Humanity is risking its own well-being by over-harvesting and harming nature’s bounty, said a comprehensive survey on Friday that warned animal and plant species were in decline in every world region.
Four mammoth reports that took more than 550 scientists three years to compile, warned that Asia-Pacific fish stocks could run out by 2048 and more than half of African bird and mammal species could be lost by 2100.
Up to 90% of Asia-Pacific corals will suffer “severe degradation” by 2050, said the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES).
“This alarming trend endangers economies, livelihoods, food security and the quality of life of people everywhere,” according to the most extensive biodiversity survey since 2005.
“We’re undermining our own future well-being,” added IPBES chairman Robert Watson.
The IPBES brought together experts from around the globe to assess four world regions: the Americas, Africa, Asia-Pacific, and Europe and Central Asia — all the planet except for the Antarctic and the open seas.
The volunteers combed through some 10,000 scientific publications.
After days of intense word-by-word negotiations, envoys from the IPBES’ 129 member countries approved summaries of the four reports, which will guide governments in policymaking.
The texts make for grim reading.
Unless humanity reverses its unsustainable use of nature, we risk “not only the future we want, but even the lives we currently lead,” said Mr. Watson.
