3.3 Conservation and regeneration
Convention on Biodiversity (CBD)
The Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) is a multilateral treaty established at the 1992 Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro. It focuses on the conservation of biological diversity, sustainable use of its components, and fair sharing of benefits from genetic resources. Its objective is to halt biodiversity loss and promote sustainable development by integrating biodiversity conservation into global and national policies.
Species-Based Conservation
Conservation strategies that focus on protecting individual species at risk of extinction. It can be in situ or ex situ. The in situ strategy is the conservation of species in their natural habitats, ensuring that they continue to evolve and adapt within their ecosystems. The ex situ strategy is the conservation of species outside their natural habitats, often as a last resort when in situ methods are not sufficient. Sometimes a mixed conservation approach is adopted where both species and habitats are concerned.
ExampleZoos and botanical gardens are examples of ex situ conservation.
Habitat Conservation Strategies
Habitat conservation strategies focus on protecting ecosystems and habitats to ensure the survival of multiple species.
Methods:
- Protected Areas: National parks, wildlife sanctuaries, and nature reserves (e.g., Yellowstone National Park).
- Habitat Restoration: Reforestation, wetland restoration, and coral reef regeneration.
- Sustainable Land Use: Balancing agricultural, urban, and conservation needs.
Effective conservation of biodiversity in nature reserves and national parks depends on understanding the biology of target species and the effect of the size and shape of conservation areas.
EVS and conservation strategies
Environmental Value Systems can influence the choice of conservation strategies. Ecocentric perspectives may approach conservation for the intrinsic values of biodiversity and focus on low-intervention in situ strategies. They may look to opt sacrificial lifestyle to lower demand and thus the degradation of the ecosystem. More anthropocentric and technocentric perspectives may be driven by the economic and societal value of biodiversity and focus on more scientific interventions like gene banks and ecotourism.
Success of conservation (HL)
Factors Influencing Conservation and Restoration Success
- Funding and Resources: Adequate financial and human resources for projects.
- Community Involvement: Engagement and support from local populations.
- Scientific Knowledge: Data-driven approaches for targeted actions.
- Legislation and Enforcement: Strong legal frameworks to protect biodiversity.
Recovery of Bald Eagle populations in the U.S. due to habitat protection and DDT bans was successful.
NoteThe success of a conservation strategy is also influenced by international, government or governmental organisations’ use of media, speed of response, diplomatic constraints, financial resources and political influence.
Assessing success
The success of conservation or regeneration measures needs to be assessed to see if biodiversity has been successfully conserved and the impact the measures have on local communities. Assessment of success allows the measure to be improved to be more effective and relevant and set an example for future measures.
The success of these measures can be reviewed at three levels:
- Did the measures succeed in the project as planned?
