Subject : Global warming?
--------- Forwarded message ----------
From: APFEJ <sobacine@sri.lanka.net>
To: environmentaljournalists@yahoogroups.com
Date: Sun, 25 Feb 2001 19:36:13 +0600
Subject: [environmentaljournalists] Action against severe global warming
threat to biodiversity

IUCN-The World Conservation Union, Gland, Switzerland 22.2.2001 -IUCN has
taken decisive action in response to the serious damage being done to
species and natural systems by the growing threat of global climate change.
With climate change a priority issue for IUCN, a workshop of experts was
held this week (19-21 February) to identify the implications for
biodiversity. The workshop coincided with the release of an
Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) report which describes
how
recent climate changes have already affected many biological and physical
systems.
Climatic changes during the past 20-30 years have severely damaged the most
sensitive biological systems, particularly coral reefs and tropical cloud
forests. These systems are known to have the highest levels of biodiversity,
with new species still being discovered.
"Coral reefs are facing a very uncertain future. A combination of climate
change and the many other human-induced stresses affecting them may
eliminate them as functional ecosystems. Reef Check, an international
monitoring programme found that in 1998 alone, 10% of the world's coral
reefs died from higher temperatures associated with global warming", says
workshop participant Ove Hoegh-Guldberg of the University of Queensland,
Australia.
"The available evidence points to a potential massive impact on the globally
significant karoo semi-desert and Cape Floristic Kingdom of South Africa",
says Guy Midgley of the National Botanical Institute, South Africa, and
the
Centre for Applied Biodiversity Science.
Several frog species have shown rapid declines, which are believed to be
linked to climate change, and projected changes are likely to exceed the
ability of some species and ecosystems to adapt.
The workshop gathered diverse expertise on a wide range of ecosystems from
mountains to oceans. There was unanimous agreement among the experts that
climate change should be addressed by conservation planners and policy
makers, as one of the most serious and immediate threats to biodiversity.
Building on the IPCC report findings and the workshop results, IUCN will
now
co-ordinate a research and monitoring programme. This will identify actions
needed and lead to guidelines for policy makers to help minimise the impact
of climate change on species and habitats. IUCN, through its 7,000 member
Species Survival Commission, will start by compiling a list of species and
ecosystems most threatened by climate change to help prioritise conservation
action.
"Projected changes in the global climate are likely to cause a far greater
scale of damage to currently affected systems, and will eventually surpass
other threats," says Brett Orlando, who is leading the climate change effort
as part of IUCN's Biodiversity Programme.
"We hope our workshop recommendations will be taken seriously with the
resumed climate talks later this year," he adds.
Tasks emerging from the workshop to be co-ordinated by IUCN include:
* Identify the species and habitats most affected by climate change.
* Work to include climate change implications as a standard feature of
species status assessments, conservation planning, and protected area design
(including changes/additions to protected areas as needed).
* Identify and fill the current information gap through monitoring and
mapping at regional and global scales.
* Identify funding sources for research and awareness campaigns.
* Increase awareness of climate change impacts.
For more information contact Brett Orlando Tel (41) (0)22 9990001, Email:
borlando@iucnus.org
IUCN - The World Conservation Union was founded in 1948 and brings together
79 states, 112 government agencies, 760 NGOs, 37 affiliates, and some 10,000
scientists and experts from 181 countries in a unique worldwide partnership.
Its mission is to influence, encourage and assist societies throughout the
world to conserve the integrity and diversity of nature and to ensure that
any use of natural resources is equitable and ecologically sustainable.
Within the framework of global conventions IUCN has helped over 75 countries
to prepare and implement national conservation and biodiversity strategies.
IUCN has approximately 1000 staff, most of whom are located in its 42
regional and country offices while 100 work at its Headquarters in Gland,
Switzerland.


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No matter what you do or say someone will take it too seriously