Cooney, Rosie --- "A Long and Winding Road? Precaution from Principle to Practice in Biodiversity Conservation" [2006] ELECD 394; in Fisher, Elizabeth; Jones, Judith; von Schomberg, René (eds), "Implementing the Precautionary Principle" (Edward Elgar Publishing, 2006)

Book Title: Implementing the Precautionary Principle

Editor(s): Fisher, Elizabeth; Jones, Judith; von Schomberg, René

Publisher: Edward Elgar Publishing

ISBN (hard cover): 9781845427023

Section: Chapter 11

Section Title: A Long and Winding Road? Precaution from Principle to Practice in Biodiversity Conservation

Author(s): Cooney, Rosie

Number of pages: 22

Extract:

11. A long and winding road?
Precaution from principle to
practice in biodiversity
conservation
Rosie Cooney

INTRODUCTION

Biodiversity includes the diversity of genes, species and ecosystems on
earth,1 but here for convenience I focus on species loss and ecosystem
degradation. At least five times since life evolved on Earth, mass extinction
events have taken place, involving the extinction of vast numbers of species
(Futuyma, 1998). Perhaps over 95 per cent of all species that have lived on
earth are now extinct (Rosenzweig, 1995), and a `background' level of
extinction is to be expected regardless of human activities (Macleod, 2002).
Today, however, relevant indices point to our being on the cusp of the sixth
great extinction event, this one distinguished by the fact that it is caused
primarily by human activities (Leakey and Lewin, 1995). Around one in
eight of the world's bird species, a quarter of its mammals, and one in three
amphibians are threatened with extinction (Baillie, Hilton-Taylor and
Stuart, 2004). The extent and rapidity of anthropogenically-induced recent
and threatened extinctions far outstrips the rate of evolution of new species
and threatens fundamental ecosystem processes which maintain all life on
earth.
Many would view the extinction of other species as alarming per se.
However, threats to biodiversity are also threats to humans: to the provision
of materials and services for life, health, security and wellbeing. Biodiversity
provides food, medicine, fuel and building materials. Biodiverse ecosystems
help filter water, control flooding, regulate climate, decompose waste,
generate ...