Environment & Energy
Related: About this forumRio+20 summit leaders 'must improve nature protection' (BBC)
By Richard Black
Environment correspondent, BBC News
Environmentalists say leaders at June's Rio+20 summit must urgently step up nature protection, as a report confirms a 30% decline in wildlife since 1970.
The Living Planet Report combines data on more than 9,000 populations of animals across the world.
Rio+20 is billed as a chance for world leaders to put global society on a sustainable path.
But the report's main authors, WWF, say progress on nature protection and climate change is "glacial".
"The Rio+20 conference is an opportunity for the world to get serious about the need for development to be made sustainable," said David Nussbaum, CEO of WWF-UK.
***
more: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-18060323
freshwest
(53,661 posts)http://www.democraticunderground.com/112713787
There is the destruction of orangutans in Indonesia:
Outrage as palm oil companies exterminate hundreds of orangutans
http://www.democraticunderground.com/1002574512
Indonesian court backs palm oil company over orangutans and carbon storage
http://www.smh.com.au/environment/conservation/indonesian-court-backs-palm-oil-company-over-orangutans-and-carbon-storage-20120403-1wau2.html
From the link at the OP:
"Nature is more important than money. Humanity can live without money, but we can't live without nature and the essential services it provides."
That is a start in thinking but I see nothing going after the monied interests that are the real cause of this. That is where this needs to be addressed. 'Development being sustainable' apparently means in the monetary sense for 'business as usual.'
As these areas are destroyed, there is no coming back for those species. We don't have time for talking, we need action. A conference is great, but who is going to change things on the ground. As the last link says, it was a hundred animals killed in Indonesia in just a few weeks and nothing is going to be done about it.
Thanks for the OP but I had to get that out there. In most of these cases, the benefits are not that great to the people living near these areas, in fact many people are being killed along with the animals. The profits go to global interests, like mining and agribusiness.
Nihil
(13,508 posts)> Rio+20 is billed as a chance for world leaders to put global society on a sustainable path.
Yeah, right ... like there will be any "world leaders" there?
Like any of the "world leaders" actually give two shits about anything other than money?
The only way that "Rio+20" would be any use would be if provided a memorable
date to remind future people when a succession of large meteorites fell on the
political & financial centres of every country in the world.
Other than that, it is just another junket with zero effect on the situation.