Biodiversity meeting in China to debate missed targets
The report predicts the biodiversity loss will accelerate through 2050 with the tropics being the worst affected if immediate actions are not taken. Experts believe a global meeting in China next year is crucial to reverse the dismal scenario.
"We are currently in the midst of preparing for the 2020 UN Biodiversity Conference, in China, which will mark the close of the Aichi Biodiversity Targets and set the course for a post 2020 ecologically focused sustainable development pathway to deliver multiple benefits for people, the planet and our global economy," said Cristiana Paşca Palmer, executive secretary of the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD).
The Aichi targets were fixed in 2010 with 194 countries agreeing to fulfill 20 ambitious conservation goals to safeguard and revive the global biodiversity.
The targets include preventing the extinction of threatened species to reducing the rate of forest loss by 50 percent.
Despite countries committing to meet the targets, "most of the Aichi Biodiversity Targets for 2020 are likely to be missed," the report said.
The biodiversity conference in China will strive to revise targets for protection and revival of natural areas to control climate change, rising air pollution and ensure availability of safe drinking water.
Palmer added that the IPBES report would serve as a fundamental baseline of where we are and where we need to go as a global community to inspire humanity to reach the 2050 Vision of the UN Biodiversity Convention.
