Aiden Stephens

This was a research paper done for my geography 211, state of the earth, class. We were meant to choose an environmental issue to research, with a focus on the relation between societal and environmental systems and the implications this issue will have on humanity and the environment. The issue I chose to analyze was terrestrial biodiversity.

The research done was supposed to be discussed in light of the Driver-Pressure-State-Impact-Response (DPSIR) model http://wwz.ifremer.fr/dce/content/download/69291/913220/file/DPSIR.pdf . I began my research by identifying how these five factors related to my topic of terrestrial biodiversity.

Drivers: Land coversion – with a focus on population growth, urbanization and agricultural practices, pollution, invasive species, climate change and overexploitation

Pressures: Increased emissions, waste, urban sprawl

State: Increased pollution, higher temperatures, less natural land

Impacts: Loss of ecosystem services such as soil productivity, freshwater, and pollination, loss of plants and animals depended upon for food and medicinal treatments, decrease in food sources and industry, loss in human ability to enjoy the diverse nature of the world

Responses: Target setting by governments, natural reserves, reduce fossil fuel consumption switch to renewable energy to combat climate change, genetic translocation, ex-situ conservation, sustainable agriculture practices

My introductory paragraph gives a brief summary of the rest of my paper:

Terrestrial biodiversity is the variety of organisms that inhabit earth’s land surface. Each ecosystem, animal and plant species play an important role in the health of the planet. Human activities such as urbanization, overexploitation and pollution are a threat to terrestrial biodiversity. The extinction occurring today is estimated to be between 1,000 and 10,000 times greater than the natural extinction rate, which is the extinction expected to occur if humans were not present (CBD, 2016). By the mid-century there is the possibility of up to 30 to 50 percent of all species heading towards extinction (CBD, 2016). A decrease in biodiversity will have a huge impact on human life with the loss of ecosystem services such as fresh water and pollination, and economic impacts including a reduction in food security. In order to maintain the current standard of human life there must be a focus on research and mitigation responses related to the loss of terrestrial biodiversity.

Throughout my paper I use a lot of references which developed my researching skills. One reference in particular I found especially informative while conducting research was the GreenFacts website. http://www.greenfacts.org/en/biodiversity/l-3/1-define-biodiversity.htm It provided useful information on many aspects of my topic, terrestrial biodiversity, in an easily accessable format.

Within my paper I included two graphs.

Figure 1 illustrates the exponential increase in human population from 1950 to 2050. I used this graph in my paper to give a visual of the rapid increase in human population. I discussed how this increase has lead to more land use by humans. This affects biodiversity because humans are converting and destroying land that many species inhabit in order to sustain the growing population.

 Figure 1

Figure 2 compares the increase in the global mean temperature and fossil fuel consumption from 1850 to the 2000s. The graph highlights how the increase in fossil fuel use is related to the rising global temperature. The rising temperature affects biodiversity by causing habitat loss and the extinction of species unable to adapt to the new conditions.

 Figure 2

In my paper I wrote a paragraph on how biodiversity is assessed and how it is decided what actions to take:

Biodiversity is difficult to precisely quantify (Didham, 2010). Ways to assess biodiversity would be to look at taxonomy, functional traits and the interactions among species and how strongly these interactions affect the ecosystem (Didham, 2010). It is hard to have accuracy with these indicators because of the lack of data (Didham, 2010). Many factors are involved in biodiversity loss, so it is difficult to assess everyone and determine the main cause. Extinction risk is often reviewed when deciding which species should be the focus of conservation (Cadotte & Davies, 2011). The International Union for Conservation of Nature’s Red List of Threatened Species ranks plants and animals from least concern (LC), near-threatened (NT), vulnerable (VU), endangered (EN), critically endangered (CR), extinct in the wild (EW), to extinct (EX). There are five criteria points used to determine where species fit on the list (IUCN, 2016). These being: population size reduction, geographic range, small population size and decline, very small or restricted population and quantitative analysis (IUCN, 2016). It is debated whether to use this list to focus on the most at risk species and try to reduce their decline or to focus on current low risk species that may be vulnerable in the future (Cadotte & Davies, 2011). The argument is that the high-risk species may be a lost cause and it would be better to focus the time and energy on species where there is a higher likelihood of survival (Cadotte & Davies, 2011). There is a lack of information on many species and their full contribution to the ecosystems, resulting in the inability to fully grasp the loss that will occur if they were to become extinct.

I gained a lot more knowledge on the topic of terrestrial biodiversity through writing this paper and concluded that although action is being taken more effort needs to be put into the conservation of biodiversity because it provides irreplaceable services needed for human life.

I am an undergraduate student at UBC studying geography with a specialization in environment and sustainability. I am interested in and passionate about the issue of climate change and looking at mitigation and adaptation ideas for this problem. Growing up in North Vancouver the outdoors have always been a big part of my life. I spent my summers swimming in the ocean and hiking in the forests and my winters up the mountains skiing. I believe climate change is the biggest issue facing the planet. In my life and future career I hope to work towards reducing the impacts and discovering adaptations regarding the changing climate. This blog will showcase some of the projects and assignments I have completed during my undergraduate degree.

Thanks,

Aiden