why is ecosystem diversity important

Many people may support environmental causes to help preserve the beauty of Nature. For many decades, various environmentalists, biologists and other scientists, have viewed the entire earth as a massive living organism or system due to the interdependent nature of all species within it. https://greentumble.com/why-is-it-important-to-conserve-biodiversity STUDY. Ecosystems produce the food humans eat and the fiber that humans used for clothing and shelter. Who Cares? Land that is used to produce unhealthy or marginally nutritious items (e.g. While there might be survival of the fittest within a given species, each species depends on the services provided by other species to ensure survival. Even these services often bypass markets where carried out as part of community management of shared resources. Who Cares?, Global Issues, Updated: January 19, 2014. All species, even those living in the most remote parts of the planet, are part of a wider ecosystem, both relying on and affecting other life forms within their biome (a term for the community of life or habitat where different species live). For example. Biodiversity is important because it clears out our water, changes out climate, and provides us with food. By contrast, waiting 10 more years could reduce the net benefit of halving deforestation by US$ 500 billion. As summarized from Vandana Shiva, Stolen Harvest (South End Press, 2000), pp 61–62: Shiva, a prominent Indian scientist and activist goes on to detail the costs associated with destroying this natural diversity and traditional farming techniques which recognize this, and replacing this with industrial processes which go against the nature of diversity sustainability. Without this, elephants were stripping vegetation bare, affecting other animals, too. At least 40 per cent of the world’s economy and 80 per cent of the needs of the poor are derived from biological resources. An ecosystem will have a higher productivity rate and more robust ecological processes when more different life forms can thrive and survive. Industrial-farming techniques would deprive these diverse species of food sources and instead assault them with chemicals, destroying the rich biodiversity in the soil and with it the basis for the renewal of the soil fertility. Thus preserving the structure of biological communities rather than increasing the number of species are very important for maintaining ecosystem services. Biodiversity is very important to the well-being of our planet and here’s why. This is a clear case of inter-related issues: the health of the environment is strongly tried to our economic choices (i.e. Some have termed this Gaia. The variety of life on Earth, its biological diversity is commonly referred to as biodiversity. Why do we need to protect biodiversity? Tense postgame handshake between college coaches A chain of events eventually came full circle and led to a loss of jobs: Three quarters of the world’s big carnivores are in decline. food sources must be diverse because of each food type and the type of food/energy received from this food. It was noted earlier that ecosystems provide many services to us, for free. This systematic under-valuation of ecosystem services and failure to capture the values is one of the main causes underlying today’s biodiversity crisis. Private and public decisions affecting biodiversity rarely consider benefits beyond the immediate geographical area…. Spiders, centipedes and insects grind organic matter from the surface soil and leave behind enriched droppings. Some cultures have recognized this kind of inter-relationship for a very long time. expanded side notes, shows alternative links), use the print version: Greater species diversity ensures natural sustainability for all life forms. The fact that within a forest, pond or sea there are countless different animals, plants, fish, birds and so on all living together. Biodiversity boosts ecosystem productivity where each species, no matter how small, all have an important role to play. Unfortunately the original link to the Nature.com article no longer works, since their site redesign, and I had not noted the publication details. Although some dislike the thought of trying to put an economic value on biodiversity (some things are just priceless), there have been attempts to do so in order for people to understand the magnitude of the issue: how important the environment is to humanity and what costs and benefits there can be in doing (or not doing) something. Efficiently producing unhealthy food — and the unhealthy consumer culture to go with it — may profit the food industry and a private health sector that has to deal with it, all of which require more use of resources. An estimated 40% of world trade is based on biological products or processes. In a recent report, The Economics of Ecosystems and Biodiversity for National and International Policy Makers 2009, TEEB provided the following example of sectors dependent on genetic resources: In addition, it is estimated that implementing REDD (Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation) could help, From a cost perspective (p.18), it is estimated that. Ecosystem diversity is very important because all life forms on earth depend on each other. This then has an impact on various local social, political and economic issues. It promotes various food chains and food webs. It is the variation in the ecosystems found in a region or the variation in ecosystems over the whole planet. In addition, their benefits are felt differently by people in different places and over different timescales. Think of some of the effects this could have: How much would such accounting save? Ecosystem diversity boosts the availability of oxygen via the process of photosynthesis amongst plant organisms domiciled in the habitat. Teach a man to fish; and you have fed him for a lifetime.” — Old Chinese Saying. Humans rely on ecosystems for many functions. Nature can often be surprisingly resilient, often without the need for human interventions. It controls essential ecological processes and promotes lives. A scientist pleaded with park management not to cull and let nature take its course. An example from the seas (originally mentioned here years ago but removed because the link to the story no longer worked), was described by National Geographic Wild in a program called, A Life Among Whales (broadcast June 14, 2008). In the mid-1990s, the Institute for Economic Democracy calculated that as much as half the American economy constituted of wasted labor, wealth and resources (book: World’s Wasted Wealth, II — see sample chapter). Write. In effect, as TEEB, and many others before have argued, a key challenge will be adapting our economic systems to integrate sustainability and human well-being as well as other environmental factors to give us truer costs (after all, market systems are supposed to work when there is full availability of information). With between 3 and 30 million species on earth, here are the reasons why they are important. This is equivalent to 7% of their combined revenues and up to a third of their combined profits. The cost of replacing these (if possible) would be extremely expensive. A healthy biodiversity provides a number of natural services for everyone: That is quite a lot of services we get for free! We need ants to survive, but they don't need us at all. However, it has long been argued that prices don’t truly reflect the full cost of things, so either the signal is incorrect, or comes too late. Diversity is important for species in order to maintain resilience against unexpected events, such as sudden climate changes or natural disasters, like forest fires or floods. Added an update on declining numbers of large carnivores, Added a couple of videos about measuring environmental costs to society, Added notes about how environmental needs to be measured by our economic systems, Short notes and illustrations added on further reasons for biodiversity importance, Short examples added of how ecosystems rely on various species’ interactions and dependencies. A study in the journal Science, notes that these large animals — such as lions, leopards, wolves and bears — are in decline, due to declining habitats and persecution by humans.. how we use resources), but addressing core short-comings in our economic systems is a crucial political challenge. . The park where things were left alone has naturally regenerated; the large elephant populations eventually reduced in number as they undermined their own resource base. Other wildlife grew in numbers and the ecosystem was generally back in balance. Each ecosystem provide different habitats that can essential for a species's life cycle. “Give a man a fish; you have fed him for today. Explanation: This can be done by recycling & storage of nutrients, controlling pollution, & stabilizing climate. Economists talk of the price signal that is fundamental to capitalism; the ability for prices to indicate when a resource is becoming scarcer. One overriding importance is that biodiversity is responsible for the continuity of the planet because it supports majority of the vital environmental life cycles such as the oxygen cycle, the water cycle, and the nitrogen cycle just to mention a few. Some products derived from genetic resources. Recreation—many recreational pursuits rely on our unique biodiversity, such as birdwatching, hiking, camping and fishing. It is a type of cooperation based on mutual survival and is often what a balanced ecosystem refers to. Since each species has a role to play, a diverse ecosystem allows them to interact and reach symbiosis. Biological diversity, or biodiversity, is the scientific term for the variety of life on Earth. The earth itself sets an example of ecosystem diversity as it contains forests, oceans, deserts and wetlands. These words sum up why biodiversity is so important. It noted how a few decades ago, some fishermen campaigned for killing whales because they were threatening the fish supply and thus jobs. Medicinal resources and pharmaceutical drugs, Diversity in genes, species and ecosystems, Cattle waste feeds the soil that nourish the crops, Crops, as well as yielding grain also yield straw, Crops are therefore food sources for humans and animals, Bacteria feed on the cellulose fibers of straw that farmers return to the soil, Amoebas feed on bacteria making lignite fibers available for uptake by plants, Algae provide organic matter and serve as natural nitrogen fixers, Rodents that bore under the fields aerate the soil and improve its water-holding capacity. Web. The diversity creates an interdependence between organisms in the ecosystem. These efforts will ensure that bees continue to provide pollination and that our diets remain rich in the fruits and vegetables we now take for granted. This will take a little while to explain so please bear with me. Ecosystem diversity is a type of biodiversity. Despite these free benefits, it has long been recognized that we tend to ignore or underestimate the value of those services. Our continued inefficient pumping of greenhouse gases into the environment without factoring the enormous cost as the climate already begins to change is perhaps an example where price signals may come too late, or at a time when there is already significant impact to many people. Generally, when a variety is extinct from it or there is a decrease in its population, this indicates that these species were not … Read on, as we’ll explore the reasons why preserving biodiversity is such an important task. As the study notes, human actions cannot fully replace the role of large carnivores because these large carnivores are an intrinsic part of an ecosystem’s biodiversity. When any severe impact is there for a particular species on the ecosystem, the other several plant species performing similar functions can help the survival of the plants and ecosystem sustenance. Anita Roddick: Corporate Social Responsibility? The amount of biological or living diversity per unit area. The fact that within a forest, pond or sea there are countless different animals, plants, … Naturally, those who benefit from the current system may be hostile to such changes, especially if it may mean they might lose out. The economic benefits of protecting the environment are well-understood, even if seemingly rarely practiced: Numerous studies also show that investments in protected areas generate a cost-benefit ratio of one to 25 and even one to 100 in some cases, [Pavan Sukhdev, from TEEB] said. Side NoteUnfortunately the original link to the Nature.com article no longer works, since their site redesign, and I had not noted the publication details. Alternatively, copy/paste the following MLA citation format for this page: Shah, Anup. It therefore makes economic and development sense to move towards sustainability. Flashcards. Forests and wetland ecosystems provide crucial buffers to extreme storms and flooding related to climate change. Why is diversity important in an ecosystem? Terms in this set (18) Biodiversity. It includes the concepts of species diversity, habitat diversity and genetic diversity. A report from Nature magazine also explains that genetic diversity helps to prevent the chances of extinction in the wild (and claims to have shown proof of this). Diversity In an aquatic environment helps in … Importance of Ecosystem: It provides habitat to wild plants and animals. There are several important reasons for us to gain an understanding of the dynamic nature of biological diversity, particularly in terms of maintaining ecological balance. The price signal also implies the poorest often pay the heaviest costs. 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