Loss of Biodiversity
Major Pressures:Impact on Biodiversity and Associated Effects on Ecosystem Services and Human Well-being
Pressures
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Impacts on Biodiversity
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Implications for Ecosystem Services and Human Well-Being
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Examples
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Habitat Conversion
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Between 1990 and 1997, about 6 million hectraes of humid tropical forest were lost annually. Deforestation trends differ from region to region with the hughest rates in Southeast Asia , followed by Africa and Latin America.
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Overexploitation
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An estimated 1-3.4 million tonnes of wild meat (bush meat)are harvested annually from the Congo Basin.This is believed to be 6 times the sustainable rate. The wild meat trade is large and often an invisible contributor to the national economies dependent on the resource.It was recently estimated that the value of trade in Cote d' Ivoire was $150 million/year, representing 1.4% of the GNP.
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Invasive Alien Species
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The comb jelly, accidentally introduced in 1982 by ships from the US Atlantic coast, dominated the entire marine ecosystem in the Balck Sea, directly competing with native fish for food and resulting in the direct destruction of 26 fisheries in 1992.
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Climate Change
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Polar marine ecosystems are very sensitive to climate change because a small change in temperature changes the thickness and amount of sea ice on which many species depend. The livelihoods of indigenous populations living in sub-arctic environments and subsisting on marine mammals are threatened since the exploitation of marine resources is directly linked to seasonality of sea ice.
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Pollution
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Over 90% of land in the EU-25 countries in Europe is affected by nitrogen pollution greater than the calculated critical loads. This triggers eutrophication and the associated increases in algal blooms and impacts on biodiversity,fisheries and aquaculture.
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