Costa Rica this year is celebrating 200 years of independence. It is an opportunity to honor our ancestors and think about our descendants, and we invite the world to celebrate with us. Those who cannot visit in person should do so by protecting the Earth’s land and oceans, the source of all life.
Specifically, governments, businesses, communities and individuals should commit to conserving at least 30 percent of the planet’s land and oceans by 2030.
Scientists have determined that this “30 x 30” goal is the minimum level of conservation needed to prevent a catastrophic loss of nature and to stem climate change.
However, 30 x 30 will not happen by itself. It would require time, attention and money.
Economists estimate that achieving this goal — by conserving the world’s most important intact wild areas and restoring crucial degraded habitats — would represent less than one-third of the amount that governments spend on subsidies to activities that destroy nature.
It is encouraging that nine major philanthropic organizations have pledged US$5 billion to 30 x 30 — the largest-ever donation to nature. Others must follow their lead.
Sixty percent of the world’s terrestrial wildlife populations have been lost since 1970, and nearly one-third of global fish stocks are being exploited at an unsustainable level. The destruction of natural areas also releases huge quantities of greenhouse gases, contributing to climate change.
True, the cost to protect nature might seem like a lot, especially as countries grapple with the economic fallout of the COVID-19 pandemic, but it is less than 1 percent of global GDP, which was about US$87 trillion in 2019, and a little more than one-third of the nearly US$2 trillion in global military spending last year.
The sum is a fraction of what economies would lose should crucial ecosystems fail. The World Bank estimates that the collapse of three ecosystem services — pollination, food provision from marine fisheries and timber from native forests — could reduce annual global GDP by US$2.7 trillion.
Because we cannot rely solely on private philanthropists to foot the bill, the necessary global investments must come from a combination of enhanced public and private finance. Every country must commit its share, with the G7 in particular leading the way with solid funding.
Governments could free up additional resources by phasing out subsidies that harm nature instead of protecting it. For example, countries are negotiating at the WTO to end US$35 billion in annual fishing subsidies that support large-scale industrial fleets and have driven the depletion of global fish stocks.
A substantial portion of the funds that we need should go to low-income countries that host most of the world’s biodiversity. For example, Costa Rica accounts for only 0.03 percent of the planet’s land mass, but contains an estimated 5 percent of its biodiversity.
Significant funds should also be dedicated to protecting the land rights of Aboriginal and local communities, who are nature’s best and most cost-effective stewards.
Nature will repay us many times over for the investments we make. The economic benefits of protecting 30 percent of the world’s land and oceans by 2030 — including job creation in sectors such as forestry and tourism — would likely outweigh the costs by a ratio of at least five to one.
The Costa Rican economy is based on nature-positive activities such as forest conservation, renewable electricity generation and biodiversity protection. Since the 1980s, the country has stopped and then reversed forest loss, while the economy has grown by about 250 percent in real terms.
Costa Rica has a system of national parks and protected areas that cover more than 26 percent of its land area. Having won one of the first-ever Earthshot Prizes will help us replicate in the ocean our successes on land.
An ambitious process is underway this year to enlarge protected areas from less than 3 percent of our oceanic territory to closer to the 30 percent promised in our nationally determined contribution last year under the Paris Agreement.
My goal is to realize this massive expansion before I leave office.
Momentum toward 30 x 30 is growing. The High Ambition Coalition for Nature and People — led by Costa Rica, France and the UK — has engaged more than 70 countries in support of this goal.
The latest draft of the Global Biodiversity Framework — which is to be finalized by 196 countries at the UN Convention on Biological Diversity in Kunming, China, next year — has recognized 30 x 30 as a crucial feature.
However, actions speak louder than words. Governments, firms and all of society must dedicate the financial resources needed to achieve 30 x 30.
Nature is the ultimate source of all of our fresh water, food, clean air and genetic resources for medicine and industry. It keeps dangerous pathogens in check and carbon in the ground, and generates green jobs. It is an irreplaceable source of human creativity, and spiritual and mental health.
Humanity is enmeshed in nature. Because we are capable of destroying it, we are responsible for protecting it. Let us decide now to invest the funds needed to fulfill that responsibility before it is too late.
Andrea Meza is the Costa Rican minister of environment and energy.
Copyright: Project Syndicate
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