{"id":1194019,"date":"2023-08-29T03:00:00","date_gmt":"2023-08-29T03:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.greenqueen.com.hk\/?p=66967"},"modified":"2023-08-29T03:00:00","modified_gmt":"2023-08-29T03:00:00","slug":"these-four-nature-based-solutions-can-help-solve-biodiversity-climate","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/radiofree.asia\/2023\/08\/29\/these-four-nature-based-solutions-can-help-solve-biodiversity-climate\/","title":{"rendered":"These Four Nature-Based Solutions Can Help Solve Biodiversity & Climate"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"\"<\/div><\/span> 5<\/span> Mins Read<\/span><\/span>\n

By Pete Smith<\/a>, Professor of Soils and Global Change, University of Aberdeen; Camille Parmesan<\/a>, Professor of Climate Change Impacts, CNRS, University of Texas, University of Plymouth; Mark Maslin<\/a>, Professor of Earth System Science, UCL<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

A\u00a0landmark report<\/a>\u00a0by the world\u2019s most senior\u00a0climate<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0biodiversity<\/a>\u00a0scientists argues that the world will have to tackle the climate crisis and the species extinction crisis simultaneously, or not at all.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That\u2019s because Earth\u2019s land and ocean already absorb about\u00a0half of the greenhouse gases<\/a>\u00a0that people emit. Wild animals, plants, fungi and microbes help maintain this carbon sink by keeping soils, forests and other ecosystems healthy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Failing to tackle climate change, meanwhile, will accelerate\u00a0biodiversity loss<\/a>, as higher temperatures and changing rainfall patterns make survival for many species more difficult. Both problems are intertwined, and so solutions to one which exacerbate the other are doomed to fail.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Luckily, there are options for addressing climate change and biodiversity loss together, called nature-based solutions<\/a>. If implemented properly, these measures can enhance the richness and diversity of life on Earth, help habitats store more carbon and even reduce emissions of greenhouse gases, making ecosystems more resilient while slowing the rate at which the planet warms.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

1. Protect and restore ecosystems<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Everyone is familiar with the need to preserve tropical rainforests, but there are other pristine habitats, on land and in the ocean, which are in dire need of protection.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Mangrove swamps occupy less than 1% of Earth\u2019s surface, but store the equivalent of\u00a022 billion tonnes of carbon dioxide<\/a>. That\u2019s around two-thirds of total emissions from burning fossil fuels each year. These\u00a0coastal habitats<\/a>\u00a0act as a home, nursery, and feeding ground for numerous species. More than 40 bird, ten reptile and six mammal species are only found in mangroves.<\/p>\n\n\n

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Mangroves are particularly good at storing carbon. Velavan K\/Shutterstock<\/a><\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n

Peatlands \u2013 those soggy ecosystems which include bogs, marshes and fens<\/a> \u2013 store twice as much carbon as all the world\u2019s forests. The top 15cm stores more carbon below ground<\/a> than tropical rainforests do above ground. In the UK, peatlands store the equivalent of ten billion tonnes of carbon dioxide<\/a> and host precious plant and animals<\/a> such as red grouse, mountain hares and marsh earwort.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Unfortunately, more than 80% of the UK\u2019s peatlands are degraded<\/a> in some way. A single hectare of damaged peatland can emit more than 30 tonnes of carbon dioxide each year \u2013 equivalent to the yearly emissions of seven family cars<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Protecting these ecosystems can prevent carbon from being released into the atmosphere. Restoring them where they\u2019ve been damaged can suck carbon dioxide from the air and guarantee shelter for rare wildlife. Diverse natural systems also\u00a0bounce back better<\/a>\u00a0from climate extremes than do species-poor, highly degraded systems, and will keep helping biodiversity and people even as Earth continues to warm.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

2. Manage farmland and fisheries sustainably<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Not all of the world\u2019s land and ocean can be left to nature, but the land and ocean people use to produce food and other resources can be managed better.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

People currently use about 25% of the planet\u2019s land surface<\/a> for growing food, extracting resources and living. The global food system<\/a> contributes one-third of all greenhouse gas emissions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Methods of farming \u2013 such as agroecology, which involves incorporating trees and habitats within farm fields \u2013 and sustainable fishing practices can protect and regenerate topsoil and seabed habitats, boosting biodiversity and improving how resilient these ecosystems are to climate change.<\/p>\n\n\n

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Reforestation in tandem with food growing: lettuce, cauliflowers and tomatoes grow among saplings in Brazil. Luisaazara\/Shutterstock<\/a><\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n

3. Create new forests \u2013 with care<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

People have already\u00a0cut down three trillion trees<\/a>\u00a0\u2013 half of all the trees that once grew on Earth.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Creating new woodlands and forests can draw down atmospheric carbon and provide diverse habitats for a range of species, but great care must be taken to plant the right mix of trees in the right place. Vast plantations of non-native trees, particularly when they\u2019re a single species, offer less useful habitat for wildlife, but a mix of native trees can benefit biodiversity and store more carbon<\/a> in the long run.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A study<\/a>\u00a0in southeast China showed that forests containing several tree species stored twice as much carbon as the average single-species plantation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We can do the same thing in the ocean by restoring seagrass meadows<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

4. Shift to more plant-based diets<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Globally, animal agriculture is a major contributor to biodiversity loss<\/a>. Millions of hectares<\/a> of Amazon rainforest, African Savanna and Central Asian grassland have been ploughed up to create pasture and plant feed crops for the cows, pigs and chickens that we eat. Nearly 60% of all planet-warming emissions from food production<\/a> originate in livestock rearing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Reducing demand for meat and dairy, through diet changes and cutting waste, would not only reduce greenhouse gas emissions \u2013 which itself benefits biodiversity by limiting climate change \u2013 it would also lower pressure for farmland and so reduce deforestation and habitat destruction, freeing more land for the wider use of nature-based solutions.<\/p>\n\n\n

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\"A
A vegan diet is better for wildlife and the climate than a high-meat one. Rolande PG\/Unsplash<\/a>, CC BY-SA<\/a><\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n

Meat, especially highly processed meat<\/a>, has been linked to high blood pressure, heart disease and bowel and stomach cancer. Plant-based diets are healthier<\/a>, reduce healthcare costs and reduce carbon emissions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A note of caution<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

It\u2019s important to remember that\u00a0nature-based solutions<\/a>\u00a0aren\u2019t a substitute for the rapid phase-out of fossil fuels. They should involve a wide range of ecosystems on land and in the sea, not just forests. Wherever they\u2019re implemented, nature-based solutions must proceed with the full engagement and consent of Indigenous peoples and local communities, respecting their cultural and ecological rights. And nature-based solutions should be explicitly designed to provide measurable benefits for biodiversity \u2013 not just carbon sequestration.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

With all this in mind, the world can design robust and resilient solutions for the twin crises of climate change and biodiversity loss, sustaining nature and people together,\u00a0now and into the future<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This article is republished from\u00a0The Conversation<\/a>\u00a0under a Creative Commons license. Read the\u00a0original article<\/a>.<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

The post These Four Nature-Based Solutions Can Help Solve Biodiversity & Climate<\/a> appeared first on Green Queen<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n

This post was originally published on Green Queen<\/a>. <\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/div>\n

<\/span> 5<\/span> Mins Read<\/span><\/span> By Pete Smith, Professor of Soils and Global Change, University of Aberdeen; Camille Parmesan, Professor of Climate Change Impacts, CNRS, University of Texas, University of Plymouth; Mark Maslin, Professor of Earth System Science, UCL A\u00a0landmark report\u00a0by the world\u2019s most senior\u00a0climate\u00a0and\u00a0biodiversity\u00a0scientists argues that the world will have to tackle the climate crisis and the species extinction [\u2026]<\/p>\n

The post These Four Nature-Based Solutions Can Help Solve Biodiversity & Climate<\/a> appeared first on Green Queen<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1748,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3058,478,15716],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/radiofree.asia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1194019"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/radiofree.asia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/radiofree.asia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/radiofree.asia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1748"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/radiofree.asia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1194019"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/radiofree.asia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1194019\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/radiofree.asia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1194019"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/radiofree.asia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1194019"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/radiofree.asia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1194019"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}