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| Saturday, 22 May 2004 |
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Today is International Day for Biological Diversity: Preservation of biodiversity is a challenge by Lionel Wijesiri
On the occasion of this year's International Day for Biological Diversity, which falls today, UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan stressing that failure to stop biodiversity loss [is] too awful to contemplate reminds the world: "Every individual, local community, sector and organization, whether private, public, national, international or non-governmental, has an obligation and an interest in changing outlooks through education and by example, thereby helping to end thoughtless or deliberate waste and destruction." We, in Sri Lanka, are really fortunate to own a country which is one of the most biologically diverse countries in the world, with a large portion of its species found nowhere else in the world. Yet, our biodiversity is being destroyed at a fast rate, perhaps reaching an irreversible trend. Sooner rather than later, many of our plants and animals may be as dead as the proverbial dodo - the large, flightless bird that is now extinct. We depend on biodiversity for our survival and quality of life. The most significant impediment to the conservation and management of biodiversity is our lack of knowledge about it and the effects of human population and activities on it. * Ecosystem processes: Biodiversity underpins the processes that make life possible. Healthy ecosystems are necessary for maintaining and regulating: atmospheric quality, climate, fresh water, marine productivity, soil formation, cycling of nutrients and waste disposal. * Ethics: No species - and no generation - has the right to sequester Earth's resources solely for its own benefit. * Aesthetics and culture: Biodiversity is intrinsic to values such as beauty and tranquillity. Many Sri Lankans place a high value on native plants and animals, which contribute to a sense of cultural identity, spiritual enrichment and recreation. * Economic: Sri Lankan plants and animals attract tourists and provide food, medicines, energy and building materials. Our biodiversity is a reservoir of resources that remains relatively untapped. Hot spot Conservation International (CI), has described Sri Lanka as one of the 25 "bio-diversity hotspots" in the world - a record that does not speak well of our environmental conservation program and the public's apathy to environmental concerns. Hotspots are areas with the least number of species existing, the least number of species found in an exclusive ecosystem and have an alarmingly high degree of threat against the existing species. The 25 biodiversity hotspots contain 44 percent of all plant species and 35 percent of all terrestrial vertebrate species in only 1.4 percent of the planet's land area. The diversity of Sri Lanka's fauna and flora is both rich and unique. Within the confines of the country 628 species of terrestrial vertebrates are found while its inland and territorial waters have over 1000 species of freshwater and marine fishes. Some of these species are endemic to Sri Lanka. See following table: There are also "relict" fauna of genera and species which date back to geological times. Kabaragoya is the largest representative of the relict fauna and is available in wet rural areas. The mountain lizard is another. Flora The National Herbarium at the Royal Botanic Gardens currently houses over 100,000 species of Sri Lankan flora. The indigenous flora of Sri Lanka has about 7,500 species, a large percentage of which is endemic. Of the 3,360 of flowering plants about 830 are known to be endemic. And, of these 830 plants, 230 are considered to be threatened. The country's marine and aquatic life are equally endangered. Our coral reefs, one of the most diverse in the world, may not be around for long. With the impending loss of the coral reefs, 10 to 15 per cent of the total marine fisheries' production for human consumption will be lost and adversely affect the livelihood of thousands of fishing families. Pressure The increasing population has seriously stressed the country's biodiversity and have put tremendous pressure on the remaining natural resources. Sri Lanka still has about 22 per cent of dense forest cover of which about 12 per cent is devoted to wild life protection. But unplanned land alienation and unchecked encroachments have made matters worse. One of our most important reserves is the Sinharaja Forest Reserve, which encompasses 50 percent of the remaining lowland rain forest vegetation in Sri Lanka. Portions of the reserve have been protected since 1875, and it was declared a World Heritage Site in 1989. Biological studies have revealed that the reserve is a "hotspot within a hotspot." Sixty-five percent of Sri Lanka's 220 endemic tree and woody climber species and 270 species of vertebrates have been recorded there. Although public awareness of Sinharaja's splendid biodiversity is growing, the reserve still faces threats. People from neighbouring villages encroach the reserve via logging roads to collect non-timber forest products. Future In a country like ours where conservation budgets are insufficient given the number of species threatened with extinction, identifying conservation priorities is crucial. A variety of conservation approaches are needed to protect biodiversity, from the establishment of traditional protected areas to the implementation of innovative economic alternatives such as ecotourism and conservation concessions. Hotspots conservation also requires influencing the behaviour of people at the local level, through education, and at the national level, through policy work and awareness campaigns. It involves working with international corporations to ensure that their business practices do not contribute to further biodiversity loss. Government should employ scientific, economic, policy, and education tools to create effective conservation strategies. What we need urgently is a National Strategy for the Conservation of Sri Lanka's Biological Diversity which will provide the framework for protecting our biodiversity. The Strategy's stated aim should be to bridge the gap between current activities and those measures necessary to ensure the effective identification, conservation and ecologically sustainable use of Sri Lanka's biological diversity. The loss of biodiversity, and especially of genetic and species diversity, represents a loss to all people, today and in the future. Moreover, the impacts of ecosystem and habitat degradation reach beyond local boundaries. Climate regimes, river flows, sediment deposition patterns, and migratory species are all affected. In Sri Lanka, the Government has always borne the main responsibility for biodiversity conservation and its costs. However, biodiversity conservation should not be viewed as a burden or unrecoverable expense. Instead, it should be seen as an investment similar to that in public education or health. The maintenance of key habitats and species provides economically valuable ecosystem services or forms the indispensable basis for major industries as fisheries, tourism, and the harvesting of non-timber products. Since international funding for biodiversity conservation will always be limited, the government itself must make needed policy changes and increase its own investments. |
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