Conservation Programmes

by keval100 (student)

Conservation is the maintenance of the biosphere and enhancement of biodiversity locally.

Conservation of species ensures the conservation of existing gene pools. For ethical reasons it is important to conserve potentially useful genes for future generations of humans as well as for the survival of the species itself.

Present-day plants and animals used in agriculture and horticulture have been developed from plants and animals that were originally in the wild. Breeding increases genetic uniformity with the loss of rarer alleles. In the past breeders may have neglected some important qualities, such as resistance to cold and disease etc. These need to be added back into highly cultivated varieties, using the wild plants and animals as a gene bank. If habitats, and the wildlife that live in them, are threatened, this may no longer be possible. There is also concern about the progressive destruction of the tropical rainforests.

Among many trees and shrubs are medicinal properties. The extinction of any plant species before its chemical properties have been investigated could amount to an incalculable loss. In recent years there has been much concern about the loss of gene pools and legislation has endeavoured to prevent the extinction of endangered species.

These are some of the steps which have been taken:

Habitat Protection – Nature Reserves – SSSI
International cooperation restricting trade e.g. in ivory and whaling
Breeding programmes by zoos and botanic gardens (including sperm banks and seed stores)
Reintroduction programmes e.g. red kite in mid Wales
Pollution Control

Habitat Protection

Nature Reserves

A Nature reserve is a tract of land managed so as to preserve its flora, fauna and physical features. In the UK, the Nature Conservancy Council is the government body which establishes nature reserves managed by wardens e.g. Kenfig ...

This is a preview of the whole essay

These are some of the steps which have been taken:

Habitat Protection – Nature Reserves – SSSI
International cooperation restricting trade e.g. in ivory and whaling
Breeding programmes by zoos and botanic gardens (including sperm banks and seed stores)
Reintroduction programmes e.g. red kite in mid Wales
Pollution Control

Habitat Protection

Nature Reserves

SSSI (site of special scientific interest)

A site of special scientific interest is a site in the UK which is of particular importance because of its geology, topography or ecology. E.g. Merthyr Mawr Sand Dunes.

International Cooperation Restricting Trade

Ivory

In 1989, CITES voted that the elephant was threatened with extinction, and listed the elephant on Appendix I as a "most endangered" species. In 1990, a ban was imposed on the international trade of ivory. As a symbolic gesture, Kenya destroyed its ivory stockpile valued at over $3 million. This ban, however, did not affect the domestic sale and use of ivory. During the 1980s, poachers killed an estimated average of 200 African elephants a day for their tusks. Thus, the population plummeted to an estimated 625,000, down from 1.3 million in 1979. Since the ban went into effect, the population has fallen only slightly, to 580,000.

Whaling

International cooperation on whaling regulation began in 1931 and culminated in the signing of the (ICRW) in 1946. Its aim is to “provide for the proper conservation of whale stocks and thus make possible the commercial whaling and the orderly development of the whaling industry.”

Breeding programmes by zoos and botanic gardens

Sperm Banks

These can be used to save native breeds of animals from extinction. For example, the RBST (Rare Breeds Survival Trust) has its own cattle and pigs semen bank where semen is for sale.

Seed Stores

These store seeds as a source for planting in case reserves elsewhere are destroyed. These seeds may be food or those of a rare species to protect biodiversity. Storing seeds also guards against catastrophic events like natural disasters, outbreaks of disease or war. can stay for decades in a cool and dry environment, with little damage to their ; they remain viable and are easily stored in seed banks. By contrast, are damaged by dryness and subzero temperature, and so must be continuously replanted to replenish seed stocks. Examples are the seeds of cocoa and rubber.

Reintroduction programmes

Reintroduction is the deliberate release of a species into the wild in zones formerly inhabited by said species but where it has disappeared from for a number of reasons, from or relocated from other areas where the species still survives in. It usually involves species that are or .

By the 20th century the breeding population of red kites had become restricted to a handful of pairs in Wales, but recently the Welsh population has been supplemented by re-introductions in England and Scotland.

Pollution Control

Pollution control is a term used in . It means the control of and into air, water or soil. Without pollution control, the waste products from consumption, heating, agriculture, mining, manufacturing, transportation and other human activities, whether they accumulate or disperse, will degrade the .

The following methods are a few of those used: