Quantity is important, but don't forget quality – the natural side

In December 2022, leaders from 196 countries adopted the Kunming-Montreal Biodiversity Framework. The goal of the treaty is to halt the loss of nature and prevent environmental degradation. To protect 30 percent of the world's land, coastal waters and oceans by 2030, among other things by working towards “30 for 30”. Since the treaty was signed, many countries have increased the pace of protecting the areas, but Sweden has been stricter instead. It cut the budget for nature conservation and management and suspended important EU legislation on nature restoration.

A new one study From Great Britain, it shows how important it is to protect nature and that protected areas are in good condition. It is not always enough to create an existence – it may need to be managed. This is because many reserves suffer from pollution, invasive alien species and over-development.

Protect and improve

Researchers from the British Trust of Ornithology (BTO), the Center for Ecology and Hydrology (CEH) and the Joint Nature Conservation Committee (JNCC) compared protected areas in favorable and unfavorable conditions. different types of. As expected, favorable areas have the most positive effects on a large number of protected species, but even poorly protected nature can benefit many threatened and specialized birds, such as cuckoos and ntida. In addition, the study shows the importance of improving protected areas in unfavorable conditions so that more species can benefit and recover.

Dr Caroline Brighton, Research Ecologist at BTO:
– By looking at the status of protected areas in relation to bird populations, we were able to shed light on what we have long suspected – the quality of areas is key if we want to increase biodiversity. Even small, well-maintained areas can be significantly more productive for common birds than very large areas in poor condition. By improving our understanding of quality rather than quantity, we can show how we can designate and maintain protected areas to achieve the 30 goals for birds and biodiversity.

proof's: BTO And Biological Dialogue