• UGI USER
  • Sep 08, 2023
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Biodiversity loss: 37,000 ‘alien species introduced by human activities.

Relevance:

  • GS Paper 3: Conservation, Environmental Pollution, and Degradation, Environmental Impact Assessment.
  • Tags: #upsc #exams #biodiversity #conservation #IPBES.

Why in the news?

There is a discussion on the Intergovernmental Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES) report on invasive alien species (IAS) and their control.

Key Facts

●      Invasive alien species

a.     The term “invasive alien species” refers to non-native plants, animals, pathogens, and other organisms that can impair the economy, the environment, or human health. In particular, they have a negative influence on biodiversity, causing local ecosystems and ecosystem processes to be disrupted as well as native species to decline or become extinct due to competition, predation, or the spread of viruses.

b.    Since the 17th century, invading alien species have been responsible for roughly 40% of all documented animal extinctions (CBD, 2006).

●      IPBES

a.     The IPBES is an autonomous intergovernmental organization created by States to improve the science-policy interface for biodiversity and ecosystem services for biodiversity conservation and sustainable use, long-term human well-being, and sustainable development.

b.    It was established on April 21, 2012, in Panama City by 94 countries.

c.     It is not a part of the UN.

d.    However, the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) started offering secretariat services to IPBES in 2013 at the request of the IPBES Plenary and with approval from the UNEP Governing Council.

Important findings of the IPBES report

Invasive alien species

  • Human actions have resulted in the introduction of 37,000 alien species globally. Over 3,500 of these alien species pose serious dangers to the environment, the economy, food security, and public health on a global scale.
  • For example, almost 85% of recorded consequences have a negative influence on people’s quality of life. Invasive alien mosquito species like Aedes albopictus and Aedes Aegyptus cause diseases including malaria, Zika, and West Nile.
  • The water hyacinth is currently the most pervasive invasive alien species on land in the globe.
  • The second and third most common animals worldwide are the black rat and the flowering plant lantana. House mice and brown rats are two other common invading alien
  • IAS have been a major influence in 60% and the sole cause of 16% of all reported worldwide animal and plant extinctions, with at least 218 invasive alien species responsible for over 1,200 local.

Impact in different parts of the world

  • The majority of negative impacts are documented on land (about 75%), with much less reported in freshwater (14%), and marine (10%) ecosystems.
  • IAS are especially harmful on islands, where alien plants currently outnumber native plants on more than 25% of all:
    • 34% of biological invasion impacts were documented in the America;
    • 31% in Europe and Central Asia;
    • 25% in Asia and the Pacific, and;
    • Approximately 7% in Africa.

Increase in the financial burden

  • The financial burden has risen by over fourfold every decade since 1970, as global trade and human travel have grown.
  • In 2019, the annual global economic cost of invasive alien species surpassed $423 billion.
  • The most prevalent effect of invading alien species is a decline in food supply. For example: By eradicating native clams and oysters, Caribbean bogus mussels have harmed locally vital fishing resources in kerala.

IAS has increased and made it worse the effects of climate change

  • Invasive alien plants, particularly trees and grasses, can be very flammable and contribute to more intense fires. IAS can diminish natural routines, agricultural systems, and urban areas’ resilience to climate

Not all IAS are harmful

  • About 6% of invasive alien plants, 22% of invasive alien invertebrates, 14% of invasive alien vertebrates, and 11% of invasive alien microbes pose substantial threats to nature and humanity.
  • Nearly 80% of known invasive species impacts on nature’s contribution to mankind are negative.

Various countries in the management of IAS

  • According to the IPBES experts, there are often insufficient procedures in place to address these concerns.
  • While 80% of countries have invasive alien species management targets in their national biodiversity programmes, only 17% have national legislation or regulations addressing these challenges. This raises the risk of invading alien species for surrounding
  • According to the report, 45% of all countries do not invest in biological invasion management.

What are the impacts of IAS on India?

  • On the list of invasion-cost bearing countries, India ranks second only to the United States and over the previous six decades, IAS have cost the Indian economy approximately $128 billion.

Examples

  • Prosopis juliflora is a water-guzzling invasive shrub that sucks the most water from the ground, lowering groundwater levels and negatively damaging local biodiversity and ecology.
  • Lantana camara invasion has reduced the availability of natural feed plants for wild herbivores; it has infiltrated more than 40% of India’s tiger
  • Prosopis chilensis, a drought-resistant plant endemic to South American dry regions is endangering the native vegetation of the Gulf of Mannar Biosphere Reserve’s island.

The various recommendations by the report

  • Eradication and containment have been successful and cost-effective in isolated habitats such as islands for small and slow-spreading IAS must be confined and controlled in land-based, closed- water, and aquaculture systems.
Example

  • French Polynesia has successfully exterminated the black rat and IAS Asian tunicate containment in aquacultured blue mussels in Canada.
  • In the Asia-Pacific region, introducing a rust fungus to reduce bitter vine has been successful in more than 60% of known occurences.

 

  • New alien species surveillance has been effective, for example, the PlantwisePlus program in Australia supported smallholder farmers in Africa, Asia, and Latin America in spotting new alien species.
  • Border biosecurity and carefully enforced import limits have been effective in halting the spread. In Australia, for example, success has been gained in decreasing the spread of the brown marmorated stink bug.
  • Climate change should be explicitly incorporated into IAS risk assessments to assist in identifying alien species that may pose a concern in the future. Native tree species, rather than foreign species such as Acacia or Eucalyptus, should be employed for carbon sequestration or erosion control.
  • Ecosystems must be prioritized based on their susceptibility to climate change and IAS, and preventive measures must be implemented.

 

Source: Indian Express