The destruction of the environment is the major factors in the decline that is also affecting humans
Global populations of mammals, birds, amphibians, reptiles and fish have lowered by an average 68% worldwide less than half a century owing primarily to environmental destruction, according to WWF’s Living Planet report 2020. The environmental deterioration is also held responsible for zoonotic diseases such as the COVID-19 in the report.
The Living Planet Index (LPI), provided by the Zoological Society of London (ZSL), shows that factors believed to increase the planet’s vulnerability to pandemics – including land-use change and the use and trade of wildlife – were also some of the drivers behind the 68% average decline in global vertebrate species populations between 1970 and 2016.
Speaking at the online launch event, Director General, WWF-Pakistan Hammad Naqi Khan lamented that the Living Planet Report 2020 underlines how humanity’s increasing destruction of nature is having catastrophic impacts not only on wildlife populations but also on human health and all aspects of our lives.
“We can’t ignore the evidence – the serious decline in wildlife species populations is an indicator that nature is unravelling and that our planet is flashing red warning signs of systems failure. From the fish in our oceans and rivers to bees, which play a crucial role in our agricultural production, the decline of wildlife directly affects nutrition, food security and the livelihoods of billions of people,” he added.
Khan warned that the population of freshwater turtles, vultures, crocodiles and migratory birds has witnessed a decline in Pakistan. “Illegal wildlife trade, plastic waste, water pollution and climate change should be tackled on an immediate basis”, he added.
At the same time, he mentioned some success stories from Pakistan as well including the Indus River dolphins. From being an endemic and endangered species of river cetacean, their population has almost doubled in the past two decades. Whereas the efforts made as part of crew-based observer and the safe release program have helped substantially reduce fisheries by-catch of endangered marine wildlife including whale sharks, dolphins, green sea turtles, and squids.
Marco Lambertini, Director General, WWF International also spoke on the occasion and emphasized on the need to preserve the planet, for our own sakes. “Bending the Curve modelling provides invaluable evidence that if we are to have any hope of restoring nature to provide current and future generations of people with what they need, then world leaders must – in addition to conservation efforts – make our food system more sustainable and take deforestation – one of the main causes of wildlife population decline – out of supply chains.”