Impact Of Biodiversity On The Environment

An Introduction to Ecosystem Sustainability and Climate Change: Anthropogenic activities have been pouring greenhouse gases into the atmosphere which is evident from the increasing trends of changes in global temperature, precipitation, climate induced hazards/disasters, pest distribution, etc. It is alternating the habitable areas of species, their distribution, rate of survival and reproduction, food web interactions, ecosystem services, and their conservation. Ecological managers need to invent smart solutions to control and mitigate further erosion of ecosystems.

Climate change has been heavily debated amongst scientists; many agree that since the rise of Modernism, anthropogenic activities have resulted in the accumulation of atmospheric CO2, therefore magnifying the greenhouse effect and causing climate change to become a more prevalent issue (Capstick, S. et al, 2015). Conversely some scientists argue that global warming is a natural fluctuation similar to that of the Ice Age, therefore not effecting ecology permanently (Moran, JM 2016). On the other hand, Montoya and Raffaelli (2011) argue that climate change is a major threat to biodiversity and presents information proving that several species are declining in numbers and being forced to move due to the temperatures, acidity and light exposure moving out of their tolerance ranges. This evidence proves that climate change is adversely effecting flora and fauna species as well as changing abiotic factors such as temperature and sea levels. Through this it is clear that climate change is not a hypothesis, but a serious threat that is threatening several biological systems.

“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, 2014). Biodiversity is very important to both plants, animals and humans on Earth and if one species is destroyed it throw the balance off .

Biodiversity loss threatens to disrupt the function of ecosystems, with the potential of consequences for humans as well. Often this loss is measured by species extinction rates, but considerations should be made to include population diversity with measures including changes in size, number, distribution and genetic composition of population and potential implications those changes may have (Luck et al., 2003). Avise (2004) goes as far as to say biodiversity is genetic

In the race to preserve, conserve and maintain biodiversity and its functions in anticipation of the unprecedented and

Chapter four in Michael Carolan’s Society and the Environment is entitled “Biodiversity: Society Wouldn’t Exist Without It” and discusses the benefits of biodiversity, including a better quality of life for both humans and other species and the ability to limit infectious diseases. Biodiversity is responsible for certain medical resources, the control of disease vectors, and numerous other services that humans depend on. However, this chapter also discusses biodiversity decline and the consequences of that on our ecosystem.

Biodiversity is very important to an ecosystem because each species plays a different role in the maintenance of the ecosystem.

The planet is made of up different ecosystems that encompass the animals, vegetation, and nonliving factors. The environmental conditions are dependent on the location and type of ecosystem. There are a large number of ecosystems, ranging from conditions found in the tundra to conditions found in the desert. Each of these types of ecosystem relies on a delicate balance maintained by the symbiotic relationships within its organisms and nonliving components. These symbiotic relationships are a result of the benefits provided by the organisms of the ecosystem. These benefits exist because of the biodiversity within the organisms. Therefore, biodiversity is responsible for the balance of ecosystems and the planet. However, biodiversity and the

The world is declining in biodiversity, 52% of it is gone. About 1% of the world species go extinct a year. That’s 1’000 to 10’000 species loss. Accompanying it, 19’300 species are endangered. Latin America loss 83% of its wildlife. Over half of Malaysia’s river fish species disappear during deforestation. Half of Australian state governments exploit the uses of national parks. The Alpine suffer dramatic biodiversity loss. The earth is clearly losing biodiversity. This is huge unnoticed threat that we need to address. Mankind depends on the ecosystem which depends on biodiversity. There are changes that need to be made and uphold to prevent difficulties from further escalating. This problem isn’t going to fix itself.

The Millennium Ecosystem Assessment’s Summary for Decision-Makers brought to light the fact that the rate of species extinction, over time, has increased at an alarming rate. This is distressing because species extinction means loss of biodiversity: a measure of a healthy environment. There are five main drivers, that are interconnected, that influence biodiversity loss and species extinction. While all five are interconnected they are strongly related to one in particular. That driver is human population size. The other four drivers are habitat destruction, overexploitation of resources, pollution, and the introduction of alien species. Biodiversity loss and species extinction, and the healthiness of the environment, are all influenced by

“The impacts of biodiversity loss include clearly into fewer new cures, greater vulnerability to natural disasters and greater effects from global warming.”(Why to protect biodiversity and save endangered species) Biodiversity provides us with much benefits including medicine, Air Purification, fishing, agriculture, ranching, oxygen production, and climate moderation “By losing biodiversity we are losing the chance to discover new medicines…” (Why to protect biodiversity and save endangered species) Biodiversity has many great causes in

The earth's natural assets are made up of plants, animals, land,water, the atmosphere and humans! Together we all from part of the planet's ecosystems, which means if there is a biodiversity crisis, our health and livelihoods are at risk too. But we are currently using 25% more natural resources than the planet can sustain it's a result species, habitats and local communities are under pressure or direct threats (for example from loss of access to fresh water ). Biodiversity underpins the health of the planet and has a direct impact on all our lives. Even knowledge of biodiversity, is incomplete and strongly biased toward the species level, megafauna, temperate systems, and components used by people. This results in significant gaps in knowledge, especially regarding the status of tropical systems, marine and freshwater biota, plants, Invertebrates, microorganisms, and subterranean biota. Biodiversity influences climate at local, regional, and global scales, thus changes in land use and land cover that affect biodiversity can affect climate. The important components of biodiversity include plant functional diversity and type and distribution of habitats across landscape. Biodiversity is the foundation for human

Loss of Biodiversity will affect the life cycle of several species which depend on each other for survival. This dependence determines the survival of species and the change of our environment. Exploiting the biodiverse species to extinction will result in desertification, rise in carbon dioxide in the atmosphere, increased pollution, increased droughts, increase in loss of items that we derive from nature for our own survival such as honey, fruits, vegetables, medicines etc. The greed to exploit will result in our ultimate extinction If a sustainable solution isn’t provided to prevent loss of biodiversity. If we continue the path we are on without taking steps to balance the equation the planet will

A diverse array of species is necessary to maintain ecosystem functions and the ecosystem services upon which humans depend. For example, when water flows through a wetland ecosystem, the water is purified of chemical wastes. Wetlands also help in moderating the flow of water, which thereby minimizes flooding. Wetlands are increasingly being destroyed or degraded, in the United States 50% of wetlands have been damaged, which results in the loss of these services. The destruction of the wetlands that lay along the Gulf Coast is believed to have greatly contributed to the devastating floods associated with Hurricanes Katrina and Rita in 2005, and Hurricane Harvey in 2017 (Christensen). Biodiversity helps ecosystems respond quickly to disturbances and environmental changes, with the loss of wetlands comes the loss of regulatory and support services, which results in more property damage and deaths from already devastating natural disasters.

Franck and Brownstone define biological diversity as 'the variety and variability of living organisms and the biological communities in which they live' (36). Decades of progress in both the scientific and political arenas have advanced environmental legislation to protect biodiversity at not only the ecosystem level, but for specific species and genetic material as well. Research has shown the importance of every organism and their role in the global ecosystem, and legislation has gradually matured to protect not only species which may become endangered, but the habitats they need to survive as well. Growing consciousness surrounding environmental issues has enabled these protections to be