Protecting 30% of the planet to save nature is not as simple as it sounds

MONTREAL - From the lush Amazon rainforest to the frigid Arctic Ocean, the world’s landscapes – and all the wildlife they contain – are under threat, and the world needs to set aside a third of all land and sea territories to save them, United Nations experts say.

Proponents argue that the goal is crucial to reversing the destruction of nature. Currently, more than 1 million species are at risk of extinction, while the global insect population declines at up to 2 per cent every year and about 40 per cent of the world’s remaining plant species are in trouble. “Thirty per cent is neither necessary nor sufficient,” Pimm said. “If we do things the right way, we protect most biodiversity by being smart – by protecting the areas that matter.”There is a temptation, he said, to conserve vast tracts of land that are already without many people, but also have relatively little biodiversity, such as the Arctic tundra or Saharan desert.

“A numerical target isn’t going to work,” Pimm said. “If we were to just protect 50 per cent of the planet, and we protect the least populated 50 per cent, it will do very little for biodiversity.” “I see 30 per cent as a goal that most countries can reasonably achieve by 2030,” he said, adding some countries, such as Bhutan, had already passed this goal.One of the key tension points that has emerged in the 30-by-30 debate at COP15 is whether the target should be carried out globally or at a national level.

Currently, just under 50 per cent of the Amazon is under some form of official protection or indigenous stewardship, so a national pledge to conserve 30 per cent would represent a significant downgrade.The other dispute plaguing 30-by-30 is over what should count as protection. Some countries might allow people to live within protected areas or promote indigenous stewardship of these lands. Some might even allow for extractive industries to operate under permits and regulation.

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Protecting 30% of the planet to save nature is not as simple as it soundsMONTREAL - From the lush Amazon rainforest to the frigid Arctic Ocean, the world’s landscapes – and all the wildlife they contain – are under threat, and the world needs to set aside a third of all land and sea territories to save them, United Nations experts say. Read more at straitstimes.com.
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