by Dominick Murray

Created on: November 03, 2008

The image of a polar bear standing on an ever diminishing patch of floating ice is rather pertinent when it comes to visualizing our Planet's
ecological health. With exponential increases in the pressures being placed on our environment, sadly, without immediate and effective action, the balance could soon be tipped.

During this age of industry and growth in many of the

planet's third world countries', the conservation of the world's natural heritage is losing out to the ever grinding of the wheels of industry and economic growth. The concerns voiced from the already established economic powers of the west is hypocritical considering the path to our own industrial revolution was paved with the existence of countless numbers of species and habitats. That is not to imply that the world must turn a blind eye to the pressures being exerted on the myriad of species and habitats which are currently, or soon to be, edging towards extinction and destruction. However, to conserve species and preserve ecosystems, the approach must take into consideration the needs of the countries involved; otherwise opportunities to do the right
thing' may pass by entirely.

A pragmatic view must be adopted when considering conservation; not every species or habitat can be saved from extinction or degradation, and with the majority of species on the planet yet to be identified, we may never fully appreciate the scale of the threat. Despite this, enough is understood about many larger, indicator' ecosystems and the species within them. This enables us to gauge the health of our planet. If we can strive to safeguard their futures, there is a strong possibility that multitudes of species and habitats, known to science or not, can reap the rewards of the conservation effort.

Conservation must evolve alongside these new industrial nations. Currently one of the most striking examples of conservation concern is that of the diminishing
rainforests of the world. They play a hugely important role in regulating global climate, and contain an extraordinary volume of species. Their existence is critical to the well-being of the planet. Despite this, the regions wherein they exist are amongst the poorest in the world, and sadly illegal felling for lumber, agriculture, and narcotics are placing great pressures on these great ecosystems.

Hugging trees' does not save the rainforests from falling to the logger's chainsaw. Protection must come from forward thinking approaches such as offering carbon credits'
and financial rewards to those governments that ensure they remain intact. As 2007 drew to a close, the Guyanese President, Bharrat Jagdeo, offered the protection of the nation's entire 50 million acres of rainforest to the British Prime Minister, Gordon Brown, in exchange for sustainable development funds.
President Jagdeo's offer would see a British-led International Body taking on the supervision of the Rainforest.
Prime Minister Brown has yet to accept this offer, and sadly, if it is rejected it is likely that large swathes of this pristine virgin-rainforest
will be felled for logging and mining.

It has to be faced; the world is governed by money. Using the rainforests as an example again, if their preservation can be shown to be financially more rewarding than logging and clearing for agriculture, then it is likely that much of them can be saved. However, if there is no serious approach taken to do this then it is likely that conservation will lose out in the long-term. Preserving the natural heritage of this planet is a business, and unless the strategy is changed to maximize the value of it, it will certainly go bust.

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