5/7/2019 About One Million Species Face Risk of Extinction, U.N.

Report Says - WSJ

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ENVIRONMENT

About One Million Species Face Risk of
Extinction, U.N. Report Says
Humans are to blame for eroding ecosystems essential to survival of many plants and animals, say
scientists

Gira es and zebras, some species of which are endangered, congregate under the shade of a tree in Mikumi National Park,
Tanzania. PHOTO: BEN CURTIS ASSOCIATED PRESS

By Brianna Abbott
Updated May 6, 2019 8 33 p.m. ET

The rate that species are going extinct is accelerating to unprecedented levels, and about one
million plant and animal species are now at risk of dying out over the next few decades,
according to new findings from a United Nations group.

The decline in animal and plant diversity also could have consequences for people around the
globe, the group said, because humans depend on many species for their food and livelihoods. A
summary of the report was released Monday.

“We’re doing a lot of damage in biodiversity. This damage is working against us,” said Patricia
Miloslavich, a senior professor at the Department of Environmental Studies at Simón Bolívar
University in Venezuela and a co-author on the study.

The globe is now home to an estimated eight million plant and animal species, with the average

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5/7/2019 About One Million Species Face Risk of Extinction, U.N. Report Says - WSJ

Robert Watson, former chair of the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services, is
applauded at a news conference on the launching of the report. PHOTO: BENOIT TESSIER REUTERS

number living on land having fallen by at least 20%, mostly since 1990, the report said.

The report attributed the rate of species extinction to human activities including increases in
land and sea use, overfishing, climate change, pollution and exploitative practices such as
hunting. Invasive animal species were another factor.

Nearly half of amphibians and a third of all marine mammals are threatened, the report said.
Since 1970, there also has been a 30% reduction in global habitat, the report said, with more
than 85% of the wetlands in 1700 gone by the year 2000.

“We’re not just losing bee species. We’re losing insects,” said Joseph Walston, senior vice
president for global conservation of the Wildlife Conservation Society, who wasn’t involved in
the report. “We’re not just losing the tiger. We’re losing many or most vertebrates.”

Because they played such an important role in increasing the risk to species, humans can also
take actions that could reverse the trend, the group said.

“We should be able to get this done,” said Suneetha Mazhenchery Subramanian, a researcher at
the United Nations University and one of the co-authors of the report. “There’s good indication
to say that we can achieve this. It’s going to take a while, but the important thing is that we
need to get started.”

The report, a 1,500-page paper that will be published in full later this year, was written by more
than 450 experts in 50 countries. The summary was released by the Intergovernmental
Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services, an independent U.N. body.

Its findings were based on a review of about 15,000 scientific and government studies and
reports and in-depth discussions with community leaders who are witnessing the changes.

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5/7/2019 About One Million Species Face Risk of Extinction, U.N. Report Says - WSJ

A Lemur Vari sits on a branch near the Vohibola forest, Madagascar, in March. The forest’s lemurs are in danger of extinction
since the forest has been illegally felled for charcoal production and rare wood for sale. Some kill the creatures for food, while
others sell them as pets. PHOTO: RIJASOLO AGENCE FRANCE PRESSE GETTY IMAGES

They tracked the change in biodiversity over the past five decades.

Although many findings have been disclosed previously, the report provides among the most
systematic accounting of the toll humans have had on the planet’s biodiversity. The global
population has grown to 6.7 billion from 3.7 billion in 1970, leading to increased farming, fishing
and energy use, independent experts say.

The group found that 75% of on-

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Corrections & Amplifications

The senior vice president at the Wildlife Conservation Society is Joseph Walston. An earlier
version of this article incorrectly stated his last name as Waltson.

Appeared in the May 7, 2019, print edition as 'Rate of Species Extinction Is Speeding Up, U.N.
Says.'

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