Nature reserves not enough to halt biodiversity loss

Protected Areas and Their Effects on Biodiversity

Introduction

Protected nature areas are considered fundamental for maintaining biodiversity and countering its loss. However, the effectiveness of established protected areas in preventing negative trends remains uncertain. Research conducted at the University of Helsinki has shown mixed effects of protected areas on various species.

The Importance of Protected Areas

Biodiversity is declining rapidly worldwide. To address this issue, protected areas have been established around the world with the hope that they will help save what is left. While protected areas have undoubtedly contributed to slowing overall biodiversity loss, their effectiveness across multiple species simultaneously is unclear. To explore this, researchers at the University of Helsinki examined changes in the occurrence of hundreds of species within and outside of protected areas.

Mixed Effects of Protected Areas

The researchers found mixed effects, highlighting that protected areas do not fully meet the expectations set for them. Instead of reversing the trend in biodiversity loss, current protected areas will, at best, help decelerate the rate of species decline. What they currently offer is more time to address the root causes of biodiversity loss.

“Our results show that only a small proportion of species explicitly benefit from protection, but this varies by group. Birds show the highest positive response to protection, with one out of five species benefiting, and plants show that warm-dwelling species benefit more. Protected areas mostly help by slowing down the decline of species occurrences,” says Associate Professor Marjo Saastamoinen, senior author of the study.

“Importantly, larger protected areas and longer protection times enhance positive effects. The benefits are boosted for many more species, providing evidence for the genuine effects of protection.”

Effectiveness of Protected Areas

To evaluate the effectiveness of protected areas, the ideal approach is to compare how species are faring within nature reserves to how they are faring in similar yet unprotected areas. While this approach may seem self-evident, it is rarely applied. The researchers from the Research Centre for Ecological Change at the University of Helsinki implemented this approach to hundreds of species over four decades. They found mixed results, with many species showing similar trends within protected and unprotected sites. Importantly, protecting an area does not halt species decline; rather, it slows down the rate of decline but rarely stops or reverses it.

Utilizing Long-Term Data

Finns have a particular passion for counting all types of natural creatures year after year. This allowed researchers to compare trends in the occurrences of birds, mammals, plants, and lake phytoplankton between protected and unprotected sites over four decades.

Among 638 species, they found that:

• One in five bird species
• One in eight mammal species
• One in twenty plant or phytoplankton species

benefit from protection.

Recommendations for Effective Species Protection

To improve the effectiveness of protected areas, Dr. Andrea Santangeli, lead author of the study, has a clear-cut recommendation: “What we need to do is to make the overall landscape more suitable for the species. Protected areas can serve as lifeboats, but in the longer run, these lifeboats will still need a safe landing site.”

Both researchers stress that current area-based protection will be insufficient as a single solution for countering species loss. The key lies in better management of current protected areas and increasing their connectivity with each other, while also making the unprotected parts of the world a better place for more species. It is there that the lifeboat passengers will find long-term shelter.

SDGs, Targets, and Indicators

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

• SDG 14: Life Below Water – Protect and restore marine ecosystems and sustainably use marine resources.
• SDG 15: Life on Land – Protect, restore and promote sustainable use of terrestrial ecosystems, sustainably manage forests, combat desertification, and halt and reverse land degradation and halt biodiversity loss.

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

• Target 14.5: By 2020, conserve at least 10 percent of coastal and marine areas, consistent with national and international law and based on the best available scientific information.
• Target 15.5: Take urgent and significant action to reduce the degradation of natural habitats, halt the loss of biodiversity, and protect and prevent the extinction of threatened species.

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

• Indicator 14.5.1: Coverage of protected areas in relation to marine areas.
• Indicator 15.5.1: Red List Index.

The article discusses the effectiveness of protected areas in preventing biodiversity loss. This connects to SDG 14 (Life Below Water) and SDG 15 (Life on Land), which both aim to protect and restore ecosystems and halt biodiversity loss. The specific targets identified are Target 14.5, which focuses on conserving coastal and marine areas, and Target 15.5, which aims to reduce habitat degradation and prevent species extinction.

The article mentions that protected areas have mixed effects on various species and that the decline of species is slowed down but rarely stopped or reversed. This implies that the coverage of protected areas in relation to marine areas (Indicator 14.5.1) can be used to measure progress towards Target 14.5. Additionally, the article highlights the need to protect and prevent the extinction of threatened species, which can be measured using the Red List Index (Indicator 15.5.1).

4. Table: SDGs, Targets, and Indicators

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Source: newswise.com

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