Home Page  Biodiversity Why We Could Not Survive Without Biodiversity
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Why We Could Not Survive Without Biodiversity |
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Written by Elaine Keegan
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Tuesday, 30 November 2004 |
What is biodiversity? Biodiversity is an abbreviation for biological diversity.
Biological diversity is the variety of all life, the variety of plants and animals
and the range of areas where they live. Biodiversity includes species, habitats
and genetic diversity. Biodiversity includes everything from microscopic insects
to the largest whale, from tiny algae to huge ancient trees. Biodiversity is more
than just a few rare animals and plants it is the variety of all living species
and the habitats which they live in. Biodiversity does not just include wildlife,
it is the variety of all life including domestic animals, crops and humans.
We could not survive without biodiversity. It provides us with services and products
necessary for human life. Therefore the conservation of biodiversity is very important.
Products biodiversity provide include food such as fish, meat and vegetables.
Even the highly modified food available today originates from some form of plant
or animal. Biodiversity provides us with fuel and building materials from wood,
peat, oil and coal. All medicines including our modern medicines are derived from
extracts of plants or animals. Biodiversity also provides us with our countryside
– our beautiful land and seascapes. We enjoy looking at and often utilise
our countryside for recreation. Some of the many functions biodiversity provides
include air and water purification, the control of pests and diseases, the pollination
of crops and soil stabilisation. To attempt to manufacture the products and services
biodiversity provides is enormously expensive and often impossible. Biodiversity
is disappearing at an alarming rate worldwide, primarily due to the loss of habitats.
In Clare species are becoming extinct such as the fish the Arctic char which was
present in 5 lakes in Clare until recently. Therefore it is very important that
we protect biodiversity locally as well as nationally and globally.
Biodiversity provides us with many products and services necessary for life, which
is of course very important. However, probably the most important reason for conserving
biodiversity is its intrinsic value. What gives us the right to damage or eliminate
other species?
Clare is one of the first counties in Ireland to start the process of a Local
Biodiversity Action Plan. County Clare is a very important county for biodiversity.
It is home to many important habitats such as limestone pavement, sea cliffs,
wet meadows and bogs and important numbers of species such as Whooper swans, Lesser
horseshoe bats and Spring gentians. The Local Biodiversity Action Plan is part
of County Clare’s Heritage Plan which was published September last year.
With Leader and Heritage Council funding, Clare have appointed a project manager
to prepare a Local Biodiversity Action Plan. The main purposes of Local Biodiversity
Action Plans are to translate international and Irish legislation and policies
into effective local action on the ground and to raise public awareness and involvement
in the conservation of biodiversity.
To date the Biodiversity Officer has been gathering and assessing data on the
county and raising public awareness of and involvement in Clare’s biodiversity.
A publication Spot the 101 Habitats and Species in Clare: Biodiversity in County
Clare has been produced on 101 of the habitats and species in Clare. There are
of course thousands of species and habitats in Clare. This booklet introduces
people to the biodiversity of the county and provides a snapshot focussing on
101 of the habitats and species. The content of the booklet as well as other information
is available on a Clare Biodiversity web site. A CD ROM which will be given for
free to all primary schools in the county will soon be available. A Bluebell survey
took place earlier this year, which encouraged the public to record their bluebell
sightings. There was great enthusiasm for the survey and almost 300 records were
received. Dromore Wood Nature Reserve near Ruan on a sunny Saturday afternoon
was the idyllic setting for the first big celebration of International Biodiversity
Day in Ireland. This was the first year that Biodiversity Day was celebrated in
Clare or Ireland and Clare showed the way forward in nature conservation when
several groups and organisations combined forces to provide a great family day
out. Well over 1,500 visitors attended. There were guided walks through the woodland,
boat trips on the lakes, guided river walks, story telling and wildlife face painting.
The log cabin and around it was full of displays on biodiversity. They included
live lobsters and crabs which could be picked up by those brave enough, as well
as an aquarium with fish and eels. Also there were many other stalls including
Waterways Ireland, Irish Seed Savers Association, ENFO, Shannon Dolphin and Wildlife
Foundation, CELT environmental education and training charity, Irish Peatland
Conservation Council and the Irish Wildlife Trust. It was wonderful to see the
interest in biodiversity in Clare, particularly amongst children, most of who
were full of questions on the day. Clare Biodiversity Day was a great success
thanks to all involved and will now become an annual event.
Events and projects such as Clare Biodiversity Day and the Bluebell survey have
achieved allot more than simply educating people on biodiversity, these projects
have encouraged people to take action. The Bluebell survey prompted a teacher
to bring their entire class out into the locality searching for bluebells. The
Clare Biodiversity web site has prompted another Clare school to develop a web
quest for schools based on the web site. A web quest is a query-based activity
in which some or all of the information to be used comes from internet resources.
The Biodiversity Action Plan Process is being led by a Biodiversity Steering Group,
which has representatives from various government and non-government organisations
involved in biodiversity. Short training sessions are going to be held in various
communities throughout Clare on biodiversity. These training sessions will be
free and will help inform community groups what they have in their area and how
they can manage or enhance these areas for wildlife. The production of the actual
Action Plan will take place in 2005. The Action Plan will identify key species
and habitats in the County and agree actions to protect them. The production of
the plan will involve as many people as possible and will include a public consultation
process.
Areas important for biodiversity are mainly owned and managed by private landowners,
thus awareness raising and implementation of policies at a local level are of
utmost importance. The National Biodiversity Plan, which was published by the
government in 2002 requires each Local Authority to produce a Local Biodiversity
Action Plan. A few other counties as well as Clare are making a start on a Local
Biodiversity Action Plan process. However, there is little or no drive nationally
for Local Authorities to start the process. And there is only very limited funding
available to Local Authorities for Biodiversity Action Plans.
For more information on biodiversity in Clare see www.clarelibrary.ie
and follow the Heritage and Biodiversity links
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