COP16: The world is falling far short of its goal to halt biodiversity loss – New Scientist

Construction at a controversial dam complex in the Amazon basin

Introduction

The area of land and water with formal protections for biodiversity has grown by less than 0.5 per cent since 2020, leaving the world far short of its goal to protect 30 per cent of the planet by 2030.

“Some progress has been made in the past four years, but we are not moving nearly far or fast enough,” said Inger Andersen, executive director of the UN Environment Programme, in a press release.

Landmark Deal for Biodiversity

In 2022, countries agreed to a landmark deal to halt biodiversity loss at the COP15 summit in Montreal, pledging to establish formal protections for 30 per cent of all land and inland waters and 30 per cent of the oceans by the end of the decade. This was viewed as the minimum amount of protection needed to avoid extinctions in ecosystems around the world, and would require roughly doubling the area of land with protections and tripling marine protected areas.

Current Status

Now, with countries gathered for the COP16 biodiversity summit in Colombia, an official update makes clear the world is lagging far behind this “30 by 30” goal.

Currently, 17.6 per cent of land and inland waters and 8.4 per cent of the oceans are formally protected, according to a tally by the UN Environment Programme and the International Union for Conservation of Nature. That leaves a gap on land the combined size of Brazil and Australia, and the sea still needs a protected area the size of the Indian Ocean to meet the goal.

Challenges and Inaction

There are other issues beyond the total area protected. A third of areas deemed most important for biodiversity lack any formal protections, and protected areas don’t cover some types of ecosystems, especially in the deep ocean. Few protected areas are connected with each other, and only a fraction have been assessed to know if protections are working.

This “lays bare the reality of global inaction,” says Brian O’Donnell at the Campaign for Nature, an environmental advocacy nonprofit. “To rectify this, governments need to treat the biodiversity crisis as the emergency that it is.”

Reports at COP16 Summit

Other reports at the COP16 summit have also highlighted the dire state of biodiversity. For instance, the first global assessment of tree biodiversity found 38 per cent of species are at risk of extinction. As the meeting continues through to the end of this week, countries are also expected to make new pledges on protected areas and funding for conservation.

Topics:

• Biodiversity

SDGs, Targets, and Indicators Analysis

1. Which SDGs are addressed or connected to the issues highlighted in the article?

• SDG 14: Life Below Water – The article mentions the need to establish formal protections for 30% of the oceans by 2030.
• SDG 15: Life on Land – The article highlights the goal to protect 30% of all land and inland waters by 2030.

2. What specific targets under those SDGs can be identified based on the article’s content?

• SDG 14.5: By 2020, conserve at least 10% of coastal and marine areas, consistent with national and international law and based on the best available scientific information.
• SDG 15.1: By 2020, ensure the conservation, restoration, and sustainable use of terrestrial and inland freshwater ecosystems and their services, in particular forests, wetlands, mountains, and drylands, in line with obligations under international agreements.
• SDG 15.2: By 2020, promote the implementation of sustainable management of all types of forests, halt deforestation, restore degraded forests, and substantially increase afforestation and reforestation globally.

3. Are there any indicators mentioned or implied in the article that can be used to measure progress towards the identified targets?

• Percentage of land and inland waters formally protected
• Percentage of oceans formally protected
• Area of land and water with formal protections for biodiversity
• Extent of connectivity of protected areas
• Assessment of the effectiveness of protected areas

Table: SDGs, Targets, and Indicators

Source: newscientist.com