Biodiversity is giving a distress call! On Global Wetland Day, I feel equally distressed to write this.
Recent headlines and devastating photographs of the destruction of our progress have caused the biodiverse ecosystem, red flags immediate action.
And it is not just the marine and the aqua industry that is feeling the impact of climate change and global warming, human lives too are being affected.
Amidst the mad industrialization, capitalism, and populism rush, it’s our silent bio-economics that has taken a turn for the worse.
Biodiversity loss impacts ecosystems as much as climate change, with approximately 10,000 species extinct annually. The World Economic Forum ranks loss of nature as a top five global economic risk. India’s biodiversity is under pressure due to population growth, economic expansion, and industrialization, making preservation and sustainable use essential national priorities.
Numerous global agencies such as the UN, the EU, and the Indian legislation are paying serious seed to the serious issues and have given a clarion call for the world to protect our environment both: on the ground and underwater.
The call to protect biodiversity is gaining momentum.
The Blue Economy, which makes use of the potential of seas, oceans, and coastal areas, has grown to be a significant subject of discussion about sustainable development. The Blue Economy, leveraging seas, oceans, and coastal regions, is crucial for sustainable development.
India, a mega-biodiverse nation, has a diverse ecosystem, including 96,000 animal and 47,000 plant species, requiring immediate action to protect its resilience. The Blue Economy is a priority under India’s G20 Presidency, aiming for sustainable economic development through the ocean and its resources.
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has unveiled plans to boost Blue Economy 2.0 in yesterday’s interim budget speech. The aim is to promote climate-resilient coastal activities and sustainable development, prioritize restoration strategies, and expand aquaculture and mariculture.
Large corporates too are doing their bit. Notable among them are Godrej and Boyce who have been managing mangroves on Mumbai’s coastline since 1948. Tata Chemicals and Tata Coffee are conserving coral reefs and developing elephant-human conflict management models.
Global compliances:
The Biological Diversity Act 2002 is a crucial Indian law promoting biodiversity preservation, sustainable resource use, and equitable distribution of benefits, including knowledge management.
The country has initiated several initiatives to promote the national Blue Economy, including the Sagarmala initiative, the Pradhan Mantri Matsya Sampada Yojana, the Deep Ocean Mission, and Maritime India Vision 2030. It has also adopted the Coastal Regulation Zone notification, amended the Plastic Waste Management Rules, and introduced Extended Producer Responsibility policies.
The Taskforce for Nature-related Financial Disclosures (TNFD) is a global initiative aiming to develop a risk management and disclosure framework for companies to report on evolving nature-related risks and opportunities. 320 organizations from 46 countries have committed to making nature-related disclosures, including leading publicly listed companies, financial institutions, banks, insurers, and market intermediaries. These organizations plan to adopt the TNFD Recommendations and publish TNFD-aligned disclosures as part of their annual corporate reporting for FY2023, FY2024, or FY2025.
The European Business and Biodiversity Campaign (EBBC) aids companies in integrating biodiversity into corporate management, supporting the EU’s 2030 biodiversity strategy to protect nature and reverse ecosystem degradation.
GRI too has updated its Biodiversity Standard, GRI 101: Biodiversity 2024, to set a global benchmark for accountability for biodiversity impacts. The revised standard supports organizations to disclose their significant impacts on biodiversity throughout their operations and value chain. The update comes amid declining biodiversity and threats to 50% of the global economy. The standard will be piloted with early adopters over two years. Available for download, it will be effective from 1 January 2026 and will be piloted with early adopters.
Our take:
The policies are in place, the regulators are updating compliance norms to protect biodiversity. It is ‘US’–The Brainy Humans who have to do our bit. Let’s be responsible, let’s act responsibly, and let’s respect biodiversity. We will certainly LAND a SEA CHANGE!