Text 11058, 83 rader
Skriven 2005-04-04 15:56:42 av MARNIE TROSCLAIR (1:10/345)
     Kommentar till en text av ED HULETT
Ärende: ECOSYSTEM REPORT
========================

EH> The environmentalists always make the mistake of thinking human
EH> activities are alien to the environment.

 By Alister Doyle 

   OSLO, March 30 (Reuters) - Humans are damaging the planet at an
   unprecedented rate and raising risks of abrupt collapses in nature
   that could spur disease, deforestation or "dead zones" in the seas, 
   an international report said on Wednesday.

   The study, by 1,360 experts in 95 nations, said a rising human
   population had polluted or over-exploited two thirds of the
   ecological systems on which life depends, ranging from clean air
   to fresh water, in the past 50 years.

   "At the heart of this assessment is a stark warning," said the
   45-member board of the Millennium Ecosystem Assessment.

   "Human activity is putting such strain on the natural functions of
   Earth that the ability of the planet's ecosystems to sustain future
   generations can no longer be taken for granted," it said.

   Ten to 30 percent of mammal, bird and amphibian species were already
   threatened with extinction, according to the assessment, the biggest
   review of the planet's life support systems.

   "Over the past 50 years, humans have changed ecosystems more rapidly
   and extensively than in any comparable time in human history, largely
   to meet rapidly growing demands for food, fresh water, timber, fibre
   and fuel," the report said.

   "This has resulted in a substantial and largely irreversible loss in
   the diversity of life on earth," it added. More land was changed to
   cropland since 1945, for instance, than in the 18th and 19th
   centuries combined.

   ...

   The report said there was evidence that strains on nature could
   trigger abrupt changes like the collapse of cod fisheries off
   Newfoundland in Canada in 1992 after years of over-fishing.

   Future changes could bring sudden outbreaks of disease. Warming of 
   the Great Lakes in Africa due to climate change, for instance, could
   create conditions for a spread of cholera.

   And a build-up of nitrogen from fertilisers washed off farmland into
   seas could spur abrupt blooms of algae that choke fish or create
   oxygen-depleted "dead zones" along coasts.

   It said deforestation often led to less rainfall.  And at some point,
   lack of rain could suddenly undermine growing conditions for 
   remaining forests in a region.

   The report said that in 100 years, global warming widely blamed on
   burning of fossil fuels in cars, factories and power plants, might
   take over as the main source of damage.  The report mainly looks at
   other, shorter-term risks.

   And it estimated that many ecosystems were worth more if used in 
   a way that maintains them for future generations.

   A wetland in Canada was worth $6,000 a hectare (2.47 acres), as a
   habitat for animals and plants, a filter for pollution, a store for
   water and a site for human recreation, against $2,000 if converted to
   farmland, it said. A Thai mangrove was worth $1,000 a hectare against
   $200 as a shrimp farm.

   "Ecosystems and the services they provide are financially significant
   and...to degrade and damage them is tantamount to economic suicide,"
   said Klaus Toepfer, head of the U.N. Environment Programme.

   The study urged changes in consumption, better education, new
   technology and higher prices for exploiting ecosystems.
 
 
 
 
 
 
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