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"Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world;
indeed, it's the only thing that ever has." 
Margaret Mead, American anthropologist, 1901-1978
 


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» Listings for March 2018

  1. Forests really matter

    Posted on

    Nature Ecology & Evolution have published research that shows the enormous value of Earth’s remaining intact forests on several levels:

    Climate Change
    Infact forests absorb about 25% of our carbon emissions from all human sources – if we destroy them, there will be far more carbon dioxide in the air which a) makes the climate warmer and b) can hardly be good for any of us to breathe in

    Water availability
    Intact forests ensure that local and regional weather remains stable, as they generate more rain than cleared forests which reduces the risk of drought.

    Biodiversity
    Intact forests have higher numbers of species who are dependent on forests and who have higher functional and genetic diversity

    Indigenous cultures
    Intact forests enable many indigenous groups to sustain their livelihoods and cultures

    Human health
    The loss of forest compromise the supply of species that millions of people rely on for medicinal purposes, and it drives the spread of many infectious diseases because humans come into closer contact with disease vectors.

    Professor James Watson of the Wildlife Conservation Society and the University of Queensland says that not all forests are equal and forest conservation should be prioritised on their relative values. 

    The researchers say we need to act while we still have intact forests left to save, before mankind destroys them all.

    Global and national environmental strategies must retain the integrity of infact forest, and there must be more efforts to stabilise deforestation frontiers and stimulate restoration.

    Policy interventions the researchers recommend include;

    • Creating new standard metrics of intactness to raise awareness of the importance of forest quality and help target action to those areas most intact
    • Embedding the intact forests concept in the UN Frameowrk Convention on Climate and the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change’s Special Reports to ensure the Paris Agreement’s commitment includes the protections of intact forests
    • Supporting local and global policies which limit road expansion, regulate hunting, extraction and development on the one hand; and to help secure indigenous communities’ land tenure rights and invest in restoration and protected areas on the other
    • Support efforts which restore and make degraded forests more productive, and conserve the intact systems which are at risk, rather than opening them up to activity

    We need to start cherishing our forests and caring for them all.  They look after us; we need to look after them.

     

  2. 664,484 acres protected in Bolivia

    Posted on

    There's good news from Bolivia.

    The World Land Trust and Nature and Culture International have jointly funded the creation of Heroes del Chaco Historical and Wildlife Municipal Reserve.

    This is protection a whopping 664,484 acres of Dry Chaco forest in Bolivia!

    The project was given community support, and on the ground, it's Natura Bolivia who run it.   

    World Land Trust says the plains of Gran Chaco extend from the base of hte Andes across Northern Argentina, western Paraguay and south east Bolivia.

    It is ihome to the largest Dry Forest in South America, and has swamps, savannahs, marshes, salt flats and scrubelands.

    It supports about 500 species of birds, 150 species of mammals, 120 species of reptiles and 100 species of amphibians, so it's a very important area for wildlife.  Threats to the area are deforestation, hunting and unsustainable cattle farming.  

    Natura is working with locals in the area to develop a conservation model which works for both wildlife and people in the area.   For instance, the govenrment has given support for conservation incentives.   

    This is very exciting, especially the work to develop conservation models which work for people and wildlife and it will be interesting to see how the project develops.  

    Meantime, it's great to think that over 664,000 acres are being protected. 

     

  3. Seychelles protects an area as large as Britain

    Posted on

    There's great news from the Seychelles - they are to protect an area as large as Britain in the Indian Ocean.

    The island has agreed to protect 81,000 square miles of ocean in exchange for getting some of its national debt paid off.   The swap was agreed with the Nature Conservancy, a US charity, and several investors back in 2016.   Future national debt payments will be directed into the Seychelles Conservation and Climate Adaptation Trust, which will offer lower interest rates on debt repayments.  Any savings will go to fund new projects to protect marine life and handle climate change effects.

    The Leonardo DiCaprio Foundation is just one of the investors which had worked on the deal.   The actor said the effort will serve as a model for future marine conservaiton projects world wide.   

    An important part of the agreement is that the Seychelles is raising the amount of its protected waters by 2020 to 30% (from 0.04%) so that's a huge increase. 

    The plan falls into two parts

    1. To create new marine parks covering the Aldabra islands - they are home to hundreds of thousand tortoises, nesting bird colonies, and the endangered dugong.   Only research and regulated tourism will be allowed.
    2. To limit fishing and tourism activities around the Seychelles main islands. 

    The hope is to introduce similar actions in the Caribbean and other ocean regions facing threats from climate change. 

     

  4. New reserves to create whale sanctuary in Scotland

    Posted on

    The Scottish Government is to consult the public on the creation of new marine protected areas - MPAs.

    Four marine reseres are set to be established to protect dolphins and whales in their Scottish breeding and nursey aresa.

    The areas are:

    1. North East Lewis
    2. The Sea of the Hebrides
    3. Shiant East Bank (around the Outer Hebrides) 
    4. The Southern Trench (from the sea off Buckie to Peterhead)  

    The Sea of the Hebrides is known to be a vital breeding spot for basking sharkes.   Risso's and bottlenose dolphins, along several whale species, frequent all the areas.

    The Whale and Dolphin Conservation society had proposed 3 of the sites in 2011.

    Currently, Scotland's MPA network covers about 20% of its seas at the moment and it comprises over 30 MPAs.

    You can find out more about the WDC's report on this proposal here

    And more about the Scottish Government's Marine Protected Areas here