Living Planet Report 2020: Bending the curve of biodiversity loss
The global Living Planet Index continues to decline. It shows an average 68% decrease in population sizes of mammals, birds, amphibians, reptiles and fish between 1970 and 2016. A 94% decline in the LPI for the tropical sub regions of the Americas is the largest fall observed in any part of the world. The index also pointed out factors it said were some of the drivers for this decline in the population of vertebrate species. These factors — including land-use change and the use and trade of wildlife — were believed to have increased the planet’s vulnerability to pandemics, according to the report. Natural habitat loss, degradation and deforestation driven by food production processes were the other factors the report attributed the decline to. The destruction of natural habitats was only possible if ambitious conservation efforts were embraced and transformational changes were made to the way food is produced and consumed, said the report.
