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Why Bio-Diversity is Not Just a ‘Nice To Have’



For most of us, supporting biodiversity is a beautiful thing, but we have more urgent concerns, like having a good job, a roof over our head, and food to eat.


‘Keeping the lights on’ is a very powerful argument for politicians around the world to push for short term economic benefits. It is an easy way to be seen as responsible and acting towards the best outcome for all of us.


But the more we learn about biodiversity, we start realising that our basic survival needs as a species are fully dependent on microorganisms that we never knew the existence of, until very recently.


‘Without pollinators we would not have apples, cherries, blueberries, almonds and many other foods we eat. Agriculture is also reliant upon invertebrates – they help to maintain the health of the soil crops grow in.  Soil is teeming with microbes that are vital for liberating nutrients that plants need to grow, which are then also passed to us when we eat them. Life from the oceans provides the main source of animal protein for many people.’ ‘Biodiversity is essential for the processes that support all life on Earth, including humans. Without a wide range of animals, plants and microorganisms, we cannot have the healthy ecosystems that we rely on to provide us with the air we breathe and the food we eat’. Source : https://royalsociety.org/


Because humans have been living through recent times relatively unaffected by the ever-growing number of species going extinct, it is tempting to believe that those rich and beautiful ecosystems were just a ‘nice to have’.


We are now discovering that even microbes that existed on earth at the same time as dinosaurs are still supporting unsuspected, rich ocean life more than 4 km below the ocean surface. In turn, those ecosystems are crucial to the sea life that we depend on for a large part of our food supply.


Thinking Global, Acting Local:

The thousands of species we have lost worldwide in the last 100 years alone cannot be restored, but there are many wonderful stories of recovery that cannot be ignored.


Small marine reserves in the Philippines have regenerated a fish life that local communities would never have expected to return. It has highlighted the power of even small reefs and what can be achieved by protecting them- ‘Soundings- Diving for stories by the Beaconing Sea- Kenedy Warne’


Recent quota reductions for Crayfish in New Zealand sparked a speedy recovery of those fisheries in the South Island.


Back on land, Organisations like the Bluff Hill Motupohue Environment Trust continue their success stories in restoring native tree and plant species as well as fostering native bird populations through their comprehensive predator control programs.


Worldwide, biodiversity restoration stories are multiplying, confirming than any localised effort is part of a much larger movement, that is gathering momentum.


Making a difference close to home is where is matters most, this is why the Aparima Pestbusters Trust is proud of its achievements in helping native bird populations, and optimistic about further progress, as our 5-year plan is rolled out.

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