Gs Paper-3
Syllabus: Environmental Conservation
Context:
As per a study by British Economist, loss of biodiversity will downgrade the credit ratings of several countries, including India, increasing their bankruptcy risk.
Status:
- Global Biodiversity Outlook 5 (2020) warned that none of the 20 targets of Aichi (2010 to 2020) under the Convention of Biological Diversity, have been met by the global community.
- India amended its National Biodiversity Action Plan (NBAP) to cover all 20 Aichi targets into 12 National Biodiversity Targets (NBTs). As per India’s 6th National Report, India is on track to achieve 9 out of its 12 NBTs.
What does the study say:
- Economic loss out of ignoring biodiversity: The team claimed that investors and corporations ignoring biodiversity loss from calculations could lead to market stability being undermined. They found that at least 58 per cent of the 26 countries would face a detrimental impact.
- Sovereign credit ratings are an independent assessment that determines the creditworthiness of a country.
- Sectors most affected: “partial ecosystem collapse” of sectors such as fisheries, tropical timber production and wild pollination. (based on World Bank Prediction)
- Worst affected: China and Malaysia would be the worst affected with downgrades of more than six notches.
- On India: The downgrades to four notches for India and other countries means that they will be burdened with billions of dollars in interest. Twelve of the 26 countries analysed will be at the risk of bankruptcy.
How does biodiversity impacts economics?
- As nature loss reduces economic performance, it will become harder for countries to service their debt, straining government budgets and forcing them to raise taxes, cut spending, or increase inflation.
- Developing countries are already saddled with crippling debt burdens driven by COVID-19 and soaring prices, and the loss of nature will push these countries closer to the edge.
- India’s debt burden is expected to increase to 8 per cent of the country’s gross domestic product ( GDP) by the end of March 2022
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Practice Question:
Q. With reference to an initiative called “The Economics of Ecosystems and Biodiversity (TEEB)” which of the following statements is/are correct? (UPSC CSE 2016)
- It is an initiative hosted by UNEP, IMF and World Economic Forum.
- It is a global initiative that focuses on drawing attention to the economic benefits of biodiversity.
- It presents an approach that can help decision-makers recognize, demonstrate and capture the value of ecosystems and biodiversity.
Select the correct answer using the code given below.
(a) 1 and 2 only
(b) 3 only
(c) 2 and 3 only
(d) 1, 2 and 3
Answer: C
TEEB study was launched by Germany and the EU and not UNEP+IMF+WEF. The other two options are correct. For more information: TEEB
Q. With reference to an organization known as ‘BirdLife International’, which of the following statements is/are correct?
- It is a Global Partnership of Conservation Organizations.
- The concept of ‘biodiversity hotspots’ originated from this organization.
- It identifies the sites known/ referred to as ‘Important Bird and Biodiversity Areas’.
Select the correct answer using the code given below.
(a) 1 only
(b) 2 and 3 only
(c) 1 and 3 only
(d) 1, 2 and 3
Answer: C
BirdLife International (BLI) is an NGO and Global partnership of conservation org. that strives to conserve birds, their habitats, and global biodiversity. ‘Biodiversity hotspot’ concept was developed by Norman Mayers and not by BLI.
Q. “Biodiversity-related risks are a material risk to economic activity and public finances. Protecting the natural habitat is not just important for nature’s sake but also crucial for safeguarding macroeconomic stability.”
- Innovation in markets: E.g. Green Bond, Social stock exchange etc.
- Forest and Land transition: employing landscape-level spatial planning to avoid, reduce and mitigate land-use change, reversing land degradation
- g. India joined the Bonn Challenge in 2015 with a pledge to restore 26 mha of degradedand deforested land.
- Sustainable freshwater transition: guaranteeing the water flows, improving water quality, protecting critical habitats, controlling invasive species, and safeguarding connectivity to allow the recovery of freshwater systems from mountains to coasts.
- g. India’s minimum environment flow requirement, Namami Gange project for river rejuvenation
- Sustainable fisheries and oceans transition: Protecting and restoring marine and coastal ecosystems, rebuilding fisheries, and managing aquaculture and other uses of the oceans to ensure sustainability, and to enhance food security and livelihoods.
- g. PM Matsya Sampada Yojana, National Fisheries policy 2020
- Sustainable agriculture transition: Redesigning agricultural systems through agroecological and other innovative approaches to enhance productivity while minimizing negative impacts on biodiversity.
- g. India ranks 1st in number of organic farmers, with Sikkim 1st state to be 100% organic
- Sustainable food systems transition: diversity of foods, and more moderate consumption of meat and fish, as well as dramatic cuts in the waste involved in food supply and consumption
- g. Lab-made meat, use of seaweeds to produce edible protein, etc.
- Cities and infrastructure transition: Deploying ‘green infrastructure’ and making space for nature within built landscapes to improve the health and quality of life for citizens and to reduce the environmental footprint of cities and infrastructure.
- g. National Building Code, the Energy Conservation Building Code (ECBC), rating programs, such as LEED-India
- Sustainable climate action transition: Employing nature-based solutions, alongside a rapid phase-out of fossil fuel use, to reduce the scale and impacts of climate change.
- g. India’s is set to over-achieve its INDC target of 2030 by a wide margin (as per climate action tracker)
- Biodiversity-inclusive One Health transition: Managing ecosystems, including agricultural and urban ecosystems, as well as the use of wildlife, through an integrated approach, to promote healthy ecosystems and healthy people.
- g. The number of Protected Areas under the Wildlife Protection Act in the country has increased from a total of 771 in 2018 to 870 in 201
A united response will make it possible to achieve the 30×30 target to protect at least 30 percent of the global ocean and 30 percent of land areas and inland waters by 2030 through effectively and equitably managed, ecologically representative, and well-connected systems of protected areas.
Source: Down to Earth
