Nature and Biodiversity in a humane dominated landscape

Ioan Moldovan

Nature and Biodiversity in a humane dominated landscape

Introduction
Biodiversity is the variety of life on Earth. Identifying and understanding the relationships between all forms of life on Earth are some of the greatest challenges in science (www.nwf.org). Biological diversity is of fundamental importance to the functioning of all natural and human-engineered ecosystems, and by extension to the ecosystem services that nature provides free of charge to human society (Lloyd, 2009), which gives a big reason to understand it and protect it in the same time. Living organisms play central roles in the cycles of major elements (carbon, nitrogen, and so on) and water in the environment, and diversity specifically is important in that these cycles require numerous interacting species. For the most recent 6000 years (man start working land), man has been the greatest factor affecting biodiversity, with adverse impacts occurring at an accelerating step since approximately the Industrial Revolution. Human intervention in ecosystem function has been expressed through habitat destruction, habitat fragmentation, overexploitation, and pollution (Lloyd, 2009). The result of these actions having a disastrous effect over many sensible species of mammals and birds that came to extinction. This is a natural part of life on Earth, many will say. Over the history of the planet most of the species that ever existed, evolved and then gradually went extinct. Species go extinct because of natural shifts in the environment that take place over long periods of time. The problem in our days is that this rate of extinction is higher than ever and the species cannot compete with it (www.nwf.org), scientists estimate that current rates of species extinction are about 100 times higher than long-term average rates based on fossil data. According to the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), globally about one third of all known species are threatened with extinction. That includes 29% of all amphibians, 21% of all mammals and 12% of all birds. The survival of our planet is dependent on a fine balancing act and every organism has its part to play - if we destroy the balance, this will have broad consequences for other organisms, and ultimately the planet itself (www.rigb.org). This report aims to give a clear picture over the importance of biodiversity in our life on an economical and spiritual way.

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Nature and Biodiversity in a humane dominated landscape

Ioan Moldovan

1 Biodiversity and nature

Biodiversity is extremely complex, dynamic and varied like no other feature of the Earth. Its innumerable plants, animals and microbes physically and chemically providing oxygen, food, fresh water, fertile soil, medicines, shelter, protection from storms and floods, stable climate and recreation. All have their source in nature and healthy ecosystems. Biodiversity is a truly global area of science. Scientists are studying biodiversity deep in the rainforests of Australia, out in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean, on Danish highly cultivated terrains and in inner city of London. Biodiversity is a diversity of diversities, the main forms being: genetic, physiological, species among others like: functional group, landscape, ecosystem. All these varieties are contributing to a high quality life on the areas where biodiversity is functional. From the functions biodiversity has, scientist proved that it has a big role in: Increasing productivity: Increasing biomass , variability, resource use (fig.2) efficiency may be affected Insurance against changes: Ecosystem resistance to environmental perturbations, such as drought may be diminished as biodiversity decreases. Ecosystem processes such as soil nitrogen levels, water use, pest and diseases cycles may become more variable as diversity declines

Another benefit that biodiversity offers to our society are the ecosystem services which are largescale processes beyond human control. For these processes to continue we need biodiversity. Human tried to manipulate and influence these ecosystem services. I USA many crop fields are missing pollinators because of chemical overuse against pest. For this cause beekeepers are hired to travel with their mobile bee farm to pollinate the crops.

Other Ecosystem Services (Figure 1) are: Providing of food, water, medicine, timber, fibre, energy, industrial products, genetic resources Purification of air and water Mitigation of drought and floods Preservation of soils and renewal of trier fertility Decomposition and detoxification of waste Pollination of crops and dispersal of seeds Recycling and movement of nutrients Control of potential agricultural pests Maintenance of biodiversity aesthetic beauty, cultural and spiritual inspiration, scientific discovery, mental health
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Nature and Biodiversity in a humane dominated landscape

Ioan Moldovan

Climate stabilization/moderation of weather extremes

Figure 1 Ecosystem Services presented in Millenium Ecosystem Assesment report, 2005.

The concept of Redundancy

This concept of species redundancy has been applied to community and conservation ecology, suggesting that in some communities, some species are redundant (GITAY, et al., 1996). This concept was introduced in 1992 by Walker in the context of focusing conservation effort, to determine species priorities: the loss of some species may not be so critical ecologically as the loss of some others. The highest conservation priority would focus on the species with the lowest redundancy, in order to ensure the stability of the whole ecosystem and increase its constituent species (GITAY, et al., 1996). Redundancy is an insurance against the loss of function, in the event that species are lost, for example when the environment changes beyond the tolerance of some species (GITAY, et al., 1996). Other scientists have interpreted redundancy as a means of setting conservation priorities, taking it to indicate that the loss of some species would be a matter of lower concern: Chaplin et al.(1992);West(1993): Ecosystems could function equally well with fewer species Cowling et al.(1994b): The loss of some species ( a group of similar species) from a community is unlikely to affect ecosystem processes Kennedy & Smith (1995): Redundancy in function within soil microbial population may lessen the importance of species diversity (GITAY, et al., 1996)
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Nature and Biodiversity in a humane dominated landscape

Ioan Moldovan

2 Biodiversity in human-dominated landscapes

And God blessed them and said to them, Be fertile and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it (Holly Bible, Genesis 1, 28). And people did that, they became masters, but not only that they subdues the Earth but are on the way of destroying it: 40-50% of ice-free land surface is occupied and heavily transformed by humans 50% of all accessible freshwater is exploited by humans The atmosphere is polluted with toxic chemicals (transport industry, energy industry and other), CO2 concentration increased with 30% Overexploitation of resources (fish, timber, soil) has driven to extinction of over 25% of the worlds bird species. And all these not because we are too many, but because some want to live their live in luxury ad others, the majority, are living with less than 1$/day, and usually they are the one that support the consequences of depleting the planet of its resources.

Modern agriculture is supposing to solve the problem of hunger in the world, but it does not. In our time is produced more than sufficient food for all people, but bad distribution and food waste makes those products never reach to the people that are starving. And this overproduction comes with a price. Farm specialization with larger contiguous areas dominated by either tilled land or grassland, replacing landscapes formerly mixed farming systems with spatially intimate mixes of tillage and grassland are putting the agricultural biodiversity and ecosystem balance (health) is in danger. Many will say that is no more biodiversity in a man-managed landscape. On a large scale view is less biodiversity but there are places in this, like uncropped areas of semi natural habitat, such as ponds, uncropped field margins and scrub, hedges that work as a path for wildlife interconnecting different hotspots. And the biodiversity is not like is gone forever, creating good condition for it (reducing of pesticides, more uncultivated corners) will repair in a short time. In an EPA analysis is presents a detailed overview of species threatened at the European level in all 27 EU Member States. It shows that the highest share of species threatened in the European Union can be found in the Mediterranean region which hosts most of Europes biodiversity. Thanks to its bioclimatic conditions, the Mediterranean region is a recognized global hotspot for biodiversity, hosting a large number and extraordinary variety of species. The survival of many of these species is at risk as their habitats are being negatively impacted by human activities (Antonio Troya, Director of IUCN Centre for Mediterranean Cooperation). Spain, Portugal and Greece host the highest proportion of species threatened with extinction at the European level and should act with the greatest urgency. Of the species assessed so far, freshwater species including fishes, molluscs and amphibians are at the highest risk, with species such as the European Eel (Anguilla anguilla) and the Freshwater Pearl Mussel (Margaritifera margaritifera) being particularly threatened. The status of terrestrial molluscs, dragonflies and mammals, such as the European Mink (Mustela lutreola) also raises significant concern. Species are mainly threatened by the loss, fragmentation and degradation of their habitat, due in large part to agricultural and urban expansion, construction of dams and water pollution (www.iucn.org). In Europe, the same as elsewhere, biodiversity is a need for its survival. We cannot have just industry and effective agriculture without biodiversity. Human well-being is dependent upon "ecosystem services" provided by nature for free. In May 2008, EU presented a report about THE
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Nature and Biodiversity in a humane dominated landscape

Ioan Moldovan

ECONOMICS OF ECOSYSTEMS AND BIODIVERISTY, studying Biodiversity, Ecosystems and human welfare, but also the costs of all these. In Chapters 1 and 2 of this report is describe how, if we do not adopt the right policies, the current decline in biodiversity and the related loss of ecosystem services will continue and in some cases even accelerate some ecosystems are likely to be damaged beyond repair (EEA, 2008)

Natura 2000
In May 1992 European Union governments adopted legislation designed to protect the most seriously threatened habitats and species across Europe. This legislation is called the Habitats Directive and complements the Birds Directive adopted in 1979. Special Protection Areas (SPAs) are classified under the Birds Directive to help protect and manage areas which are important for rare and vulnerable birds because they use them for breeding, feeding, wintering or migration. Special Areas of Conservation (SACs) are classified under the Habitats Directive and provide rare and vulnerable animals, plants and habitats with increased protection and management. Together, SPAs and SACs make up the Natura 2000 project (www.natura.org) Farmers are in direct contact nature and biodiversity and they are influencing the status of this trough their action on the fields. In Europe, after the Common Agricultural Policy, in 1962, farmers got subsidies after the production they got from farming. This made farmers to act against the environment just to get more production. Removal of noncropped areas, loss of seminatural habitat features, such as ponds, uncropped field margins and scrub. Removal of field boundaries, drainage of wetlands for production land had disastrous consciences over the biodiversity. More than 60% of Denmarks agricultural land is under drainage. Crop breeding Increased competitive ability of crop relative to noncrop species encouraging monocultural vegetation cover in combination with agrochemical use. Mechanization and increasing power of agricultural machinery had also a negative effect over nature because areas that once were inaccessible for farmers were now in production. Agricultural operations (e.g. sowing and harvesting) can be completed more quickly and are less limited by weather conditions. More fields are therefore in the same state of management at any time. After 1992, EU realized that trough these actions, biodiversity was very degraded and they tried to save what was possible. They paid subsidies to farmer to protect nature and made conditions to increase biodiversity. They reversed all the actions that were on the agenda from 1962, but is still much to recover, and this cost more than before. Recent researches demonstrate that greater plant diversity can lead to greater productivity because of "niche complementarity" among particular combinations of species (Tilman, et al., 2001). Environmental agencies propose to be banned all pesticides that endanger honey bees and the pesticides that ends in the water bodies poisoning them, creating new water bodies for amphibians and other, recreating wetlands as they were before, taking out from production land that is not profitable. In Denmark all this is taken very serious from the beginning and the Water Plan 1 and 2 had many good results for environment. The Water Plan 3 is proposing 10 m free of cropping strip along all water bodies, which will have a positive impact over biodiversity.

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Nature and Biodiversity in a humane dominated landscape

Ioan Moldovan

3 Bibliography
GITAY, H., BASTOW WILSON, J. & LEE, W. G., 1996. Species redundancy: a redundant concept?. Ecosystem Dynamics Group, RSBS, Instiute of advanced Studies, Sustralian National University. John Lloyd (Topic Editor) "Biodiversity". In: Encyclopedia of Earth. Eds. Cutler J. Cleveland (Washington, D.C.: Environmental Information Coalition, National Council for Science and the Environment). [First published in the Encyclopedia of Earth December 28, 2009; Last revised Date February 20, 2013; Retrieved May 7, 2013 <http://www.eoearth.org/article/Biodiversity?topic=49480> Tilman, D. et al., 2001. Diversity and Productivity in a Lon-Term Grassland Experiment, s.l.: American Association for the Advancement of Science; Science, New Series, Vol. 294, No. 5543 (Oct. 26, 2001), pp. 843-845. The Royal Institution of Great Britain: http://www.rigb.org/contentControl?action=displayContent&id=00000001079: Visited on 09.05.2013; National Wildlife Federation: http://www.nwf.org/Wildlife/Wildlife-Conservation/Biodiversity.aspx Visited on 09.05.2013; European Environment Agency: http://ec.europa.eu/environment/nature/biodiversity/economics/ Visited on 09.05.2013; IUCN, International Union for Conservation of Nature: http://www.iucn.org/?12904/EU-countries-must-do-more-to-protect-biodiversity Visited on 09.05.2013; Natura 2000: http://www.natura.org/about.html Visited on 09.05.2013.

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Nature and Biodiversity in a humane dominated landscape

Ioan Moldovan

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Nature and Biodiversity in a humane dominated landscape

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