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The minimum land area requiring conservation attention to safeguard biodiversity
journal contribution
posted on 2023-05-21, 08:20 authored by Allan, JR, Possingham, HP, Atkinson, SC, Waldron, A, Di Marco, M, Butchart, SHM, Vanessa AdamsVanessa Adams, Kissling, WD, Worsdell, T, Sandbrook, C, Gibbon, G, Kumar, K, Mehta, P, Maron, M, Williams, BA, Jones, KR, Wintle, BA, Reside, E, Watson, JEMAmbitious conservation efforts are needed to stop the global biodiversity crisis. In this study, we estimate the minimum land area to secure important biodiversity areas, ecologically intact areas, and optimal locations for representation of species ranges and ecoregions. We discover that at least 64 million square kilometers (44% of terrestrial area) would require conservation attention (ranging from protected areas to land-use policies) to meet this goal. More than 1.8 billion people live on these lands, so responses that promote autonomy, self-determination, equity, and sustainable management for safeguarding biodiversity are essential. Spatially explicit land-use scenarios suggest that 1.3 million square kilometers of this land is at risk of being converted for intensive human land uses by 2030, which requires immediate attention. However, a sevenfold difference exists between the amount of habitat converted in optimistic and pessimistic land-use scenarios, highlighting an opportunity to avert this crisis. Appropriate targets in the Post-2020 Global Biodiversity Framework to encourage conservation of the identified land would contribute substantially to safeguarding biodiversity.
History
Publication title
ScienceVolume
376Issue
6597Pagination
1094-1101ISSN
0036-8075Department/School
School of Geography, Planning and Spatial SciencesPublisher
Amer Assoc Advancement SciencePlace of publication
1200 New York Ave, Nw, Washington, USA, Dc, 20005Rights statement
Copyright 2022 The Authors, some rights reserved; exclusive licensee American Association for the Advancement of ScienceRepository Status
- Restricted