Why is it in the news?

• A new study reveals that biodiversity is declining faster within protected areas than outside them, raising concerns about the effectiveness of current conservation efforts.
• Conducted by London’s Natural History Museum (NHM), the study suggests that simply designating more protected areas won’t necessarily improve biodiversity outcomes.

More about the news

• The study assessed the Biodiversity Intactness Index (BII), which measures the average biodiversity remaining in a region. Findings showed a global BII decline of 1.88 percentage points between 2000 and 2020.
• Focusing on critical biodiversity areas (CBAs)—key ecosystems like wetlands, 22% of which are protected—the researchers found that biodiversity declined by 1.9 percentage points in unprotected CBAs and by 2.1 percentage points in protected CBAs.
• One main reason for this faster decline in protected areas is that many of these regions focus on certain species rather than whole ecosystems, limiting “biodiversity intactness.”
• Additionally, some areas were already experiencing degradation before being designated as protected, requiring significant restoration. The study calls for region-specific analysis to better understand and address the challenges facing each protected area.
• Other threats include oil, gas, and mining concessions within protected areas, such as the Conkouati-Douli National Park in the Republic of Congo, where over 65% of the land is occupied by these industries.
• The climate crisis compounds the issue, with more intense droughts and wildfires impacting protected zones. For example, Australia’s national parks suffered extensive damage from wildfires in 2019 despite strong protective measures.
• Experts suggests that current protections are inadequate and calls on countries to enhance their conservation efforts, specifically through the 30×30 commitment made at the Biodiversity COP15 summit to protect 30% of global lands and oceans by 2030.
• However, the commitment must include effective conservation strategies to ensure that protected areas genuinely support biodiversity.