If biodiversity suffers human also suffers!!

International Day for Biological Diversity 2023

In recent years, in the name of development, plant and animal species are rapidly disappearing due to human activities. What are the causes and why is biodiversity important? Biodiversity, or the diversity of all living things on our planet, has been declining at an alarming rate in recent years, with biodiversity traditionally defined as the diversity of all forms of life on Earth. It includes all animals, birds, insects, and plants. , including their genetic diversity and the interactions of these life forms in complex ecosystems. Healthy ecosystems provide us with many of the needs we take for granted. Plants convert energy from the sun and make it available to other life forms. Bacteria and other organisms break down organic matter into nutrients. Plants are provided to grow with healthy soil. Pollinators are essential in plant reproduction, ensuring our food production. Plants and oceans act as major carbon sinks. It is important in the diversity of life on Earth, in all its forms, and in all its interactions. Biodiversity is one of the most complex and important features of our planet. “Without biodiversity, humanity has no future,” says Oxford University Professor David MacDonald.

Ecosystem services provide a wide range of benefits to humans. They are natural processes provided by healthy ecosystems. Ecosystem services include the benefits of pollination provided by animals or natural processes that recycle nutrients to support fertile soil formation that allows for higher crop yields. For example, ecotourism generates money through the aesthetic value of nature and improves people’s mental health. Processing and long-range transport separate products from their source, so we must not forget that rampant environmental destruction and loss of biodiversity are unsustainable if humans are to survive. As COVID-19 has shown the world, what we now take for granted can disappear one day and the next.

Biodiversity and these ecosystem services can be lost through human activities such as land use changes, and because these services are often not assigned a direct economic value, they can be degraded to produce short-term economic benefits. Degrading these services through loss of biodiversity leads to an unsustainable economy. Halting biodiversity loss is essential to prevent global economic collapse and prevent tensions and conflicts within society. The absence of pollinators here has resulted in the destruction of pollinator habitats and the overuse of pesticides that are toxic to insect pollinators, leaving workers in some areas armed with paintbrushes and pollen pots and pollinating each flower by hand. This increases labor costs. Human health, especially the risk of exposure to many infectious diseases, depends on the maintenance of biodiversity in natural ecosystems. On the one hand, a greater diversity of wildlife species is expected to sustain a greater diversity of pathogens that infect humans.

Agriculture is sensitive, with just nine plant species now accounting for two-thirds of global crop production, agriculture itself is a major driver of biodiversity loss, pesticides, soil erosion, and deforestation, which destroy habitats and huge wildlife populations. And in addition to its effect on food systems, the destruction of Earth’s soil reduces its ability to retain water, hitting humans by increasing water stress and the frequency of floods. Continued loss of forests and destruction of watersheds reduces the quality and availability of water supplies for domestic use and agriculture. The effects of human activity on nature are exacerbated by climate change, which is exacerbated by damage to ecosystems such as the loss of forests that convert carbon dioxide into oxygen. Biodiversity is fundamental to the health of the planet and has a direct impact on all of our lives. Simply put, reduced biodiversity means millions of people will suffer in the future. This is a concern for humans when food supplies, pests, and diseases are more vulnerable and clean irrigation is unavailable or scarce.

Loss of biodiversity affects health. Biodiversity changes affect ecosystem functioning, and significant disruptions of ecosystems can result in life-enriched ecosystem goods and services. Loss of biodiversity means we are losing many of nature’s chemicals and genes that, before we discovered them, already provided enormous health benefits to humanity. Analyzing our relationship with nature, a reality emerges that we cannot ignore. No matter how advanced science is, we are totally dependent on healthy diverse ecosystems to provide us with water, food, medicines, clothing, fuel, shelter, and energy. It is difficult to imagine what will happen if these basic needs disappear.

 Earth is experiencing more dramatic change due to human activity. Changes in climate are reversible, even if they take centuries or millennia. But once a species goes extinct, biodiversity affects everyone to varying degrees. People living in poverty depend heavily on nature to provide them with resources to survive. Chopping wood is a common activity of the poor in third-world countries. This is a huge problem in many developing countries because it is destroying natural habitats, yet it is the only way for people to earn enough money to support their families.