Dealing with Climate Change and Biodiversity Loss Problems

A report from the Intergovernmental Science Policy Platform on Ecosystem Services (IPBES) and the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) says that climate change and the fast decline of ecosystems are interconnected problems that should be addressed together internationally for successful action.

The findings, based on months of research, were presented at a workshop held in December 2019. They will also be presented at two upcoming United Nations conferences, one on climate change and the other on biodiversity.

Global efforts have tackled both issues separately—climate change is the domain of the IPCC and the Paris Climate Agreement. At the same time, the UN Convention on Biological Diversity and other international organisations deal with biodiversity and ecosystem issues.

Because of this, policy responses have been “siloed” while climate change has received more attention, says Pamela McElwee of the Department of Human Ecology at Rutgers University (Gustin, 2021).

Blurred lines between climate change and biodiversity loss

Razan Al Mubarak’s article on WEF about tackling the twin crises of biodiversity loss and climate change says that the “underlying drivers of climate change and biodiversity loss are different, but the line between policy to mitigate climate change and biodiversity loss is not always so distinct”.

He says that blurred lines on policies between both issues tend to appear when dealing with coastal areas where mangrove forests, coral gardens, or salt marshes are present.

According to Mubarak, climate change is caused by the burning of fossil fuels. In contrast, biodiversity loss is caused by climate change and destructive land use practices like land conversion to agriculture, pollution, overharvesting, and the spread of invasive species.

Hans-Oto Pӧrtner, a climatologist and co-chair of the IPCC workshop, says climate change and biodiversity are “closely interwoven” as they share familiar drivers and reinforce each other. Pӧrtner points out that zoonotic diseases emerge from species that thrive when biodiversity declines (Gustin, 2021).

Key strategies to deal with both crises

The authors pointed out crucial strategies that can address both biodiversity loss and climate change, such as ending deforestation in the tropics and reducing the degradation of carbon-rich ecosystems such as peatlands, mangroves, savannahs, and wetlands, boosting sustainable agriculture and forestry, and cutting subsidies to destructive industries.

They also warned governments and policymakers of climate adaptation strategies that could backfire against biodiversity, like planting monocultural, non-native trees or planting vast land areas with bioenergy crops. According to the authors, we use more than 50% of the world’s land area for food and timber production.

Expanding land use for biofuel crops will only add enormous pressure on natural lands, which will be catastrophic for biodiversity and food security.

The authors point out that while nature-based solutions can help combat climate change, they should be done simultaneously with strong emissions reduction.

To read the entire report, click the link below: