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World News
Ecosystem Damage Costs Trillions Per Year: Study.
“Environmental damage and species loss costs $2.1 to $4.8 trillion every year, according to a report released Thursday at a major UN conference on biodiversity. The study, commissioned by the European Union (EU) and the German government, is the biggest assessment ever made of the economic impact of ecological damage. …
The report, entitled The Economics of Ecosystems and Biodiversity (TEEB), attaches a monetary value to species and to environmental assets that usually are not considered in cash terms. It looks, for instance, at the dollar value of clean water, healthy soil, and protection from floods and soil erosion, natural medicines and natural sinks that store greenhouse gases such as carbon dioxide (CO2) and methane. …” [Agence France Presse/Factiva]
Reuters adds that “Mankind is causing EUR 50 billion of damage to the planet's land areas every year, making it imperative governments act to save plants and animals…said Pavan Sukhdev, a banker at Deutsche Bank and the main author of the report.
On top of the current EUR 50 billion annual losses from land-based ecosystems caused by factors including pollution and deforestation, the cumulative loss could amount to at least 7 percent of annual consumption by 2050, said the report. Deforestation, if continued at current levels, would cost some 6 percent of world GDP by 2050, he said. …The report says assigning just 1 percent of global GDP could achieve significant improvements in air and water quality and human health as well as ensure progress towards climate targets.” [Reuters/Factiva]
The Independent adds that “…The Earth could lose 11 percent of its natural areas by 2050 if we fail to combat loss of species diversity. Agriculture, the expansion of infrastructure and climate change would all contribute to this decline. …
Overfishing is one of the key areas explored in the study, which says all of the world's fisheries are likely to have collapsed within 50 years if current trends are not reversed. For the billion people who rely on fish protein, this would have a devastating impact. …” [The Independent (UK)/Factiva]
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