Botanical congress predicts disaster

Botanical congress predicts disaster

Four thousand scientists attending a botanical congress at in St Louis, Missouri, in early August, have predicted massive species loss.

Professor Peter Raven, president of the International Botanical Congress, said scientists "are predicting the extinction of about two-thirds of all bird, mammal, butterfly and plant species by the end of the next century, based on current trends". At that rate, Raven said, "many of the basic foods of many of the animals and many of the ecosystems that nourish them" would be lost.

Jane Lubchenko, a zoologist at Oregon State University, said species extinction is occurring at 100-1000 times the natural rate.

Scientists attending the congress said the oceans are also under siege, with vast "dead zones" where oxygenated water and life are scarce. Lubchenko said there are 50 dead zones in the world's coastal areas, and half of the world's mangrove forests have been lost to coastal development or fish farming. The consequences include toxic algal blooms, coral bleaching and the sudden disappearance of fish from key fisheries.

From GLW issue 372