Report: Loss of biodiversity to cost trillions of dollars a year

Oct 20, 2010, 14:46 GMT

   Tokyo - Without any action to curb environmental destruction and species extinction, the international community stands to lose trillions of dollars every year, a report said Wednesday.

   Such a loss would also aggravate the situation of the world's poor, said the Economics of Ecosystems and Biodiversity (TEEB) report released on the sidelines of the 10th Conference of the Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) in Nagoya, central Japan.

   Delegates from 193 countries are meeting for 10 days to discuss strategic goals to stop the loss of biodiversity.

   'Do nothing, and not only do we lose trillions worth of current and future benefits to society, we also further impoverish the poor and put future generations at risk,' said Pavan Sukhdev, who led the two-year study backed by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP).

   'The time for ignoring biodiversity and persisting with conventional thinking regarding wealth creation and development is over. We must get on to the path towards a green economy,' Sukhdev added.

   TEEB, which has involved hundreds of experts across the world, aims to raise global awareness of the massive financial costs of inaction and promote the sustainable use of ecosystems.

   The report showed the importance of ecosystems in economic terms. For example, it said pollination by insects translate into an estimated 153 billion euros (212 billion dollars) annually, while humans could gain benefits worth estimated up to 172 billion dollars every year from coral reefs.

   TEEB also pointed out that forests and other ecosystems contribute to the livelihoods of the poor in rural areas, and underlined the 'significant potential for conservation efforts to contribute to poverty reduction.'

   The report also said that a curbing of over-fishing, which is currently encouraged by the subsidizing of industrial fishing as well as poor regulation and enforcement, would allow global marine fishery stocks to increase by another 50 billion dollars annually.

   'TEEB has documented not only the multi-trillion dollar importance to the global economy of the natural world, but the kinds of policy shifts and smart market mechanisms that can embed fresh thinking in a world beset by a rising raft of multiple challenges,' Sukhdev said.

   Countries such as India and Brazil are already taking steps to adopt the TEEB approach, Nick Nuttall, a spokesman for the UNEP, said.

   'TEEB aims to provide strong incentives for countries to ensure decisions are not solely based on short-term gains, but build foundations for sustainable and inclusive development,' Indian Environment and Forests Minister Jairam Ramesh said.

   UNEP said the European Commission and Germany saw the benefits of TEEB at the 2007 Potsdam G8+5 Environment Ministers meeting.

   'The European Commission has supported the project from the start and will continue to work on these issues after COP 10, taking into account the decisions that will be adopted in Nagoya,' said Janez Potocnik, European commissioner for the environment.

   TEEB was financially supported by the European Commission, Germany, United Kingdom, the Netherlands, Norway, Belgium, Sweden and Japan.