information is available, it is worth
avoiding deforestation-linked products
originating from biodiversity hotspots.
Despite their good intentions, some
sustainable certification schemes are
having a limited positive effect and may
not be sufficient for the challenges they
aim to address. According to a 2018
study, buying certified palm oil results
in marginally lower deforestation rates
than those associated with the regular
supply that threatens the survival of the
orangutan in Malaysia and Indonesia.
Climate change is causing troubles of its
own. The world’s first mammal considered
to have been lost to climate change, the
Bramble Cay melomys (mosaic-tailed rat),
sadly went extinct on Australia’s watch. In
December 2018, a record-breaking heatwave
in the Cairns area of Far North Queensland
wiped out nearly a third of spectacled flying
foxes. In the case of the Great Barrier Reef,
coral bleaching caused by abnormally highwater temperatures is a major threat. While
coral can bounce back from minor bleaching,
it is liable to die if the stress is prolonged.
Ultimately, the largest driver behind
habitat loss is consumer pressure in affluent
countries compounded by population
growth. Consumption of resources is
a core factor: unless economic growth is
successfully decoupled from resource use,
it will continue to drive the degradation
of nature. The best available measure of
these pressures is the ecological footprint
(calculated as the number of Earths
required to maintain current lifestyle), which
globally stands at 1.7 Earths, while Australia
has one of the world’s highest ecological
footprints, equivalent to 4.1 Earths.Australia’s responsibility
Recently, Australia was identified as
being one of five countries that are home
to 70 per cent of the world’s remaining
wilderness areas and is also one of the top10 countries for biodiversity. Unfortunately,
its record is poor, reflected in the world’s
highest mammalian extinction rate.
Primary causes are considered to be
habitat loss, feral cats and foxes.
Of 25 global “biodiversity hotspots”
where high biodiversity has been
accompanied by much of the native
vegetation being removed, one is the
southwest corner of Western Australia.
Between 1996 and 2008, Australia was
one of seven countries most responsible
for biodiversity loss as measured by an
upgraded status in the IUCN Red List
of threatened species. Australia’s most
endangered species currently include the
King Island brown thornbill, orange-bellied
parrot and central rock rat.
Overseas, it has been found that this
trend is typically slowed down by directing
more government money into conservation
spending. The US has tougher biodiversity
protection policies and has done very well
at stopping extinctions.
Threats to Australia’s biodiversity
include cutting red tape, if this involves
loosening nature protections. Starting
in 2018–19, the Department of the
Environment and Energy biodiversity
and conservation division cut 60 jobs,
representing up to 30 per cent of the
total. In April 2019, a Senate committee
recommended strengthening national
biodiversity protection mechanisms
that are presently considered to be
insufficient. More encouragingly, the role
of Threatened Species Commissioner was
created a few years ago.
Australian land clearing is a serious
problem that, according to a World
Wildlife Fund report, contributes to deaths
of up to 10 million animals a year in NSW
alone. These figures are estimated to
have doubled since New South Wales
relaxed land-clearing controls in 2017 and
environment groups are calling for this
decision to be reversed.
In a concerning move, NSW recently
abolished the Office of Environment
and Heritage (OEH), a body that polices
land clearing, among other issues.
Ominously, the OEH’s successor will be
incorporated into a new planning and
industry super-department. On a more
optimistic note, 2018 saw unrestricted
land clearing in Queensland curtailed via
new protection laws.
Logging of native forests is frequently
criticised by environmental groups for its
biodiversity impacts. It operates under
several Regional Forestry Agreements
running in New South Wales, Victoria,
Tasmania and Western Australia.
Controversial because they lock in
a timber supply for 20 years and exempt
forest operations from state government
rules, they have attracted criticism from
forest ecologists. Photography^ GettyImagesGlobally, key factors behind biodiversity loss include habitat
loss, invasive species, over-hunting, human population
increase and climate change.104 | wellbeing.com.au
planet
BIODIVERSITY