A new report released today by international scientists for the United Nations warns that the world is using up its natural resources too quickly and that approximately two-thirds of the earth’s ecosystems are in danger of being destroyed.
The report said that 15 of the world’s 24 major ecosystems were in decline and that unless something was done to reverse this trend, the situation will get much worse over the next half century.
Approximately 1,300 researchers from 95 countries contributed to the report which is hailed as the most detailed study of the environment done to date.
UN Undersecretary Hans van Ginkel summarized the report’s findings, saying, ‘It’s not yet extreme, it’s not exactly immediate collapse, but we better act before the collapse is there.’
A post 1945 population boom and advancing technology were cited as the main reasons for the problem.
The report also warned that 32 percent of the world’s fish, 25 percent of its mammals and 12 percent of the world’s birds could be extinct within the next 100 years.
It will not be easy to carry out the recommendations of the 2,500 page report in a world that is as politically and culturally diverse as ours. But people need to take notice.
‘Everyone in the world depends on nature and ecosystem services to provide the conditions for a decent, healthy and secure life,’ said Jane Lubchenco, a professor of Marine biology and one of the author’s of the study. ‘This is a sobering report card – but one with useful and hopeful options,’ she concluded.
Brad Kurtzberg
From: www.elitestv.com