are becoming increasingly vulnerable to external pressure like climate change. Think of all the different species and ecosystems on our planet as threads in a net. The more threads that intertwine, the stronger the net – and the better nature can provide for us and cope with threats such as climate change. Unfortunately, we have been unpicking the safety net for decades, chopping down forests to make way for farming, overfishing our seas, bulldozing wetlands so that floods wreak havoc.
“We are eroding the very foundations of our economies, livelihoods, food security, health and quality of life worldwide,” Sir Robert Watson points out, chair of IPBES.
LIFE helps protect nature
Europe is blessed with a diversity of habitats, wild species and cultural landscapes condensed in such a narrow expanse, which must be protected. For that reason, the EU has been committed to the protection of nature since the adoption of the Nature Directives and the establishment of EU-wide Natura 2000, the largest coordinated network of protected areas in the world counting 27 years since its launch in 1992. The LIFE Programme is one of the main sources of EU funding for implementing the Birds and Habitats Directives and halting biodiversity loss within and outside Natura 2000. LIFE co-funds projects that work to conserve threatened species or habitats, whilst at the same time encourages sustainable forestry, fishing, farming and tourism. LIFE is a bridge connecting the EU, local authorities and citizens, and plays a decisive role in filling the gap in the implementation of environmental legislation. It is very often used to offset the effects of measures and policies that undermine natural capital and biodiversity in the EU, while, over time, has proven to be a flexible instrument, adjusting new constraints and challenges. The programme co-finances projects with EU added value, contributing to the implementation, modernization and development of European environmental and climate policy and legislation.
LIFE is an investment in both nature and people. Since 1992, it has co-financed over 1 700 nature and bio¬diversity projects, which translates to an investment of more than €2.2 billion in nature conservation. Projects have helped reverse bird pop¬ulation declines, and the status of many other species and habitats has significantly improved in places where targeted action was taken. Thanks to LIFE, some remarkable conservation successes are recorded, such as pulling the world’s most endangered cat species (Iberian lynx) back from the brink of extinction. This year’s winner of the LIFE Award for Nature was LIFE WOLFALPS, which put in place, for the first time, coordinated conservation actions to support the natural wolf recolonization process in the Alpine regions of France, Italy and Slovenia. The project has been exceptionally successful in minimizing conflict with people affected by the return of the wolf, thus helping increase the number of wolf packs and the species’ range.
LIFE projects draw attention to similar success stories Europe wide and provide a framework to share best practices, compare approaches, build contacts and exchange information and new knowledge. LIFE is great at putting different stakeholders together, private and public, to manage the Natura 2000 network of sites. It also improves conservation knowhow, and raises awareness by actively involving citizens, as well as local and regional authorities. Such a groundbreaking project was our very own LIFE Oroklini, consisting of both conservation and awareness-raising actions to restore and manage Oroklini Lake. The project tackled the pressures threatening this important wetland, turning it into a haven for rare and threatened bird species like the Black-winged Stilt and the Spur-winged Plover that nest there. In addition, the lake can now be used as an outdoor classroom for environmental education among pupils and visitors in general.
LIFE projects also help introduce climate change adaptation measures, they help sustain ecosystem services and raise awareness in businesses of the role they can play in supporting biodiversity conservation. Farmers, too, have a major role to play in the management and conservation of biodiversity, as demonstrated in numerous examples like LIFE Olivares Vivos. The project is an initiative to increase the profitability of the olive grove in Spain by recovering its biodiversity. It is a demonstration project that will implement profitable and biodiverse olive growing models, generating oils identified and certified by a trademark of added value. The project will contribute to halting the abandonment of the traditional olive grove avoiding environmental costs. At the same time, thousands of people around Europe are encouraged to change attitudes and realise the role they play as consumers in the strategies to halt biodiversity loss in the EU.
“It’s a question of discipline”, the little prince told me later on. “When you’ve finished washing and dressing each morning, you must tend your planet”.
Antoine de Saint-Exupéry, The Little Prince, 1943
We need to act now
We need to draw up more ambitious targets to halt and start reversing biodiversity loss. For that to happen, we must change our attitudes, our economic, social and cultural behaviours from the individual to the global community. The good news is that, for the first time in human history, we understand the impact we’re having on the natural world and we know how we can start to mend the net. The importance of the need for conservation is not confined to rescuing endangered, charismatic species, but extends to something much deeper, to the monetary value of nature and biodiversity, and to the way in which the food industry, the energy and transport sectors, all contribute to the degradation of ecosystems. Cyprus, being a biodiversity hotspot, bears great responsibility for its sustainable use and preservation for the generations to come. We mustn’t forget that most biodiversity benefits are taking place at the local level, so it is in our own hands to salvage our local capital. The ultimate decision-maker for biodiversity is the individual citizen.
Recognising that people and nature perform better when working together, the LIFE Programme offers targeted funding to help preserve our natural capital. To find out if you can benefit from this programme contact us today!
Author: Dr Maria Zomeni, Nature and Biodiversity Expert