The UN International Day for Biological Diversity was marked on May 22. The 1992 UN Rio Convention on Biological Diversity defines biological diversity as "the variability among living organisms from all sources including, inter alia, terrestrial, marine and other aquatic ecosystems and the ecological complexes of which they are part; this includes diversity within species, between species and of ecosystems".
The convention originally formed part of the package deal agreed upon at the 1992 Rio Summit on Environment and Development, a deal also including the 1992 Framework Convention on Climate Change. Malta signed the Biodiversity Convention on June 12, 1992 as part of the Earth Summit proceedings itself, having it ratified on March 29, 1995.
An outcome of the convention has been the Cartagena Protocol on Biosafety to which Malta became a party on April 5, 2007.
In a day and age when modern science is tampering, ethically or not, with genes and DNA, the objective of the Cartagena Protocol lies with "ensuring an adequate level of protection in the field of the safe transfer, handling and use of living modified organisms resulting from modern biotechnology that may have adverse effects on the conservation and sustainable use of biological diversity, taking also into account risks to human health and, specifically, focusing on trans-boundary movements". The reference to human health is very significant given the potential exposure of human beings to genetically-modified organisms, not least food products themselves.
The total number of different species on earth is unknown. Scientists argue on estimates which, though always ranging in the order of millions, may vary considerably from one extreme to another. Quoting Allaby (1996), about 1.6 million different species have been described and of those fewer than 100,000 have been studied in detail. The same author cites insect species as the most successful group of organisms on the planet, with 950,000 species described and an estimated total number to be in the four million range.
Insect species play a crucial keystone role in global ecosystems by virtue of their ability to act as vectors and pollinate or transfer plant seeds from one place to another, thus acting as crucial agents in sustaining plant life on earth and, hence, global ecosystems.
In taking into account various factors, Leakey and Lewin (1999) argue that the total number of species on earth is close to 50 million which, they state, may also be too low. The estimate of the total number given by Allaby is about eight million whereas the first edition of the Global Biodiversity Outlook (GBO), published under the auspices of the Biodiversity Convention, gives this estimate at 14 million different species. As with all other facets of the environment, the key to appreciating biodiversity also lies in understanding its truly dynamic nature. Whereas the first forms of life are thought to have evolved circa three billion years ago, getting more complex over the last 600 million years, more than 95 per cent of all species that have ever existed on the planet have gone extinct.
Scientists are interested in the background rates of evolution and extinction of species before and after humans started leaving their mark.
The dynamism of biodiversity also accounts for species which evolve naturally and, by the time they go extinct, perhaps as a result of human action, they remain perfectly unknown off-the-record entities! On these lines, the GBO-2 estimates that humans have increased species extinction rates by as much as 1,000 times the background rates typical over earth's history.
Technical details aside, the latest version of the GBO (GBO-3) states clearly that the globally agreed 2010 target meant to achieve a significant reduction of the current rate of biodiversity loss has not been met. Truly alarming indeed! What lies in the balance is whether or not we are heading towards the sixth mass extinction but, in contrast to what probably happened to the dinosaurs 65 million years ago, the culprit shall not be a cataclysmic asteroid impact but the indiscriminate destruction of habitats as a result of irresponsible or badly-planned human action worldwide.
The Environment Report 2008 (SoE 2008) published by the Malta Environment and Planning Authority reveals that the status of 29 per cent of Maltese habitats and 36 per cent of native species listed in the Habitats Directive is still unknown. A cause for serious concern is the fact that 64 per cent of our islands' natural habitats and 44 per cent of local species have "an inadequate or bad conservation status".
SoE 2008 provides a breakdown of the main groupings of local biota, which includes amphibians and reptiles. Amphibians are highly sensitive species to environmental change and are often considered as bio-indicators in this regard. SoE 2008 makes it clear that the status of the only amphibian species on our islands - the painted frog - is inadequate and deteriorating. Despite the significant progress in assigning some form of protected designation to more areas across national territory as prescribed by the Habitats Directive, a recent statement by BirdLife Malta presents us with a grim situation with regard to Malta's implementation of EU laws on biodiversity.
A National Policy on the Environment must act as a driving force towards the further protection of local biodiversity, not least by setting more clear guidelines, certainly in conjunction with Mepa, on what further efforts are required to protect our islands' limited but precious pristine natural habitats.
The author specialises in environmental management.
sapulis@gmail.com