Political will determines fate of Earth's species

The preservation of biological diversity on the planet depends mainly on the political will of countries, especially the developed ones, Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva told delegates from around the world gathered for an international conference on halting the loss of species. Opening the high-level meeting of the Eighth Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), a global treaty that aims to preserve the dwindling variety of species on Earth, President Lula said on Mar. 27, "It also requires developed countries to fulfill their promises in terms of international cooperation." Speaking to 3,600 delegates from 173 countries, Lula said democracy is the path to defense of the planet's biodiversity. "Finance, technology and world trade can take globalization as far as possible, but it is up to democracy, with more and more social participation, to avert a constant collision between our needs and our excesses," he said. At least 15,580 species of plants and animals are facing extinction, according to the latest Global Species Assessment issued by the IUCN-World Conservation Union in 2004. One in three amphibians and almost half of all freshwater turtles are threatened, as well as one in eight birds and one in four mammals. The president spoke of what Brazil has done to preserve nature, such as approving the forest management law and the National Water Resources Plan, reducing deforestation in the Amazon, and producing biodiesel fuel. Still, he admitted that much remains to be done, and he asked environmental activists to continue making their demands. Some activists were pleased with the decision by conference delegates to reject language that would have undermined the moratorium on Genetic Use Restriction Technologies, a class of genetic engineering technologies which allow companies to introduce seeds whose sterile offspring cannot reproduce, preventing farmers from replanting seeds from their harvest. The so-called "terminator" seeds also could be used to introduce specific traits which would only be triggered by the application of proprietary chemicals by the same companies that engineered them. "This is a momentous day for the 1.4 billion poor people worldwide who depend on farmer-saved seeds," said Francisca Rodriguez of Via Campesina, a worldwide movement of peasant farmers. "Terminator seeds are a weapon of mass destruction and an assault on our food sovereignty," said Viviana Figueroa of the Ocumazo indigenous community in Argentina on behalf of the International Indigenous Forum on Biodiversity. "Terminator directly threatens our life, our culture and our identity as indigenous peoples." At the conference, Australia, Canada and New Zealand along with the United States, which is not a party to the Convention, and a number of biotech companies were leading attempts to open the door to field testing of terminator seeds by insisting on case by case assessments of such technologies. This text was unanimously rejected in the CBD's working group dealing with the issue. The decision still must be formally adopted by a majority of delegates in the CBD plenary. "Today's decision is a huge step forward for the Brazilian Campaign against GMOs," said Maria Rita Reis from the Brazilian Forum of Social movements and NGOs. "This reaffirms Brazil's existing ban on terminator. It sends a clear message to the national government and congress that the world supports a ban on terminator." "Common sense has prevailed–lifting the moratorium on the terminator seeds would have been suicidal–literally," said Greenpeace International's Benedikt Haerlin at the conference. "This is a genuine victory for civil society around the world. It will go a long way to ensuring that biodiversity, food security and the livelihoods of millions of farmers around the world are protected." A new United Nations report launched at the CBD conference shows that wildlife watching is becoming a multi-billion dollar industry with the potential to fight poverty by pumping funds into local communities and conservation initiatives. Many wild animals are "worth far more alive than dead," said Robert Hepworth, executive secretary of the United Nations Environment Program's Convention on Migratory Species of Wild Animals (CMS) which commissioned the report. "It is clear that sensitive and well managed whale, dolphin, gorilla and bird watching can generate real and long lasting economic returns when compared with the often short term income from catching them for food, processing and trade," Hepworth said. People are spending over $1 billion a year on whale watching, and this activity benefits close to 500 communities globally, according to the report, "Wildlife Watching and Tourism." While whales are charismatic, all kinds of species are in demand. "A far wider range of species are attracting tourists and sightseers–from bats and butterflies in the United States up to sting rays in the Cayman Islands," Hepworth said. The report, produced in collaboration with the tourism group TUI, focuses on 12 case studies to highlight the growing economic importance of wildlife watching while pointing out pitfalls that may arise through poor or insensitive management. Coral reefs or turtle nesting sites can be loved to death. Some birds are sensitive to noise, flash photography and brightly colored clothing. And whales can be injured by whale watching vessels, as occurred twice this month in Hawaiian waters. To avoid such damage, the report recommends zoning schemes, special management areas, fee programs and visitor education. Paola Deda, coordinator of CMS's wildlife watching initiative, said, "The motto, 'Watch–Don't Touch' might sum up the advice emerging from this research. Tourists need to also respect basic rules. These include: no physical contact with animals, safety distances and no visits if you are ill, up to the removal of litter and the sensible use of flash photography. This should be accompanied by careful planning on the part of the responsible local or national authorities." The CBD entered into force in 1993, and currently has 187 signatory nations, plus the European Union. The treaty acts as an alliance among countries to work in cooperation for the preservation of the environment, the sustainable use of natural resources and the division of benefits. As a general rule, its decisions are simple recommendations, without the force of law. The conference opened on Mar. 20 and closed on Mar. 31. The CBD has set itself the goal of significantly reducing the number of plants and animals that are going extinct by 2010 for life on land and 2012 for ocean life. While formal negotiations continued among government representatives in the plenary sessions and working groups, civil society, the private sector and governments, met on Mar. 22 and 23 in the Global Biodiversity Forum. Its recommendations will be reported to the Ministerial Meeting now under way in the conference hall. The looming 2010 target date to reverse the loss of biodiversity was the focus of the Global Biodiversity Forum. Looking ahead five years, the pan-European alliance Countdown 2010, led by the IUCN-World Conservation Union, is coordinating the preparation of a 2010 Biodiversity Forum. "This Forum provides an ideal vehicle to share success stories around the 2010 Biodiversity Target and to move toward implementation," said Sebastian Winkler, who heads Countdown 2010. The IUCN announced that it will organize a meeting in September in Paris to transform European political commitments into concrete actions. Delegates to this meeting will develop recommendations for the European Commission and EU member states on how to proactively address the integration of biodiversity concerns into development cooperation programs and policies. The IUCN will organize the meeting in partnership with the European Commission and with the financial support of the governments of Belgium, Finland, France and Sweden. A message from conference participants will be forwarded to the European Council of Ministers.