India hosted the Thirteenth Conference of Parties to
the Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species of Wild Animals (CMS
COP13) in Gandhinagar, Gujarat, from 15 to 22 February 2020. With this event,
India assumes presidency of the Bonn Convention COP for three years as well as
setting the stage for the Post-2020 Global Biodiversity Framework which will be
finalized in the UN Biodiversity Conference scheduled to be held in Kunming,
China in October 2020.
.@BonnConvention has gotten the biodiversity #SuperYear off to a strong start! #CMSCOP13 closes with new protections for #MigratorySpecies.— UN Biodiversity (@UNBiodiversity) February 23, 2020
Click to see the outcomes, & join us on the journey to a transformative #biodiversity2020 agreement at CBD #COP15.https://t.co/k32VDcc04i pic.twitter.com/2fd1ltk6EA
Super Year
for Nature: 2020
The “Super Year for Nature” was launched at this
conference that had the largest attendance yet. The Gandhinagar Declaration prioritized
the synergy between protecting migratory species and “ecological connectivity”
as well as putting migratory species protection at the heart of the new global
biodiversity strategy. Ten species also added to the protected list of migrant
species including the conference mascot the Great Indian Bustard as well as the
Asiatic Elephant, the Jaguar and the Oceanic White-Tip Shark.
Biodiversity loss is a major concern and the survival
of fauna that cross borders is particularly risky. After all, according to the
UN Global Assessment Report on Biodiversity released last May as many as 1
million species are on the brink of extinction including many migratory species.
Tackling international and national laws and cross-border conditions to ensure
that migratory species have pristine habitats free of man-made threats to
survival are priorities. The Report on the Status of Migratory Species,
compiled and presented for the first time at the CMS COP13 highlighted ever-present
and new challenges to the survival of migratory fauna. Numbers are on the
decline as a result of disease, habitat loss, plastics pollution in terrestrial
and freshwater environments, road and rail infrastructure, power lines, wind
turbines and even light pollution.
A highlight of
the CMS COP13 was the fact that it served “enhanced” water to its delegates in
reusable glass bottles and kullads [clay
cups], thus avoiding producing nearly 163 kg of single use plastic waste. This
adoption of a sustainable alternative to plastic bottles encourages the circular
economy model and sets a green example for future events. Since India hosted
the World Environment Day celebrations in 2018, state and national level bans
on single-use plastics have continued to embrace the call to “Beat Plastic
Pollution.”
Source: HerbalH2O Facebook page
The
Ramsar-Bonn Conventions Connect
In February the world also celebrates Wetlands Day (February
2) on the day the convention to protect wetlands was signed in the Iranian city
of Ramsar in 1971. Wetlands are biodiversity hotspots and host a wide variety
of avian migratory species. On the side-lines of the CMS COP13, Indian
Environment Minister Prakash Javdekar received certificates from Martha Rojas
Urrego, Secretary-General of the Ramsar Convention on Wetlands, for the 10
Ramsar Sites across India that were recently deemed “wetland sites of
international importance.” India has also committed to restore a thousand
wetlands over the next five years in a bid to protect these habitats of so many
migratory birds.
On behalf of India, received certificates for the 10 Ramsar Sites which were recently declared wetland sites of international importance.India plans restoration of 1000 wetlands in next 5 years.@UNEP @moefcc @martharojasu1 pic.twitter.com/cCq8kwZYJ2— Prakash Javadekar (@PrakashJavdekar) February 17, 2020
This move is welcomed in Indian environmental circles
considering the increased impact of climate change, pollution as well as
habitat loss on the hundreds of thousands of migratory birds that winter in
India from as far away as the Siberian Tundra. Early this winter, in November
2019, the Sambhar Lake in Rajasthan was littered with tens of thousands of
migratory birds as well as domestic avian species. Avian botulism is believed
to be the cause of this devastation. Many of the nearly 20,000 birds that died
were migratory species from the Siberian Arctic. This disease that decimates
bird populations is triggered by high temperature and low precipitation both
exacerbated by global warming, water pollution and stressed habitats due to
industrialization and intrusion by humans in sensitive eco-systems (e.g.,
wetlands, mangroves and marshlands).
Star
Ambassadors for Migrant Species
When the survival of these at-risk migratory species is
threatened by so many anthropogenic factors, their saviours also have to be
people. By raising awareness about these threats a green turn can be encouraged
in the masses. To this end the CMS Ambassadors Programme nominates renowned and
popular personalities to campaign for the rights of these birds and animals. At
the CMS COP13, Ian Redmond OBE, Sacha Dench and Randeep Hooda were nominated as
CMS Ambassadors for terrestrial, avian and aquatic migratory species
respectively. Ian Redmond the CMS ambassador for terrestrial species is an internationally
acclaimed conservationist known for his work with great apes and elephants
particularly. His anti-poaching drives and support for filming of at risk
species and local conservators in war-torn parts of Africa such as Congo and
Rwanda have helped conserve many animals.
News from #CMSCOP13: @BonnConvention announces #HumanSwan #freediver #explorer #environmentalist @sachadench as #Ambassador for #Avian species; #conservationist #IanRedmond OBE as for #Terrestrial species #SDG15, & #Bollywood actor @RandeepHooda for #Aquatic species #SDG14- Kudos pic.twitter.com/is0RWiFfZm— Raakhee Suryaprakash (@10sunshinegal) February 18, 2020
Bollywood actor Randeep Hooda will campaign for the
cause of aquatic species. The Indian coastline is the nesting site for Olive
Ridley Sea Turtles. The Odhisha coasts especially bear witness to the
phenomenon of arribada where Olive
Ridley turtles arrive en masse to nest. It also bears mentioning the Bollywood
connect to Mumbai which witnessed the world’s largest beach clean-up in Versova
beach spearheaded by lawyer and environmental activist Afroz Shah. This UN
Environment award-winning initiative created a conducive habitat for sea
turtles to return and nest following the 2017 beach clean-up efforts.
Award-winning explorer, free diver, athlete and
environmentalist Sacha Dench, known as the Human Swan, is an apt champion for
avian migratory species. She got the moniker and many accolades while raising
awareness for the at-risk avian species after tracking the Bewick's Swan migration
from the Russia to the United Kingdom in 2016 on a paramotor. In this “Super
Year for Nature” Sacha Dench is planning to track the ospreys’ migration from
Scotland to Ghana. A journey of nearly 10,000km to raise the profile of threats
to ospreys in particular and all migratory birds in general. Sacha Dench also
champions wetlands, as she puts it, "By investigating the health of the
wetlands, especially [preventing] the plastics and pollutants getting into the
water system, we could help all manner of migrating birds and other animals
that depend on healthy wetlands and waterways, including ourselves."
Sacha Dench's TEDTalk on her unique way of raising awareness about the Bewick's Swan
References
UN Environment
