[MPWG] Food for thought! Sustainable use - a farce?

[Patricia_DeAngelis at fws.gov]

Dear MPWG'ers -

The article below espouses that conservation is being forsaken in the name
of sustainable use.  This topic is particularly apropos to our listserve as
the MPWG mission statement is "to foster communication on issues of
conservation AND sustainable use."  As usual, the article focuses on
animals, but the concepts being discussed might just as easily be applied
(or argued) to plants.

Whether this is prevailing opinion or simply one extreme, at least two
points come to my mind when reading this...

1. Because "sustainability" is inherently subjective, it is subject to wide
interpretation.

Therefore, sustainability issues will be a continual cause of
consternation.

2. This is another example of taking a single concept (sustainable use) and
applying it (often without reason and, in some cases, without merit) to
every scenario.

The idea that there is one "solution" is a losing battle.  Nothing in life
is 100%.  "The critical issues around ecological sustainability that will
determine the quality of life enjoyed by this and future generations"
require a multi-pronged approach.  I'd like to think that, with MPWG, our
mission to balance conservation and sustainable use combined with the
diverse group that we have gathered, will enable us to take a reasoned
approach toward these complex issues.

-Patricia

                 "Wildlife Conservation Has Been Hijacked"
    Limerick conference on "sustainable use" as major threat to animals


A group of the world's leading experts and academics gathered at an
international conference on wildlife conservation at the University of
Limerick in mid June 2004. Conference delegates discussed that the global
conservation agenda has been hijacked and now poses a threat to the
protection of wildlife and habitats worldwide.


'Wildlife Conservation: In Pursuit of Ecological Sustainability' is the
first in a series of international forums being hosted by IFAW,
(International Fund for Animal Welfare). The IFAW Forum at Limerick ran
from June 16 to 19 in the Jean Monet Theatre at the University.


Dr David Lavigne, one of the world's leading marine mammal scientists, was
among the array of eminent international experts presenting papers at the
forum. He said, "Conservation has reached a turning point. It has been
hijacked by the so-called 'wise-use' movement. This Orwellian takeover has
stolen the mantle of conservation and abused it to promote trade in
wildlife under the guise of ecological sustainability."


"We need to scrap conservation as we know it, because it has become part of
the problem, not part of the solution. It must be reinvigorated, revised
and reinvented to do any good at all. The most obvious option is to adapt
traditional conservation principles to deal with the realities of the 21st
century," Lavigne said. "Perhaps both the word conservation, and the
movement it inspired, should be abandoned and replaced with something that
recognizes humans are a part of nature and that the future of our species
and that of others are inextricably linked."


The threat to animals under the current climate of conservation was
emphasized by Professor Martin Willison, of Dalhousie University, Halifax,
Nova Scotia, who pointed out that a quarter of the bird species that
existed 10,000 years ago are now gone for ever and an eighth of those still
surviving are listed as at risk of extinction. He added: "Most species of
invertebrate animals, for example, have not been named. Un-named species
are currently being wiped out en masse in the deep seas before they have
ever been seen by human eyes."


Other presentations explained how the commercial exploitation of species
can destroy the harvest it seeks, as with cod which have declined by 90% in
the North Sea since the 1970s, and the vast wealth of cod stocks off
Newfoundland, Canada, that have crashed by 99.9% over the past 40 years.


Vivek Menon, of the Wildlife Trust of India saw economic pressure as
disastrous: "The sustainability of the ivory trade is a theoretical myth
constructed by ivory tower economists that ignores market trends, trade
perceptions and cultural beliefs. We can no longer ignore the precautionary
principle in wildlife conservation."


The conference was attended by about 85 scientists and other experts from a
range of backgrounds spanning ethics to economics from all around the
world. As one of the organizers Dr Lavigne, added: "The two dozen invited
presenters represent a unique range of talent focused on wildlife
conservation. This is a high-powered forum and a world first in bringing
together such diverse knowledge and experience to discuss and debate this
issue. Hopefully this conference will be a catalyst for change in the whole
approach to wildlife conservation worldwide."


Welcoming the convening of this conference at UL, Professor Roger GH
Downer, President said, "We are delighted to have such a gathering of
distinguished scientists on campus to address the critical issues around
ecological sustainability that will determine the quality of life enjoyed
by this and future generations."


The series of invited presentations and supplementary papers will be
published as a book.


Apart from presentations, the conference featured a public lecture by the
world-renowned ape expert, Dr Jane Goodall, entitled 'Reason for Hope' on
June 18. More than 150 people attended  her talk. She is spoke of a new
momentum which can be clearly perceived in mankind for conservation of wild
species but she warned that there is no time to lose.


End


(Adapted from a press release by International Fund for Animal Welfare
(IFAW)).


Views and comments are welcome. Thereafter, I would like to place before
this group developments in India seeking consumptive use of wildlife which
is a nice way to say "kill and use".


Ashok Kumar




Patricia S. De Angelis, Ph.D.
Botanist - Division of Scientific Authority
Chair - Plant Conservation Alliance - Medicinal Plant Working Group
US Fish & Wildlife Service
4401 N. Fairfax Dr., Suite 750
Arlington, VA  22203
703-358-1708 x1753
FAX: 703-358-2276
Working for the conservation and sustainable use of our green natural
resources.
<www.nps.gov/plants/medicinal>