THE SINKING ARK - POLLUTION AND THE WORLDWIDE LOSS OF BIODIVERSITY

Humans are making increasing demands on natural ecosystems. One recent study has concluded that our species is consuming or diverting some 40% of the net photosynthetic productivity of our planet. Many habitats are being converted to simpler systems which provide more harvestable goods to people. As a result, genetic diversity, species and whole ecosystems are disappearing; some scientists suggest that as many as 25% of the world's species could be lost in the next several decades. 'The sinking ark' is usually characterized in terms of pollution, habitat loss, poaching, introduced species and illegal trade in wildlife products, but these are symptoms rather than causes. At a more fundamental level, many of the same factors which have enabled pollution to become such a problem have also been responsible for the loss in biodiversity; the most important factor is that the effects of pollutants on biodiversity have been considered an externality, an unintended side effect of industrial activity which brought measurable benefits to people. Development activities which have depleted biodiversity have proven profitable only because the real costs have been hidden. Keeping the ark afloat will require the 'Five-I Approach': investigation (learning how natural systems function); information (ensuring that the facts are available to inform decisions); incentives (using economic tools to help conserve biodiversity); integration (promoting a cross-sectoral approach to conserving biodiversity; and international support (building productive collaboration for conserving biodiversity).