DNA barcodes 'tackle disease, protect biodiversity'

21 September 2007

A mosquito of the culex genus, which transmits West Nile virus

DNA 'barcoding' offers rapid and low cost ways to monitor human disease vectors and biodiversity in developing countries, scientists told a conference this week.

The comments came during the Second International Barcode of Life Conference in Taipei, Taiwan (18–20 September).

The technique identifies known species and records new ones by sequencing a specific, short area of mitochondrial DNA, previously identified and agreed by scientists.

This "barcode region" of mitochondrial DNA mutates at a rate fast enough to create differences between species, but slow enough to leave members of the same species with nearly identical barcodes. Species that divided recently or are still interbreeding can be difficult to separate using this method.

Comparing the sequence to all others in a database produces a picture of how similar the specimens are. The process takes a few hours and costs as little as US$2.

Yvonne-Marie Linton of the UK's Natural History Museum, and leader of the Mosquito Barcoding Initiative, told SciDev.Net that barcoding should help control mosquitoes carrying diseases like malaria, West Nile disease and dengue fever.

"Often only one or two mosquito species are capable of transmitting disease," she says.

"It is important to know exactly which these are and then we can tie this information in with the ecology of these species, work out where they breed and use larvicidal techniques to control the mosquitoes, not 'blanketly' spray all of them."

And Eldredge Bermingham, acting director of the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute in Panama, says DNA barcoding helps to identify and protect tropical biodiversity. The Institute has collected many samples that are as yet unclassified and DNA barcoding lets non-experts help classify these cheaply.

"Barcoding efforts based in labs in Mexico, Brazil, Argentina and Panama are discovering new species, and providing geo-referenced data for informed conservation decisions," Bermingham told SciDev.Net.

But David Schindel, executive secretary of the Consortium for the Barcode of Life, based in Washington DC, United States, explains that barcoding's low cost reflects only the sequencing.

Building a reference library of barcode sequences is more expensive.

"Borrowing a book from a public library is free, but someone had to pay for writing and printing and buying the books in the library," he points out.

Balancing The Biodiversity Account

Fall 2003


When you write a check for more money than you have in your account, the check bounces and you get a “nasty-gram” from the bank, which assesses a fee as a penalty for overdrawing. The solution? Refrain from writing checks until you can deposit more funds.

If only the answer to dwindling resources was always so simple. When natural resources—such as habitats and the species they support—are over-exploited, destroyed, or lost, they may be gone forever. We can’t make a new “deposit.” The resulting loss of biodiversity could lead to unknown and potentially catastrophic consequences for plant and animal species, for our environment, and ultimately for us. But how can people become informed and motivated enough to keep them from “overdrawing” our natural resources?

Ke Chung Kim has made a career of finding answers to this question. The entomologist and director of Penn State’s Center for BioDiversity Research believes that the only way to convince a public whose attitudes may be shaped by apathy, skepticism, or self-interest is to link the importance of biodiversity conservation to people’s everyday lives.

“Surveys show that fewer than 50 percent of people have even heard the term ‘biodiversity,’” Kim says. “Of those, only about 30 percent really know what it is. Many people think biodiversity only relates to the rainforests and has nothing to do with them. To grab people’s attention and help them understand the importance of biodiversity conservation, we have to find ways to make it relevant by connecting it to their daily lives.”

So Kim set out to create an educational publication that was attractive and readable. The 20-page publication, Biodiversity: Our Living World–Your Life Depends on It, is a primer packed with information, factoids, and illustrations about the natural world and the species that inhabit it.

The publication defines biodiversity as “the variety and variation of all species of plants, animals, fungi, and microbes, including their genetic makeup, their ecological roles, and their interrelationships in biological communities throughout the world ecosystems.” To move beyond this abstract definition and drive home the point of why biodiversity matters to you and me, Kim came up with the concept of a “biodiversity account,” the number of species needed to produce an item for human consumption or to maintain ecological services that support humans. The reader learns how multitudes of species interact to make possible the food we eat, the clothes we wear, and the houses in which we live.

“For example, let’s look at a hamburger dinner with French fries and apple pie for dessert,” Kim explains. “Obviously, to have ground beef, you need a cow. The hamburger bun requires wheat flour and yeast, which is a fungus. For French fries, you need potatoes and corn or soybean oil to fry them. To make ketchup, mustard, pickles, and other hamburger fixings you need additional plants and plant-derived spices. The apple pie filling contains sugar and one or more varieties of apples and spices, and the crust contains wheat flour and vegetable shortening.

“You might have 15 or 20 species just on your plate,” he continues. “But the cow might eat stored grain and several of 17 species of pasture plants, including grasses, legumes, and weeds. To grow apples, potatoes, and tomatoes you need pollinators, such as honey bees. All plants grow in ecosystems that depend on many species—such as insects, spiders, earthworms, fungi, and bacteria—for energy and nutrient cycling. Add it all up and the biodiversity account for this one meal might be more than 400 species.”

Kim’s publication contains several such examples. The number of tree species needed to build the average house? At least 50, and that doesn’t count the hundreds of species of fungi, bacteria, animals, and plants that support and depend on the forest ecosystems where those trees grow.

What about that tuna fish you ate for lunch yesterday? It ate mostly mackerels and herrings, which in turn fed on dozens of species of smaller fish, crustaceans, squids, worms, and plankton. Thus, the biodiversity account of tuna includes easily 50 species of animals as food. “If pollution or other human activities harm these marine species, tuna populations can suffer,” says Kim.

“The bottom line,” he says, “is that biodiversity is the basis upon which ecological systems operate. One or two species lost may not seem significant, but when a particular species that’s crucial to maintaining the system disappears, the system could malfunction and eventually collapse. We don’t know at what level of loss this will happen, and figuring that out is a challenge for science in the future. But we can’t wait until then. We may already have lost species that we didn’t even know existed. We need to figure out what we have and save as much as we can.”

Kim is involved in several efforts to do just that. Besides founding the Center for BioDiversity Research, he leads the Pennsylvania Invertebrates Biodiversity Project, a survey designed to identify as many invertebrate species as possible in the state. He has conducted biodiversity assessments for the National Park Service and for the Indiantown Gap National Guard Training Center. He is curator of Penn State’s Frost Entomological Museum, which is a source of important reference collections for biodiversity research related to arthropods, and he chairs the DMZ Forum, a group that has worked to maintain the Demilitarized Zone in his native Korea as a biodiversity preserve.

Kim also has been instrumental in building an infrastructure for biodiversity conservation policy within and across state government departments. Several state agencies provided funding and support for Biodiversity: Our Living World–Your Life Depends on It, and the Department of Environmental Protection has used the publication widely in its educational outreaches, including with K-12 classes in school districts around the state and in connection with 2002 Earth Day festivities.

In Kim’s mind, such public education is the first priority in the campaign to save our valuable biodiversity. “Unless the public understands what’s at stake, none of our other efforts will go very far.”

____________________________

Ke Chung Kim is professor of entomology, curator of the Frost Entomological Museum, and director of the Center for BioDiversity Research. Funding for Biodiversity: Our Living World–Your Life Depends on It was provided by the Pennsylvania Wild Resources Conservation Fund, with support from the Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources, the Pennsylvania Game Commission, and the Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission. It is available online at pubs.cas.psu.edu/freepubs/uf017.html.

HIGHLIGHTS OF THE INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE “BIODIVERSITY: SCIENCE AND GOVERNANCE”:

The International Biodiversity Conference, organized by the French Ministry of Research, opened Monday at the headquarters of the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) on the theme “Biodiversity: Science and Governance.” Participants heard opening statements in the morning, and convened in Plenary in the afternoon to consider challenges regarding biodiversity, science and governance.

OPENING SESSION

François d’Aubert, French Minister Delegate for Research, opened the Conference, and welcomed participants.

Noting the outcomes of the World Conference on Disaster Reduction, held prior to the Conference, Koïchiro Matsuura, UNESCO Director-General, highlighted the potential of healthy ecosystems in disaster reduction, and called for improved earth observation systems. He expressed hope that the UN Decade for Education for Sustainable Development will help connecting science and society. Advocating an ongoing dialogue between scientists and decision makers, he called for: additional research; involvement of the private sector and civil society, including local and indigenous communities; capacity building; and conflict prevention.

Klaus Toepfer, Executive Director of the UN Environment Programme (UNEP), stressed the impact of biodiversity loss on humankind, and said preserving healthy ecosystems is crucial for achieving the Millennium Development Goals and implementing sustainable strategies for land use, industry and tourism. He stressed the interlinkages between climate change, desertification and biodiversity loss, and called for investments in capacity building and in coherent, coordinated and policy-relevant science.

Hamdallah Zedan, Executive Secretary of the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), noted that despite increased recognition of biodiversity’s value, knowledge about biodiversity loss is limited. He highlighted the challenge faced by the international community to achieve the 2010 target to significantly reduce the current rate of biodiversity loss, and called for stronger international cooperation and effective communication on biodiversity loss and its effects.

Mohammed Valli Moosa, President of the World Conservation Union – IUCN, stressed direct links between biodiversity loss and human activities, warning that more than 15,000 species are threatened with extinction according to the IUCN Red List. He suggested a framework to put biodiversity at the center stage of human activities on the basis of four key elements: people around the world; science; regulations and laws at all levels; and the market force.

Bertrand Collomb, Chairman of Lafarge and the World Business Council for Sustainable Development, said the business sector has recognized the importance of sustainability and nature conservation and that biodiversity-related projects can improve a company’s public image. He stressed the need for partnerships, determination and consistency of actions, as well as the role of governments in setting appropriate frameworks for action.

Noting that good politics should be based on good science, Stavros Dimas, European Commissioner for the Environment, said the EU will continue to work on integrating environmental concerns into its policies and support funding for environment programmes, and stressed the need for increased action to achieve the 2010 target, prioritization and mobilizing support as well as building scientific capacity and better communicating scientific issues regarding biodiversity.

Nicolas Hulot, President of the Nicolas Hulot Foundation, said the Conference should aim at ensuring coherence among policies and actions rather than raising awareness. He noted that there is no conflict between various interests involved in biodiversity, and stressed the need for cooperation, placing society at the heart of concerns and actions, and new forms of solidarity.

Matsuura, on behalf of UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan, stressed that biodiversity is essential to life, and called upon countries which have not already done so, to ratify the CBD. He said biodiversity conservation is not only the responsibility of governments, but also of non-governmental organizations, the private sector and all the Earth’s inhabitants.

Edward Wilson, Harvard University, said there is overwhelming scientific evidence of man’s adverse impact on biodiversity, much of which is still unknown to science. He reasoned that exploration and conservation are not only crucial, but also cost-effective and technically possible, and called for fact-based and ethical decision making. He stressed that poverty inhibits conservation, and cited that “man is defined not by what he creates, but by what he chooses not to destroy.”

Wangari Maathai, Assistant Minister for Environment and Natural Resources of Kenya, Nobel Peace Prize Laureate, reviewed lessons learned from two mountain ecosystems in Kenya with regard to biodiversity loss and its impacts on human societies, while emphasizing the success of rehabilitation through reforestation under governmental guidance. She said political will is the key in taking actions to conserve biodiversity.

Stating the importance of balancing economic development and conservation of natural resources, Abdullah Badawi, Prime Minister of Malaysia, highlighted crucial issues regarding biodiversity conservation, including: capacity building; a dialogue on biodiversity governance; negotiations of an access and benefit-sharing regime under the CBD; intellectual property rights; and implementation of the Cartagena Protocol on Biosafety.

Marc Ravalomanana, President of the Republic of Madagascar, highlighted the importance of the Conference’s topics to his country, noting its biodiversity wealth. He stressed the need to reconcile the needs of rapid economic growth with those of preserving outstanding biological wealth, arguing that sustainable development, the protection of nature and good governance are interlinked. He noted gaps between North and South regarding scientific expertise.

Jacques Chirac, President of the French Republic, stressed that the human fate is bound to that of other species, and proposed creating an intergovernmental panel to assess trends in biodiversity and developing a worldwide network of experts. He noted that France has incorporated an Environment Charter in its Constitution, highlighted France’s biodiversity-related policies, and proposed hosting in Paris a high-level seminar on intellectual property rights as they relate to biodiversity. He stressed the need for urgent measures to achieve the 2010 target.

PLENARY

The first plenary session, chaired by Peter Raven, Missouri Botanical Garden, addressed challenges faced by science and governance with regard to biodiversity. The session included a roundtable.

Chair Raven noted that more is known about the moon than about the Earth’s rainforests, and called for more research and decisive steps, actions and strategies based on individual responsibility.

Jacques Blondel, French National Centre for Scientific Research, stressed that preserving biodiversity today will guarantee its evolutionary potential, and that the loss of biodiversity is irreversible. Noting that the Earth is currently experiencing a period of mass extinction, he said the challenge lies in determining how the loss of species affects their ecosystems, and in predicting how ecosystem functions and services will be affected by future extinctions. Noting that some irreversible thresholds have already been passed, he expressed hope that these predictions will positively influence decision making. Blondel said conserving biodiversity is an ethical question, and called for an integration of natural and human sciences. Stressing that economic development can only be sustainable in a well-functioning ecosystem, and that development cannot be sustainable when it is not shared, he concluded that we need to radically revise our way of life.

Michel Loreau, Chair of the Scientific Committee of the Conference, spoke on challenges regarding biodiversity. Addressing the question “why does biodiversity matter?”, he explained that humankind depends on biodiversity as a source of goods for direct use, ecosystem services, as well as natural heritage, aesthetic, spiritual, cultural and recreational values. He said scientific challenges include assessing: how much biodiversity there is on Earth; how and why biodiversity is changing; the ecological consequences of changes in biodiversity; and how we can best manage and protect biodiversity. Loreau explained that challenges for governance include: recognizing the importance of biodiversity as a global environmental issue; educating and informing citizens; developing coordinated research and supporting funding agencies; using available knowledge to take immediate action; integrating biodiversity conservation and sustainable use in social and economic development; and establishing an intergovernmental mechanism to synthesize scientific knowledge. He said a draft “Paris Appeal of Scientists in Favour of Biodiversity” will be circulated and finalized during the Conference.

Speaking about globalization of the economy and current biodiversity changes, Claude Martin, Director-General of WWF International, quoted a WWF report using the living planet index and humanity’s ecological footprint over the past 40 years to show that globalization has tremendous impacts on biodiversity. He underscored that, to address this challenge, governments need to set up long-term goals integrating environmental concerns into the development process. Martin also highlighted the need for a fundamental change in thinking. Regarding genetically modified organisms (GMOs), he said while GMOs might increase food production, without internationally established standards, they often pose risks to biodiversity. He commended a statement on the need for returning benefits to local and indigenous communities where scientific research results are generated.

Cristian Samper, National Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian Institution, said our knowledge of biodiversity has greatly expanded, but biodiversity is still declining. He noted that while most of the world’s biodiversity is found in developing countries, developed countries benefit most from it and have the knowledge and capacity to prevent biodiversity’s decline. He noted the challenge in using scientific knowledge regarding biodiversity’s response to change to recover species from the brink of extinction and prevent further degradation of ecosystems. He called for synergies between biodiversity-related conventions, and advocated increased attention to: coherence between global and national policies; effective monitoring and indicators; implementation and compliance; and access and benefit sharing. He called for clear rules for access, traceability and transparency, but cautioned against policies that become a barrier to biodiversity research. Regarding an intergovernmental panel for biodiversity, Samper proposed other ways to strengthen scientific input into the decision-making process, including: building bridges within the scientific community; seeking interlinkages with other topics; building national and regional capacity; investing in basic and policy-relevant science; and strengthening existing mechanisms, such as the Millennium Ecosystem Assessment. Highlighting the amount of information gathered in natural history museums worldwide, he said museums’ responsibilities include: mobilizing information contained in collections and literature through mechanisms such as the Global Biodiversity Information Facility; generating new knowledge through research; developing education and outreach; and building capacity and collaboration for biodiversity with an emphasis on countries of origin.

Roundtable Chair Robert Watson, World Bank, invited panelists to focus on the greatest challenge to a sustainable use of biodiversity, whether biodiversity conservation can be reconciled with rapid economic growth, and reasons for discrepancies between civil society’s care about nature and destruction of it.

Jean-François Dehecq, President of Sanofi-Aventis, outlined steps and issues associated with discovering and exploiting natural compounds for developing drugs, noting that therapeutic progress may be undermined by the fact that patenting of biodiversity still remains unresolved at the international level.

Maathai said the greatest challenge is to convince decision makers and society that biodiversity is a priority, stressing that in spite of the fact that humans are better informed than 30 years ago, they continue destroying species with the prospect of their own destruction. She recalled that the consequences of current destruction will be experienced by future generations.

Russell Mittermeier, President of Conservation International, noted that France has the world’s largest number of hotspots. He said megadiverse countries and biodiversity hotspots should be priorities for action to achieve the 2010 target, and stressed the role of protected areas in conserving biodiversity.

Harison Randriarimanana, Minister of Agriculture, Livestock and Fisheries of Madagascar, stated that it is possible to reconcile biodiversity conservation with rapid economic growth and poverty alleviation in countries like Madagascar. However, he said this will not happen unless people living in poverty, decision makers and scientists are brought together for action.

Wilson stressed the role of education in bridging the gap between science, policy and the public for biodiversity conservation, and said lack of an ethical code and moral standards for human activities are one of the reasons why human actions tend to compromise nature.

World Food Day 2004 Highlights the Importance of Biodiversity to Global Food Security

WASHINGTON and ROME, Oct. 15 /PRNewswire/ -- Biological diversity is one
of the keys to ending world hunger, Dr. Jacques Diouf, Director-General of the
UN Food and Agriculture Organization said today.
He was speaking at a ceremony marking World Food Day 2004, which falls on
the anniversary of the foundation of FAO in 1945 and is observed in Rome and
in some 150 countries around the world. This year's World Food Day theme is:
"Biodiversity for Food Security."
"Our planet abounds with life and it is this great diversity that holds
one of the keys to ending hunger," Dr. Diouf told high-ranking officials and
representatives from FAO Member States, international organizations, other UN
agencies, NGOs, civil society and farmers' groups.
In his address, he underlined the need to maintain biodiversity in nature
and on farms to ensure to all people a sustainable access to enough
diversified and nutritious food.
"But we are also raising an alarm," he added. "FAO estimates that about
three-quarters of the genetic diversity of agricultural crops has been lost
over the last century. Just 12 crops and 14 animal species now provide most
of the world's food."

A key to survival
"For many rural families, the sustainable use of local biodiversity is
their key to survival. It allows them to exploit marginal lands and ensure a
minimum level of food production even when faced with extremely harsh
conditions," Dr. Diouf said.
"Global food security depends not just on protecting the world's genetic
resources, but also on ensuring that these resources remain available to all,"
he pointed out.
"Preserving the world's agricultural biodiversity needs to be viewed as a
joint effort involving farmers, commercial plant breeders and the scientific
community," the FAO Director-General also said.
In his keynote speech, World Food Day 2004 special guest President Ferenc
Madl of Hungary said: "The international community should spare no effort to
implement the Millennium Development Goals for the benefit of all."
Mr. Madl called on all countries to "create conditions to facilitate
access to genetic resources for environmentally sound uses."
He also said that his country, which was among the countries that welcomed
and ratified the FAO International Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources for Food
and Agriculture, is "a leading place in Central Europe to breed traditional
and new plant varieties."
The Treaty, which entered into force this year, is a binding international
instrument that secures the conservation and sustainable utilization of the
world's agricultural genetic diversity. It guarantees that farmers and
breeders have access to genetic materials they need and it also ensures that
farmers receive a fair and equitable share of the benefits derived from their
work.

Message from the Pope
A message on the importance of biodiversity from Pope John Paul II was
read by Monsignor Renato Volante, Permanent Observer of the Holy See to FAO.
The Pope stated that the World Food Day observances contribute to liberate
humanity from the scourge of hunger and malnutrition.
Statements were also delivered in succession, by Mr. Paolo Scarpa Bonazza
Buora, Italy's Undersecretary of State for Agricultural and Forestry Policies,
Mr. Edouard Saouma, former Director-General of FAO, and Mr. Mamadou Cissokho,
Honorary President of the Network of Peasant Organizations and Producers of
West Africa and of the National Council of Senegal for Dialogue and Rural
Cooperation.
Dr. Diouf awarded a special FAO Medal to his predecessor, Mr. Saouma, and
World Food Day 2004 Medals to the three first prize winners of the World Food
Day poster competition, organized by the United Nations Women's Guild.
During the same ceremony, Dr. Diouf introduced the newly appointed FAO
Goodwill Ambassador, Italian ballerina Carla Fracci, who is considered one of
the greatest classical dancers of the 20th century. Carla Fracci is now
Director of the Balletto dell'Opera of Rome.
FAO Goodwill Ambassadors are distinguished women and men of talent who,
through their work and in their daily lives, help to focus global attention on
the need to free the world from hunger and poverty.
A musical presentation followed. Internationally renowned Albanian
violonist Anyla Kraja performed "Schindler's list" by J. Williams, while
Angolan singer and dancer Tasha Rodrigues and her musical group performed two
songs from her last CD "Kyra Kyra."

Farmers' event
During World Food Day's observance at FAO headquarters, a farmers' event
also took place as well as a civil society forum. For the first time on World
Food Day, farmers from different parts of the world had a chance to speak
about their experience in enhancing biodiversity and increasing food
production in a sustainable way.
Elsewhere, various events were organized to celebrate World Food Day's
theme. In the United States, sponsored by the U.S. National Committee for
World Food Day, hundreds of WFD teleconference sites were set up at colleges
and at U.S. Embassies across the world. Some colleges organized a week-long
observance.
In Sweden, substantive seminars for parliamentarians, the media and the
scientific community were organized. A conference on the importance of
biodiversity took place in Stockholm and a scientific seminar on biological
diversity was organized today at the University of Agriculture, in Uppsala.
In India, essay competitions were organized in schools in Delhi. In
several European and Middle Eastern capitals, schoolchildren competed in
drawing contests on biodiversity and food security

Biodiversity of the coastal zone

An example of activities aimed at the conservation of biological diversity within the coastal zone is the 'Yuntolovsky' reserve in North West Russia. The reserve is located in the North West part of the city of St Petersburg, and borders the Finnish Bay in the south. The rivers of the Yuntolovka and Kamenka are in the West and East. For a number of years this coastal area was located within the limits of Saint-Petersburg and has been central in the conflict of interests between urban developers, industrial enterprises, yacht clubs and owners of cottage plots.

The Yuntolovsky is a continuation of the natural coastal belt in the East and plays an important role in conservation of coastal landscapes in the eastern part of the Finnish Bay and the water area of the Lakhtinsky Bay, which is the habitat of rare species of flora, birds and fish breeding grounds. The whole area of the Lakhtinsky Bay represents a unique natural phenomenon: spring marshes, black alder swamps, habitat of rare flora species, such as honeywort have been included in the Red Book.

History

In the early 20s scientists and experts paid attention to this unique territory and came up with an initiative to create a natural reserve. However, for a variety of reasons, it wasn't until the early 90s that the possibility for implementation of this idea presented itself.

During 1990-1991, a number of Resolutions issued by the Board of Leningrad Council of People's Deputies, led to the creation of Yuntolovsky reserve and the establishment of its temporary borders. The Resolutions also recommended that the Executive Committee undertake a number of specific actions aimed at encouraging the organization of the reserve, but this was never taken forward.

In 1996, the Directorate for Environment Protection within the Saint-Petersburg administration, and European Union Coastal Protection Division entered an agreement on development of the Management Plan with respect to the Yuntolovsky reserve. There was a considerable experience gained by European countries in the field of organisation and management of natural territories subject to a specific protection approach.

Managment plan
The preparation and implementation of the Management Plan represented a practical step towards sustainable important principles specified in various international documents on sustainable development that were adopted development of the city, as it took into account a range of very in Rio de Janeiro in 1992:
Conservation of biological diversity The territory of Yuntolovsky reserve being part of the Baltic flyway of migrating birds, their camping and feeding place, has gained significant importance at international level. Many flora and fauna species have now been entered into the Red Book of the Baltic Region and Russia:

conservation of wetlands;
conservation of water resources- restoration and conservation of the reserve, which is directly linked to the Finnish Bay, facilitates improving the ecological conditions of water area in the Baltic region;
resolution of social issues - the above mentioned territory is used for recreational purposes encouraging creation of employment opportunities;
development of ecological education of the population - The Management Plan stipulated the use of the territory for the purpose of scientific research by 2002 and was marked by the establishment of an informational ecological centre incorporating a nature museum available to students, school children and the adult population as part of an education programme.
The major objective of the Yungolovsky Reserve Management Plan is to achieve the set tasks and create optimal conditions for the natural territory and the city to co-exist together in the best way.

A number of parallel studies were also carried out in the new state of the territory. This later provided grounds for formulating proposals and finalizing a legal procedures for establishing borders of the reserve with the approval of the governor of Saint-Petersburg. An administration was set up to supervise the natural territories of the city, subject to a specific protection approach.

Yungolovsky Ecological Centre

In 1997, the residents of the Primorsky administrative district within Saint-Petersburg where the Yuntolovsky reserve is located, prepared and approved the District Agenda for the 21st century. The latter places particular focus on plans in respect to conservation of biological diversity in the district and development of the reserve. The residents of the district established their own public organization called the 'Yungolovsky Ecological Centre'. They were committed to resolve the issues of improving the territory of the reserve and adjacent areas, as well as promoting ecological awareness. The Centre is now open and conducting training courses on conservation issues including biological diversity. The Centre also arranges excursions on the territory of the reserve and organizes seminars and workshops on the problems associated with conservation of nature and development of ecological tourism.

Visitors to the centre take an active part in numerous activities aimed at improving the territory surrounding the reserve and restoring plant growth in its buffer zone that has been damaged as a result of intensive development in the district.

In 1999, an ornithological tower was placed on the border of the reserve providing free access to the public. Information stands were put up along the perimeter of the territory highlighting details such as the borders of the reserve, its biological value and code of behaviour that had to be observed. The ecological park offers nature walks, recreational facilities and informational materials.

GIS

In 2002, with the assistance of the Danish Agency for Environment Protection, a geographical information system was developed to provide a way of monitoring the preserve condition. This enables one to identify the most topical issues with respect to its development. Hence, as a result of monitoring activities undertaken over the last few years, some reduction in the productivity of the available feeding resources for the waterfowl has been observed on the territory of the Lakhtinsky Bay. This triggered the development of the restoration programme. The programme for restoration of shoal waters has been prepared for the northern part of the Lakhtinsky Bay. The latter was damaged as a result of hydrotechnical works, performed on the rivers flowing into the Bay. Apart from the involvement of the local industrial enterprises who are financing such works, their operation has been made a subject of stringent control. This comes from the point of view of nature-orientated bodies in the city, as a measure to try and protect this unique territory from possible adverse effects.

Biodiversity partnership

Defenders of Wildlife has long been a leader in the conservation of wolves and other endangered species. While Defenders takes great pride in that work, the organization's mission is to protect all native wildlife in its natural habitat and to secure biodiversity throughout the country, not only in places with large expanses of protected land and populations of large predators. As communities grow and their borders expand, Defenders' mission has led the organization to examine the land use planning process and its effect on wildlife outside of parks, preserves and refuges.

Biodiversity has been defined as "the variety of living organisms, the genetic differences among them, the communities and ecosystems in which they occur, and the ecological and evolutionary processes that keep them functioning, yet ever changing and adapting" (Noss and Cooperrider 1994). That diversity is essential to the biological processes that sustain life. The quality of the air we breathe, the water we drink, the soil we cultivate, the plants and animals we depend on for food and fiber, and the landscape we enjoy for recreation — the fundamentals of our civilization, economy, and health all depend on biodiversity.

Habitat loss is now the most significant threat to biodiversity. As many other reports and scientific papers have shown, the loss, degradation and alteration of habitat are the primary factors responsible for the worldwide decline in numbers of wild animals and plants. While many people think habitat destruction and loss of biodiversity are problems confined to exceptionally species-rich areas like the tropics, they are very real problems here in the United States. Uncontrolled growth, often referred to as "sprawl", plagues communities across the country. It permanently fragments contiguous habitat into marginal pieces of land. Habitat loss and diminishing biodiversity may be the most urgent environmental problems we now face.

In December 2000, to help draw attention to the importance of biodiversity, problems caused by habitat loss, and the potential role of land use planning in solving the current conservation crisis, the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation awarded a grant to Defenders of Wildlife, NatureServe, the Environmental Law Institute and Island Press. The Duke Foundation asked the four groups, together known as the Consortium on Biodiversity and Land Use, to examine the interaction of biodiversity, habitat protection and land use planning in a program of research, publishing, and public outreach.

To investigate the vital role conservation planning can play in connecting land use planning and biodiversity preservation, and as part of work funded by the Duke Foundation grant, Defenders of Wildlife sponsored a two-day workshop at the Wye River Conference Center in Queenstown, Maryland from February 28 to March 1, 2002. The workshop brought together over three dozen state and local land use planners, government officials, and representatives of conservation organizations from around the country, who are all involved in innovative efforts to integrate biodiversity and land use planning at the state, regional and/or local level. This report describes their discussions and the broad range of views expressed at the workshop.

One of the goals of the workshop and this report is to help promote comprehensive conservation planning by stimulating interest in ecosystem-based land use plans designed to facilitate environmental restoration, protect and conserve wildlife habitat and other natural resources. Workshop participants agreed that conservation planning presents an opportunity to make the United States' approach to conservation more proactive. Given the importance of preserving natural habitats and biodiversity, the information and insights gathered at the workshop will be relevant to communities throughout the country.

Biodiversity at Risk
The world is now in the midst of an extinction crisis. Many species have been driven to the brink of extinction or beyond, and we are in danger of losing much of the biodiversity that has made our quality of life possible. According to The Nature Conservancy and NatureServe, more than 6,700 animal and plant species in the United States are vulnerable to extinction (Stein et al. 2000). The federal Endangered Species Act currently lists only about 1,300 of those species as endangered or threatened. Losing these species could severely affect the diversity of life and the biological processes on which all living things, including humans, depend.

Populations of some species protected by the Endangered Species Act are rising, but many others are not. In 1996, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service reported to Congress that, despite protection under the Endangered Species Act and other laws, less than 40 percent of listed species are stable or improving. Nearly 30 percent of those listed in the early 1970s with the Act's inception continue to decline (U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service 1996).

Preventing extinction and preserving species' ecological roles requires protection of their natural habitats. The most significant threat to biodiversity now lies in the loss, degradation and fragmentation of the habitats animals and plants need to survive (Wilcove et al. 2000). According the Natural Resources Conservation Service's Natural Resources Inventory, an estimated 2.2 million acres of land are lost to development in the United States each year (Natural Resources Conservation Service 2000). The Department of the Interior reports that more than half the nation's wetlands have been filled since the American Revolution (Dahl 1990). In the Tucson area of Arizona alone, an estimated 6,400 acres of Sonoran Desert are now being converted to human use annually. A 1995 analysis by Defenders of Wildlife identified 69 ecosystems in the United States that had lost 85 percent or more of their acreage to development over the last three centuries (Noss and Peters 1995). Other studies indicate that only 42 percent of U.S. lands remain covered with natural vegetation (Bryer et al. 2000).

Parks and preserves help protect natural habitats, but they are scattered throughout the country with few natural landscape linkages between them. Most protected areas are also found at high elevations, or on biologically unproductive lands that tend to harbor fewer species than those at lower elevations (Scott et al. 2001). These low-elevation, biologically diverse areas are also attractive for development.

The Need for Conservation Planning
The federal Endangered Species Act is the most powerful regulatory tool for protecting individual species and natural habitats in the United States. The Endangered Species Act prohibits taking, killing or otherwise harming species that have been officially listed as endangered or threatened, and calls for protection of habitat critical to their survival. But the Endangered Species Act has been used to protect species only after their numbers have dropped to perilously low levels. Waiting until populations of the species reach the brink of extinction reduces their chances for successful recovery and such reactive, urgent rescue operations usually require intensive management and habitat restoration. This kind of last-minute regulatory action is also often extremely expensive and contentious.

Over the last decade, in an attempt to protect endangered species and their habitats on non-federal lands, habitat conservation plans have been adopted as a provision of the Endangered Species Act. Under 1982 amendments to the Endangered Species Act, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service can approve habitat conservation plans that allow the destruction or alteration of habitat for listed species in one area in exchange for conservation measures that protect those species and their habitat elsewhere. Habitat conservation plans represent a pragmatic advance in endangered species protection, but few plans are designed to preserve a full range of species over an extended area, let alone an entire region. Too many plans, especially the early ones, deal only with one or two endangered species, small parcels of land, and a limited number of landowners.

Recently, a number of habitat conservation plans that seek to protect many species and large areas of land have been undertaken at the state and regional level. In southern California, for example, multi-species conservation plans have been adopted for large portions of San Diego and Orange counties. Similar plans are underway in other California counties, as well as in Arizona and Nevada. While such multi-species plans represent progress in conservation, they are often not integrated well with local land use planning.

Experience suggests that a more comprehensive, refined, and proactive approach is needed to protect large areas that support whole communities of wildlife and other natural resources. Conservation should be initiated to prevent species from becoming endangered or threatened, rather than begun only when their numbers have declined to the point where emergency protection and recovery is required. Ultimately, preserving entire ecosystems cost less, give landowners, wildlife biologists, and land use managers greater flexibility, and reduce conflicts between conservation and economic interests.

Linking state or regional conservation planning with local land use planning is one way to achieve a more comprehensive approach to habitat and biodiversity preservation. Some states and communities have already begun to do so, but to secure the nation's biodiversity and to make habitat conservation work comprehensively across the landscape, more plans that integrate wildlife conservation and local land use planning are needed.

Conservation planning offers a powerful way to address the needs of wild animals and plants while incorporating the goals of biodiversity and habitat preservation into state, regional and/or local planning processes. With conservation planning, the needs of wild animals and plants, and the human community can be considered concurrently. Such planning can help identify where to locate new housing developments, transportation corridors, and business sites so that natural habitats, aquatic resources, open space, and wildlife will be protected and conserved. To be effective, comprehensive conservation plans should be designed on a landscape-scale as much as possible, and include active community involvement.

Promoting Comprehensive Conservation Planning
In a proactive effort to protect endangered species, a number of state agencies, local and regional governments, and conservation groups have initiated comprehensive conservation planning processes. Five states — Florida, Massachusetts, Maryland, New Jersey and Oregon — have undertaken large-scale conservation assessments. Seven other states have begun to draft assessments, and others have expressed interest in drafting plans in the near future (see status map on the next page).

Although these states' assessments differ in approach, scope and methodology, all recognize the connection between conservation and land use planning, and that these disciplines can be used in a complementary fashion to help preserve biodiversity and natural habitats. This is particularly true in urbanizing landscapes where land use planning tends to focus and is most influential.

The few existing statewide conservation assessments use habitat and species information compiled by various government and private groups. Among these sources of information are the individual state's natural heritage programs. Initiated by The Nature Conservancy more than 25 years ago, these programs catalogue inventories of each state's wild animals, plants and plant communities. The Nature Conservancy has also begun to develop ecoregional plans, using ecological boundaries defined by environmental conditions such as moisture and solar radiation, and characteristic assemblages of species and habitats (Groves et al. 2000) to define 80 ecoregions within the United States. Each plan will feature conservation sites containing native plant and animal communities representative of the ecoregion's biodiversity and provide habitat for the region's "at risk" species.

To assist state fish and wildlife agencies in developing and implementing statewide conservation plans Federal funds are available through the Department of Interior's State Wildlife Grants Program. As of 2001, this program was funded at $80 million per year. To be eligible for these grants, a state fish and wildlife agency must agree to complete a comprehensive wildlife conservation plan by October 2005, and have the federal funds matched by nonfederal funds at a level of twenty-five percent for planning activities, and fifty percent for plan implementation. The State Wildlife Grants program, along with the information compiled by The Nature Conservancy and others, puts state and local land use planners in a good position to undertake comprehensive conservation planning.

However many state and local planners remain unaware of conservation plans or how to integrate them with local land use planning. Consequently, existing conservation strategies, local land use plans and related decision-making processes are not often connected effectively. Historically, local planning has not addressed habitat conservation systematically, and conservation groups and wildlife agencies have not always used land use planning processes effectively for habitat protection, hence opportunities to protect biodiversity and conserve habitat have often been missed. Even so called "smart growth" plans have often failed to include specifically designated wildlife habitats

Russian Biodiversity

Although not as rich in numbers of different plant species as the tropical forests, Russian taiga forests are home to upwards of 3000 known vascular plant species. In particular, the Ussuri taiga region containing the Sikhote-Alin mountain range in the Russian Far East has been designated as an IUCN Center for Plant Biodiversity. On Sakhalin Island in the Pacific, the shear number of plant species found in the temperate forests surpasses any other known biodiversity hotspot within the same ecological system. Due to its location, the southern portions of the Russian Far East escaped the massive ice sheets of the last glaciations, providing a refuge for species immigrating from northern territories.


Amur Tiger found in the Russian Far East (P. Schlesinger)
This unique bio-geologic history has created an unusual assemblage of flora and fauna, including Amur Tigers, Amur Leopards, musk deer, and Himalayan bears, with brown bears, reindeer and salmon (World Bank, Russia: Forest Policy During Transition, 1997). In addition, the Kamchatka Peninsula is home to the world’s largest spawning grounds for Pacific Salmon, supported by a dwindling conifer forest. The worlds largest population of brown bears lives along these rivers. Often compared the Yellowstone National Park in the United States, Kamchatka houses a fragile set of ecosystems threatened by resource extraction. Specifically, large-scale mining and gas and oil exploration has increased throughout this entire region over the past 5 years. In addition to mineral and oil reserves, Kamchatka is set directly along the Pacific ring of fire and home to over 300 volcano's of which 29 are known to be active.


Locations of High Biodiversity in Russia

Further west towards the heart of Siberia, Lake Baikal holds 20% of the world's fresh water resources. As the deepest fresh water body on the planet, over 23,000 km3 of water escapes through a single river: the Angara. The flora and fauna of the surrounding ecosystems contrasts starkly with the fact that Lake Baikal is home to more than 1500 species, 80% of which are endemic to that particular environment. The province of Buryatia struggles to protect these natural systems from the on-going construction of oil and gas pipelines heading east and south towards China.


Manchurian Walnut Tree in the Russian Far East (T. Stone )
Moving away from Siberia towards the more densely populated regions of European Russia, the Ural Mountains provide a natural barrier to eastward settlement expansion. Along the northern stretches of this range lies the largest unfragmented old growth forests left in Russia. Designated the Komi Virgin Forests by UNESCO World Heritage Committee, 3.3 million hectares of spruce, pine, larch, and fir forests lies protected from major advancements in extractive logging, gold mining, oil exploration and poaching. These northern taiga and sub-tundra ecosystems cover the largest swath of terrestrial earth, encompassing most of northern Eurasia. Within Komi lives a struggling indigenous population surviving off of some of the largest reindeer herds found on the continent. In addition, mushroom picking and berry gathering supplements the local economy.

Finally, the region west of the Ural Mountains, European Russia, is home to the vast majority of Russians. More developed, and rich in culture, Russia struggles to protect some of the last intact ecosystems scattered throughout this region. This is a very brief overview of the major biological hot-spots scattered throughout this massive country. With such a distinct representation of biological diversity, it is the responsibility of Russia with the international community to maintain these ecosystems as gems of our evolutionary